12. New Arrivals

            Bang. Shot one. Bang. Shot two.

            They both fell in crumbled heaps. Without so much as a witty comment, Jim crossed the floor to retrieve the suitcase by the door. He didn’t look back as he exited through the open doorway. He left me with Dean and Spencer, two bleeding bodies.

            I lowered the gun, slowly edging my way around the crime scene. Tears gathered in my eyes, but I forced them back. Jim had told me what I had to do if I wanted to stay under him. I had to make the necessary sacrifices. For some reason, the true consequences didn’t settle in until I saw their limp bodies.

            Were they dead? Were they still breathing? Should I call the police or an ambulance? Idiot. Walk out. Call the police, and they’ll figure out it was you. Go, he’s waiting. He shouldn’t be kept waiting.

            I was so close to being at the door until something snatched my leg. I yelped, meeting Spencer’s fatigued eyes. She was whimpering in pain, her eyes pleading me to stop and help her and Dean.

            “Ray,” she begged quietly. Spencer rarely called me the nickname. “Please. Help…us. Don’t go with him. There’s still time to refuse him.”

            I sighed heavily. I shook my sister off me. “It’s too late for all of us. I’ve made my choice.” I started walking for the door.

            “Our parents would be disappointed in you!”

            I stopped just outside of the threshold. I closed my eyes, breathing in. “They’re dead. Those words mean nothing. Goodbye, Spence. Say hi to Mom and Dad for me, will you?”

            “Raine!”

            I walked out to see Jim waiting for me. Though he rarely showed emotion, I could see how smug he was. For once, his appearance didn’t irritate me. I found an odd sense of satisfaction well inside me.

            I may not have accepted it right away, but, I just made the best decision of my life.

***

            Loud screaming woke me up. It sounded shrill, like someone was being murdered. I jumped right out of bed, looking to see Elena was nowhere present. Shit. She woke up. I looked to the thrown-open door.

            I burst out of the room, continuing to hear Elena’s screaming. My blood went cold. Nobody had her, did they? If they did, I was definitely going to make them give her to me. She was my responsibility, not anyone else’s. You won’t be so responsible if Jim comes back and finds this chaos. Normally I’m not opposed to chaos, but this kind was unusual for me.

            I jogged down the halls before I jumped down the stairs.

            “Get off me!” a high voice screeched. Elena. “Put me down! You’re not my mummy!”

            “Elena?” I called. Another high cry made me turn around and head for the den room.

I charged in to see an unfamiliar figure wrestling with Elena. With some lighting, I could see her hair was a pale blonde like Mary’s—I was able to tell hers in the dark from last night. Elena’s eyes were squeezed shut as she clawed and wriggled around in her captor’s grip.

 “Hey, you!” The body stopped and stood erect, his back facing me. Elena still cowered in front of him, shaking like a leaf. “Get away from her.”

            “Ah, you’re her nanny.” The voice was slightly accented, a bit hard to place. Canadian? “Sleeping on the job?”

            “Move away.” With heavy stomps, I bumped into her assailant. Elena opened her eyes—they were a beautiful brown—and screamed again. I backed off, showing her I could be trusted. She scooted away from me, trying to cower in a corner. “Hey, it’s okay, sweetie.”

            “You’re not my mummy either!” she cried. “Where is she? Where’s my daddy? Where am I?”

            “What have you done to her?” I spun around to face her attacker.

            I was practically his height. He was rather clean-shaven, his dark hair combed neatly. His eyes almost made me believe Jim was standing before me, not some stranger. He dressed like Jim too, which was also a bit scary. They can’t be related. Of course, how would I know that? Jim never discussed his family with me. We weren’t that couple, we were barely one.

            “I’ve done nothing. I caught her running around.” He shrugged. “I thought she was trying to leave.”

            “Who are you?”

            “The name’s Logan. And I know who you are.”

            I raised an eyebrow. “Do you?”

            “You’re his right hand woman. Of course, the media knows you as The Viper.” He smiled warmly. “It does fit you.”

            “Thanks, I think.” My eyes narrowed. “I’ve never seen you here before.”

            “That’s because I just got here. I’m a replacement.”

            “Oh, for Andrew.”

            “I’m sorry?”

            “He was relocated. Jim shipped him off and got you to take his place? You don’t look like a criminal.”

            “Does anyone?” he retorted lightly. “You might want to get the girl before she finds the exit.”

            I turned my attention back to Elena, who was watching us adults with terrified eyes. She didn’t look like she was going to run off anytime soon, not while we were in the same room with her.

 I immediately let down my guard. I wasn’t going to give the kid tough love, I couldn’t approach her like that. The best thing was to gain her trust and persuade her to hang around. I was going to have to tap into my side I’d long put behind me.

            “Don’t get near me!” Elena squeaked. “I don’t know you people!”

