His Property

by Allison West

  The foyer was silent, the only sound heard was the erratic breathing and her heart that pounded against her chest. The thought of running into the men who had abducted James earlier, scared Aria. She couldn't lose him again. Aria clasped his hand in hers, not wanting to let go.

  "This way," Hailey said, leading them through the abandoned foyer. It was a mess, with broken glass and debris scattered haphazardly as they approached the elevator. "Victor prefers to keep the apocalyptic feel downstairs. He insists it keeps the claimers away. He's probably right. If they saw how swank it is upstairs, they'd raid the place."

  The elevator dinged, and they stepped inside, James right behind Aria. Hailey followed in last, hitting the button for the top floor, and shoved the key into the lock, turning it. "Victor resides in the penthouse suite, though this entire building is now his property. Not legally, of course; you can't own a building in the city. Only the government can own land." She laughed, as if the idea was ludicrous.

  The ride up the elevator made Aria's ears pop. She swallowed several times over, as the elevator slowed to the floor and the double doors opened.

  Hailey stepped out first, holding the elevator doors as James and then Aria followed. The floor outside was a gorgeous marble, shiny and reflective as she walked into the hall. It looked well-cared for. She opened the front door. There wasn't even a lock, though why would there need to be with keys to access the penthouse floor?

  Stepping inside on the plush carpet, Aria's feet sunk into the beige material. The room stretched on, with the kitchen to her right.

  "Make yourselves comfortable," Hailey said, glancing them up and down. "You'll want to change. Victor won't be too thrilled with your attire if you're staying over. There are clothes in the bedroom. Come with me; I'll show you." She barely took a breath, allowing them to speak.

  They followed her down the hall, admiring the fine living room furniture and dining table. Had this place been from another lifetime?

  "Come, come," Hailey urged them to hurry through the living room and toward the bedrooms. She waited inside for them. Aria enjoyed the view outside and even the beauty of the rare furniture inside. She wanted to take her time, savor the exotic experience.

  James let go of her hand and followed Hailey to the bedroom, to see what the fuss was about. A minute later, he carried out two leather outfits, tossing one at Aria.

  It smacked her in the head and landed on her shoulder.

  "What's this for?" Aria worried she might have to actually wear the black leather corset and matching thong.

  James held up the black leather underwear that he'd been given as well.

  Hailey pursed her lips together. "Victor likes his house guests dressed appropriately."

  Aria shifted with anxiety on her feet. "We wear these under our clothes, right?" If Victor didn't have to see the clothes, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad. It was a bit like lingerie, she hoped.

  "No, dear, these are your clothes." Hailey turned on her feet and headed for the front door.

  "Wait!" Aria rushed after her. "What does Victor want with us? Why dress us like this?" Aria wasn't crazy about the idea, though she'd done far worse things over the past few months.

  James rested a hand on her arm. "Maybe it's just another photo shoot?"

  Hailey gripped the door handle, opening it but glancing back over her shoulder. "Oh, yeah. That's it." She smirked, slipping out of the penthouse suite.

  Aria wasn't convinced it had anything to do with pictures, but why would Victor want them to dress in erotic leather attire? Did he have a perversion that they didn't yet know about?

  "Please say something," Aria whispered, staring up at James nervously. He smiled back at her. "How are you okay with this?" she asked, dangling the leather corset in front of him.

  James grinned. "With you wearing that, I can manage being a little uncomfortable for a few hours."

  Aria stalked back toward the bedroom, having a look inside at the place. It was nice, unbelievably so, with the king-sized mattress and rare oak furniture. The room even smelled pleasant, like fresh wood and new carpeting. How could that be?

  "You do realize, we could be in these for longer than a few hours?" Aria was a bit nervous at the prospect of what Victor intended on doing with them? Did he like watching, as Sienna had on Amity Island? Or was there another game he liked to play?

