Page 10 of Tear Me Down (Descent to Darkness Trilogy #2)

Chapter five

Ashia

Pitch black falls upon us. With it being the late evening, there’s not even a bit of natural light to flood in the windows.

Everything dives into darkness as my body is jerked away, plastered to the wall of muscle I’ve come to recognize.

Gasps and loud voices of the startled guests ring out around us as the band stops playing, and I react by gripping Damien’s arms so tightly I might be digging into his skin.

Dranan is right here. Smiling and making conversation like he didn’t try to kill us a few days ago, and now I can’t see a foot in front of me.

The situation has made my body run cold.

Damien saw that before the lights went out.

Right? The knife at his side? He had to have.

Nothing else escapes his senses. Surely that didn’t.

I was holding it together well, using every bit of my self-preservation to maintain control and do what he needs me to do, but I’m losing it now, spiraling down into my thoughts and allowing memories to resurface.

When I was a kid, the power would randomly be cut off in the middle of the night because my parents hadn’t paid the bill, and I was afraid of the ghosts that lived in the dark.

How when I was a teen, I’d sit in the corner of my room with a knife, afraid of my cracked-out father walking in angry.

Even last week, when the dark void clouded my vision, and all I wanted to do was reach out for Damien and yell for help, but I couldn’t.

Even his reaction is unsettling. I’ve never seen him so worried. The way he’s holding me right now screams fear, and that’s not something I’ve really witnessed from him before.

“Ladies and gentlemen, remain calm! We’ll have everything back up and running in just a few moments!” I hear Dranan announce, and it could be that I’m so scared that I’m over thinking, but I swear he sounds closer than he was before. My breathing picks up, pulling me deeper into a state of panic.

“I’m right here, baby. I’m right here. It’s going to come back on in a second,” Damien whispers in my ear, keeping his grip tight and stroking my stomach to keep me calm.

I sink into him, allowing his scent and warmth to envelop me completely now that the loss of sight is heightening my other senses.

In a flash, the lights cut back on, drawing more gasps from everyone around us.

I blink my eyes a few times to adjust to the light before quickly looking around, releasing a relieved huff when I see that Dranan has stepped away.

He’s moving back towards his friends near the stairs, walking alongside men who look like the security from outside.

Damien then turns me around to face him, and he immediately looks me over .

“Are you okay?” he asks quietly, but not enough to hide the worry in his voice.

“I'm fine. Just shaken up.” I take a breath and squeeze his hand, reassuring him. “Why did we need to do that?” He leans in close, holding me against his chest.

“We thought this was a good opportunity to test out our new thermal tech,” he whispers in my ear. I pull back a little and look up at him.

“So, it was just a test?”

He shakes his head.

“Not necessarily.”

“Then what was the point in that?” I raise a brow as he leans in towards my ear again.

“If they thought Hugo was in danger, besides protecting him, what else would they try to cover?”

“His business associates?” I whisper back, and he nods.

“Yes, but they’re here in the room with him. What else?”

I think for a moment, not really sure who else they would need to watch over that wasn’t attending the party, but still in the building. Though, Damien said ‘what’ not ‘who.’

“Anything that Dranan would’ve hired them to guard...”

“Exactly, and whatever is that important for Hugo to hire security for, I want to know about it.”

“So, why the thermal?”

“That way we can see where in this ginormous mansion security ran to at the first sign of trouble, without us having to move away from Hugo’s sight.

” He pulls back and looks around the room, scouring the area like he’s searching for somebody.

“Yeah, I see them.” he says quietly, but I know he’s really talking to Carter.

“Alright, everyone. Now that the power has been checked, we’ll get started in just a few minutes,” Dranan says over a microphone, his disgusting voice ringing out among the crowd as Emmett and Linette step back up to us.

“Oh! I wonder what he’s going to say! It’s about time someone came up with a plan to fix downtown!

” Linette says excitedly, and the rest of us just look at each other with knowing glances.

Is that how those who aren’t involved view this?

Could they actually believe his lies and think this is a good thing?

Linette continues chatting, talking about all of the things that could change downtown.

About the homeless and drug addicts, the crime rate, and how ‘cleaning up’ the area would be beneficial for the community.

