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How…? Reggie and I had told no one where Mom’s ashes were scattered. “How the fuck did you know that?” My voice was getting shrill. “Are you having us followed? You’re blackmailing me with Reggie’s illness, you asshole!”
“You won’t be permitted to use that kind of language when you are working for me,” he lectured. “I find it distasteful.”
“I don’t give a shit what you find distasteful!”
“You will finish Glow-worm under my watchful eye, and license it to me, for an obscene amount of money,” Halliwell went on. “You will work for me for an obscenely large salary while your sister is treated in one of my private facilities. My clinic will treat her with drug compounds no one on earth has ever heard of, and she will get stronger by the day. A fact you will be able to verify with daily video calls. It’s a win/win/win, for everyone concerned. See? It’s a very lucky day for you and Regina.”
I hated the tears that were filling my eyes. I didn’t dare to be vulnerable and needy in front of this bastard who had ruined my mother’s life and left a smoking hole in my own. But he was dangling hope in front of me. I was helpless not to lunge for it.
“Think about it, Cassandra.” His voice was oily and satisfied again, as he felt his absolute power over me, and liked the hell out of it. “Accept my advantageous bargain. Or prepare to scatter your sister’s ashes in the redwood grove. The choice is yours.”
“You evil, manipulative son of a bitch,” I whispered. “I hate your guts.”
“I don’t mind that,” he said. “As long as you work well and give satisfaction.”
I could feel the jaws of the trap closing around me, but I was helpless not to take the bait. “So, ah… how long would you need me to work for you?”
His teeth flashed, unnaturally white, as he came in for the kill. “How could I possibly know? Until we’re done. My lawyers will get to work this very night on a contract for you, but the job is a good one. Stratospheric pay. Perks of every kind. Luxury accommodations in my headquarters on the Washington coast. A private ocean-view apartment, two minutes from your workplace. Room service at your fingertips when you don’t feel like cooking. Every comfort and amenity, day and night.”
“I don’t give a shit about that,” I said. “I need to stay with Reggie. Right at her side. I’ll work for you, but only after she’s well and strong. That’s non-negotiable.”
“I’m afraid I can’t wait,” he said. “You must start tomorrow. Regina will be taken by helicopter to the clinic tonight. You can accompany her there, but you can’t stay with her, unfortunately. My own schedule won’t allow it. You say your goodbyes, and the helicopter will bring you directly to my Washington coast headquarters. I need you to hit the ground running. Tomorrow morning early.”
“Deal’s off, then,” I said. “I have to stay with Reggie. I can’t budge on that point.”
His eyes sparkled. “Aww. Look at you, so tough, driving your hard bargain. Like watching a kitten hiss at a German Shepherd. You’re just like me, you know? You dictate terms and walk away if they aren’t met. But not this time, my dear. The only power you have right now is your willingness to walk away. Are you willing?”
I gulped, willing my burning eyes not to overflow. That bastard.
He saw the answer in my face and nodded. “Good choice, Cassandra.”
“I go by Cass,” I said. I’d never liked the name Cassandra, not since I read the story in the Greek epic about Cassandra’s curse. Doomed to predict the future, but to never be believed. Crazy-making frustration at its worst. “No one calls me Cassandra.”
“I do,” Halliwell said softly. “And as you will soon realize… I am not no one.”
CHAPTER2
NINE WEEKS LATER…
Shane
“Hey!” I heard a muffled knocking sound. “Shane? Are you awake?”
The low alto voice was caressingly soft, even distorted by the microphone. I was deep in a meditative state. Usually I was able to resist when those assholes tried to break my concentration and command my attention. All of my energy was spent trying to detach myself mentally in every way from this place, this situation, these murderous pricks and what they had done to me. I was pretty good at it by now, all things considered.
But I would come to the surface for Red.
For some reason, I couldn’t help but respond to Red’s voice. Velvety, sparkly, soft. Feminine. It wasn’t good that she had that much power over me. It felt intimate, compromising, risky. I had no idea in what way, but I still sensed the danger.
My eyes opened, wondering what her power over me was. Probably just because she was so fucking pretty, and not an evil, torturing asshole like the others. Banal, but there it was. It was embarrassing, to be so predictable, but fuck yeah, I’d change the frequency of my brain waves and emerge from a meditative state to look at Red. Who could blame me? I’d been locked up for months here, and I’d been in Vincent and Nicole’s clutches before that, getting all fucked up. After the coma, I’d stopped trying to track the time I spent in here. I had no reference points, so who cared? It felt like eternity in any case.
One thing was for sure. I was never leaving this room. They would keep trying to pry the access to my brother’s super-algorithm out of me until I died.
So the hours crawled by, all grim, boring, agonizing sameness… until Red showed up one night. Effectively blowing my sensory-deprived mind.
She stood on the other side of the thick glass wall, gazing at me with those big, worried eyes. She wore jeans and an oversized men’s tee-shirt, and a shapeless sweater over that, like she was trying to be sexless. Nice try. Useless effort.
Her curly red hair was twisted into a long, thick braid, and a halo of fuzzy little corkscrews escaped around her face, dangling below her jaw, floating above her head. Her big, wide-set green eyes were luminous in their paleness, like a cat. No makeup. Her lips were naturally pink and luscious. Her eyes looked shadowed. Haunted.
