Lie, page 7
He looked down at his hands and shook his head slightly. “I can’t. I just can’t.”
“But do you think you can even kill him?”
He considered the question in silence. “Yes. But it’s going to take a lot of planning. That man has wronged me so many times, continues to collect my money when it doesn’t belong to him. I can let that go, but the fact that he took Anna from her hospital bed, which could’ve killed her, makes it impossible for me to just move on. I could’ve lost her forever because of him.”
When I saw the determination in those green eyes, I knew my brother would never feel differently about the situation. If he knew I was sneaking around with Heath, it would be a personal attack, a betrayal. This was a battle that would never go away, and until Damien was the victor, the war would continue.
“She’s everything to me…and he crossed the line.”
When another week passed and I didn’t hear from Heath, I realized he’d actually listened to me. He seemed like a guy who wouldn’t care about my wishes, who would keep trying after he got his dick wet against my panties, but he’d finally backed off.
I’d be lying if I said a part of me wasn’t disappointed. When I’d first looked at him, I didn’t see anything remarkable, but then again, I was thrown into a cage and treated like a dog. Once he let me go, I started to look at him differently. Then I noticed how beautiful his eyes were, how chiseled his arms were, how deep his voice was. He was tall, big, masculine…all the things I liked in a man. He was confident and not the least bit turned off by my attitude. And most importantly, he knew how to kiss a woman.
And that dick…damn.
I really felt like I was missing out on something good. When he pinned me to the car and rubbed up against me, it was so hot. Feeling his hard dick pressed against my clit like an On button felt so good, especially with his tongue in my mouth. I knew he could’ve made me come then and there, but he held my pleasure hostage to get me to cooperate.
I hadn’t found a better man. I still went out to the bars with my friends and met guys, got a few phone numbers, but nothing ever happened. I went home alone because I didn’t want to risk being disappointed…again.
I knew where he lived, so I could stop by if I wanted to, but I knew that would be a mistake. I just needed more time to stop thinking about him, to move on and get back to my regular life. I wanted to be like my brother, loyal and strong, and sleeping with Heath would make me feel so dirty. I made the right decision. I knew I did.
So I told myself to move on.
After a performance, I went to the bar with a few friends. It was a good time with good music and good drinks, making it a night like the rest. I met a few guys, got a few numbers, and then excused myself to the restroom.
There was a long line for the bathroom, even though most of the girls probably just wanted to fix their hair and touch up their makeup, but that could take longer than a piss.
So I went to the men’s room instead.
What? I didn’t care.
I walked past the urinals with my hand covering one side of my face. “Don’t worry, not looking.” I headed to the stall and locked the door behind me.
The guy standing at the urinal finished and flushed. “You’re welcome to take a peek, sweetheart.” His accent was distinctly Russian, distinctly creepy.
I sat on the tissue paper that lined the toilet and released my bladder, the sound of my urine filling the bowl while we spoke. I stuck my finger into my throat like I was gagging even though he couldn’t see me. “Thanks, but I’m good.”
He turned on the faucet and washed his hands.
I finished my business and flushed before I stepped out of the stall and headed to the sink.
The guy was still there, leaning against the wall, his knee bent with his foot propped against the tile. His hands were in the pockets of his jeans, and he stared at me with a menacing expression, as if he owned me when he didn’t even know my name. It wasn’t the focused intensity Heath displayed—or maybe it was exactly the same, but that man was actually sexy. This guy was sleazy-looking.
I washed my hands and glanced at him in the mirror. “Do you mind?”
“You’re the one who came in here.”
“To piss. I come in peace.”
“Well, I’m not breaking any rules by staying in the men’s room. If you can look at my dick, why can’t I look at you?”
I grabbed a few paper towels and dried my hands. “Look all you want. Just don’t touch.” I tossed the moist towels into the garbage then turned around to leave.
But he blocked my way.
He had bushy eyebrows, a crooked nose, and brown eyes that almost looked black. He was in a long-sleeved shirt even though it was way too hot to wear something like that. His hands were no longer in his pockets, but instead by his sides, as if he expected to fight me. “What’s your name?”
Now this was getting weird. “None of your business.” I moved around him then headed to the door.
He took a few steps back then turned the lock so it bolted the door shut.
Now, I was scared, but mostly pissed. “All I have to do is scream.”
“And then what? By the time they get here, I’ll be finished.”
Both of my hands went to my hips. “Did you just threaten to rape me in a men’s bathroom?” I wanted to be absolutely sure this wasn’t a terrible attempt to impress me, that this guy wasn’t trying to be romantic but simply didn’t know how.
“That depends on you, I suppose.” He started to move toward me.
He’d just fucked with the wrong bitch. I pretended I was gonna kick him between the legs so he would throw his arm down to block me and move out of the way, but instead, I slammed my right fist hard into his face.
It was hard enough to make him stagger back against the wall. He rubbed his face and looked shocked at the impact, as if he’d never been hit like that in his life.
