The Art of Deception Page 2

  She looked at him and laughed as she walked towards a table in the room that had whiskey glasses and a flask of whiskey. She placed some ice into a glass and poured some whiskey into it. “Would you like some Mr. Rolston?”

  “Yes. No ice.”

  She poured the whiskey and brought it over to him. She then sat in her chair and looked directly into his eyes. Her piercing hazel-brown eyes seemed to look straight into his soul. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and cleared his throat.

  “Ms. Stanford, I cannot fathom how my affair could become public knowledge. I am very discreet about my rendezvous. My wife and I don’t get along. Linda is my release.”

  “It already has become public knowledge Mr. Rolston. It’s only a matter of time before the entire city knows about your rendezvous, but that is the least of your problems. We all know that your private meeting with that blonde pales in comparison to the evil deeds you’ve done. Fix it before we have to fix it for you.”

  His rage began to intensify. He couldn’t believe the audacity of this incredibly sexy woman. How she rose to this level of prominence in this clandestine organization dominated by men baffled him. She didn’t seem like the type of woman who would sleep her way to the top; she was too smart for that. So how did she do it? He made a mental note to do some research about this mysterious woman when he had the chance.

  “Is that a threat Ms. Stanford?”

  She rose from her seat and strode confidently towards the door. After opening it abruptly she said, “Interpret it however you want to. Good day Mr. Rolston.” He sat in stunned silence for a few seconds before he got up and walked towards the door. He felt like a frightened dog with its tail tucked between its legs. With what little courage he had left he said, “This isn’t over Ms. Stanford.”

  “It will be soon, if you don’t heed my warning.”

  He walked through the door and headed down the hallway. She firmly closed the door behind him. The hallway now felt colder and narrower than before. Any threat from such a powerful organization was meant to be taken seriously. However, Carlton Rolston wasn’t going to be bullied into conforming by a woman, no matter how intimidating she was. He needed to clear his head. So he got into his Audi and drove to the apartment of the only woman he loved.

  _____________________________________________________

  He gently knocked on the door as he anxiously shifted his weight from one foot to the next. Several thoughts swirled through his mind. How was he going to protect Linda? Would anything he did even matter? Within a minute he heard the locks being pulled and the door opening. “Hey! I wasn’t expecting to see you until tomorrow,” she said with a huge smile on her face. Her blonde hair was caught up in a loose bun and she was wearing her favorite pink pajamas with little hearts scattered all over. She had never looked more adorable. Carlton took it all in - the light scent of her perfume, her slim face that looked gorgeous even without makeup, and the curves of her slender body that couldn’t be hidden even under the loose pajamas. She was his guilty pleasure, and he knew he wasn’t going to let her go. He would find a way to keep her safe. “Well, are you just going to stand there gawking at me or are you going to come in?” she asked with a sly smile.

  “Sorry, I couldn’t help it. You’re just so gorgeous.”

  She smiled as she walked towards the kitchen. “I was just about to start dinner. Make yourself comfortable.”

  “How about we skip dinner and go straight to dessert?” he asked as he moved swiftly towards her.

  Soon they were entangled in each other, the dinner long forgotten. They made passionate love. He etched into his memory the way her body felt, how her skin smelt, and how her lips tasted. After two hours of intense passion, she fell asleep beside him. He watched her sleep. She looked even more beautiful as she lay there peacefully. Soon after he also fell asleep.

  The following morning, he was awakened by the sound of the thin, pink drapes blowing softly in the gentle breeze. The smell of lavender-scented candles and vanilla beans wafted through the air. He closed his eyes, relishing being surrounded by the scents of Linda Walker and then turned to wrap his arms around her. “Good morning beautiful,” he whispered into her ear.

  “Hey handsome. Ready for breakfast? I’m starving.”

