Page 25 of Merciless Obsession (The Bloodline #2)

“Hold up.” Lucas put his hands up. “All that tech shit is something Emmet would know. I know the basics but what you’re saying is foreign to me.”

I sighed. “Just know they’re great at covering their tracks. The ads are only up for a couple hours. I’ve even found bidding sites but nothing that can indicate who is behind all of this.”

“Fuck,” Lucas mumbled. “So you’re telling me Adrian could have been trafficked?”

I nodded. “I don’t know what the ads are exactly, but I’m sure the bidding sites are for pedophiles. There’s also a spot for them to upload videos. It’s sick as hell.”

It shocked me that he didn’t crack any teeth from how hard his jaw clenched. His shoulders rolled back and he stood straight.

“I’m going to look into some things and ask around. I have some guys I’ve helped that owe me some favors who operate in The Sticks.” He turned and looked back at the board.

“Can I keep this?” I grabbed the picture.

He waved his hand. “I have copies. Go ahead.” His phone went off and he pulled it out of his coat pocket.

“Shit. I got to go. You should get with Emmet. I’m sure the two of you could figure all this shit out together.”

We left my office and headed downstairs to the front door. “Lucas.” I called his name before he could open the front door. He paused.

“Ezra, he’s different from you and your brothers, isn’t he?” I asked.

Lucas turned to face me. “Different in what way?” He genuinely looked confused.

I shook my head. “Never mind.”

Lucas looked me over. “Ezra is a little high strung compared to the rest of us. He’s a bit impulsive, but he’s smart. Padre wouldn’t allow him to be his successor if he wasn’t.”

“Mhm.” I nodded slowly.

He didn’t tell me anything I didn’t see for myself, but there was more.

Maybe Lucas didn’t know that his brother was off in the head.

Looking at Ezra, he didn’t come off like a psycho.

In fact, when I looked on his social media, he was popular among the women.

Hundreds of them ogled over him in his comments. It was sickening.

“If you learn anything else, let me know. I texted you my number.” I didn’t bother to ask how he got my number.

Lucas left my house and I released a deep breath, running my hand over my forehead.

Getting in bed with the Tavarez family wasn’t on my bingo card, but it was too late to turn down.

As much as I hated to admit it, maybe it was time to connect with Emmet.

With another brain on this we might be able to get further.

____

Inaya

I don’t like you meeting this guy at a hotel. Makes it look like you’re a hooker.

I laughed at my friend’s text and replied.

Me

Hookers get paid. I’m just getting an orgasm…hopefully.

Closing out my text, I pulled up Spark Mate , the hook up app I created.

James had helped me fund the app when we first met.

It was for people who wanted to meet people without any attachments.

It was secure and required you to upload your license and a current photo before you were approved to sign in.

An extensive check went through to make sure you weren’t a sexual predator looking for your next victim.

It was another profitable avenue of mine that I treasured.

It was pricey to maintain but the membership fees made up for it.

Sneaky links and random hookups were more common than you think.

The guy I was meeting was new to me. James was no longer an option, and even if he was, I planned on cutting him off anyway since he was getting too clingy.

This guy understood I wanted nothing past tonight.

We both were just looking to get off. The tease Ezra gave me reminded me that I hadn’t gotten off since I was with James before I was kidnapped.

The desire I felt for him scared me and made me want to put distance between us.

Tonight would be the perfect distraction.

I booked the hotel under Ashley and arrived twenty minutes before he was due to arrive. I checked the app and went to my messenger tab. The last message from the guy Maine was that he was on his way. That was twelve minutes ago.

I walked over to the window and stared out into the city. It was lit up and busy. The sound of cars filled the silence in the room. My room was in the front of the hotel on the tenth floor. I watched as people came and went out the door and valet as they moved cars around.

My phone vibrated again and I thought it was Maine letting me know it was here, but when I checked I saw it was Inaya.

Ignoring her, I clicked off and went to Instagram.

First I checked the Shadows of Silver Stone page.

My latest blog post was earlier today about unregistered offenders I found living close to a school in the city.

I made sure to include where they were, pictures, and offenses.

After going through the notifications on that page, I went to my personal account then to Ezra’s page.

