To Trick a Hacker: Women of Purgatory 3

by India Kells

  Dylan angled her head. “Good to know. Now, what about your idea?”

  And his hard gaze turned molten again. “If you’re interested, I’ll take that as a good sign.”

  “Intrigued, before interested.”

  His eyes never left hers. “I can work with that.”

  “So, what is your plan?”

  The man’s smile was lethal as he got to his feet, but his move forward was stopped as Margot came through the door. Owen mumbled a curse.

  “Still there? Don’t mind me, I’ll just grab a drink while waiting for my client. Can I watch?”

  Owen glared at the dominatrix and quickly put his shirt back. Margot was now dressed in a very tight, very glamorous black silk dress.

  “The club closed one hour ago, Margot. And we have agreed to never have clients past normal hours. When there is no security staff here.”

  She held up her arms and bowed slightly. “I know, I know! It’s a special request. Last minute client who pays extremely well. You know that porn star, Smith Rival?”

  “Margot, I don’t care who he is, or even if he’s the master of the known universe. We have rules.”

  Margot smiled, dismissing him. “My dear Owen, you’re way too interested in rules for me. And since the beginning of our partnership.”

  “And you dismiss rules way too easily. You should know better.”

  Margot’s eyes flashed as she poured herself a healthy dose of vodka. “Don’t you dare bring back the past right now. That’s a low blow.”

  As lust evaporated and her brain started running again, words poured out of Dylan. “Where did you meet Owen, Margot?”

  The scene froze and Margot’s eyes darted to Owen quickly before setting on her.

  “We met at some point.”

  “At Maison Amaryllis, isn’t it?”

  Dylan didn’t need a confirmation to see the truth in her reaction. Pieces of the puzzle came into place. Owen’s revelation, Margot’s career, at least part of her career.

  “Apart from a brothel, was Maison Amaryllis a BDSM club, too?”

  Now Owen turned to her and sighed. “No, no BDSM. But you’re right, we both … were there at the same moment. Even though I didn’t know it at the time.”

  A pang of jealousy surprised Dylan. “She was your client?”

  Margot stepped forward, shaking her head. The anger mixed with pain got to Dylan, unexpectedly. “No, darling. I was paying a debt to Amaryllis. In other words, I was her slave.”

  Chapter 16

  Owen’s body was so rigid, Dylan thought he would break in two if he tensed even more.

  Dylan thought of remaining silent and wait for the tension to break off, but it wasn’t her style. “As slave, are you speaking metaphorically?”

  Margot lowered her head and bit her bottom lip, and Dylan couldn’t tell if it was from keeping her from laughing or crying. When she faced her again, the amused glimmer in her eye was obvious.

  “Not precisely, dear Dylan.”

  Owen shuffled on his feet. “This may not be the best time to—”

  “To what, Owen? Reminisce about the past? Tell her that you saved me?”

  Owen made sure to avert his gaze from Dylan as he answered, “You didn’t really need saving, Margot. It was only a matter of time …”

  Margot put her glass on the bar, her hands on her hips as she swayed in front of him. “What? Before I became so desperate that I ended my life? You may have believed I would escape. On my part, I’m not so sure about it.”

  Her black gaze shimmered with emotion when she looked at Dylan. “My husband was, and probably still is, a sad son of a bitch. Unfortunately, I didn’t see this side of his personality when I married him. So perfect in every way. In front of me at least. But the truth is, I married a manipulative coward, a lying bastard who didn’t reveal his true face until I started asking questions. It took me a moment to realize that the husband I knew was a gambler and a sex addict, the very worst combination already, if not that when he started losing, he drank. And when he drank, he became violent.”

  Even before she could realize what she was doing, Dylan was on her feet. She wasn’t comfortable enough to touch or comfort the woman before her, or if she would even need or accept it. All she knew was that her emotions swirled too strongly inside of her to remain seated. Fists tight beside her, she refrained from pacing.

  “What happened next?” The words came out more calmly than she felt.

  “What do you think happened?” Regally, as if her posture alone could shield her from the demons of her past, Margot walked past her and sat on the arm of the sofa, forcing Owen to sit back down. So naturally, his arm went to rub her back. Margot smiled at him as he nodded. Dylan should have felt a twang of jealousy, but instead, her cop’s eyes knew better. There was an undeniable connection. Not sexual. Not attraction. Hardship. It’s something she couldn’t have detected through a TV screen. “Night after night, he kept coming home late. I started receiving calls of people searching for him without telling me who they were. Tension grew unbearable, but he didn’t say anything to me. One evening, as he was going out without telling me where, I decided to follow him. It led me directly to Maison Amaryllis. I lived in Dallas, I had heard about it, of course, but I never thought he would go elsewhere. I loved him and was so blind. Knowing that he would betray me with someone else, something snapped inside of me.”

  Margot sipped and both Dylan and Owen remained silent. When she started talking again, her voice was low, forlorn, lost in her memories.