  “I have an insatiable appetite for something other than food,” he said as he nibbled her ear playfully. She turned so that they were staring directly into each other’s eyes. Her ocean-blue eyes entranced him and told stories of a life filled with adventure and pain. He found her enthralling. She kissed him passionately and then quickly rose out of the bed exposing her naked skin. He watched her as she sauntered towards the bathroom, her perfectly shaped hips filling his entire body with longing. She was the perfect combination of sexual and intellectual appeal. The perfect mistress. He wasn’t going to allow Ms. Stanford to force him to get rid of his moments of complete bliss. When he was with Linda he felt alive. He never felt this way with his mundane wife Janet. Never.

  Ten minutes later she stepped back into the bedroom, changed into a pair of jeans and a blouse that hugged her curves, and headed to the kitchen. Soon after the smell of fried bacon and eggs filled her tiny apartment, prompting Carlton to get up and head towards the bathroom.

  He closed his eyes as he allowed the warm water to cascade along his chiseled torso. He took his physique seriously and made it his point of duty to visit the gym at least three times per week. His workouts gave him well defined muscles and abs that were the envy of his colleagues. They also gave him more strength than the average man.

  While massaging his shampoo through his black, curly hair he heard a loud scream. Quickly, he wrapped a towel around his waist and ran out of the bathroom and into the living room. “Linda, where are you? What happened?” he called out. He began to hear muffled screams. “Linda, where are you?” Before he could wait to hear a response, a man with more muscles than he thought humanly possible, terrible beady eyes, and a crimson red scar across his face walked into the living room. “It’s nice to finally meet you Mr. Rolston,” the man said in an eerily calm tone.

  “Where’s Linda?”

  “Is that any way to greet your guest? Couldn’t you even offer me a cup of tea?”

  Carlton began to scan the room, hoping to find anything that he could use as a weapon. “Man, I don’t know who you are or what your problem is. If you want money, I can give that to you. Just give me my girlfriend.”

  “Walt, bring her in here,” the man shouted.

  A tall, slender Latino man walked into the room with a knife at Linda’s throat and one hand over her mouth. “L-l-let her go!” Carlton screamed, hoping that he hadn’t given away how terrified he was.

  “You were warned Carlton,” the man said.

  “Please, she’s innocent. Take me instead.”

  “I’m here to teach you a lesson.”

  Antonio slowly guided Linda to the center of the living room where he had hung a short length of rope. “Bring the dining room table. Do anything funny and I’ll slit her throat.”

  Carlton did as he was told while he tried to find a way to save both their lives. As soon as he moved the table, he felt strong hands grab him around his neck. All the evenings he had spent in the gym proved useless as he attempted to overcome the strength of this terrifying man. The man’s left arm was in a dead-lock position around Carlton’s neck and Carlton could feel his windpipe constricting. As he gasped desperately for air, he felt a sharp, tingling feeling in his neck. His once racing heart began to beat slowly to the tune of the clock hanging on the wall. Before he knew it, he collapsed on the floor and blacked out completely.

  The beady-eyed man nodded at his partner who swiftly took his position by the table. “Let’s make this interesting Freddie,” the beady eyed man said.

  “She is a sexy woman boss.”

  “That she is.”

  “I want to see her without these clothes boss.”

  “That can be arranged, right Linda?”


  Linda began to squirm and tried to attack him where she knew it would hurt the most. He laughed. “A feisty one aren’t you? If you don’t do what Walt says I’m going to slit your throat. Understand?”

  She nodded. “Walt, what do you want her to do?”

  “Take off your clothes.”

  “I’m going to let you go so that you can do what he says. Try anything funny and you’ll regret it.”

  He let her go and she slowly began to undo the buttons of her ivory blouse. She began looking around the room for an object that she could use to defend herself. There was no way that she was going to be raped without putting up a fight. Her eyes fell on the antique candle holder her mother had given to her the Christmas before she had died. She was now at her pants, but the candle holder was on the table on the other side of the room. She had to find a way to distract the two men. “Why are you guys doing this? I heard you telling Carlton that you were teaching him a lesson,” she asked the beady-eyed man.

  “Hurry up and take off your clothes,” said Freddie.

