He answered on the third ring. “Taxi.”
“Avery? It’s Kayli.”
He sputtered and then breathed into the phone. “Kayli? You okay?”
“Uh, kind of,” I said. “Could you do me a favor?”
“Hang on a second,” he said, and then he spoke, but it was muffled and obviously not to me. “Yo. Get out. No, it’s close enough. It’s a block away. You can walk it. Sorry. Have to go.”
He was doing his job in the borrowed car? Guess he had to work after all. It’s not like everyone can be Academy guys and just fly off and do whatever.
“Okay,” Avery said. “What is it?”
“I didn’t mean you should dump your fare,” I said.
“My what?” he asked. “Oh. No. We were almost there anyway. Lazy shit can walk. What do you need?”
Rude to customers. Wow. Still, he’d done it to help me out, so I guess I couldn’t say anything. “I need you to fetch someone for me and give them a message.”
“Are we still messing with kidnappers? Are you sure about this?”
“He’s not a kidnapper. I just need to get a message to him.”
“You couldn’t call him?”
“I don’t have his number. I just know where he lives. Can you do it?”
“Sure, okay. Same place? The Aquarium? Or the Sergeant Jasper?”
“No. South of Broad Street.”
He whistled into the phone. “You know some fancy people?”
“I need you to hurry.”
He shuffled on his end of the phone. “In trouble?”
This was getting to be a routine now. “Maybe.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m on John’s Island, on my way back from Kiawah. I need a place to talk to him. I don’t know if I have anyone following me, so I didn’t want to bring them to his house.”
“Who’s following you?”
“I don’t know,” I said. I checked the rearview mirrors. “I’m not sure how to tell.”
“The easiest way is to get on a lonely road that doesn’t have any off streets,” he said. “Try Folly Beach. Pull up to the end of the block on the island, stop there, and turn around. See if anyone rides up or if you can catch them on the way there. If you see anyone, though, you shouldn’t stop. We’ll have to think of something else. Maybe stop in front of the police and fire station that’s right there.”
“How do you know this?” I asked.
“Saw it on a cop show once,” he said. “You want me to drive your friend out to you?”
I sucked in a breath, turning the wheel, trying to recall the way to Folly Beach. “Maybe…actually, yes. Drive him. I’ve got a car. I’ll meet you at the pier.”
“Which house am I going to?” he asked.
I gave him the address. “You want to talk to Blake. Tell him my name. Tell him where I am and that I need him to come with you to get to me, but to be discreet about it.”
“Okay, I get you. Blake. You don’t want me to tell him Bambi or some other code?”
“You won’t have to,” I said, hoping. I was gambling as it was. There was a real risk that Blake would possibly slam the door in Avery’s face. It was partially why I wasn’t going to drive to his house. Avery might throw him off long enough to hear him out and make him realize how serious this was.
I was going to hang up, but Avery was doing his thing, driving, breathing into the phone. “Should I let you go?” I asked.
“Just hang on,” he said. “I got you. I mean, just in case he’s not sure, I want to keep you on the line.”
I grew quiet, occasionally answering him when he asked if I was still there. I drove on toward Folly, and driving the long stretch of two-lane road through the darkness toward the island. Since it was off-season, there shouldn’t be a whole lot of activity. I checked my rearview, watching. I was alone save for Avery. Not that Alice really needed me if she thought she had Corey.
I hoped Brandon had escaped and I was wrong about her having kidnapped him.
“Okay, there,” Avery said after what seemed like forever. “I’m there. Just knock on the front door?”
“I guess,” I said.
Shuffle, shuffle, knock, wait, breathing.
“Can I help you?” A refined Charleston accented male voice made it through the line. My heart rushed and my cheeks heated at the sound. I realized I probably sent Avery to get punched, but hopefully Blake wouldn’t lash out at him if he was upset with me.
“You’re Blake? You open your own door?”
“Last I checked, it was my door,” Blake said. “I reckon you’ve got the wrong place though. I never ordered a cab.”
“Just tell him!” I said, feeling revved up now at hearing Blake’s voice. My heart had been racing hard for so long, and the sudden surge made me want to keel over and catch my breath.
“Why are you on the phone?” Blake asked. “Who is that?”
“It’s Kayli,” he said. “She’s on the road right now to Folly Beach. She was kidnapped, but now she’s not kidnapped and her friends are kidnapped. They’re kidnapping guys now.”
There was a shuffle and then Blake’s voice. “Kayli?”
“...Yeah?” I said carefully. I swallowed, hoping I was making the right decision. I had flashes of memories sweeping through me of his car sinking into a swamp. And his yacht that had a blown up hole in the side and smashed into an island. And shooting him in the leg. He was my best chance at getting the boys back right now. I didn’t have anyone else, not anyone I was willing to risk. Corey couldn’t come out of hiding. Then we’d really be in trouble.
I could picture the gold flecks of Blake’s eyes burning something fierce. “Did someone kidnap you? Did those criminals get you wrapped up in something else? I told you...I told you...”
“No time,” I said. “Are you busy?”
“I’m fixing to lay a hurtin’ on your gorgeous ass if you don’t stop piddling and tell me what’s going on.”
Maybe he wasn’t that mad at me. “I need you to come talk to me. Let Avery bring you. I’ve got a car and then we’ll let him go. He’s already been mixed up in this enough.”
“Who’s coming for you?”
“I don’t know. Two groups of people. Just hurry up before they get here. They might be looking for me now. It’s a long story.” I was pulling up on Folly Beach and wanted to focus.
There was shuffling on the phone. The guys were talking. Car doors slammed. My heart was in my throat, but at least Blake was on the way.
??????
I pulled into the empty lot in front of the pier. It was next to a hotel, which was a good idea to run for if someone was following. I pulled around, turned off the lights, waiting. In the meantime, I checked out what Henry Anderson had in his car. An Academy car would have toys, wouldn’t it? They were spies after all.
The glove box had binoculars, a medical kit, a brand new cell phone still in the box, a flashlight, a pocketknife and a notepad with a pen. I wish I’d known about the cell phone. I didn’t like using Ethan’s.
Things got quiet on the phone. “Blake?”
“It’s Avery,” he said. “Tell this guy I can drive, will you? He took my keys. He’s going to wreck the car trying to get it through traffic the way he’s driving.” He pulled the phone away. “This road. No, wait, stop, if you go that way, there’s construction and it’ll take longer. There’s a back way. Trust me. I drive for a living!”