  James shrugged, stripping down and slipping into the tight leather underwear. It didn't look comfortable, but even as he pulled them up his thighs, she found herself unable to stop staring.

  She stepped closer, her fingers finding their way to his hips, grazing over his warm skin. He was still hot to the touch, warmer than earlier when she'd been concerned. Her lips fell to his neck and down his chest, grazing over and across his back.

  "Aria," he whispered and groaned. "What are you doing?"

  She smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling like two diamonds. "What do you think?" Her lips descended on his neck, kissing a path down his heart to his navel.

  "You should put that leather corset and thong on," James said, his eyelids growing heavy.

  Aria knew he was turned on. She could see it on his face and hear it in his breathing. She wanted him, every inch of his cock inside her tight pussy. Being within a few inches of him, was enough for her to feel as though the room sweltered. He made her hot with desire.

  James pulled her up to him, pushing his tongue inside her mouth. "You feel it too," he whispered. His skin glistened with sweat. She breathed him in, his masculine, salty scent, and dragged her tongue along his neck, nibbling up to his earlobe.

  She nodded, drawn toward James in a way she couldn't describe or fathom. She wanted to tear his clothes off, but he was almost naked.

  His hands found her ass, pulling her against him as he ground his hips into hers. "Like that?" he whispered into her ear. He didn't have to ask to know the answer. A slight moan emitted from her throat, and his hands were on her hips, lifting her shirt up and over her head. He began to undress her with haste, neither of them taking their time. The desire had grown, though she didn't stop long enough to question why.

  She pushed him back onto the mattress, climbing above him, her crotch ground into his. The leather was tight against his cock, straining against him. It mustn't be pleasant, and she didn't want him to suffer. Her fingers inched the tight black leather down, freeing him. He breathed a sigh of relief and forced her hands away, sliding the material down his legs and kicking it aside. So much for Victor seeing them in the attire when he arrived. Not that she cared what Victor wanted or thought. They were only there to find a cure. If there was another man with money and access, she'd be pursuing him to get what they needed.

  "You still have too many clothes on," James said, unbuttoning her cargo pants and pushing them down her hips. He removed them, along with her panties, getting a good look at her slick pussy in the process.

  "See something you like?" she asked, catching him staring.

  He growled like an animal in heat, rolling them around, straddling her.

  She dragged her fingers along his back and down over his ass, pulling him closer. "Don't tease me," she said, her voice raspy. Her pussy throbbed to be touched, and she knew James must have felt the same.

  The front door opened forcefully, and boots trampled across the floor, like soldiers storming for their enemy. Aria grabbed the sheet, pulling it up around herself as James climbed off her. Before he could reach for his boxers on the floor, six men in quarantine suits pointed guns at them.

  "Come with us." It wasn't a question.

  "Can we get dressed first?" It's not as though they had the option to escape. They were in a bedroom forty-stories up.

  Three of the men looked to the one man standing the closest to them in the door jam.

  "Fine. You have ninety seconds." He didn't leave the room or afford them even a hint of privacy.

  James worked on his boxers while Aria took the sheet with her, bending down onto the floor to grab her
t-shirt and cargos. She was quick to dress but not ninety seconds quick.

  "Time's up," the leader in the white quarantine outfit said.

  Aria groaned; her panties and cargo pants were on, but she struggled to figure out her bra beneath the blanket. It wasn't easy dressing with one hand while the other held the sheet. "Give me another minute!"

  James came around to help her, holding up the sheet for a semblance of privacy while she used two hands to snap the bra strap in the back and then slip on her t-shirt. "Thank you," she said, staring up at James.

  He nodded, not saying a word. He watched the men, probably trying to understand what was going on. Had Victor sold them out to the claimers? If he had, why? How else had they known where they were? Why did they even care? Was it because James was sick and still infected? She doubted they actually cared about his health or anyone else's. They wanted diamonds and gold.

