Page 35 of Ever After
“Was she to your liking?” The owner comes out of the shadows.
“She’s extremely well behaved. You’ve done a good job breaking her. I can’t wait until I have her to myself.” I give him a cocky smile.
“There’s been a change of plans. She won’t be available for this auction. Based on feedback from the others, she needs more time. I wanted to give you a taste of her, to entice you to come back at a later time.”
My heart pounds against my ribs.Did I hear this fucker right?I shake my head, trying to wrap my head around what he just told me. “What do you mean, she won’t be available? What was the point of letting me fuck with her if I don’t get the chance to own her?” I growl.
I just left her in the fucking lion’s den. I clench my fists and hold them to my sides as I shake in anger.
“There are two other lovely girls you can bid on, but Crimson won’t be for sale this month. I told you I wanted to make sure she is well-behaved, and she performed well, but not to my standards. I appreciate you taking part in our business dealings, and I trust you’ll keep this confidential. No need to let people in on our little secret, yes?”
I turn to open the door, but it’s locked. He smirks and raises his eyebrow in question.
“Then I want to come back tomorrow and get another opportunity with her. I’ll pay you for it.”
His smile fades, and something resembling a snarl takes its place. “No. Keep it up, and I’ll call security and have you and your friends escorted out.”
I can’t get banned from this place, so I swallow my pride and give him a curt nod. I huff and walk past him and enter the main part of the club, walking straight to the table. Trent is the only one standing there.
I grit my teeth. “Where the hell is everyone?”Are they seriously getting busy with these girls?
“We need to go, now. Ask questions later.”
I toss some cash on the table, and we are out the front door in less than a minute flat. Winston pulls up in an SUV. He motions toward the back seat, and I jump in. Finley’s passed out and is leaning against Chad. Her head rocks to the side as the car flies down the road on bumps.
“Oh, God, Finley.” I reach across Chad and hold her face in my hands. “What the fuck happened, Winston? This wasn’t part of the plan.” Her breathing is deep and even. She looks peaceful. I can’t even imagine what type of shit she has had to endure these past few weeks.
“I was sneaking around and overheard them talking about shipping her off. I knew you’d go ballistic if that happened, so I deviated. I had to get her out of there.” He takes the turn a little too fast, and we all jostle in our seats.
“What about the other girls? Did you get them, too?”
“Gray, they aren’t stupid and probably already know who you are. Your cover’s been blown, especially after tonight. I called the department and spoke with Shaw. She’s sending a team down there ASAP to take care of things. She’ll get the other girls and get your mystery man.” He grips the steering wheel so tight, his knuckles are white.
“I can’t go to my house. We need to hide somewhere else.”
“We’re going back to my place. You can stay there for a few nights until Shaw has everyone in custody.”
“They’re going to look for me. I need to get back to my hotel room tonight. Make sure when you bring her back to your house that you don’t have a tail. Hang out in a parking garage for all I care, just don’t letanyonesee her.” I can’t stress enough how important it is to me that she not be discovered.
We pull up in front of the hotel, and I jump out, walking up the stairs quickly. I try to calm down, and I wipe my sweaty palms against my slacks. When I reach the door to my room, there’s already a large man standing there waiting for me.
“What the fuck do you want?” I growl. “I won’t say anything about his precious place, but I don’t want either of the other girls.” My voice is deep and menacing. He doesn’t want to fuck with me right now. I have so much pent up anger, my fist will be in his face in a matter of seconds if he doesn’t move the fuck away.
“Boss wants to chat with you. Seems your party left quickly tonight.” He hands me the phone. I snatch it from his hand and place it against my ear.
“Biggs,” I growl.
“Mr. Biggs, seems we have a bit of a problem. Crimson’s not here, and your party was quick to leave tonight. I wanted to inquire as to her whereabouts?” His voice is calm, eerie-like.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. We had our fun and were ready to call it a night. You’re the last person I saw, and my associate and I left after that. Everyone else had left prior. Maybe your girl wasn’t as well-trained as you thought she was.”
“Well, interestingly enough, the cops showed up right after you left.”
I swallow hard but try not to give myself away. “That is interesting. Don’t know what to tell you, though. I don’t know the cops around here.”
“Stay close, Mr. Biggs.”
He disconnects the call, and I hand the phone back to the man. “Get out of here.” My shoulders are so tense they might as well be up by my ears. I need to get a grip on my emotions if I’m going to make it through this. I’ve never been this pent up over a mission. Usually, I go in, get what I need, and get out.