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Mr. X laughed, shooting Alex a knowing grin. He slapped his back, making Alex choke on his ice cream. While he coughed, Mr. X raised a glass. “To family.”
Alex reached for his and croaked out. “To Kaylie.”
Mr. X chuckled. “What about your old man?”
“He’s just—” I tried to smooth it over, but Mr. X laughed before I could find the words.
“He’s in love,” he drawled. “I take no offense, I was joking.” He raised the glass to me. “To Miss—”
“Call me Kaylie. Please.”
“So be it, Kaylie.”
His attention drifted from me, to Alex, and I glanced at the giant clock on the wall above the colorful bottles lined up in the bar. It was a little over eight pm. They should have been out by now. But Alex showed no sign of having received the message we were waiting for. I shot him a look, letting my eyes dart to the clock behind his back. He briefly met my gaze, and my worry reflected in his dark irises. I wasn’t the only one with acting skills worthy of an Oscar. He played it cool, eating and chuckling with his dad as if he were his best friend and not some monster who imprisoned people and tortured them for fun.
Alex’s boyfriend was one of those people who suffered under the hands of Mr. X, and yet he was risking everything to go back in and free Marc. Maybe that was the very reason he did so? He knew the horror of being locked up in that damn basement. He knew the fear and the desperation I could only imagine. I never met the man, but I already admired his courage.
I just hoped he hadn’t gotten caught, and was thrown in theretogetherwith Marc, instead of safely away from the estate.
I picked at the fruit, forcing myself to swallow a few bites. The idea was Alex’s, but the restaurant was Mr. X’s choice, and if I hadn’t been consumed with worry, I would have like this. The luxury. The modern design made the place fit for royalty. Everything was gold and white with black details to add contrast. The staff wore black with golden details too, and the heavy curtains framing the floor-to-ceiling windows looked like they were made of liquid gold.
Mr. X’s cell suddenly vibrated against the table, and he tore his gaze from Alex to look at it. His eyebrows furrowed in a frown. “That’s odd.”
A stab of fear shot though me.
“What’s wrong?” Alex asked, and his voice couldn’t quite hide the sudden alarm.
Mr. X smiled. “Nothing to worry about.” He looked back at his phone, and a grim look came over his face.
“Mr. X?” I tried. “Is there a problem?”
“Someone breached the—” he cut himself off, and the brief look he cast over me made me want to slip under the table and hide. It felt as if he knew. But he couldn’t. He was ouralibi. No matter how this went down, we were with him at the time of the escape. He could never hold it against us, no matter how Alex insisted he would see through the lie.
“Those idiots,” he muttered, and I relaxed slightly. “I have to check this out.” He started to move, and panic made my heart leap into my throat. He couldn’t go now. They needed time to get out.
“But we haven’t finished dessert,” I breathed. “And I…” I trailed off, turned my gaze down and waited for his response.
“You what?” his voice was no longer amused, but instead tinged with an urgency I knew too well. Only he was dying to get back home and make sure his torture chamber was intact.
“I—” I stammered. “I wanted to ask about the…” I looked up, finding him with one hand on the phone, and the other on the corner of the table ready to shove himself to his feet. “Wedding… night,” I fumbled with the words, and the look on his face changed into a twisted grin.
“Oh sweetheart,” he chuckled, and his grip of the table relaxed slightly. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Just pretend I’m not around.”
I cringed at his implication, and at the same time I cursed myself for bringingthatof all things up. But it was the first thing that came to my mind, and once I voiced it, I realized the concern was more than real. With everything happening, I hadn’t had time to worry about the inevitable wedding, and what came after.
“I’d wish to—” I gulped, then went on already knowing my request would be declined, but at least it would buy us time. “Be somewhere… private… with Alex.”
Mr. X chuckled but shook his head. “So you can run off and disappear on us?”
I couldn’t stop the gasp. How did he know? I didn’t need to force the surprise on my face. But I used it to my advantage.
“What, no!” I hoped my expression showed the fake hurt I tried to channel. “I have no reason to run. Where would I go? Back to my father?”
Dad. Fresh pain burned behind my eyes.That, too, was a thing I hadn’t had time to fully process. Maybe what I said was truer than I dared to believe. WherewouldI go? My father didn’t want me. I had no home to return to. I had no one…
Marc’s face appeared before me, reminding me I had him. But my heart was foolish. I’d been naive. I believed I was dying and saw him as nothing but a little fun. A chance to feel, to live, before I died. I never meant to fall for him, but I fell hard. But did it matter? Even if I did escape from Alex and somehow found Marc again, what kind of life could we have? He already had everything he needed, and he made it perfectly clear I wasn’t a part of it.
What he said in the cell meant nothing. He was desperate, believed he was going to die. I knew the feeling. It made you do things based on nothing but the desperate need to live, to feel something other than the deep hollowness that waited to drag you down. I was nothing but a distraction from the pain. A lifeline to grab hold of when he was sinking.
