Scenario:A private investigator named Veronica. Constantly being bound and gagged as apart of her job.
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A private investigator named Veronica. Constantly being bound and gagged as apart of her job.
I was bound and gagged.
Again.
It was becoming a habit, one I should probably be concerned about, but right now I had bigger problems to worry about.
Like the fact that I was tied to a chair in an abandoned warehouse with no idea how long it would be before someone came back to check on me.
Or if they’d even bother to come back at all.
I could be left here to die, and no one would know what had happened to me.
The thought made my heart race and my breath come in short gasps as I struggled against the ropes binding my wrists behind my back.
I’d been in this situation before, but never like this.
Chapter 1
I was supposed to be tailing a suspect, gathering evidence.
I wasn’t supposed to be the one who needed rescue.
Especially not when the person who’d rescued me was…
Well.
It was complicated.
And I wasn’t ready to face the truth about what had happened that night.
I was trying to avoid it, actually.
Hence why I’d forced myself to take this case even though it went against my better judgment, and why I was now in this mess.
The truth is, it was never really about the money.
It was about doing the right thing.
Wealthy families hired me all the time to spy on their children, to find out where they were going, who they were hanging out with.
Most of the time, those kids were just that—kids.
Rebelling against their overbearing parents by staying out late, drinking too much, getting into minor trouble.
They weren’t bad people, they were just acting out.
I wasn’t out to get them in trouble; I just wanted to make sure they were safe and well taken care of while they went through that period of their lives.
But sometimes, it wasn’t that simple.
Sometimes the families weren’t concerned with their children’s welfare so much as their inheritance.
And sometimes—like this time—it wasn’t just about money at all.
It was about power, and manipulation, and intrigue on a scale so large that it boggled the mind to think one family could be involved in so much seedy business all at once.
But that’s what made it so interesting—so impossible for me to resist.
"Veronica, are you sure you want to go through with this?"
Mickey asked me as we pulled the van to a stop in front of the building.
I spared him a glance from where I was busy setting up the video camera to film the house across the street, just in case someone tried to come by while I was gone.
"You know I’m not going to let anyone get hurt," I said, snapping off the camera and shoving it into a backpack along with some other surveillance equipment I’d need for the stakeout.
"And if anything happens, you and Sarah know what to do."
Mickey didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t push either.
It was about doing the right thing.
Wealthy families hired me all the time to spy on their children, to find out where they were going, who they were hanging out with.
Most of the time, those kids were just that—kids.
Rebelling against their overbearing parents by staying out late, drinking too much, getting into minor trouble.
They weren’t bad people, they were just acting out.I wasn’t out to get them in trouble; I just wanted to make sure they were safe and well taken care of while they went through that period of their lives.
But sometimes, it wasn’t that simple.
Sometimes the families weren’t concerned with their children’s welfare so much as their inheritance.
It was about power, and manipulation, and intrigue on a scale so large that it boggled the mind to think one family could be involved in so much seedy business all at once.
But that’s what made it so interesting—so impossible for me to resist."Veronica, are you sure you want to go through with this?"
Mickey asked me as we pulled the van to a stop in front of the building.
I spared him a glance from where I was busy setting up the video camera to film the house across the street, just in case someone tried to come by while I was gone.
"You know I’m not going to let anyone get hurt," I said, snapping off the camera and shoving it into a backpack along with some other surveillance equipment I’d need for the stakeout.
"And if anything happens, you and Sarah know what to do."
Mickey didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t push either.
"Okay," he said, "but be careful, okay?"
I smiled at him before opening the door and climbing out of the van.
Chapter 2
I remember my heart racing in my chest as I struggled against my restraints, knowing that if I didn’t get out of here soon it would be too late—if it wasn’t already too late.
My breathing came in short gasps around the duct tape covering my mouth, and my mind raced with possibilities as I thought through everything that had gone wrong from start to finish—how they had found me, how they’d known who I was, how they’d managed to get one over on me like this.
"Veronica?"
Mickey’s voice came through my earpiece, breaking into my chaotic thoughts and bringing me back to reality.
I closed my eyes and took a slow, calming breath before responding with a hoarse whisper.
"Veronica, can you hear me?"
"Mickey!"
I hissed, and he sighed a breath of relief.
"Thank god," he muttered softly.
"I’m here, Veronica, I’m here. Now, stay calm and listen to me, okay? Remember when we had that camera installed in your watch?"
A camera?
What was he—?
Before I could finish that thought, Mickey continued talking.
Yes, but it’s not a camera, he said.
It’s a lot more useful than that.
And suddenly I knew what he was talking about, knew what I needed to know to get out of this mess.
I couldn’t help the small smile that quirked my lips as I glanced down at the watch on my wrist, then I quickly found the small button hidden on the side of it.
I pushed it, and after about fifteen seconds, I felt the ropes binding my hands grow slack around my wrists.
"Good," Mickey said when he realized what I’d done.
"Now get out of there and get back to the van as fast as you can. I’ll pick you up."
I didn’t waste time arguing—I got to my feet, ripped the duct tape off my mouth, and fumbled for a moment with the ropes around my wrists before cutting them in half with the tiny blade from my watch.
Then I was off, running for the door as fast as my long legs could carry me.
I was almost out before I remembered the camera and went back to grab it—hopefully they wouldn’t notice it was missing before I had time to make a copy of it.
Once it was safely tucked inside my pocket, I made my way out of the building and into the alleyway behind it.
I glanced around wildly for Mickey and didn’t see him at first, but then a battered old car pulled up to the curb next to me and he leaned over to open the passenger side door.
"Go!"