  “I pushed the door, and came face-to-face with Amaryllis. I will never forget the sight. She looked so beautiful. And mightily surprised. I didn’t have a very outgoing personality at that time, but I told her that I had seen my husband coming in. And when her surprised expression turned speculative, I knew I had made a mistake. She brought me to her office and made me sit before pushing a file in front of me. It detailed all the money my husband owed her. Not only for sexual services, but money she had lent him for gambling and paying off other debtors. The numbers pilled up into an amount I had never seen in my life! I still see her sitting in front of me, leaning back on her chair, examining, calculating, evaluating the situation as I sat there, breaking into a million pieces.”

  Restless, Margot stood up again and went to fill her glass again. “What she proposed, what I accepted to do to wipe his debts, I will never speak of it again. It would be easier to enumerate what I didn’t do. But in the end, I lost two things when I accepted her evil bargain … the love for my husband and for myself. If not of Owen, I would probably still be there. A ghost, a shell of my former self.”

  Again, a smile tugged at her ruby-red lips when she looked at him.

  Obviously embarrassed, Owen shook his head. “I didn’t know what Amaryllis was capable of. Not really. What we had was a business deal. From the start, that’s what it was. She made good money with me, but I wasn’t trapped. Not like Margot.”

  Dylan turned to him, frowning. “So how did you learn about Margot?”

  Owen hunched his shoulders some more. “I was working at night. But one morning, I realized I had forgotten my phone there. Probably in the lounge. I tried reaching Amaryllis, but she didn’t answer. I went there directly. I didn’t have a key, but a locked door never really was a problem where I was concerned. As I got into the lounge area, I heard noises coming from upstairs. Faint noises. That’s where I found Margot, chained in Amaryllis’s office.”

  Dylan’s breath escaped in a hiss and she took two steps back before rubbing her neck and forcing discomfort away. “Chained?”

  Sliding forward on his seat, Owen extended his hand to her. Dylan looked at it for a moment, and realized that he must have sensed a shift in her at Margot’s story. He remained immobile, his hand extended, waiting for her to take it and join him on the couch, or not. It was difficult for her to follow her instinct when she didn’t know how her body would react.

  Conscious of Margot’s attention on th
em, Dylan tentatively hovered her fingers over his offered hand, feeling the warmth and soothing vibe, and ever so slowly slid her fingers over his outstretched palm, gently closing over her fingers. Owen pulled her to sit down beside him, making sure she had all the space she needed, even opening his hand again, giving her the option to break the connection. She didn’t. The contact was comforting, and not wanting to make a big deal out of it, she returned the spotlight on Margot.

  “So, he found you chained in Amaryllis’s office. What happened next? Owen, didn’t you know about this?”

  Owen shook his head. “I was more and more disconnected from what Amaryllis was doing, or how she was managing her business when it didn’t affect me directly. And I had sent my application to the Navy. I was waiting to take another direction with my life.”

  Margot snorted. “If she had known that the almighty Wolf was about to take off, she would have had the fit of a lifetime. And I’m so lucky you did it after freeing me. I may not have survived her wrath.”

  “Wolf, that’s where the name of this club comes from.” Dylan smiled.

  “It was Amaryllis’s idea. She said I had the air of one.”

  Margot snickered. “Amaryllis baptized all of her studs, and Wolf suited Owen just fine. And he may have avoided the subject, but he had quite a reputation. One of the best ever known in Texas.”

  “Margot, stop.”

  Dylan shook her head and lifted a hand as a peace offering. “Okay, so the almighty stud Wolf, aka Owen Sorenson, freed you that night. What next?”

  “Owen found a safe place for me. I could hide there until he could take care of everything.”

  “Everything as in what?”

  Owen shook his head, but Dylan could guess easily enough and continued. “Her debt. You worked out an arrangement with Amaryllis.”

  Owen disagreed. “I didn’t want Amaryllis to know I was the one who found her little slave and made her disappear. The next night, Amy was in a foul mood. But she didn’t scare me. I played as if I knew nothing, and asked what was bothering her. After a while, she finally told me about Margot, how she was supposed to repay her husband’s debt, but disappeared before she had finished. Amy was talking about sending some P.I. after her, but I decided to play the white knight. I asked how much longer she had to work for Amaryllis before her debt was clear, and proposed to pay her off. We negotiated, and I paid. That way, I made sure Margot was free, forever.”

  Dylan glanced at Margot and saw the same question she had, begging to be answered. Once again, knowing Owen more and more, Dylan could guess the answer. “You traded yourself off, for her.”

  Dylan heard Margot gasp, but her eyes were on Owen only. Margot took two steps and crouched before him. “You told me that you gave her money!”

  “I did give her money. Margot, let it go. It’s over.”

  But Margot ignored him and stood up again, pacing. “You gave her money, you had sex with her, you stashed me away, paid for treatment, and invested in this place.”

  Owen let go of Dylan’s hand and stood up, clearly going for the bar.

