Page 6 of Intangible
Memphis waited until he had received promises from both men to keep his secret between the three of them. Pushing his lips together in a thin line, Memphis silently debated with himself what he was about to do one more time before nodding with conviction.
“Do you have something personal that belongs to her?” When the senator pulled a pink stuffed bunny out of his bag, Memphis rolled his eyes. “I have to do this holding a stuffed animal?”
“She got it when she was a baby. She never slept without it, she even took it to college with her. Knox said to bring something special to her,” the senator said.
Memphis glared at Knox, who was trying to stifle his shit-eating grin. It was starting to worry Memphis how much the other man seemed to know about him. He knew the military had buried his file deep to keep it away from any combatants that might want to kidnap him. If these men had the ability to dig up a burned file, why couldn’t they find one missing woman?
“Just set it on the coffee table.” They all looked toward the bedroom when they heard whimpering. “Do you remember what I said?” When they nodded, Memphis turned toward Knox. “You’d better take care of my fucking dog,” he added before focusing on the bunny.
Most of the time, when Memphis was hunting for a missing soldier or insurgent, he had to focus hard on the item he was given. It could take quite a while for him to find them. However, occasionally he seemed to have a special connection to the person. When that happened, he would be transported instantly to them. It was rare, but it did happen.
With a deep breath, Memphis reached for the bunny, clutching it in his hands.
Chapter 2
The first thingthat hit Memphis was the smell. There was a strong profusion of urine, body odor, and mildew.
Taking a minute to look around the room from his dark corner, he stopped on the small body lying on a cot in the large metal cell. Watching her intently for a few minutes, he relaxed slightly when he realized she was still alive, just apparently asleep.
Further investigation of her would have to wait, though, until he could finish his recon of the room. Taking in every detail, he eased out of the dark corner until he could look out the doorway into a dirt tunnel.
The room was dug out of rock like a root cellar used to keep vegetables cool through the summer months. It had been fitted with a cage in one corner that looked like a glorified kennel measuring approximately six by eight feet.
A cord stretched across the ceiling where a low-watt bulb hung to provide the little bit of light the room had. There was an open doorway leading out of the room and from the way it looked, a tunnel ran into the darkness.
Memphis guessed there was a set of steps to a door leading outside at the end of the tunnel. Whether the door led out next to a house in the city or in the middle of nowhere, he had no idea.
“They left a while back. No one will be back until later to bring me something to eat.” Memphis jumped at the sound of the hoarse voice behind him.
Spinning around, he met two large blue eyes staring back at him. She had propped herself up on the cot, watching him warily.
“Where did you come from? The door hinges creak, so I know you didn’t come from out there,” she said, waving her hand weakly at the doorway. Her cage contained nothing but a small cot, a blanket, and a bucket, he assumed, was her bathroom.
“Thayer Kent?” Memphis asked, sticking his head out of the room to look down the tunnel. When she didn’t answer him, he took a step back into the dank room. “Are you Miss Kent, Senator Kent’s daughter?” he asked again. She nodded without taking her eyes off him. “My name is Memphis Prescott and I’m here to try to help you.”
Thayer watched as he walked down the tunnel before returning after a few minutes. There was something odd about him, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what.
“How do I know you’re here to help me? You could just be another one of them,” she said. “If you’re really here to help me, then let me out.” Her eyes narrowed as she took him in. “Who sent you?”
Memphis studied her for a moment. She definitely wasn’t some poor, helpless victim. Thayer was thin looking and filthy, but her eyes betrayed her intelligence and her chin jutted up in defiance. He liked this woman, she was a fighter. A lot of women would just curl up in a ball giving up, but not this one.
“Your father and some big guy named Knox sent me. They brought a stupid pink bunny to help me find you,” he answered calmly, trying to give her something that only she would recognize.
Her eyes lit up for a second. “Mr. Wiggles?” she whispered, her eyes glimmering for a moment with unshed tears. For some unexplained reason, Memphis had a sudden urge to pull her into his lap to hold her. He was furious that someone thought they could just snatch her away.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. I’m holding a pink rabbit named Mr. Wiggles?” He relaxed, seeing the corners of her mouth twitch before wariness clouded her face again.
“Why didn’t they come? Where’s the cavalry I know Dad will send?” Thayer asked him. Memphis stalked toward her until she shrunk back in apprehension. He stopped immediately, his eyebrows knitting in concern. “Knox would never send just anyone after me.”
“Thayer? I’m not going to hurt you. Knox sent me because I can do what he can’t.” Thayer’s look of fear cut right through him. “Here, let me show you.” Stepping forward, he ran his hand through the bars of her cage.
“I’m like a hologram. Try it,” he said, slowly stepping the rest of the way through the cage. Holding out a hand to her, he waited patiently while she gathered up her nerve. Reaching out, she slid her hand right through his.
“How?” was all Thayer could get out as she scrambled back onto the bed. Watching her clutch the blanket to her made Memphis step back through the bars. He could see how truly terrified she was, even though she was putting on a good show. The last thing he wanted was to add to her fear.
“I have no idea. I was just born like this. I’m back in my cabin with your dad and Knox, but I can appear to you.” When she just stared at him, he finally sighed, plowing ahead. “I need to get any information from you I can so we can use it to find where you are.”
He watched as Thayer considered what he said for several beats before sitting on the edge of the bed. With a nod, she scrunched her eyebrows together in concentration, determined to do whatever she needed to get home again.