  “I need to know what’s happening,” she replied.

  “What’s happening is that today is going to be your last day alive. Any last words?” said the beady-eyed man.

  She needed to create a distraction, something that would get her close enough to that antique candle holder. “Freddie, don’t I know you from somewhere? Did you go to Columbia University?” she asked. She knew that was a poor attempt at a distraction. Freddie didn’t look like the type of guy who would have gotten a tertiary education. While he looked at her quizzically, she inched closer to the table where the antique candle holder was sitting. “I didn’t go to no Columbia. You’re taking too long to take your clothes off,” he said. She had been using her left hand to slowly unbutton the blouse and was now at the last button. She had finally gotten close enough to the table where the antique candle holder was sitting. “I’m trying to make this as sexy as possible for you,” she said while discreetly reaching behind her for the antique candle holder. When the final button was undone, she took the candle holder and hurled it at Freddie. He never saw it coming and it connected with his forehead with a loud bang.

  The beady-eyed man didn’t wait for her to react. Instead, he moved swiftly towards her and dragged off her pants and underwear. She writhed and screamed with all her strength, but it proved futile. Before she knew it his huge arms were around her neck and, with one swift motion, he broke it. She instantly saw darkness and was slowly pulled away from life as she knew it.

  ____________________________________________________________

  Mark couldn’t get the image of the woman out of his head. It was a crude act to hang such a beautiful woman as if she were meant for public display. Jan had instantly called 9-1-1 and the police and medical personnel were now milling around the apartment building across the street. Mark was watching intently, hoping to see his friend Eduardo who was a detective. Within minutes, Mark spotted Eduardo talking to one of his colleagues. “Jan, I’m going to go across the road to talk to Eddie.”

  “I’m coming with you.”

  “Ok. If you’re coming then I need to tell you what I saw.”

  “We both saw the same thing Marki - a dead naked woman.”

  “Yes, yes I know, but there was a man lurking in the shadows who knows where Karen is.”

  Jan stared at him with disbelief. Instead of responding she opened the door and began walking down the steps. Mark jogged quickly to catch up with her.

  There was a buzz of activity on the ground floor of the apartment. All the tenants had been asked to leave their apartments and there were several police officers conducting interviews trying to piece together a case. Mark spotted Eddie talking to an elderly woman and he instantly walked towards him. As he approached he could hear the lady saying, “My cat… I think whoever did this also killed my cat.” Mark could see that Eddie’s patience was wearing thin and he seemed relieved when he saw Mark. He told the woman that he would look into her cat’s death and then walked over to where Eddie was standing. “I was almost sure that she was going to tell me that her cat killed that woman,” Eddie said as he shook his head. Mark laughed. “I realize that Jan made the 9-1-1 call. Did you guys see anything that I could use?”

  Jan, who was standing behind Mark, said “Mark saw something that you need to know.”

  “I think I saw the man who killed her and I think that man knows where Karen is,” Mark said as he cleared his throat.

  Shock was evident on Eddie’s face as he guided Jan and Mark onto the street. “Do you know who that woman was,” Eddie asked.

  “I’ve never seen her before in my life,” Mark replied.

  “Her name was Linda Walker.”

  Mark stood in shock. One of the aspects of his article focused on Mayor Rolston’s infidelity. So, he knew who Linda Walker was. He just never realized that she lived only a few meters away from his apartment.

  “Yes, I know who she is. I’m not sure how much I can tell you, but she was involved with a prominent individual.”

  “This seems like a staged suicide, but if we don’t have enough evidence we won’t be able to pursue it as a murder case. You have to tell me everything you know Mark,” Eddie said.

  Mark looked at Eddie intently. They had been inseparable friends from childhood. He trusted him implicitly. “She was Mayor Rolston’s mistress.” Eddie paused for a minute. Janice was dumbstruck. “You can’t go around making statements like that Mark. How do you know that she was his mistress?” she asked.

  “I have photos of the two of them together. Intimate photos.”

