“I could hardly drink it now, could I?” I arch a brow.
“That’s what I thought, but there were two glasses.”
“I had to pretend to drink it or he’d never have tried it.”
Rick sends daggers at me. “You deliberately seduced him under false pretenses?” I shrug, not confirming or denying it. “Why would you drag him into this?” He claws a hand through his hair, looking like he wants to throttle me again.
“Oh, chill out. It was only a bit of fun. Harley needs to let loose now and then. You two might think you’re protecting him, but he’s got to live his life.”
“That is not your decision to make,” Rick says through gritted teeth. “Harley’s only fifteen, and he’s a good kid with great grades and a bright future. Kai and I have spared him the shit we had to put up with, and I’m sure as fuck not going to let you use him to get back at Kai, if that’s what you’re up to.”
Guilt threatens to breach the surface, but I swallow back my discomfort. It’s not like I did anything. Sure, he’ll probably have the hangover from hell tomorrow, and it will piss Kai off, but I didn’t touch him, even if that’s what I want them to believe. “It just happened, okay? You need to relax. Or get laid.”
“Let me guess?” He smirks. “You’re offering?” He shamelessly skims my body, and that rubs me up the wrong way.
“I’m not a slut, and I resent the insinuation! Until I met your asshole of a brother, I was a virgin, and he’s the only guy I’ve had sex with.”
“Now you’re saying you didn’t fuck Harley?”
I sit up on my knees, my eyes blazing with indignation. “I never said I did. You’re the one jumping to conclusions.”
“Because you got my little brother drunk and climbed into bed with him.”
“We fooled around a bit before he passed out,” I lie, because I want Kai to hear about this, “but that’s not the same as fucking him.”
“Sucks to be you, little bro,” Joaquin whispers to his sleeping brother, quietly chuckling. I hadn’t heard him return. “Thanks for taking the heat off me, Abby. I owe you.”
Rick and I both scowl at him, but I don’t dignify his comment with a response.
Frowning at the mattress strewn across the floor at Joaquin’s feet, I ask, “What’s going on?”
“I’ll sleep there,” Rick says. “You.” He points at the empty bed he’s supposed to be sleeping in. “Get your annoying ass in there.”
I can’t resist winding him up a little more. “You shouldn’t have to sleep on the floor. You can stay in here to babysit Harley, and I’ll sleep in the other room with Joaquin.” I give him my best “butter wouldn’t melt in my mouth” expression.
“I’m down with that plan,” Joaquin says, shooting me a naughty wink.
Rick growls, shaking his head. “This will be a long-ass couple days.”
Things are tense in the car the following day, and Harley can’t even look me in the eye. I feel shitty, but I can’t back out now. And it’s not just because I want to piss Kai off. I need to hide the truth, or it’s all for nothing. If Rick discovers Harley passed out, he’ll quiz me about what I was up to, and I can’t have anyone finding the cell and ruining my chance at escape. I don’t know what Kai plans to do with me once we reach our destination, but I plan on spending minimal time in his presence.
We find another motel Monday night, and this time, Rick secures separate rooms, keeping me well away from his little brothers, and he doesn’t let me out of his sight.
We set out early Tuesday morning, and by six p.m., we cross the state border into Connecticut.
A half hour later, Rick takes the exit for Mistbury, a small town with a population of three thousand one hundred and six, according to the sign we pass. I keep my eyes peeled, checking for landmarks and mentally mapping the route in case Xavier needs details.
We drive through the small town, out past the main residential area, into a more remote part. It’s so pretty out here. The narrow roads are edged by thick shrubbery and dense woodland, and the few properties we pass are extravagant and well-maintained. Majestic trees, sporting amber-colored leaves, sway in the breeze, and I can almost hear them whispering in greeting as we glide past.
Rick maneuvers the SUV up a bumpy dirt track, and I grip the handrail on the side of the door as I’m jostled from side to side. I press my nose to the glass as we drive for miles, with no land or people in sight. Rick slows at large double gates, tapping in a code on the keypad. I can’t decipher the numbers he’s inputting, but I’m on high alert, surreptitiously scanning the surroundings for anything that might help Xavier. I strain my neck as far as it will go, but I can’t see much over the large wooden gates and the massive, high wall that stretches on either side, securely enclosing the property. Barbed wire runs the length of the wall on top with mounted cameras at regular intervals.
“What is this place?” I ask, growing uneasy.
“It belongs to a friend of mine from college,” Rick says, as the gates open and he moves the car forward.
“They’re big on security, huh?”
“They have reason to be,” he cryptically replies, as I whip my head around, drinking in the massive landscaped grounds which seem to go on forever. The gates automatically close behind us as we drive up a wider, smoother driveway lined by a row of tall trees.