Since this guy had clearly stated he intended to force me into sex, I didn’t let him off easy. I kicked him in the side, slammed the heel of my shoe into his gut, and even pressed my foot into his balls.
“You fucking bitch.” He tried to kick me off.
I kicked him right in the face, making him sink to the floor and giving me access to the door. “Enjoy prison.” I unlocked the door and walked out. I headed straight to the bar and spoke to the first person I saw. I got right to the point. “A guy tried to rape me in the bathroom. Call the cops.”
I had to stay for a few hours to deal with the police, give my statement, and watch them put handcuffs on his wrists and take him away.
I could tell who the rest of his party was, because they stayed and watched the whole thing, giving me harassing looks like I was the asshole. They looked just as shady as he did, watching me like I was inferior to them.
I flipped them off before I walked out.
I would normally walk to my apartment, but I thought it was better to get a cab. I’d fought him off, handed him over to the police where he belonged, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t rattled by what just happened.
I was human.
When I walked into my apartment, I made sure the door was locked before I washed off my makeup and went to bed. Once I was under the sheets and comfortable, I stopped thinking about what had happened and drifted off to sleep immediately.
If some other woman were in the bathroom, that could have ended quite differently. Maybe she wouldn’t have known how to fight him off, and something terrible would have happened to her. Too disturbed by the experience, she probably wouldn’t call the cops either.
So maybe that was supposed to happen to me. Maybe it happened because I could handle it, put the asshole behind bars where he belonged. I believed everything happened for a reason, and tonight was no different.
After a long night, I was a heavy sleeper. I hadn’t gotten home until two in the morning, and since I’d been dancing on the stage earlier that night, I slept so hard. The only reason I would wake up was if the guy next to me snored like a bear. Otherwise, I was totally out of it.
That was probably why I didn’t hear them come in.
A gloved hand immediately cupped my mouth and pushed down hard so I couldn’t make a sound. Once the hand was on my face, I threw my arms out to hit whoever had attacked me. My eyes opened and looked into the face of a stranger. With dark hair and absolutely no mercy in his brown eyes, it wasn’t someone I knew, but someone I faintly recognized.
It was one of the guys from the table, one of the cronies of the man who’d assaulted me.
Another guy held my legs down so I couldn’t kick, and then a third came at me with a syringe.
Oh, hell no.
I fought harder, tears forming in my eyes because I knew my fate right then and there. I was outnumbered, and it was the middle of the night, so no one would even know what was happening. They were going to put me under so they could either transfer me…or something worse.
I’d never been so fucking scared.
I tried to buck them off, tried to scream, but my cries were muffled.
The guy grabbed me by the hair and yanked harshly on my scalp so my neck would become exposed. Then he stabbed the needle into my neck and injected the fluid. “Talk soon, bitch.”
I’d thought I was strong enough to fight off the drug, to pretend to be asleep just as I had when Heath took me. But the chemicals were too strong, immediately dumping into my blood and knocking me right out. I tried to fight it, but I was pulled under, knowing whatever I woke up to would be truly horrifying.
The instant my eyes were open, anxiety really kicked in. My heart rate exploded, and the adrenaline nearly gave me a heart attack. My eyes took in the scene around me, darkness, cages, damp coldness.
I realized I was in a little cage, similar to the one I’d been in when Heath locked me up, but there were several cages right up against one another, and in each one was a woman.
Naked.
When I looked down at myself, I realized I’d met the same fate. Buck naked, I could see my flesh from my toes to my tits. My belly button ring glittered in the dark. I tried to keep my breathing even so I could pretend I was still asleep, but I was so rattled I couldn’t control my panic.
There didn’t seem to be anyone on the other side of the bars, the men who took me or any guards. I sat up slightly and realized I was lying on a bed of hay. There was a bucket in the corner where they expected me to shit, a roll of toilet paper on a stool. Hot tears burned in my eyes when I realized it wasn’t a nightmare. The fact that I was there with other women made it perfectly clear what had just happened to me.
I was being trafficked.
I did my best to keep my breathing deep and even, not to appear awake, not to give in to the screams and tears. There was still hope because Damien would realize I was missing eventually. He’d track me down and find me. I knew he would.
I just knew it wouldn’t be soon enough before…they did things to me.
I looked through the bars of the cage to the woman beside me. She was a blonde, her hair oily because she hadn’t showered in a long time. She seemed to be a veteran, someone who’d been there a long time. “Hey…” I whispered and hoped I wouldn’t be overheard.
She turned slightly, her arms over her chest.
“Where are we?”
She looked out of the bars to the walkway, like she was checking for something, and then turned back to me and placed her forefinger over her lips as if to silence me.
I needed answers. “Please.”
Someone must’ve heard me, because footsteps sounded before a large man approached. His dark hair and brown eyes told me he was one of the guys who’d broken in to my apartment and stolen me. He was the same one who had put the needle into my neck. They must have followed me after I left the bar, ready to exact vengeance for what I did to their friend.
