by Maegan Abel
My heels clicked along the wooden floor as I made my way to the front edge of the stage to begin my show. The lights made shadows of the men surrounding me and I paused, lowering myself stiffly to my knees as I waited for the music to start. I blinked, trying to clear the spots of light from my vision as the line of hands fisting bills began coming into view.
It was when I saw the tattoos on his fists, ones I knew well, that the music began.
Chapter Eighteen
Change of Plans
Frozen to the spot, I didn’t begin my normal routine on time. The murmuring of those around me caught my attention, snapping me out of my daze. I started moving and as much as I wanted to give up, I put everything I could into the movements. Maybe it was shock, I couldn’t be sure. But I knew I wanted to be finished and off the stage.
I made no eye contact as I performed my three numbers. Not with Tony or anyone else in the crowd. I kept my gaze locked in the distance and let my body move on autopilot, begging in my mind for this to be a nightmare.
There were too many questions and as I darted toward the back room, my heart was pounding. I needed to be casual but I couldn’t shake the vision of those hands. What did it mean that he was here?
Taking a deep breath, I pulled myself together, heading across the floor and up the half staircase to the VIP section. I knew he was in the small crowd gathered as I made my way slowly through the tightly packed bodies. I paused, giving personal dances as I was asked and doing my best to avoid the side of the room where I’d spotted him.
When he walked over to one of the guards and spoke in his ear, I felt chills break out across my skin. He didn’t look my way and as the guard nodded and took his payment, Tony walked over, leading Fifteen out of the room. My stomach sank. It wasn’t that I wanted him to buy me, I didn’t, but he knew the way this place worked. He seemed comfortable here.
The crushing realization that Tony could very well have had something to do with me ending up in this hell had bile rising in my throat. I needed to get my shit together. It didn’t matter. He was no one—a piece of a past that meant nothing to me anymore. It mattered to her. He mattered to her. But that life was over. Now, I had other things to focus on.
I half-heartedly continued my stroll around the room, not giving near the time or effort I normally would. The men in the room were just as predictable as I’d hoped, barely casting glances my way before moving on to the girls working harder than me. I could see the concern on Emma's face when she left the room, glancing over her shoulder at me as she went. She could tell I was up to something, which meant the other girls might be able to as well.
As I turned to make another round, I was stunned to find my path blocked. If I’d been moving faster, I would’ve run right into the chest currently at my eye level. I knew who it was and I tilted my chin, giving him the same bland smile I gave the rest of them. His eyes were the only thing giving him away. The normally smooth color seemed darker in the light as his gaze flicked to the side of my face, my neck, and back up to my eyes.
“Excuse me,” I purred in Spanish, giving him a wink and trailing my fingers along his chest as I passed. A part of me expected him to stop me or at least speak, but he did neither.
By an hour before my shift ended, I’d only been to my room twice. That was a new low for me and inside, I was rejoicing. A few more days like this and it would be over. The thought made everything lighter. I could see the end now.
But it all came crashing down when I saw Tony heading my way. He was staring straight at me, his path undeniable as he handed me the card with my number. I smiled politely at him, taking it and leading the way down the stairs. My heart hammered and something close to the panic I felt last night while taking this walk with Marco started to overtake me. Keeping my cool, I flashed my card at the guard near the hallway, feeling it tremble in my fingers.
My mind raced as we passed the numbered doors leading to mine. What was happening? Was this punishment? Why would he do this?
I locked away that train of thought before stepping up to my door. It didn’t matter. He was someone in her past, but he was no one to me—another faceless stranger.
Opening the door, I stepped inside, walking to the middle of the room before turning to face him. He closed the door slowly, seeming unsure of himself, before heading toward me. He grabbed my shoulders, walking me to the wall, but stopping just short. He fisted my hair, tugging firmly but not roughly, to lift my chin.
“They can’t hear us but they can see us so play along and block your mouth if you talk,” he said, shocking me completely before his lips landed on mine. Like his grip, the kiss was firm, commanding, and the part of me that knew what it was like to kiss him, the part that had spent months kissing him, could tell it was an act.
When he pulled back, he lowered his head, letting his lips graze over my neck as I tensed.
“I’m sorry. I wish I’d gotten in sooner. I tried…” He sighed, pressing his lips softly against the bruises before lowering them further. I was still completely tense and he straightened, cupping my cheeks and tipping my face upward again. “You have to loosen up. I’m going to get you out of here but we have to play it cool for a while.”
It wasn’t his words, it was his eyes. The near panic in them brought with it the realization that he wasn’t the reason I was here.
He was the rescue team.
“You can’t save me,” I whispered. “Go home.”
He sighed, stepping back to pull off his shirt. He was right, we needed to keep moving. I dropped to my knees, surprising him when I reached for his belt. “You don’t—”
“Trust me,” I said, loosening the button and zipper on his jeans just enough to tug the fabric so it rested with my hands, low on his hips. “Now, you need to go back.” I pulled his hips forward and he caught on to my trick, taking over the movements and resting his hands on the wall over my head as he looked down at me.
