Page 52 of Rescuing Riley
She steeled her nerves, rushed into Liza’s office, and closed the door with gentle ease. Riley swallowed her nerves then found the short filing cabinet that Liza had spoken of. Riley stuck her hand in and felt around on the underside of the top, but the wood was smooth with no signs of a thumb drive. Maybe she hadn’t heard Liza right. Riley turned, and when she did, she squealed and slapped a hand over her heart.
“Looking for something?” Mr. Gansett asked in a not-so-nice voice.
What the heck happened to the nice guy I met earlier?
Riley tried to speak, but words failed her.
He tucked his hands into his pants pockets. “I’ve been through this office, and you won’t find what Liza is looking for.” His tone was devoid of any emotion.
“Let me guess. You have the thumb drive.”
“Actually, I don’t. But you’re going to lead me to it.”
Immediately, Taylor came to mind. She had to have it.
He whipped out his phone. “Get up here.”
Riley’s pulse started to gallop. All she could think about were Haley’s words.“We’re dead anyway.”
Riley didn’t want to die, but she also wouldn’t go down without a fight. The problem was she had no way out except past Mr. Gansett. He was a large man and could probably stop her in a flash.
As she thought of her next move, Riley couldn’t help but remember something her mom had warned her about. “Sweetie, men can strap on the charm, but underneath all that chivalry can be a snake waiting to bite.”
Mr. Gansett was a snake and a great actor. He’d given Riley no indication he was in bed with the mafia.
Riley tossed a look over her shoulder for nothing more than to give herself a minute to think of an escape route. But jumping through a window fifteen stories up wasn’t an option.
Her body stiffened when she saw two large men in the reflection of the window. Her blood froze solid. Riley turned ever so slowly, trying not to panic, but that was futile.
One of the men had biceps the size of Mount Everest. The other had a muscular build, but what rendered Riley speechless was his bald head. He was the same dude she’d seen in the black SUV.
Mr. Gansett waved them in. “Take her and get me her phone.”
Riley should’ve been shaking in her flats. She should’ve been screaming bloody murder. But Ross had always taught her to stay calm if she were ever cornered.
“The more you fight, the more you run the risk of getting hurt, or even worse—killed,”he’d said.“Wait for the right moment to attack when they’re not expecting it.”
Mr. Gansett whispered to both men.
That one or two seconds gave her ample time to get her phone out of her purse. As she dug around inside, Riley was failing at the only task that could probably save her life. She had to call Josh or at least send him a text.
She continued to feel around in her bag, not taking her eyes off the men.
Mount Everest Man studied her for a beat before he stalked over, holding out his hand. “Give me your purse.”
Riley’s breathing ramped up as she backed away the closer he got. Before she could take her next breath, she was up against the window.
His large paw came at her. Riley ducked and ran toward the door.
Baldy blocked her with an evil smirk on his pocked face.
Mr. Gansett crossed his arms over his chest. The pinhead was enjoying all this.
Riley inched backward, right into the arms of Mount Everest, who threw her purse on the desk. The sound exploded in the room, causing Riley to jerk, and when she did, Mount Everest let go of her.
“You won’t be needing this,” Mount Everest said as he tossed her phone to Mr. Gansett.
Suddenly, Riley wanted to cry. She had no way out and no way to call for help. Staying calm was out of the question.
