She ran. After what I did to her, she fucking ran.
I kick the wall. I dial my security company and get the manager, Maze, on the line. I tell him I want my wife back, unharmed. He puts ten men on the case, pronto. There’s nothing money can’t buy. Except my wife. I call a jail buddy and get word out. The reward is big enough to get anyone interested. Then I dial the guardhouse and summon one from the entourage who accompanied Lina to Brixton.
A short while later, a guard with a pistol and rose tattooed on his bald head enters the study.
He shifts his weight. “You wanted to see me, sir?”
“Tell me what happened at Dalton’s place.”
“Mrs. Hart went in to see him. She asked us to wait outside but left the door open so we could see them. They spoke for five minutes, and then she left.”
“Did you hear what they were talking about?”
“Only bits and pieces of the conversation. They kept their voices down.”
“Tell me what you heard.”
He swallows. “Brink was at the front of our group, sir. He would’ve been in better earshot.”
“I’m asking you.”
He glances behind me at the whips on the wall.
“I suggest you start talking. You don’t want me to make you.”
He sobers. “Mrs. Hart said something about getting evidence for him. They had an argument, but I couldn’t hear what about. I assumed it had something to do with the fact that she didn’t have it.”
“You’re dismissed.”
He doesn’t let me invite him twice.
The guard’s testimony confirmed my actions were justified. Lina lied to me. She collaborated with Anne and Zane. She knowingly broke my rule by going to Dalton. She planned her escape when she agreed to Zane’s terms, not that she’ll ever be able to hide from me. Now she’s gone. I showed her what I’m capable of, and she couldn’t handle the monster. It must’ve been pretty bad for her to have run, knowing what I can do to her when I catch her. Fear burns like a slow fire through my insides. My stomach twists, and my skin turns clammy. The thought of losing her makes me physically ill. This is my fault. Who I am makes me sick.
Charging to the fireplace, I rip the cane from the wall and slam it over my knee. With a clack, the wood breaks in two. I chuck the pieces into the empty fireplace. The whip follows. I do the same with the paddle and every other instrument designed to inflict pain. Then I pour firelighter liquid over the lot and light a match. The things I did to Lina go up in flames. It’ll burn to ashes. The marks will vanish. Will her hatred? Will she ever give me her faith again?
There’s only one thing I can do. The only thing I’ll ever do. Every single time.
Bring her back.
Lina
Phil opens the door to his townhouse and lets me enter first. It wasn’t that hard to escape. Brink trusted me. I’ve never tried to run during his employ. I said I needed tampons and used the backdoor of the pharmacy to escape. I ran for a while, until a woman stopped and asked if I needed a lift. She dropped me at the gym, and I convinced Phil to give me shelter for the night. Not the best move, as Damian will definitely question everyone I know, which means everyone at the gym, but it’ll give me time and a place to sleep until tomorrow. I don’t have another alternative except for Reyno, and as I know Damian, he’ll check there first.
“Sorry about the mess,” Phil says. “I didn’t expect company.”
I dump my bags on the sofa and hug myself. “Don’t stay for my sake. Do whatever you were planning on doing. I’ll be out of your hair tomorrow.”
He leans an arm on the wall, caging me in from the side. “There’s always been a spark between us.”
I back away. “There’s no spark. Never was. Never will be.”
He winks. “You don’t need to play hard to get with me. I’m all over you, babes.”
“I don’t play that way.”
“Fine.” He shrugs. “Want something to munch?”
“I thought you were going out for drinks with your friends.”
“With you here? Plans have changed.”
An uneasy feeling slithers up my spine.
He walks to the kitchen and pours two glasses of wine. “Wanna talk about it?”
I take the glass he offers. “No.”
He downs his wine and slams the glass down on the counter, smacking his lips. “I could never put the two of you together. I mean, you and Damian, you’re like opposites.”
