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When we reached Tuxedo Man he asked, “Private room for how many, sir?”
“Just the restroom,” I said.
“Of course. Down this hall and to the right.”
I led Aleks down the hallway. All the private rooms had letters on them and there were keypads on the doors.
Which meant the little slips of paper that Tuxedo Man had been handing out were the codes for the doors.
I tuned out the sounds I could hear coming from the other side of some of the doors and hoped Aleks was doing the same. The bathroom was clearly marked and empty. I ushered Aleks inside and closed and locked the door. I quickly scanned the room for any video cameras. There usually weren’t cameras at these things, because not only did they take too long to set up, but it wasn’t like these people wanted their activities recorded on film in any way, shape, or form.
“It’s safe, Aleks,” I said after a moment. “There aren’t any cameras or recording devices.”
I began to reach for him, but he put out his hand to stop me. “No,” he whispered. “Don’t touch me.”
Shock reverberated through me.
And hurt.
So much fucking hurt.
“Aleks—” I began in disbelief, but he shook his head and lifted his eyes to meet mine. They were swimming with tears but somehow, he managed to keep them from falling.
“I’m okay, James. But if you touch me, I’m going to lose it and I won’t be able to go back out there.”
His words made me feel both better and worse at the same time.
“It’s almost over, baby. Just hang in there a little longer.”
Aleks stiffened his spine and nodded, then wiped at his eyes. He went to the bathroom mirror and checked his face to make sure there wasn’t any proof of his tears. He was careful not to look at the collar or his outfit. He returned to me and sucked in a few breaths. “I’m ready,” he murmured.
“When we go out there, I’m going to look around a bit to see if there are any doors leading outside back here. If someone stops us, I’m just going to play it like we got turned around while trying to head back to the main room, okay? We won’t have long to look around so just stay with me and move quickly.”
Aleks nodded. “I will.”
I wanted to hug him and tell him how amazing I thought he was, but I knew he was right… if he showed even any of the emotion he was feeling, he’d break down completely.
I probably would too.
Or, at the very least, it would show on my face when we returned to Luca.
And like Aleks, I was just another piece of property out there. The hired help. I had a role to play just like everyone else.
Since I didn’t have to worry about anyone ignoring the collar and trying to reach out and touch Aleks back here like I had in the front room, I had him walk behind me as I began figuring out the layout of the back part of the building. There was another exit, but it too was heavily guarded by armed men and I had to use my excuse about being lost to explain our presence.
“Okay, let’s head back,” I said to Aleks as we passed the bathroom we’d used.
We were just rounding the corner and heading for the main hallway when two men came out of a private room, along with a little boy who was crying. The boy couldn’t have been more than nine or so.
I forced myself to keep moving, but when I heard the man say, “Aleks?” in surprise, both Aleks and I came to a stuttering stop.
I’d put Aleks in front of me and he’d kept his eyes down when we’d passed the men, but when he saw the guy who’d called his name, he let out a gasp and then went frighteningly pale. He stepped back so fast that his back hit the wall behind him. He began shaking his head violently.
“No,” he breathed. “No.”
The word just kept falling from his lips.
The man who’d called to him actually smiled. “Take him backstage and get him cleaned up,” the man told the other one who had his fingers around the little boy’s thin arm. The man and boy went the way Aleks and I had come and I realized there was probably a door that led to the other side of the building where the stage was.
Which meant the little boy was one of the kids up for sale tonight.
“The little one had a bit of stage fright,” the fucker said to me as he motioned in the direction the man and boy had gone. “He needed a little refresher on his training,” he added before turning his eyes to Aleks. “This one never needed any refresher lessons,” he said with an obscene amount of pride.