  “Margot, I had money, and I have to say that you’re a very good investment. The last time I checked the club’s books, I discovered I won’t have to worry when I have to retire. You think I saved you, but in truth, I hired a damn good retirement plan! I may not know or understand what you find in this world, but I see how you thrived and improved. BDSM or not, I’m just glad I could offer you a choice to start over on your own terms.”

  Margot pushed herself up and laughed, maybe to hide tears, before letting herself fall hard on the chesterfield on the other side of them. Her black gaze stayed a long time on Owen before turning to her.

  “Don’t be fooled, Dylan. You have before you one of the mighty Sorenson. He may hide it well, but saving lost souls is ingrained in every cell of his body. That’s why I’m here now, and it’s the same for you.”

  “Enough!” Owen’s voice growled. Margot had whipped the wolf a little more forcefully than she intended in seemed, as even the dominatrix jumped at his tone, even though her teasing was never completely gone.

  Back in her role, wrapped in cold silk with onyx eyes, Margot stood up. She took two steps toward the wild wolf in front of her, examining him, then curtsied with a flourish. Margot kissed his cheek before turning to Dylan and winking at her.

  Dylan’s eyes slid over Owen, and for an instant, she caught a glimpse of the man he truly was. The wolf. It may be had been a simple nickname assigned by Amaryllis, but the wild predator was in there, too. Leashed tightly, sharpened by suffering and war, but not tamed. Maybe never.

  His eyes bored into his manager, and before he could speak again, a bell rang.

  “Ah! That’s my client. I’ll only be taking the Victorian room for tonight. And yes, I promise to keep my phone close and not to bring clients here outside normal hours from now on. Oh, mighty Wolf.”

  Something shifted between Margot and Owen. It wasn’t the first time they battled, but friendship seemed to win at the end. Owen relaxed and Margot offered him the very first genuine smile Dylan had ever seen on the woman.

  He stood and put a hand on a silk-clad shoulder. “I only ask that for your protection, Margot. Only for that. Alone here, there are risks.”

  Gently, Margot patted his hand. “I know, my friend. But I’m safe now. And it’s time you stopped being the knight in shining armor, and take a well-deserved rest. After this one, maybe?”

  Glancing at Dylan, he smiled before returning his attention to the dominatrix. “We’ll go back into my office.”

  Margot smiled and subtly nodded at Dylan. Was it reassurance? Encouragement? And for whom?

  Without waiting for Owen, Dylan stood to go back to the office. In reality, she didn’t want to see the client wanting to go into a Victorian room. Whatever it was.

  Chapter 17

  Dylan refrained from pulling the hair from her head. Again. She was circling so many times, retracing her digital steps from the last six months, trying to find the grain of sand that would lead to some sort of intelligible and mostly useful information about the creep … an exercise in frustration.

  One advantage of having her frustration locked on her computer, it kept her from focusing too much on the man working before her. Installed on another laptop he had brought in, Owen was intensely glowering, his large shoulders slightly hunched over the screen, his golden beard tinged of a blueish hue. They didn’t exchange more than two words after the revelation of Margot and their hot embrace. Many more questions swirled in her head, but she would get her answers. Dylan could be stubborn like that.

  Her eyes lingered on his face; his masculine lines and set jaw. The lips that made hers tingle at the memories of him kissing her. Damn! Frustration took another depth and she wanted to try again. She wanted to test her limits once more, just in case her subconscious had made some sort of peace with her trauma. At this moment, she had yet another reason to hate Knudson for what he did to her, but also, another reason to fight. And as Owen had told her before, she was a fighter. A notion she had forgotten too easily, hidden safely behind her computer.

  Dylan pushed from her chair and stood up, stretching her stiff muscles. When she moved, Owen’s eyes were immediately on her.

  “Found anything?”

  She angled her head. “At this point, I would yell hurrah and do a happy dance if I found any scrap.”

  He smiled and stretched his arms over his head, hinting a sliver of skin as his shirt inched up. “I really want to see your happy dance.”

  “I’ll only do it in private, otherwise I will embarrass you. I’m not a great dancer.”

  “I don’t believe you. The way you move, it tells me the opposite.”

  “Funny. Walking and dancing are too separate things.”

  “I beg to differ. But there is time for me to prove my point. At a later date.”

  “Dream on. Found anything interesting in the police files on Knudson?”

  O
wen shook his head, lightly scrubbing his beard. “I’ll have to reread everything. Something’s wrong, but I don’t know what yet. It was nagging at me, so I decided to dig on the different relations of Knudson. Same for his property and bank accounts. Still working on it.”

  Dylan sighed. “You’re right, something is wrong. Too bad I can’t put my finger on it.”

  “What part of the puzzle is bothering you?”

  She grimaced. “There is more than one part. From my perspective, I would start with this question: why would our creep follow me, and if he’s skilled enough to access the very place where I stashed the list, why wouldn’t he have taken all of it and used it?”