“Christopher! It’s been a while,” Jonathan says. There’s a loud ringing in my ears as I hear his voice for the first time since he swore he would find and ruin me. My vision blurs for a moment before adrenaline dumps inside my veins, and my senses return crisp and clear.
He jerks his head at the man next to him. A newer recruit. I don’t recognize him from my time in the compound, or any of the people I’ve linked to his organization. The man takes off to the right, disappearing into the depths of the club.
“Can I join you and your lovely lady?” Jonathan asks, not waiting for an answer before he slides in next to me without an invitation. I clench my trembling hand into a fist and concentrate on breathing. My throat tightens as the worst of mankind brushes his thigh against mine, sandwiching me between a proverbial rock and the devil himself. I’ve never been in such a dangerous position. I curse the fact I didn’t wait for backup, or even better, call for it before I forged ahead. I could have placed a man of my choosing on the guest list and come as his plus one.Great strategy, Ellie, but too late for regrets.Now, I have to escape with my life. Jonathan is too close and too focused on me to risk removing the small tracking device from the hidden lining in my clutch and planting it on him, making my actual mission obsolete. Motherfucker ruined my plan.
“This is Grace,” Christopher says over the top of my head. “I found her sad and alone in the bar across the street.”
“Why sad?” Jonathan asks like he gives a shit. He always did get off on other people’s suffering.
“I lost my job,” I mutter. Damn, did I remember to sink into my southern accent?Get it together, Ellie.
“Oh, why is that?”
“I didn’t return my employer’s advances with the right amount of enthusiasm.”
“I doubt he was worthy of your attention, Grace. An incredible woman needs an incredible man. Mediocre is for the meek. Luckily you met my friend, Christopher. He is the sort of man you need to take your mind off your troubles.”
Yeah, and give me a whole host of new ones.“I could tell that straight away,” I say, glancing at Jonathan briefly before dropping my eyes. He will take it as a sign of submission, but I’m trying to avoid him figuring out who I am.
“Have we met?” he asks.Fuck. Stay calm, Ellie. He hasn’t recognized you—yet.But I shouldn’t hang around too long, in case he connects the dots.
“I’m sure I would have remembered.”
“Hmm. You seem familiar. Where did you grow up?”
Dangerous waters. Shark infested. “Military family. We moved a lot.”
Leaning into half truths is essential. Jonathan could always spot a lie.
“I see. And you ended up in Miami?”
“She’s a veterinary nurse,” Christopher supplies, feeding my lie to Jonathan. It rings with truth because that’s what Christopher believes.
“What do you think of my club?” he asks.
“It’s very sultry.”
His eyes spark with appreciation and something darker. “Have you been to the top floor yet?”
“Not yet. We’re loosening up with a little champagne before I show her the delights of the top floor.”
My reasoning is correct; the nefarious shit takes place on the floor above us. I glance up through my lashes. Sex? Torture? My brain surges, planning my escape route. I don’t want to get trapped with these men in a room. I might know several ways to kill someone, but enough of them in one place, with the same goal, will overpower me. I’m skilled, not stupid.
Jonathan’s knee presses against mine, and my heart skips a terrifying beat. I turn to look at Christopher. “I already told you, I’m not into being shared.” I enunciate each word, to convey my wariness at what he’s suggesting.
He grins, his eyes glassy and overly confident. Men like him need to know they are the only thing important in a woman’s world. He leans forward and brushes his lips against my ear. “Of course not. Jonathan is simply friendly. I would never let another man touch you as long as you are mine.”
There is the crux of the matter. As long as I’m his. I’m not actually his. I never will be, but it’s an indication of what becomes of the women he’s broken down and discarded. Forgotten fodder for Jonathan’s vast trafficking ring or worse if Christopher decides to let his true demons out to play.
“Do you have family locally, Grace?” Jonathan asks, his voice carefully controlled.
I almost roll my eyes at the blatant dig for information. “My mother passed, and my father is absent.” Truth. The fact I am sitting with the reason for both of those things isn’t lost on me.
“I see.”
Christopher and Jonathan share a look over my head as I pretend to take another sip of the bubbly liquid. At least they don’t feed me a lie of how they could be my new family. But I do need them distracted so I can achieve what I came here to do.
“You know, I’m a little tired. I think I’m going to call it a night,” I say as I put the champagne flute down.