I hate that she truly believes that Dranan Hugo could solve all of the city’s problems, but once he’s exposed and put to an end, she’ll realize the truth.

Damien keeps looking over towards the same spot. Glancing at three taller men who are also scouring the room like they’re expecting someone.

“Are you okay?” I ask him quietly.

“Yeah. I need to go talk to Tyler and DJ,” Damien says, nudging his head forward in their direction.

“Okay. Let’s go talk to them.”

“I’ll need to pull them away from the crowd, and I don’t want to make him suspicious of you.”

“What do you need to talk to them about?”

“I need them to distract Hugo long enough for us to check out the second floor.”

“Send Linette. She’ll have him talking for hours.” I gesture over to her. The poor thing is still talking, so deep in her own conversation that she hasn’t noticed no one is paying attention to her. Damien chuckles and shakes his head moderately.

“Don’t worry. She’s plan B.” I can’t help but giggle at his joke, and then I look over at Tyler and DJ.

“Well, go talk to them. I’m fine. I'll stay with Emmett,” I suggest, looking back at him to see the scowl that has manifested on his lips.

“I don’t want to leave you alone.”

“She’s good with me, Damien.” Emmett steps up and reassures him. “Do what you need to do.” He lifts his brows, insinuating that he knows the plan. Damien then nods reluctantly and kisses my forehead.

“I'll be right over there. Stay where I can see you. I’ll be right back.” I nod my head as he walks off. My eyes linger on his form as he increases the distance between us.

“He still paranoid?” Emmett asks me with a chuckle.

“He’s always paranoid; it’s part of his personality.” I giggle back and turn to him. “How’s Charlie? Did he freak out that I was gone?”

“Oh, he’s fine. Dirty as always. He came in the day we re-opened, worried sick about you. I told him that they weren’t allowing visitors, though, and to see you when you came back.” He widens his eyes briefly and tilts his head towards his wife.

“Yeah, they didn’t want anyone else to get what I had.

Hopefully I can come back in a couple of days,” I play along.

Linette finally ends the conversation with herself and turns her attention back to us.

“You take your time, honey. We’re fine,” Linette says, and I shoot a look at Emmett.

The last time he said they were ‘fine,’ he almost lost the building.

“She’s right. A very generous donor paid for the damages, and I recently won a small lottery.” His eyes widen again, and he easily nudges his head in Damien’s direction. He gave Emmett money? When did he do that? Was it more than what he paid him for the contract?

“Well, I’m glad you guys are doing okay, then.

” I look towards him, wanting to see his handsome face and make sure he’s alright.

I see him talking to Tyler and DJ, when a tall and lanky blonde woman walks up to them.

Damien doesn’t seem the slightest bit interested in her, but she definitely seems absorbed in him, gawking up at him and puffing her fake boobs out.

I watch as she stares at him, and then puts her hand on his arm, leaning in close enough to settle her chest on his bicep.

My face instantly stews with jealousy, and I almost feel like I might get sick. Why is she touching him like that? Does he know her? She seems extremely comfortable with him. Even as he side steps out of her reach, she doesn’t stop. Only stepping back up to him again.

“Who the fuck is that?” I interrogate Emmett. He turns to look at her and releases an annoyed huff.

“Oh, that’s Cheryl,” he says, with disinterest in his voice.

“Who the hell is Cheryl?” I inquire without drawing my gaze away.

“She owns that damn massage parlor on the south side of downtown.” I snap my head to look at him, my eyes wide.

“ That massage parlor?”

“Yep,” he says definitively. “Does Damien know her?”

“Definitely not that well.” Or at least, I hope not. Linette shifts her weight onto one hip and settles her hand on it while looking at Cheryl, almost as disgusted as I am.

“That woman has slept with half the men downtown.” She reveals, and I snap my head to Linette instead.

“Linette,” Emmett warns her, attempting to keep his voice low so the other guests don’t hear.

“What? She has. I remember having some choice words with her myself when you first opened the shop.” She points her finger into his chest, obviously getting defensive.

“Are you serious?” I ask and turn my attention back to her and Damien, a sense of desperation washing over me as my heart begins to beat against my ribs.

“Don’t cause a scene, Ash. I'm sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything,” Linette says, a tinge of attitude in her voice, as if she doesn’t really mean it.