I take a gulp of the wine. It’s sour. “I said I don’t want to talk about it. I’m really tired.” And sore. I need painkillers. “Do you mind if I just rest for a while?”
He walks down the short hallway and braces a shoulder on the doorframe. “In here.”
I follow and try to peer around him, but his body takes up half of the hallway. His chest bulges as he crosses his arms. “You look like you can do with a massage.”
“I’m good.”
I step around him and stop. The bed is unmade, and clothes are scattered everywhere. A baseball cap hangs on the bedpost.
“This is your room.”
He gives me a crooked smile. “The other room is a study. I only have one bed.”
“I can take the sofa.”
He steps forward, backing me up against the wall. I hiss as my ass hits the bricks. Wine sloshes over the edge of the glass.
“Cut the chase, Lina. Admit it. That’s why you’re here. Why else would you look me up at the gym?”
Panic floods my system. My ears start to ring. “I looked you up because I need a place for the night. Nothing more.”
He slams his palms next to my face. His breath is hot on my mouth, smelling of wine. “A girl like you must know what you do to men in your tight gym pants and exercise bras.”
I push on his chest, spilling wine on his T-shirt. “Get off.”
He grabs my jaw and brings his lips to mine. “If you want to play rough, I’m all in.”
“You’re crazy.”
“You’re so innocent and untouchable. That’s why Damian wants you, isn’t it? He’s one of those bad guys who likes good girls, and you’re one of those good girls who likes pain.” He motions at my scars. “I can be bad, babes, as bad as you want me.”
I shove him, hard. The glass drops to the carpet. “Get off me.”
“Not a chance. Not now that I finally have you alone.”
He crushes his lips to mine. It’s a thin, wet, sickening kiss. He fumbles with the buttons of my blouse, pressing me to the wall with his weight. I ache where Damian caned and fucked me, but it’s nothing compared to the revulsion that fills me. I feel sick. When he gives me breathing space, I bite down hard. He lets go with a yelp, tearing my blouse in the process.
Licking his bleeding lip, he stares at me incredulously. “You bitch.”
I slap him, hard.
He grabs my wrist and tries to turn me. If he twists my arm behind my back, I’m as good as raped. I claw at his face, winning another fraction of distance, enough to lift a knee. He grunts as the blow hits him between the legs. Letting me go, he cups his crotch and whines in agony. I don’t hesitate. I run for the door. I yank it open just as he recovers enough to straighten. Leaving behind my clothes and handbag, I run for the corner where the only streetlamp burns, yelling at the top of my lungs.
Phil’s loud curse comes from a distance behind me. When I look over my shoulder, I see the neighbors peeling out of their doors. Their interest is enough to make Phil turn around and limp back to his house.
I stop running. What if he calls Damian? I feel like hitting myself on the head. It was a stupid move. Now I’m stuck alone, outside, in the dark, without my bag and purse.
Looking up and down the road, I consider my options. I have to find a way of getting to Reyno. I can bribe him for money. He doesn’t have to know I left my phone with the incriminating recording behind. I’m going to have to hitchhike.
Setting off in the direction of the main road, I glance behind me again. Th
e neighbors have gone back to their dinners and televisions. Phil’s door is firmly closed.
As I blow out a sigh of relief, something hard hits me over the head. My mind cries no as I fall to the pavement on my hands and knees. Before I have time to look at the face of my attacker, he hits me a second time.
Pain explodes in my skull. Stars follow, and then darkness.
Damian
My first stop is at Reyno’s. He opens the door wearing slippers and a robe with a Holiday Inn logo.
“It’s after nine,” he says even as he opens the door wider.
For the fee I pay him, he’ll open his door at two in the morning if I say so. I follow him to the lounge and let him pour me a drink while I weigh my words.
He hands me a whisky. “What happened?”
“Lina’s gone.”
He turns as white as his stolen hotel robe. “Gone how?”
Twirling the glass, I stare at the liquor. “She ran.”
He flops into an armchair and downs his drink as if the shock is personal, as if Lina ran from him.