He opened the blonde’s cage and stepped inside. “No talking, bitch.” He stepped closer, making her shrink back in fear. She whimpered instantly, tears streaming down her cheeks like this wasn’t the first time she’d been punished. She even closed her eyes and dropped her chin to the floor.
He kneeled down and grabbed the back of her hair before he yanked her hard. “Bitch, you know the rules.” He pulled his fist back and prepared to punch her in the face.
I couldn’t let that happen. “It was me.”
He lowered his arm and turned his gaze on me. He couldn’t even look at me without feeling the rage in his blood. His eyes burned like he wanted nothing more than to punish me after what I’d done.
“I was the one talking…not her.” It was probably a stupid mistake to stick my neck out like this, but I couldn’t let this woman be punished for something that wasn’t her fault. She tried to keep me quiet.
He released the blonde and rose to his feet. “I was wondering when you’d wake up, sweetheart.” The nickname should be endearing, from a father to a daughter, or to a woman from a loving man. When he said it, it was terrifying, disgusting. He left her cage and moved into mine.
I pulled my knees to my chest and covered my tits with my arms, but I also didn’t see the point because he’d obviously already seen me naked. I didn’t feel any different, feel any aches, so I didn’t think they’d had their way with me already…at least I hoped not. These guys seemed like the types that wanted to take their victims awake so they could watch them suffer.
His boots tapped against the concrete as he approached me, walking with a slow gait, like he wanted to draw this out and take his time. There was such arrogance in his countenance, but he enjoyed every second of my suffering.
He kneeled down and faced me head on.
I did my best not to shake, but the shivers were uncontrollable. Bumps were all over my arms, not because I was cold, but because I was absolutely terrified. I always held my head high and I wasn’t afraid to stand up to a bully, but this was a whole different situation.
This was hell.
He reached out and grabbed me by the neck, squeezing my windpipe so I struggled to breathe. “I’m gonna make you pay for what you did to Ivanov.”
I struggled to breathe and tried to kick him off, but he was too strong. I grabbed his hands and tried to pull them off my neck.
He squeezed harder and slammed my head against the wall. “Who the fuck do you think you are? You dress like a whore, then expect to fuck like a whore. Fight like a man, expect to be beaten like a man.” Then he punched me hard in the face.
Then again.
And again.
Five
Heath
The guys opened the doors to the back of the armored truck, and I threw my bag of cash inside. It fell on top of the other black duffel bags, shifting slightly as all the bills fell to the right. It eventually toppled over and rolled to the bottom of the pile. “Next.” I headed to the passenger door while the guys locked up the back and moved to their seats.
Steel was behind the wheel. “Where to next?”
I pulled out my phone and looked through the list. “Popov.” He was one of the members of an underground Russian trafficking group. They took girls and sold them to other countries, mainly Russia. Sometimes they sold them locally. Apparently, Russians liked Italian women.
Steel pulled onto the road and drove a few miles to the location, the laundromat with a basement underneath. The laundry place was only open until five, and after dark, it was used to bring girls in and out of the basement.
The biggest part of my job was going around and collecting money, exactly like the tax man. I had a lot of men on my roster, so I spent most of my time collecting cash, always prepared for resistance even though that almost never happened. Damien was one of the few who was dumb enough to try to get out of it.
It was the one positive thing that came out of Catalina’s decision, that I could continue my murderous crusade against him. Rejection stung, especially when I continued to think about her, but I tried to see the good in it, to appreciate the fact that my situation was no longer complicated now that she was gone.
Even though she was still on my mind…a lot.
I hoped she would miss me chasing her and eventually want to chase me, but that never happened. She got what she wanted, and she was too stubborn to change her mind. No matter how much she liked my dick, her ego was far too big to go back on her word now.
We parked at the curb minutes later, unafraid to be spotted by the police or other adversaries. No one drove around in a bulletproof armored vehicle in plain sight unless they were registered with a security company.
But I didn’t give a fuck.
I wanted people to see me coming. I wanted people to be afraid.
I left the guys at the truck because I usually ventured into these discussions alone. There was only one ruler, one Skull King, so I was the only one who asked for the cash. I wouldn’t be the Skull King if I sent my cronies to do it. Seeing me in the flesh always made them very cooperative.
I walked into the laundromat and took the stairs to the basement. I knew they were expecting me because I came at the same time every two weeks. Once I was at the bottom of the stairs, I was in a whole different world. It was dark, damp like we were in the sewers, and the women were against the opposite wall, as far away from the doors as they possibly could be. They were naked, but I was never tempted to look.
Slaves weren’t my thing.
Popov sat at the table in the middle of the room, smoking a cigar while his crew played a round of poker. The smoke rose to the ceiling, and they enjoyed a bottle of vodka without a mixer. Stacks of cash were on the table, the pot worth at least thirty thousand euro. When I approached, Popov rested his cigar in the black ashtray. “Look who it is…”
I glanced down at the table. “Who’s winning?”
“Petrov.” He straightened in his chair before he rose to his feet. “But we think he cheats.”
