Free Deception by Dan Lawton Page B

popular social networking sites. He’s a banker with a college degree and a lifelong resident of the city. As far as I can tell, this guy is a nobody.
    He’s ordinary, dull, and forgettable.
    He’s perfect.
    Across the street, Alicia slides into George’s car and he pulls away shortly thereafter. I start the van and trail the Honda Civic, keeping a good distance between us as it obeys all traffic laws until it arrives at a sprawled out housing community a few miles from the center of town. I drive by the compact ranch and get a visual of Alicia without stopping. I park the van a few hundred feet past the driveway and wait.
     
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    A few hours later , Frank’s snores wake me, bringing me to the realization that I too had fallen asleep. The illuminated clock in the center console provides a small glimpse of light in the van. It’s 2:33 A.M. I check my phone: No messages from Alicia. She apparently has decided to make herself comfortable and is staying the night. That wasn’t part of the plan, and quite frankly, it isn’t necessary. I’m a little perplexed at her for thinking she has the authority to make these types of decisions. Or maybe it’s jealousy, or envy. Maybe I want her to give me the attention George is getting, even if it’s not sincere.
    I’ll give her another couple hours before I send her a message. For all I know, they could still be up talking, so I can’t risk blowing this opportunity. I set myself an alarm as a reminder before trying to fall back asleep. She needs to be out of there before George wakes up in the morning, and she will be.
    I’ll make sure of it.
     
     

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
GEORGE
     
     
    The ride back to the warehouse has become routine. I sit in the back of the van across from Frank while Billy drives, mostly in silence. My hands are tied in front of me more loosely than usual, per my granted request. This allows me to slide the rope down my forearms a bit, thereby reducing the aggravation on my callused wrists.
    Despite there being no windows in the back of the van, Frank uses an old neck tie to blindfold me as we’re about halfway back, I presume. The tie isn’t quite wide enough to cover my eyes, so I can see the floor of the van through a small slit on the bottom. I imagine the idea is that I can’t see where we’re going, but there’s nowhere to look out anyway, so it’s actually rather pointless. I play along just as Billy does I’m sure, as a way to keep Frank feeling involved.
    As we come to a stop, I can hear a steel roller opening a garage door then closing it again as we pull forward. After going through the usual motions of Billy opening the back doors of the van and Frank escorting me out, they lead me through some doorways and down some corridors, then into a familiar smelling empty room. Frank removes the makeshift blindfold and leaves.
    “Get some rest,” Billy says. “It’s going down tonight.”
    He leaves, slamming the door behind him. In the corner of the room, opposite that of the wet spot from the leaky ceiling, is a flat pillow and wool blanket. It wasn’t there before, but I’ll take it. The old wooden chair from in front of the two-way mirror is still there, so I know it’s the same room. Ignoring the hunger growls in my empty stomach, I lie down on the pillow and close my eyes. The cement is cold beneath me, but the blanket helps to mask it slightly. I fall asleep almost instantly.
     
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    My deep sleep is interrupted by the door opening and closing. It’s dark, but I can hear soft footsteps approaching me. A figure is standing above me, but my eyes aren’t adjusting quickly enough to make out who or what it is. A quiet whisper comes from the figure.
    “Are you awake?” it’s a woman’s voice.
    I grunt.
    “George, it’s me.”
    “Alicia?”
    Suddenly remembering where I am, I pop up to the sitting position and the blood rushes to head, making me dizzy. I ignore it.
    “I just wanted to see how you are,” Alicia