I hated to admit checking his page had become a part of my daily routine.

Out of all of the brothers, he posted the most. The guy was conceited if you asked me, but rightfully so.

His latest picture was one from behind, heading into the courthouse, a briefcase in hand. The caption read: The Shark en route.

I rolled my eyes when I went to the comments and saw the thirsty women.

A lot of them mentioned how they would hire him and he could defend them anytime.

I scrolled down Ezra’s page until I got to a picture with all four brothers.

They were all smiling besides Emmet. Nazai had more of a crooked smirk on his face, but he looked happy.

Him and Ezra being side by side really showed how much they favored.

The Tavarez’s were hot commodities everywhere it seemed. Nazai’s page got a lot of love too, not just his club page but his personal one too. He didn’t post as much as Ezra, but it was enough to create a buzz. The picture of the four had a plethora of likes and was flooded with comments.

By the time I closed the app I realized Maine was late. I went into Spark Mate and messaged to get his ETA. I wasn’t trying to be here all night. Punctuality was big to me and Maine already was on strike one for being late.

Time went by and by the time an hour passed and the message to Maine was read but not replied to I figured he wasn’t coming. Rolling my eyes, I exhaled an annoyed breath. Not only did I waste money getting this hotel room, but my time was wasted too. Two things I didn’t take lightly.

First blocking Maine, I went and grabbed my sweat suit to put it back on. I had gotten a matching forest green bra and panty set for tonight. Just because this was a random hookup didn’t mean I didn’t like to feel sexy. The material was thin and see through, showing off my nipples.

Making sure I had everything, I prepared to leave. On my way to the elevator, I texted Inaya.

You can stop worrying. The guy never showed. I’m omw back home.

Hitting send, I pressed the button to call the elevator. My foot tapped impatiently. It looked like it would be me and my toys tonight.

It was a little after eleven by the time I checked out and got inside my car. I turned my heat on full blast to quickly warm my car and rubbed my hands together before throwing the gear in park.

An incoming call came through after I pulled away from the hotel and started for home.

“Yes, Inaya,” I answered, checking my mirrors to get over.

“What happened?” she asked.

“You read the text. He didn’t show up. I don’t know why and I didn’t ask.”

She smacked her lips. “Damn babe, so now what?”

“I go home and try again another day.”

I didn’t do repeats outside of James, but maybe I should break my rule and meet up with someone I knew would show.

“Why don’t you come to the casino this weekend? There’s always some high rollers during the weekend and you can pick up someone there.”

“No.” I shut her down. “That would require them wanting to talk and get to know each other. That’s not what I want.”

“Are you sure that’s why?”

I glanced at my dashboard screen then back at the road. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I mean, maybe you only want to connect with a certain someone who likes to take you against your will.”

I stopped at the red light and tapped my fingers on my steering wheel.

“This has nothing to do with him. I don’t even like him.”

Inaya snickered. “Are you sure? You said he still sends you roses and notes, right? That you keep, I might add.”

“I can’t stop a grown man from doing what he wants.”

“But you keep them!”

I rolled my eyes and pressed the gas when the light changed. “Okay, that doesn’t mean anything.”

“He gave you a nickname.”

“Again, I can’t control other people’s actions.”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re tough, Ziora, and if you really didn’t want that man around you I’m sure you can make it happen, but you haven’t. Let me ask you this. Have you changed the codes to your house?”

I stayed quiet, turning on the street that led to mine.

“Exactly.”

“I haven’t had time,” I defended weakly.

“Liar! You could do it in two seconds on your phone. If you wanted to lock your house down like Fort Knox you could, but you haven’t.”

“Anyway, Inaya. Is that all you called me for?”

She snickered. “Yes and no. I saw the one brother. The quiet, cute one.”

“Emmet?” I turned onto my street.

“Yeah. I think he was staking someone out. When I noticed him and tried to talk to him he ignored me as if I wasn’t there. Took a couple photos with some high tech camera and walked off.”

“And what did you do?” I knew my friend. She didn’t take being ignored lightly. Her personality was too loud and bold for that.

“I might have followed him and accidentally backed into his car.”

“Inaya!” I turned my blinker on, preparing to turn into my driveway.