  The moment her clothes were on and James dropped the sheet, the men in quarantine suits accosted them. One grabbed James, shoving his hands behind his back as he was dragged through the living room. Another man did the same to Aria, forcing her forward like a criminal. What had she done wrong? Sure, she'd broken into the quarantine facility, but had these men known that? Was that why they were being detained?

  "James!" He walked ahead of Aria, but she could barely see him, with the giant hazmat suit sticking out at every angle directly in front of her. "Let us go! James hasn't infected anyone."

  The man who dragged Aria out of the penthouse cleared his throat. "Are you sure about that?" he asked. The hall was filled with more men in white protective gear from head to toe, all of them armed.

  What was he talking about? Aria was an emerald. "I'm immune," Aria said. Didn't he notice that when they'd stormed inside and forced them from the building?

  Two men kept guns on them at all times. She wondered if they were loaded, though why wouldn't they be? Whoever ran the quarantine facility had access to weapons. Even if it was from stealing them and raiding abandoned buildings.

  "Sapphires aren't immune," the guard holding the gun said. He pushed the button for the elevator as they stood in the hall.

  "I'm an emerald," Aria said, unsure what was going on.

  James and Aria could fight back, but how far would they get? There were too many men with guns to fight off and little chance of escape.

  The elevator dinged, and they were forced forward into the elevator with four armed men and two detaining them. Six versus two. These were not the same claimers as before. No, these men came prepared, but why? Aria didn't even bother trying to break free. Where would they go? There were probably more men waiting downstairs in the lobby for them.

  "Look in the mirror, lady." Another guard glanced at Aria. He must have heard the conversation. It wasn't as though there was a mirror handy, but she knew what color her eyes were, unless something had happened. Hailey had injected her irises with dye. It was supposed to be temporary. Hadn't Roger, the guard at the facility, questioned the fact she had emerald irises?

  James and Aria were escorted outside. It had grown dark, and the air felt chilly. She shivered, goose bumps lining her arms as they were shoved into the back of a van. The door slammed shut behind them. Aria tried the handle, not that she expected it to work. It was locked.

  Muffled voices spoke amongst one another outside the van. The man who'd dragged James out and appeared to be the leader gave orders.

  "What are they saying?" James asked.

  Aria stared out the small window of the back of the van. She couldn't see anything helpful as the sky darkened and the sun set. "Not sure."

  The front door slammed, and the engine roared to life.

  There was movement in the window across the street. She rubbed at the glass, trying to clean the dirt and grime away. Victor watched in the distance. Had he set them up? Why?

  "I think I just saw Victor watching us." Aria's stomach sank, and she walked toward the bench, sitting down beside James. There were only two people who knew of their location, Hailey and Victor.

  "How much do you think he got for us?"

  "Come on. We're not worth that much," Aria said. "We're not in Brayleigh." Back home, he was a wanted man with a massive bounty on his head. Who cared who they were here?

  "Maybe word travels," James said and shrugged. He didn't seem convinced. "Or someone really wants to pay my debt." It seemed a long shot.

  "It probably has more to do with me breaking you out of the quarantine facility this morning. They really need to tighten their security." Aria's concern was that they already did, and they wouldn't have another opportunity to escape.

  "It still doesn't explain how they found us." James stared at Aria, and she knew he was right. Whether it was Victor or Hailey, someone had sold them out.

  The van lurched forward, and Aria's hands gripped the wooden bench beneath her, keeping her steady. "Is it true what those men said?" she asked, turning to face James. "Am I a sapphire?" She didn't see how it was possible; the dye had worn off hours ago, hadn't it?

  James stared into her eyes, squinting as he tried to answer her question. "It's dark in here, Aria, but the entire time we were in the photo shoot and the penthouse, you were and always have been an emerald."

  Aria exhaled a heavy breath. Why should she care if the men lied to her? Though, why lie? What agenda could they have that she wouldn't see through, the moment she caught a glimpse of herself in a reflective surface? None of it made any sense.