“Any idea where she might’ve gone?”
He looks at me accusingly. “No.”
“She’s not safe out in Johannesburg alone.”
He slams his glass down on the side table. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
“You’re her shrink. You must have an inkling of what her thought process will be.”
Agitation filters into his tone. “She had nowhere else but you.”
My pulse thuds in my temples. “Say what you mean.”
“Why did she run?”
I take a sip of the alcohol, welcoming the burn in my throat. “I punished her.”
“How?”
“Cane.”
He scoffs. “And you wonder why she ran?”
“I don’t wonder why. I wonder where.”
“For her sake, I wish I could help you, but I can’t.”
“Is there anything I need to know?”
“You’re asking me to break my patient confidentiality clause.”
It’s my turn to scoff. “Don’t pretend to be ethical, all of a sudden.”
“No,” he says angrily. “There’s nothing else you need to know.”
“Call me if you hear from her.”
“I’m sure she’s just hiding out somewhere, licking her wounds. Lina is proud. She’s not the kind of woman who’ll enjoy being punished.”
“Does anyone?”
“Some women crave the pain. I don’t know the history of her self-mutilation, but I don’t think Lina is a masochist. If that’s what you need, you have the wrong partner.”
“I didn’t ask for psychological advice.” I leave the glass on the table and turn for the door.
“Damian.”
I turn and wait.
“She’s not crazy. I don’t think she’s ever been.”
I continue to wait, feeling there’s more to come.
“You should let me declare her mentally competent,” he says carefully, measuring my reaction.
“No.”
Perplexed, he stares at me. “Why not?”
It’s easier to keep someone against their will when their legal decisions are in your hands. Holding all power over Lina is warped. I’m not beyond admitting it. It doesn’t change the fact that she’s mine or that I’ll never let her go. I’ll use whatever means I must to keep her.
“Call me.” I slam the door behind me as I go.
It starts to rain, again. Running my hands over my head, I look up at the dark sky. In no time, my jacket and shirt are soaked, but I don’t feel wetness or cold. All I feel is the ice in my heart. A piece of me is missing. Without her, my heart may as well be hacked out. She’s been a part of me for so long, I don’t know how to exist without her. She’s been a part of me from the day I first saw her, even when she belonged to another man. I won’t rest until she’s back where she belongs.
Lina
The pain in my head is horrific. The hammering won’t stop. I’m aching everywhere from my waist down. Opening my eyes slowly, I take in my surroundings. I’m sitting on a chair in the darkest corner of a room with a single lamplight. I try to swallow the dryness of my mouth away, but my tongue is too thick. I try to move, but my arms and legs are tied. Panic flushes through me, intensifying the throbbing in my skull. My memory returns with sharp shards of fear. Forcing calm, I try to breathe and not alarm whoever has taken me to the fact that I’m awake.
I sharpen my senses. Movement catches my eye. There are two people in the room, their outlines visible in the dark. A woman, by the shape of her body, and a man. The hammering sound is rain pelting the roof. From under my lashes, I take in the furniture to get an idea of where I am. There’s a bed and television. A kettle and jar with instant coffee packets stand in the circle of lamplight.
Their whispering reaches me.
“He was never going to fall for you,” the woman says. “I was our only hope.”
“You ruined it,” the man replies. “You shouldn’t have shown him the bread rolls.”
Zane? Anne?
Fear, boiling hot, fills my veins. If this is about revenge, I’m dead.
“Go check on her,” Zane says.
“Why me?”
“Fuck it.” He stomps to the chair and yanks my head up by my hair.
I yelp at the pain that doesn’t help my headache.
He lets go with another pull. “She’s awake.”
Anne approaches, her expression hidden in the dark. “I need more light.”
Zane carries the lamp as close as the cord allows and leaves it on the floor.
The light washes over Anne as she regards me with her hands on her hips. “Is she still bleeding?”
