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Jase
Desire, longing…genius. The first two together were normal. Great, even. It was the third that added disaster to the mix. When you lived in a world where nothing could be hidden, desire and longing didn’t last. Although I didn’t always resort to it, I had a window into everyone’s secret world. Phones, tablets, computers, they were just mirrors for me. With unlimited access, I got to see people without their masks. Lovers became revealed. Business scandals were exposed. Nothing was concealed.
For me, it was a blessing and a curse. Technology was my passion. It made me rich. It also fed the dark side that I tried to deny. Rian knew that, and that’s why he’d tried to keep me away. There was no denying anymore. I crossed the line when I offered to buy that woman. There was no going back, but did I want to?
I’d made myself stay out of the darker parts of the web for a reason, but that night I slipped up. For her, it was a good thing. Kody Marshall was still all over the news. She’d been missing now for five days. The police had no leads. She was all but assumed dead given the lack of evidence.
I gave her life. She gave me a new obsession. I got a glimpse into something I wasn’t sure I could deny anymore. I didn’t want to just save her; I wanted her. To protect her. To heal her. To put her back together again. After what I’d been through, what did that make me? Who…did that make me?
“Walk.”
Dark, wet hair glistened from the headlights of my car as the man gave her a hard push. Kody’s knees skid in the leaves, and she fell to her side causing the t-shirt she wore to slide up. Her feet were already kicking out, trying to gain traction so she could right herself, but she couldn’t see. Not with the thick blindfold covering her eyes. Sobs shook her small frame. Despite being already badly shredded by the cat-o-nine not twenty-four hours ago, she had new cuts and bruises along her neck and arms.
What had I missed since I hit the road?
“Hurry, he’s waiting.”
“I’m t-trying.”
“Try faster.”
She fought to catch her breath as she balanced herself on her knees. Rope tied her hands behind her back, and although I usually loved the sight, I felt no enjoyment in what I saw. Kody may not have belonged to me of her own free will, but I was here to pay for her. On some sick level that made her mine.
“If you don’t want to walk to him, I’ll get you there myself.” Dark eyes came up. “Is this what you wanted?” Air exploded from her lungs as he kicked her ribs. The force sent her rolling in my direction. Although I was fuming, I knew better than to move. “How’d you do it? How’d you find me?”
“I’m smarter than you.”
“Smarter?” He laughed under his breath. “Is that why you’re wearing a mask? Because you’re smarter?”
“I’m not wearing it for you.” My heart was racing, but not because I was afraid. Quite the opposite. Here, tonight, I was free. Free from my company. Free from my status. Free from my own secrets.
“You’re wearing it for her? What for? You’re going to kill her anyway. That’s why you wanted her. That’s what you said.”
My gaze darted to the woman who was trying to right herself again. Kody wasn’t weak. She wasn’t going to lay down and die no matter how much she might wish for it. She was a fighter. From what I’d seen over the days, she was stronger than anyone I’d ever met. Maybe more broken too. Especially now.
“My need for her is no longer your concern. The bit is ready to transfer. I have the extra cash I mentioned in my trunk. Unmarked, like we discussed. If you so much as pull out the gun you have hidden at your back; your identity and location will go out to every branch of law enforcement so fast, you won’t make it home before they capture you.”
“How are you going to do that if you’re dead?”
I lifted my phone, hitting a button. His stare left mine, and he reached in his pocket, pulling out his buzzing cell to gaze at the screen.
“You’re not as stupid as you look, David, but you can’t risk being wrong about me. There are four camera feeds on your screen. The first is your dungeon. The second is the outside of your home. The third is your girlfriend’s land in Farmington, and the fourth is from the retirement community in Sonora where your mother currently resides. You cover your tracks well, but not good enough for someone like me. There’s no hiding who you really are.” Stepping closer, I felt my own weapon shift at my movement. “I know you. I know everything about you. How many bodies do you think they’ll find buried out on Desiree’s property? What about your mother’s old house? She has a few acres, doesn’t she? It’s on a hill. Am I close?”
His breath turned heavy with his anger. “This” he said, waving his phone, “is nothing. I could have found out information on you if I wanted.”
“You tried. You couldn’t. I watched every move of your mouse.”
I took another step forward.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
“Let’s get on with this, David. We won’t discuss what you look at when you’re not trying to track me down. I’ve seen enough to know your weakness. I also know you didn’t come here to give me the girl. You thought you’d kill me and dispose of her. Aren’t you curious what the timers are for?”
“No. You’re full of shit. What are you trying to get out of? Payment? Is that what this is?”
I smiled, licking my lips and brushing against the material from the black mask. It may have covered my entire head and face, but my lips and eyes weren’t concealed.
“Nothing about this is a bluff. The one over the dungeon is how long you have to bring me Kody. I want her here, at my side. Gently.” I glanced down to my phone. “I was generous on the time. You have two minutes left. If she’s not here, I don’t deactivate the timer. When that goes off, I leak breadcrumbs of your identity and…establishment.”