  “Well, we’re going to need you to put your investigative skills to good use Marki boy. We need to find the link between this murder, Rolston’s affair, and Karen’s disappearance,” said Eddie.

  They made plans to meet by the end of the week and then Mark and Jan walked back to Mark’s apartment. Mark began contemplating what his next move would be. He took out his phone and dialed the number of the only person he knew who could help him.

  Chapter Three

  Four days missing

  Carlton awoke to the grating sound of the dripping faucet. That, and the incessant chirping of crickets, was enough to worsen Carlton’s throbbing headache. Slowly, he opened his eyes and was greeted by darkness. He tried to lift his hand to touch the huge bump that had developed on his head, but realized that both his hands and feet were bound with coarse rope. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, he saw the silhouette of a woman hunched over in the corner of the room. “Hey, you over there. Where are we?” he asked but received no reply. He watched her closely. She looked disheveled and terrified. After watching her for about a minute he realized that she was crouched on the ground eating the mud that had formed from the dripping water. She turned to face him and her dirt-covered face, parched lips, and huge frightened eyes told him that she had been there for a while.

  Before he could make another attempt at communicating with her, he heard the sound of stiletto heels pounding on the floor outside the tiny room. Click. Clack. Click. Clack. He watched the heavy metal door with increasing trepidation. After what seemed like five minutes, the door was thrust open and the beady-eyed man entered followed by Ms. Stanford. “Mr. Rolston, it’s good to see you again, albeit unpleasant circumstances,” she said as she sat in the sole chair in the room.

  “What do you want with me?” he asked.

  “I don’t want anything from you. My boss, however, wants to know if you’ve gotten the message.”

  “Message! Woman, you people killed the only woman I love. Yes, your message is loud and clear. You’re murderers. Tell me something, why does your boss send a delicate woman like you to do his dirty work?”

  “I do my job, Mr. Rolston, in the same way you’re expected to do yours. Will you be voting for his company to win the bid for the upcoming building project on 34th Street?”

  “Do I have a choice?”

  She looked thoughtfully at
him and then averted her gaze to the woman hunched in the corner of the room. “Ringo, bring her to me,” she said. The beady-eyed man walked over to the woman and grabbed her arm firmly. The woman cowered in fear and Carlton’s heart was filled with compassion for her. Ringo guided the woman directly in front of Ms. Stanford and then took his place at the metal door.

  “Karen, why do you look so terrified?”

  “Please Angella, let me go. I don’t have what you want.”

  “Oh, but you do my sweet sister. Sooner or later he’s going to find his way here.”

  “I won’t let you hurt Mark!” Karen screamed. Angella laughed in a sinister tone.

  “What are you going to do to stop me?” she said as she spat in Karen’s face. She looked at Ringo. “Get him out of here.” Ringo nodded as Ms. Stanford stood up, walked through the door and down the hall. The sound of her clicking heels echoed in Carlton’s mind. Click. Clack. Click. Clack.

  Ringo dragged Carlton to his feet and led him out of the room. He slammed the door shut. “Let’s go, lover boy,” said Ringo. As they walked down the narrow corridor, Carlton tried to take in the surroundings. There was wood paneling along the walls and no windows to offer any form of ventilation. Lining the walls was a series of light bulbs set in exquisitely crafted lamp shades. After three minutes had passed they finally approached a dark metal door. Ringo pushed it open to reveal a stone staircase leading upwards. He shoved Carlton in front of him and they both began their ascent.

  “How did you start working for Ms. Stanford,” asked Carlton.

  “What makes you think that you have the right to talk to me?”

  “I’m just trying to make conversation. It’s not like I have anything better to do.”

  Ringo grunted. “I think I may have to knock you out.”

  “No, no. Don’t do that. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

  Carlton wished that he could rub his fingers on his temple vein so that he would get some relief from his intensifying headache. Linda’s smile flashed through his memory and caused a sharp pain in his heart. The Society took away the woman he loved. He had to find a way to make the members pay, regardless of how powerful they were.