I come to a stop at the island and look up at her, my body trembling at her words. FUCK!
“He’s on the run, right? I feel sorry for that poor innocent girl he killed.”
My teeth grind. “He didn’t do it.” She’s missing. No body has been recovered.
“I hear there’s evidence that he did.”
Shit. Shit. Shit. She’s got me cornered. Again! Whatever she wants, I have to give her. Adam is in Vegas to watch over Ashtyn. Does she know they’re both there or just Adam? I won’t rat him out.
“What’s it going to be, Haidyn? You…or Adam?”
I pick up the scotch and throw it across the room. It shatters when it hits the wall, and the scotch runs down it to pool on the black marble floor.
When my eyes meet hers again, she’s giving me that smile that I’ve grown to hate so fucking much.
FORTY-FOUR
CHARLOTTE
I’ve been a prisoner at Haidyn’s for a week now. Being his fuck toy isn’t as bad as I originally thought it would be. I get fed three meals a day, provided with an endless amount of snacks, and am fucked senseless. What else can a girl ask for?
The Lords have been silent, and I’m starting to think it’s because they know I’m no longer seeing Haidyn inside Carnage. My only question is what do they want me to do now? How long until they decide I’m failing my assignment and just take me out?
I’m uneasy, and Haidyn sees it. At least I’m able to blame it on the incident that led me to being his prisoner inside his home.
He’s hidden my laptop because I haven’t seen it anywhere in this house, and I’ve looked every chance I get—which isn’t much. I swear the guy never sleeps. And he’s only left that one time after finding me upstairs in the other man’s bedroom.
I haven’t heard one word from my mother, and I have this sinking feeling that I’ve failed her. I’m the only one who can carry on my father’s legacy, and I can’t even do that right.
I sent a few messages to Wesley. I told him I’m still away, which isn’t a lie since I’m not allowed to go home right now. Isent him a few selfies and Photoshopped the background. I felt bad when he told me how gorgeous I looked and wished he could have joined me.
I’m lying in Haidyn’s bed. Muffin is curled up on his pillow like she owns the place. She quite likes it here. She loves all of his windows and spends most of her days bird-watching and napping.
The door opens, and Haidyn enters. He’s got a towel draped around his shoulders with a T-shirt and sweatpants on. He’s been working out in his home gym. It’s part of his daily routine. Sometimes he’s in there more than once. Without saying anything to me—doesn’t even look my way—he enters the adjoining bathroom and shuts the door to shower.
Waiting for the shower to turn on, I pick up my other cell phone. I chose to leave my real one back at my house. This is the number that Haidyn knows. If he hears another phone going off, he’ll start to question why I have two. He’s already taken my laptop; I don’t want him to know the Lords gave me this too.
Turning on the spare phone, I see it has an email. I open it up to see there’s a video attached.
My eyes go to the closed bathroom door quickly before grabbing my earbuds out of my bag. I put one in and leave the other out. That way, I can hear when he’s done in the shower.
I wonder if the Lords know he has my laptop. If they can monitor which device I access the emails from?
Getting back into bed, I sink down into it and pull the covers up and over the phone as I open it up and push play.
It’s a concrete room. It reminds me of being in my basement, but I have no doubt that it’s at Carnage. The camera is positioned high up in the corner, so it shows the entire room. The sound of a squeaky door opening has my eyes looking up atthe bathroom door. It’s still shut, and the shower is still running, so I drop my gaze back to the video on my phone.
Haidyn enters the room, pulling a gurney inside. Saint pushes the other end. A woman lies on it with duct tape from her jawline to right underneath her nose. A black tube sticking out the center of her mouth makes it possible for her to breathe, and a blanket covers her bottom half.
It’s Ashtyn!
I sit up straighter in bed and once again check the door to the bathroom to make sure Haidyn hasn’t finished. Then I go back to the screen.
They remove the blanket that covers her, and I gasp, slapping my hand over my mouth when I see she’s strapped down to it. Her arms are secured in a straitjacket, and her legs are buckled to the bed. She screams behind the tape and thrashes in the bed that she’s secured to.
The bed is adjusted into more of a sitting position, and the belt around her neck pulls tighter on her skin.
It’s choking her.
