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“Is this your room?” Frank asked Mae as Costello maneuvered around them.
“Yes, Uncle Frank,” she answered with as much bravery a girl could, given her circumstances. Costello shoved that concern from his mind. He had bigger worries.
By the time he reached the stairwell, he was moving at a trot. Taking the stairs two at a time, he hurried to his room. Ariana was probably crumpled up in a ball sobbing. He hadn’t gone easy on her. He couldn’t. Frank would have questioned him.
The floor where the Daddies had their suites was empty. They were all still downstairs getting ready to take their own little girls to their rooms to tuck them in. Now that they’d all had a good show with Ariana, they would take advantage and teach their own girls whatever lesson they wanted for the night.
When he reached his room, he stopped to take a deep breath. First, he would comfort her, check her ass for damage, and then calm her down. Then, he’d confront her about the Lullaby not working with her.
Sure he was walking in on a girl losing her composure, he opened the door slowly and quietly.
As he stood in his doorway, Ariana, holding the smallest of his arm chairs as high as she could, ran across the room at the window. He blinked, momentarily lost in the image as she slammed the chair into the glass.
It got her nowhere. She bounced off the window, falling back onto her naked ass, and the chair rolled to her side.
“Fucking hell!” He slammed his bedroom door. “What the hell do you think you’re doing!” He rushed to her side, kicking the fallen chair out of his way.
Wild panic burst across her expression, and she jumped to her feet. Before he could grab her, she ran to the window and flailed her fists against it. When he grabbed her arms, a current of tremors ran beneath his grip.
“Ariana. Stop!” He yanked her from the window and encased her in his arms, holding her tightly to his chest. She continued to struggle, but soon her energy faded away.
“I have to get out of here! I won’t let you give me to him. I won’t be put to sleep! I won’t.” She sobbed into his chest.
He rested his chin on top of her head and fisted her damp hair, pressing her against himself. She could wail and scream into his shirt, and with some luck she wouldn’t be overheard. Though the other Daddies were busy having their own fun with their girls.
“Ariana. Stop it,” he said again, forcing his tone to dip even lower. “You have to calm down so I can talk to you.”
“You’re going to let him kill me,” she cried, sagging in his embrace.
He sighed and changed tactics. In one swift movement, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to his bed. Managing to climb onto the bed without letting her go, he settled her on his lap and leaned against the headboard. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed openly into his chest.
It was the first time she’d broken since she’d arrived. Their first meeting had shown her furiousness, but after that, she’d gone into her act of being a little girl. She’d never let herself break down in front of him, and from what he’d heard of her nightly sleeps—she hadn’t then either.
He ran his hand in circles around her back, soothing her until her sobs slowed and there was only an occasional sniffle. As much as she truly was an adult, he suspected some of her really was a little at heart.
“Are you ready to talk?” he asked, tucking her beneath his chin.
“When did you figure it out?” she asked in a small voice. Not one she used to pretend she was little, but her real voice, tender and sweet.
“I suspected not long after I first met you. There was something different about you. Sometimes you’d look at me, and I could see the age in your eyes.”
“I tried so hard,” she said, wiping the back of her hand across her nose.
“I know you did. And I don’t think anyone else suspects. It’s only because I’ve been so close to you, seen your reactions to things I’ve said and things we’ve done.”
“I don’t think I can do this anymore. I’m so exhausted.” She punctuated the statement with a yawn.
“You have to. It’s not an option. If Frank finds out, I’m not sure I can protect you. You’ve been taking the Lullaby for a week now. If it’s not working by now, it’s not going to, and you’re taking up a spot in his House.”
When she looked up at him, the defeat shining in her eyes ripped his chest open.
Costello grabbed her chin to keep her focus on him. “I don’t know how yet, but I’ll figure something out to help you. But you have to do what I tell you. No disobedience. None. And you can’t provoke Nancy or any of the other nannies.”
