“Where exactly is he?” he asked.
“I don’t know. He only sent word that he was safely inside and had eyes on Everly. Darby has also brought the remaining six women to his residence. He is worried you’ll retaliate, so he is hiding them on his property. He said I should specifically tell you the code word is ‘Iris’ when he calls.”
Iris was their mother’s favorite flower. He guessed that if Bastian called with any details, he’d be using that code word. If he didn’t say it, then it meant he had been compromised.
“Well?” Matias asked.
“It was Marco.”
Cristian poured himself a glass of vintage wine. After gulping it down, he explained that Bastian was safe for now. He told them about the plan to use the code word Iris, and that if he didn’t say it, Bastian had been compromised. If that happened, Cristian would stop at nothing to bring him home safely. They just needed a location. He left his brother in the kitchen andhurried off to his room. While he understood why Bastian and Matias had kept the plan from him, he was still pissed.
“He’s still angry with me.”
“Hey… you know Cristian loves to be in charge of situations. Keeping him out of the loop hurt him. He’ll get over it once Everly is safe.”
“I did what was best for everyone.” Matias sighed.
“You should know that his mood isn’t all about you,” Katya advised.
Back in his room, Cristian sank to the bed and clutched the pillow tightly to his side. It held Everly’s scent. He breathed her in, wishing it were her beside him. Cristian had never felt this way about any woman. He loved her with every fiber in his being, and it terrified him that she may never come back. The memory of her laughter rang in his ears. He could envision her face right beside him—the fire in her eyes as they made passionate love, and the sexy way her lips had curled when his lips kissed between her thighs. Everything about her was beautiful. She loved to ask questions and initiate conversations, and that had pushed him out of his shell. She had opened a part of him he didn’t know existed before her.
Tears rolled down his cheeks as he recalled how disappointed she’d looked when he’d confessed to killing Alessandro in cold blood. He’d never wept for a woman. He was the obstinate, brutal Cristian Silva; yet a woman had brought him down to his knees. His life was never going to be the same again. He wished he could let her go, but the more he considered that option, he reminded himself of everything he had risked to set her free.
He would love her from afar if he could get her away from Darby. Cristian would help her get home if it meant her happiness. He simply wanted her to be safe. And Darby wasn’t going to give her that. He was going to treat her like a whore. Everly would be passed around his men since she was no longer a virgin, and that sickened Cristian.
He felt guilty for making love to her. They thought taking her virginity would bring her protection, but it had invited more trouble. Cristian sobbed quietly against her pillow until he drifted off to sleep. He fell into a beautiful dream where he saw her standing on a cliff, wearing her best smile and spreading her arms wide.
“Mi Cielo! Everly!”he called happily. He rushed into her arms and dropped a soft kiss on her forehead. But he awoke almost immediately to the reality of his new life. The void in his chest was oppressive and maddening. He knew it couldn’t be filled. As long as Everly was gone, he would always be empty.
Everlymarchedbacktothe house, feeling victorious that all hope wasn’t lost. The plan had been to get close to Darby and gather information. Then she would attempt an escape with as many women as she could.
Now that she knew there was a Silva brother secretly hidden in the building, she was certain the plan would work. That evening she found it difficult to concentrate on anything else but Cristian—she missed him so much. Their lives had become entwined in a way that was almost unhealthy to the outside eye. They had bonded in the most unusual circumstance, but she knew what she felt was real. He belonged to her, and she to him. She only hoped he would forgive her when she got out of this alive. “Mi Cielo,” she smiled as she whispered the nickname he had given her.
Everly had to figure out where they were. Bastian had asked her to report back to him if she learned anything. The more details she could give him, the better chance they had of getting outalive. They each had their roles to play. She would listen in on conversations with Darby and anyone she could, while Bastian would work on blending into Darby’s crew.
The sun had receded into a dull orange. She’d been led to a massive bedroom with the biggest bed she had ever seen. It was clearly different from the provisions in the warehouse where she’d been kept before Cristian had bought her. She shuddered at the thought of warming the bed with Darby. But she had prepared herself for the worst. She moved towards the window and peeled the curtains apart. It opened to the courtyard where Darby’s men worked. She noticed a bungalow stacked with hundreds of cartons.
“What is this about?” she whispered into the darkening sky. It seemed Darby wasn’t just into human trafficking. She couldn’t make much of what was going on and strained to listen out the opened window. Luis showed up, and she heard him announce to the men that a special guest would be arriving. Everly furrowed her brow in confusion.
Luis ordered them to get the women prepared — it would be a show night. The guest, whoever that was, was a high roller. In addition to the show, Darby wanted to move the women fast. As if he sensed that he was being watched, Luis directed his gaze towards Everly’s window, but she’d been quick enough to turn away.
Her heart danced wildly against her chest as she returned to the bed. She covered her face with her hands and began to sob, feeling overwhelmed by everything that was happening around her. Her friend was among the women being prepared.
A loud tap at her door jolted her back to reality. Everly jumped to her feet to receive the visitor. The middle-aged woman was the same one that had dressed her for the auction. She seemed pale and sickly, barely moving as she stepped into the room. Her sunken eyes were sad and full of regret.
“You are being asked to get ready for the show tonight.” The woman announced. She’d walked in with clothing and accessories that Everly would need.
“Darby is putting me up for auction?” Everly tried to make conversation with the woman. But she wouldn’t say anything. Everly pulled in a deep breath and continued questioning her. “Where are we? Can you tell me the name of this place?”
The only response she got was a hardened glare from the woman. It was obvious she wanted no trouble from Darby. She tossed some leather skirts on the bed while directing her eyes to a corner of the ceiling. Everly found it odd that she kept staring up. When she followed the woman’s eyes, she noticed that a camera had been placed there.
“Fuck!” she scoffed under her breath. Everly knew that the woman was eager to speak with her, but she was afraid for her life.How long had this woman been held in Darby’s chains?Once she found a way to escape, she would help all the women here. She wondered how Bastian was faring. Everly hoped that Cristian’s brother was aware of all the eyes around this place. The last thing he needed was to get caught. Darby would kill him on sight.
She moved lazily towards the scandalous clothing. “Where are the tops?” Everly thumbed through the tight skirts and grimaced.
“There are no tops during show night.” The woman turned and left Everly alone.
Her face grew pink at the thought of standing bare breasted on a stage. Truly, these people didn’t care about a woman’s dignity. They treated them as though they were a commodity for sale. She dry heaved as she imagined being ogled by the men that would come for the night. She was certain that the boss was someone important, but who? What was the show night really about?