“I’m not leaving without you,” he said. “We have a pl—”
“I don’t care about your plan. You can’t save me.” I sighed, blowing out a breath as I tried to explain. “You think they’re just going to let me leave? You think they’ll never come after me again if I do? You have no idea—”
“Do you think this is some fly-by-night operation? Do you think those marks are your back are the worst they can do to you? Lili—”
“Don’t…” I choked, leaning my forehead against his lower stomach as the pain lanced through me. “Don’t call me that.”
“I’m sorry,” he said again, slowing the movements of his hips as he helped me to my feet, shoving me toward the bed. I walked over, fighting back the sense of self-consciousness. I told myself, once again, he was just another faceless stranger while I unclasped my bra and dropped it to the floor.
“You can’t save me,” I repeated after turning my back to the camera to face Tony again. His eyes flicked around the room, his face so familiar, I could read his thoughts easily. “How do you know they can’t hear us?” I asked, removing my skirt and underwear while he tilted his head downward toward my body.
“I know a lot about the way the operation works. This isn’t a shot in the dark. We have a fully mapped out plan,” he said before lifting his head and sighing, pulling me to the other side of the bed. “We have to do this. I’m sorry. I…” Now that his back was to the camera, his expression dripped remorse as he tossed a condom onto the bed.
It took a second for his words to register. If our heads were away from the camera, they wouldn’t be able to see us talk but they’d have a clear shot of the connection of our bodies. If we got under the blankets, it would look suspicious. “It’s fine.” I dismissed his concerns, climbing onto the bed and stretching my arms above my head, hissing slightly as the movements pulled at the wounds on my back.
Tony’s eyes trailed the length of my body and I watched as he swallowed hard, forcing himself to drop his jeans and underwear to the ground before climbing over me. I immediately notice
d the lack of his arousal as his body lined up with mine, his lips beginning to trail over the skin of my shoulders.
“Stop overthinking it,” I said, moaning while I arched my back. Playing aroused, acting the part, giving a man the praise he desired in order to help him reach his orgasm faster and be done with me—this, I could do well.
“I can’t help it. This is…”
“Wrong?” I asked, running my hand down his toned stomach.
“Yes,” he answered, his voice sounding breathless. “I can’t—” He groaned, dropping his head to my chest as my hand wrapped around his length.
“Then let me help,” I said, feeling his lips wrap around my nipple. I couldn’t feel anything but grateful he’d given in before I let it all go.
Being purchased for the night wasn’t something I was used to. It had happened a handful of times in the past…however long it had been now. But, not many. Unfortunately, Tony had done just that. I wanted him gone. Being with him had been even harder than Marco, which made no sense at all. But, at least with Marco I didn’t have to pretend. With Tony, it was part of my job here.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered for what had to be the twelfth time, even though I hadn’t responded to him once.
“Stop it,” I finally said, wishing I could move away from him without making it obvious. This was beyond hell for me as she battled away, trying to get me to talk. I locked my jaw in an attempt to keep from asking the question she was desperately begging me to ask.
“What am I supposed to call you?”
I turned my head toward him in the semi-darkness of the room. “What?”
“You told me not to call you Li—” He cut himself off at my flinch.
“Nine,” I answered, looking back at the ceiling.
“All right, Nine, then what the fuck was that out there today?” I heard the overwhelming contempt in his voice and it raised my anger and irritation.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, my tone cold.
“You’re giving up. I saw it in your eyes. You’re usually so much more active, but you weren’t even trying. It was like you’d given up hope.”
“Hope is for those who have something to live for,” I said automatically before the rest of what he said registered. I sat up, scuttling back just a little on the bed as I turned to face him. “How would you know how I usually am?”
He moved slowly, obviously trying not to startle me as he pushed himself to a sitting position and faced me. “I told you before, I have a plan.” He paused and I nodded, waiting for him to continue. “I can’t give you the details but we’ve been following your movements for a while. It took me longer than I would’ve liked to gain the trust of those in power so I spent a lot of time watching the monitors. It was the easiest way to keep an eye on you without seeming obvious about it.”
Pain lanced through me and I knew it was more about her feelings of betrayal. “So, you were just watching me while…” I snapped my mouth shut, shaking my head in frustration. “You need to get out. You can’t save me.”
“We can. We have it—”
“No!” I yelled, flinching as the movement pulled at the wound on my face.
“Shut up,” he hissed, his eye flicking toward the door.
“You need to leave. Tomorrow. As soon as your time with me is up, you need to walk out of here and never look back.” I barely managed to keep my voice steady.
“That’s not happening. I’m not leaving without you.”
“It’s a death sentence,” I stated firmly, shoving myself off the bed to stand. I needed to move, needed to pace. The trapped animal analogy seemed fitting.
