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His attention flew back to me, both of their gazes drilling into my face.
“Okay,” I started, well aware that I had few other options. “Let’s talk.”
“Okay.” Tension visibly fell from Noble’s shoulders. “I’ll just run to the kitchen and grab water.”
“Thank you, little girl,” he encouraged, stroking her face as she walked past him. “We’ll be waiting for you.” He inhaled as she paced away, closing the door as the sound of her footsteps faded in the distance. “And then there were two.”
“What are you going to do?” I demanded, retreating as he walked past me. “She might trust you, but I don’t.”
“Then that makes two of us, Detective.” His cocky tone continued as he wandered to the same coffee table Noble had found the ropes in and opened the second drawer. “I never trust people in authority. I’ve been quite badly burned, I’m afraid.”
“Just let me go.” Moving back toward the door, my thoughts turned to making a run for it when Noble returned. It was true I wouldn’t get far without the use of my hands, and I certainly couldn’t climb back out of the bathroom window, but I couldn’t just stay there and become his next victim. I had to try.
“I won’t say anything to my bosses.” I glanced back to see him hunched over the open drawer. A large part of me couldn’t believe what I was saying. I sounded like one of the mindless victims I scooped off the streets, pleading with a monster for mercy, but I couldn’t help myself. Something about the man was inherently dangerous, although, apparently, I was the only one who could see it. “We can just pretend none of this ever happened.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” His voice was louder. “Let’s do that.”
Wait… what?
Spinning at the sound of his tread, my pulse quickened. He was right on top of me, although I swore, I hadn’t heard him move.
“Wh-What are you doing?” I loathed the tremble in my voice, the open acknowledgment that I was petrified, and he was the cause.
“Agreeing with you.” He grinned, gesturing to the door behind me. “We should just pretend that none of this ever happened.
“O-kay.” I didn’t believe him. Propositions like this were always too good to be true, but if he’d only open the door, I could bolt. I might have a chance… “Great.”
“Allow me,” he went on, striding to my side and reaching for the door handle. “I can see you’re a little tied up at the moment. I’m sure Tiffany won’t mind removing those for you. She’s always been fond of my ropes.”
“Thanks…”
My heart raced so fast I didn’t know what else to say, but as his hand reached for the doorknob, all I could focus on was the hope it offered—a future beyond this house, this mistake… So focused was I on the handle as it turned that I didn’t notice his other hand moving, didn’t see that there was anything wrong until the sharp scratch at my neck—until it was too late.
“What was that?” Jerking, I tried to move away, but without my hands, I couldn’t beat him off.
“Settle down,” he answered in an annoyingly soothing tone. “It’ll all be over soon.”
“Shit.” I gasped as he pulled the needle away, my brain registering what had just happened. “What have you given me, you fucker?”
“Nothing bad.” Chuckling, I wandered back to the table and cast the needle aside. “Just something to calm you down.”
“No!” I cried, kicking out at the door as hard as I could. If I could only attract Noble’s attention—surely, she would be disgusted with what he’d done? “Help me!”
“Calm down.” His hands pulled me back, maneuvering me toward the couch and even though I wanted to resist, the walls around me were already fading to white. I knew I wouldn’t be standing for much longer. “You just need to rest.”
The last thing I remembered as my face hit the leather seat was the sound of the door opening and the chilling thud as a glass hit the ground and shattered into a thousand shards.
Chapter Eighteen
Tiffany
“What the hell happened?”
Heart hammering, my breath accelerated as the glass of water slipped from my fingers. From some distant place I was vaguely aware of it hitting the hard, wooden floor and shattering, although the noise wasn’t enough to draw my focus from the couch. There, slumped on her front like a road traffic victim, was Detective Lucas, her arms still bound behind her.
“Master?” I demanded, watching the way he stood over her.
“Watch your tone, little girl.” Kade didn’t move as he delivered the warning.
