Page 6 of Hades’ Revenge

“How did you…” I shook my head. “Who?”

“No more games, Capri.” He yanked my stool closer to him, so that my legs were between his, holding me captive without even touching me. “Why are you here?”

I frantically scanned the bar area, but no one even looked in my direction. This man could probably do anything he wanted and no one would intervene.

“If you thought Nikolas was a problem for you, then you have no idea who I am and what I’m capable of.”

“I don’t want anything from you.”

I gripped my thighs, trying to stop my legs from twitching, but being this close to him, putting myself in his direct path, sounded alarms that I should have heard before I even walked into his club.

“Did your father send you?”

“No!”

“Don’t lie.” He grabbed my wrist and glared at me with a deadly calmness in his expression. “I can’t imagine why he would send you, but he has my attention. What does he want?”

“My father doesn’t even know I’m here,” I said. “I saw you in a social media ad for the club. At first it was the cool music that drew me in, but then I saw your tattoo.”

“The one that matches your father’s?”

“I kept watching the video, freezing it so I could compare it to his. It’s odd that someone would have the exact same tattoo as his. I thought by coming here it would be a little adventure. That maybe I could snap a picture of you and show it to my dad when I got home.”

“Seriously?”

“Playing detective was fun.” I shrugged. “It was a stupid idea. I didn’t expect to almost get date raped.”

Most of my ideas turned into epic fails, but I was trying to outgrow my impulsive behavior. I swore to my parents that I would behave myself while studying abroad this summer. I almost made it, with the exception of tonight.

“That’s why you shouldn’t provoke strange men while you’re looking for answers you have no business seeking.”

“Are you saying you’re a strange man? Because I don’t—” The clearing of his throat cut me off. “Can I have my hand back?”

When he let go of my wrist, I ran my fingers over it, noting the red marks he’d left behind. This intense man intrigued me in ways that I never thought he could before I came here tonight.

“So, you do know my father.”

“I do.”

“Do you keep in touch with him?”

I wasn’t naive when it came to my father’s business practices. He didn’t openly discuss them, but people talked, especially kids whose parents knew who my family was. I had heard how dangerous my dad was my entire life. I chose to ignore it.

“I do not.”

“How come?”

“This is over.” He stood. “Whatever you came here to search for, you’re not going to get it. I suggest you stop playing detective before you get yourself into more trouble than you found tonight.”

“Why would I get into trouble?”

I slipped off the stool and inched closer to him. As frightening as it was to challenge him, I didn’t want this conversation to end. There was something about him that poked at my curious side.

“I’m going to have Atticus take you home now,” he said.

“Who is Atticus?”

“A loyal friend of mine.”