His words make my blood run cold as I lift myself ontoshaky arms.
He chuckles darkly, the sound making my muscles tense and lock up. “Did you ever wonder why she ran off, Rosalie?”
I don’t see his leg angle back until it’s too late. His boot connects with my ribs, and I fall onto my side as my arms curl around my throbbing abdomen. The breath wheezes past my lips as I cough and hack.
He holds his hands out as if he’s some fucking messiah and not a sick, twisted old man who has tried to exploit his own daughter for money. “She knew she was next!” His deranged cackle fills the truck as he paces before me. “That’s why she fucking left! I used to make her hook on the corner for money! She was a pathetic prostitute, but a favorite among her clientele.” He squats back down, and I flinch. Satisfaction with my reaction bursts in his eyes as he gives me a sinister smirk. “I wanted to sell her too, you know? She was a pretty piece of ass, but now, her daughter can take her place.”
His hands claw at me, hoisting me up. I try to fight, my legs kicking and my nails digging into his arm as I try to rip at his fucking skin. He only squeezes me tighter, taking away my air as he drags me out of the truck. He tosses me onto the concrete of a vacant parking lot, and I roll before picking myself up onto trembling arms.
“Why the fuck is she covered in blood?” A new voice asks, and my head whips up.
Three men are leaning against a black van. The one who spoke is the tallest and oldest in the group. He looks to be in his late forties with thick, black aviators covering his eyes and weathered hands. His voice sounds like pure gravel, rough and unforgiving. I don’t miss the bulging muscles that seem to strain his dark t-shirt.
The man to his right is younger, maybe thirty? He has a lean build with long legs that stretch for miles. He’s also smirking at me hungrily, as if he can see beyond my clothes. Something unpleasant and revolting crawls up my neck, and I look away from him.
The last man is stout and seems to be around the same age as the first. His belly is big and rounded, and his beady eyes pierce me from behind the wire-framed glasses that rest over the bridge of his nose.
All three of these newcomers make sirens blare in my head. They have a distinct aura—like they command darkness and have found peace with their skills. They’re predators in every sense.
“Doesn’t matter,” Dad says as he hops down from the truck. “One pop star, as requested. I’ll take cash.”
The group's leader turns to the lanky man. “Get her for me, Sal. I want a closer look.”
Sal’s eyes light with fascination as he stalks towards me. I push back only for Dad to use a boot to kick me towards the hunter closing in on me. Sal wraps his thin fingers around my bicep, hoisting me up as his hands paw at my hips. I whimper low, turning my face away from his as he gets uncomfortably close to me.
“Hey, there, beautiful.” He croons, his putrid breath making my eyes sting with tears. His touch feels wrong.Dirty. “What’s your name?”
“R-Rose,” I manage past trembling lips.
He hums. “Not for long. I think we’ll call youCandy. How does that sound?” When I don’t respond, he takes that as an invitation to keep going. “You just smell so sweet…” He drags me closer until our noses almost touch, and my face screws up. “I bet you taste sweet, too.”
My stomach is churning. My skin feels like it’s too tight everywhere he touches. I hate it.
He drags me over to his friends, presenting me with a sweeping hand that ghosts over my left breast. “How does Candy sound? She’ll sell quickly.”
The leader slides his sunglasses over his forehead as haunting, dead hazel eyes roam over me. He rubs his chin as if he’s in deep thought. “You’re the real deal, aren’t you? I’ve seen you on talk shows.”
“Holden,” The pudgy man says with urgency. “We need to get on the road.”
Holden holds a hand up, silencing his accomplice. “Jeremy, pay the man in full. We’ll take good care ofCandy.”
Jeremy nods before opening the van's back door and pulling out a suitcase. He doesn’t open it as he hands it off to Dad.
“Twenty mill. It’s all there.” The rounded man says.
Dad doesn’t bat an eye as he salutes them. “A pleasure doing business with you.”
“We’ll be in touch, Waylon,” Holden says, giving my father a pointed look. “I expect to see you at the safe house with the next shipment in two days.”
Dad climbs back into the truck. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
He slams the door, sealing my fate as I’m shoved into the back of the black van, and Sal roughly ties my hands together. I get one good kick on his jaw before he rubs a hand over the inflicted area. “Oh, I like them feisty. I may have to try you out first, Candy.”
My heart sinks as he slams the door, and I’m left in the dark for a second time.
Chapter Forty-Five
Maddox