“It stopped.”
My voice is scratchy. “What do you want?”
“You can’t be that naïve,” Anne says, her tone mocking.
Zane takes his smartphone from his pocket. “I’m calling Dami.”
“Wait.” Anne grabs his arm. “Let him sweat it out a bit longer. He’ll be easier to outsmart if he panics.”
They’re doing this for money. They’re going to ask for a ransom. They didn’t kidnap me to kill me out of revenge. That doesn’t mean they won’t kill me. No, I’m not that naïve.
“How much?” I ask.
“How much what?” Anne snaps.
“How much is my life worth?”
She grins and looks at Zane.
He answers, “Thirty million.”
He must be joking. “Damian can’t just sign over thirty million. He doesn’t have that kind of cash.”
“No, but he can sell his mine.”
“Sell it?” I choke out.
“We already have an investor lined up.”
Oh, my God. They’re vicious. They found a company that must’ve had its eye on a mine for a while, a company with enough resources.
“Who?” I force from my dry throat.
“Who do you think?” Zane asks.
It can’t be, and yet, it’s the obvious answer.
“Dalton Diamonds?” I whisper, fearful.
“Of course,” Anne says. “Oh, and Damian will also have to hand over the evidence against your father.”
My stomach drops. Harold’s cronies must’ve gotten the funding together. How did they do it? International loans? How they managed, doesn’t matter. If Damian gives in to Anne and Zane’s demands, the mine will fall back into Harold’s hands. That mine means everything to Damian. Every single drop of energy he spent during the last six years went into getting that mine back. It means more to him than money, or he wouldn’t have taken the risk of buying a dying mine. He founded the black diamond initiative and turned a dead project into a profitable one. The mine represents the sum of his existence. If that’s what they want, I’m dead for sure.
“Damian will never give up his mine.”
“You underestimate your value, honey,” Anne says. “He even got rid of Zane for you.”
&n
bsp; “What?”
“Shut up,” Zane hisses.
Damian threw Zane out? “I didn’t know.”
“You must be mighty proud,” Anne says bitterly. “You managed to get rid of all of us. Don’t you know it’s nasty not to share, darling?”
“How is this supposed to work?” I ask. “Do you get commission?”
“We’ll get our cut,” Anne replies, “but this alone makes it worth the while.” She lifts her hand and turns it to the light.
A teardrop diamond glitters on her finger. I gasp. She took my engagement ring? How low can a person go?
Taking in my expression, she chuckles. “You didn’t want it, so it shouldn’t matter.”
“You can’t just steal someone’s engagement ring.”
She makes a face. “Don’t tell me you’re superstitious about symbols of love and all that crap.”
I’m not. In all honesty, Damian didn’t give the ring to me with affection or love. He gave it to me so I wouldn’t be publicly humiliated if one of the world’s biggest diamond magnates didn’t give his wife a diamond ring. It would’ve been a clear message that he doesn’t love me. The whole world would’ve known for a fact what they’re only suspecting. The kindness of the act hasn’t dawned on me until now. I accused him of making me a whore and showpiece, but he’s never once publicized the ring or demanded something in exchange. The necklace is a different story, but he’s not guilty where the ring is concerned. I said I didn’t want it, but I suddenly want it back with my whole heart.
“Give it to me,” I say through clenched teeth.
Anne smiles, admiring the stone. “I don’t think so. It’s a nice bonus.”
“How much longer do you want to wait?” Zane asks, sounding irritated.
“Give it until morning. Damian will be nicely worried by then.”
Despite all of Zane’s shortcomings, Damian has been loyal to him. Damian deserves better than this. The more I’m submitted to Zane’s nasty tactics, the more he comes across as a gold digger. It makes me wonder. Has he ever been Damian’s friend?
“How long have you been planning on getting your hands on Damian’s money?” I ask. “Since you got out of jail or from before?”
Beauty in the Broken: A Diamond Magnate Novel Page 32
