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I wiggle a bit, just a discreet shift as to not draw attention to myself, and the low clink of my chain follows. It’s small, but I feel the locket move across the thin chain, letting me know it’s there.
That Malcolm has a way to find me.
I have to believe that.
That Stacy is alive and calling everyone she can. She knows Malcolm. The office must have his number somewhere. The fact that we won’t be home soon is also a reason to come looking.
He will find me. Everything will be okay.
It becomes my mantra as I’m driven God knows where and with whom. Because I know Alton’s not alone. The voices are a bit muffled, but I can pick apart his and Brittany’s. Not that it surprises me; she’s a piece of work and his follower. A sick individual.
But then again, sick fucks attract compatible individuals.
The car comes to a sudden stop then, and two doors open. A cool breeze fills the inside of the car’s cab and with it, I get a hint of water. That specific scent that comes from a large body of water. Fresh and clean with just a subtle hint of fish.
“Lake? But which one?” I mutter under my breath, but then go slack again when another door opens. This one is near my feet, and I’m taken out like a sack of potatoes. Swallowing my yelp takes heroic effort, but more so my grunt when I’m thrown over a shoulder that digs into my abdomen.
“Take her inside,” Alton says, and the man holding me tenses, his hand on the back of my ankle, clenching. “Go on. Wake my darling little sister up and secure her to the pole near the back.”
“I’m not your puppet or employee. Watch it, or I pull the plug on everything.” Agent Hayes? What the hell?
“My apologies, Agent. No reason to be so sensitive.”
Another car pulls up, tires screeching, and this time I’m not able to hide my automatic response. If Hayes notices my body tensing, he doesn’t say anything, but his tap to my leg is enough to make me still.
There’s no yelling. No demands to let me go. No shot being fired.
Instead, I hear a voice that sounds familiar, but I just can’t pinpoint. The person has heavy footsteps, clomping on the pavement until coming to a stop near where we stand. “As you predicted, the authorities are all over that place and no one has reported the girl missing. I’ve gone around the perimeter twice now, and it’s empty. No sign of Mr. Asher yet.”
“Good. Very good,” Alton says, and then Brittany giggles at something. “Let me know when he gets within the property line. I want her to watch me kill him.”
And then we’re moving.
The bones of his shoulder hurt, pressing into me as we cross a threshold. We go from dark and fresh air to dank and cold. The place is freezing.
“Be quiet and behave, London. I don’t want you to get hurt in this.” Hayes walks deeper into the room and stops to lower me, his hands gripping my arms to steady me. “It’ll be over soon.”
“Why are you doing this? Do you have any idea how crazy Alton is? What he’s going to do to me?” My breathing gets choppier as my chest gets tight. I have no weapon and my hands are tied. How the hell can I defend myself? “Please, I’m begging you…let me go.”
“Now why would he do that?” An arm wraps around my midsection as the blindfold is taken off. Alton is behind me and Hayes in front. “His eggs are in this basket, Lola. The love of his life was killed by the asshole you’ve given yourself to, and he wants revenge. A man in love without his woman will go insane.” His lips kiss my temple before he licks a path from cheek to chin, nipping my jaw hard before pushing me toward the agent. “Tie her up and gag her.”
I stumble into Hayes but turn my head to glare at the man who was never really my brother. My enemy.
He looks like shit. Dirty. Still wearing a cast, but like the rest of him, it’s filthy.
Nothing like the vain man I knew.
“You’re not getting away with this, Alton.”
“Want to make a wager on that, dearest?” His slimy grin causes my stomach to churn. The disgust must be visible on my face because his eyes narrow. “Something you want to say?”
“I hope he kills you—”
His hand meets my cheek, knocking me over, and I’m caught by his accomplice. Hayes pushes me behind him. “Keep your hands off her. Hurt her, and we’re done.”
“Fine. Just shut her up.” Alton walks away, leaving me with another man that I see as a monster.
I don’t say a word as I’m taken to the very back and my hands are secured to a metal post. Agent Hayes doesn’t use handcuffs and I’m thankful for that, but the thin zip tie in his hand isn’t going to be easy to escape either.