            “It’s okay, sweetie,” I said in a sickly sweet voice. Ugh, I’d never heard myself so sound motherly before. “You’re okay.”

            “I want my mummy!”

            “She’s not here.”

            “Then I want my daddy.”

            “He’s not around either.” I took another few slow steps towards her. “Your parents are in a bit of trouble right now. Something bad happened, and they called me to come get you and bring you back here. You’re staying with me for a little bit until things work out for them.”

            “I don’t know you!”

            “Your parents barely ever mention me, I’m sure. I’m one of your mommy’s friends. You can call me Aunt Raine if you like.” I smiled towards her. I saw her guard drop just a fraction.

            “Mummy’s never talked about any of her friends. I’ve never heard your name.”

            “Well, now you have. Come on, back to the room.”

            “I don’t want to.”

            “Why not?”

            “He’s still here.” She looked past me to Logan, who watched us intently.

            I cleared my throat, throwing him a look. “You might want to back off.”

            “My apologies.” He slowly backed off. “Don’t think this is the last time we’ll meet, Ms. Whitmore. I have a feeling we’ll be running into each other a lot here.”

            “Oh joy.” Once I heard Logan leave the room entirely, I focused on Elena. “You don’t have to hold my hand or anything, but come with me. Let’s set some ground rules.”

*      *      *

            “You made the exchange fast,” I noted to Jim over the phone later that night. “It didn’t take long, did it?”

            “No. Logan is going to be much better than Andrew ever was.”

            I leaned on the balcony railing. “It’s weird to have him around, Jim. He’s sort of like you, with the way he dresses and all. It’s kind of scary, actually. It reminds me that you aren’t here.” I hadn’t meant for my voice to dip into a sad tone.

            “So, everything went well last night?”

            “Yes.” I spun around to watch Elena eat what I gave her on the floor. She did have a plate to have her food on. I wasn’t about to let her eat on my bed. “She’s a bit skittish still, but that won’t be an issue. She already trusts me over Logan.”

            “Huh. I thought she wouldn’t want anyone near her.”

            “Logan tried to wrestle her to the ground, I saved her. That’s the only reason why she’s in the same room as me. She’s asked a lot of questions, but I’ve answered them all.”

            “With lies, of course.”

            “Of course.” I scratched my forehead. “My only concern is her trying to sneak out while I’m asleep.”

            “If she does, I’m sure one of the others will catch her in the act. Why not just lock the door and the windows?”

            “Jim, I highly doubt a little girl is dumb enough to try and escape off a balcony.”

            “You never know with children, Raine. They can be pretty unpredictable.”

            “Oh, like you’ve had a child?” I scoffed.

            “No, I was very unpredictable when I was young.”

            “Remind me again why only a few people are here and not your entire criminal web?”

            “Raine, if I offered every last one of my connections a place to stay, we’d have to build hundreds of mansions to fit them all! Be thankful there aren’t more people there with you.”

            “So I’m guessing it boils down to if they annoy you or not?” I laughed. “Is that why they’re here?”

            “I can’t just leave the place hollow all the time. It’s got a lot of functions, darling.”

            “Why’d you choose Logan anyway? Did you go through an interview process and choose the best?”

            “No, he volunteered as soon as he heard the news. A lot of people want to work for me if they think they got what it takes. He’s got something special. You’d never suspect he’s a good torturer.”

            I swallowed. “You know how to pick them.”

            “He doesn’t need a reason to do it, either. He gets more enjoyment out of it if he’s got a reason for choosing his victim.”

            “Ah, now I see why he’s special.” I bit my lip, worried. I hoped Logan didn’t think about using Elena. I wondered if he had a heart for children. Judging by how he acted with her earlier today, I doubted it.

            “Just keep on his good side, and you have nothing to worry about. Alright?”

            I nodded even though he couldn’t see it. “Right. When are you coming back?”

            Jim chuckled. “You want me back that badly?”

            “I’m asking out of curiosity.”

            “I won’t be away for too much longer. Once I come back, we’ll catch up on some things.”

            “We better, because I want to know why I put my neck on the line and shot someone just to kidnap a girl.”

            “Oh, Raine, you should have some idea at this point. If you don’t, I’m disappointed. You know who I love to mess around with.”

            So it did have something to do with Sherlock Holmes. I should just assume every new game in London is because of him.

            “Let me guess, that’s where you are now? You’re out somewhere in London trying to think of ways to terrorize him?”

            I didn’t realize I was talking to a dead line until I got no response. I scowled.

I looked back at Elena, who looked like she was falling asleep. I sighed. I’ve got to play babysitter. It looks like my criminal plans will have to be put on hold for a while.

**Logan wasn't originally supposed to be here, mind you. As I wrote this and decided Andrew's disappearance, I kind of felt like there needed to be someone to replace him. So, what do you think of him?**