  Chapter 6

  "When I was brought in this morning, to the quarantine facility, I heard the prisoners speaking about the healthy sapphires being cleaned up and sent out." James' voice was even, his face stoic.

  "That's right. Sapphires who receive the vaccination and can't afford the fee are held prisoner until an angel pays the debt to the government. There was definitely at least one angel on the premises this morning." Aria had experienced him a little too intimately, without meeting him directly. "Maybe that's why security was lax when I broke you out. Perhaps the guards were with the angels who pay for the facility."

  The van pulled to an abrupt halt, slamming on its brakes, flinging Aria from one side of the vehicle to the other. Did the bastards do that on purpose? Were they trying to get them killed? She could scream at the top of her lungs, but she doubted it would help. Who would save them?

  "When the doors open, kick and bite. Do whatever you have to, Aria, to get away."

  "I know." He didn't have to tell her to fight for her life. She realized the implication of being a prisoner at the quarantine facility. She may never see another sunrise.

  The front and passenger side doors of the van opened and slammed shut. There were muffled voices and the click of the lock as the men opened the back. Aria took James' advice and threw herself at the exit, darting past the man in a quarantine suit holding the car keys. She made it four feet before a jolt of electricity zapped into her, forcing her body to go limp as she collapsed onto the ground, shaking. The man with the stun gun in his grasp bent down, shooting another jolt of lightning through her torso. Her heart skipped a beat in its insistent forceful rhythm. Words refused to escape her lips, at least anything intelligible was gone, though she wanted to scream and curse. She groaned in agony instead.

  Please not another jolt.

  Aria gasped, unable to hear her own pants as her ears rang. The man who had attacked Aria and another guard talked animatedly. Were they arguing over her? She couldn't hear them, though they were only a few feet above her. Aria's eyes opened and shut, blinking back tears as she turned her head, trying to find James. He was in handcuffs, a gun to his forehead. If he moved, they'd kill him.

  So much for escaping.

  The man who'd shot Aria up with electricity leaned down and grabbed her arm, lifting her onto her feet. They wobbled, her gait unsteady, as he dragged her toward the door. The building, tall and made of dark glass, sat in the center of the city, disguising itself as just another building. This wasn't where th
ey were earlier that morning. No. The facility that morning had been no more than one story and surrounded by a guarded fence.

  "Where are we?" Her voice waivered, and she swallowed, parched.

  Aria's hands shook, and her legs were unsteady as she focused on putting one foot in front of the other to walk. A usually simple task exerted all her energy. There was nothing left for her to fight back with, not that it would do any good.

  "Home," the man gripping her arm said.

  A guard standing outside opened the double glass doors, allowing James and Aria to be escorted inside. Unlike the men who had raided Victor's penthouse in white suits to protect from contagion, these men wore business attire. "Aren't you worried about contamination?" Aria asked. This wasn't a quarantine facility. At least it didn't have the feel of one. There were plush carpet floors and even a reception desk. This place looked as though it used to be a hotel.

  "You mean because your friend is a ticking time bomb?"

  The man dragging James escorted him down the corridor to the left. Aria was forced in the opposite direction.

  "Where are you taking him?" She attempted to break free, pulling herself from the man's grip and darting across the room. She didn't get far. Electricity zapped her yet again, forcing her body to the floor, convulsing.

  "Stop!" James' voice was a haze in a thicket of clouds. It was distant but reassuring as the burning stopped riveting through her body.

  Sweat dripped down her forehead and coated her brow and breasts. She worried she might never see him again. The pain of being shocked was nothing compared to losing James.

  Two more guards intervened, guns pointed on James. "You will come with us," one of the men said to him.

  Were they doing this to torment her? She didn't fight back, not with the thought they might kill him. She was hoisted up off the floor, tossed over a man's shoulders and carried away like a child. She kicked and screamed, wanting to walk. "Put me down!" It didn't do any good. Did they worry she'd run again? Their concern was warranted, because Aria would if given the chance.