“Then we both die because I’m not leaving here without you.”
“That’s ridiculous,” I spat, shaking my head. I was going to need to take matters into my own hands and it couldn’t wait any longer. Looking up at him, I allowed her to ask her one question, knowing it wouldn’t make things easier either way, but giving in regardless. “Did Conner…? Was he…?”
“He’s home with Zane,” Tony said. Relief coursed through me—through her. By the look in his eyes, I could tell he was hoping saying their names would calm me down. It had the opposite effect. It solidified the choice. She had made this decision with me. We were both done.
“Good. Then it’s time,” I said, turning on my heels and bolting for the door. Trying to make a run for it was a sure way to get a bullet to the head, no questions asked. I’d seen proof of that more than once.
“Fuck.” I heard Tony approach and his weight hit me a moment later. “You have to calm down. I’m not in this alone and we can get you home. You have to trust me.”
He was speaking as I thrashed in his grip, trying desperately to free myself as I screamed for him to let me go. It was a desperate move and I was hoping he would do as I asked and let me leave, let me end things my way. But he didn’t. We struggled until I was able to pull my foot back, my bare heel connecting with his dick. He released me and I made it only a few steps toward the door before it flung open and I found myself face to face with Marco. I almost smiled as I faltered, huffing in breath from the exertion of the fight.
Before I could register more, Marco’s hand shot out, gripping me around the neck, and then Tony was beside me.
“Let her go,” he said, surprising me by speaking in fluent Spanish. I didn’t dare look at him. Was he serious? Putting himself in the middle of this was an idiotic and suicidal move. I whimpered and choked, trying to tell him to back away as tears sprang to my eyes. Lili was still here and clearly in partial control during my panic.
“She was running,” Marco countered, unrelenting in his grip as my hands started clawing at his arm weakly.
“No, she wasn’t. I told her I wanted a fight. She was doing what I asked. She was trying to touch the door by any means she could.” Marco looked over at Tony, clearly disbelieving. “Damn, man, don’t you get tired of them not resisting at all? Sometimes it’s more fun to subdue them.” Tony sounded relaxed but my ears were popping as I choked.
Marco smirked at me and his grip loosened fractionally. My hands had fallen to my sides and I was too tired to struggle anymore. When it was clear I wasn’t fighting, he released me, letting me crumple to the floor. I coughed, splattering the pristine carpet with red as my body shook. I knew, without a doubt, Tony was concerned, but I hoped he wasn’t showing it.
“Let’s go have a chat with Alejandro,” Marco said, but there was an edge to his voice. I knew he was talking to Tony but I couldn’t catch my breath to intervene. “Grab your clothes.”
“Right behind you,” Tony’s voice was calm and I lifted my chin enough to watch him as he tugged on his jeans. He met my eyes briefly as he passed me, grabbing his t-shirt before following Marco out.
Panic seized my chest as I crawled toward the closed door. This wouldn’t end well.
Chapter Nineteen
Stay Down
For the first time since my arrival at The Club, my door was locked. My trembling fingers slid down the wood as I sat back on my heels. I knew what this meant. I’d gotten my wish.
They were waiting on word to kill me.
A part of me was grateful. It would be over. Even if they prolonged it now as punishment, it would end. The rest of me—or her—was terrified because Tony had intervened.
I felt ill but I was too weak to do more than fall to the side before I vomited. Red spots littered the floor and as I raised a trembling hand to wipe my mouth, it came away with more blood. Pushing myself to my feet, I staggered to the mirror, yelling obscenities at the spot where I knew the camera to be and beating my fists against the glass until I could no longer stand.
Slumped on the floor, I stared out into the room that was now my prison in a way it hadn’t been before. I let my mind wander, thinking about Tony and why he would defend me. I thought through his words, his determination that he could get us out of here, but he was wrong. This was my life and the final moments of it were approaching.
&
nbsp; I was still off balance when I finally pulled my clothes back on carefully. It wasn’t that I had any problem with my nudity, but there was something even more degrading in the thought of dying naked. I coughed out a laugh at myself as I realized my concern over being degraded was misplaced.
As breathing started becoming easier, my limbs became sore and my back ached from the still healing wounds as well as the injury to my spine. Waiting was making time seem absolutely unfathomable to me. I finally pulled myself onto the bed, hoping to at least be comfortable until it was over.
Time passed and I dozed on and off with no way of knowing how or when it would all be over. Each time I woke, I was surprised to find myself still alone in the room. My throat burned and my body ached and as even more time passed, I realized how hungry I was.
How long have I been in here?
I was contemplating whether I had the energy to check the door again when a long scream caught my attention. The walls were nowhere near as thick in these rooms as they had been in that basement and the screaming I could hear had me sitting bolt upright on the bed. My head spun at the movement but I focused on the chaos seemingly happening around me. The screaming was followed by rapid popping sounds that took me no time at all to place as gunshots.
My heart hammered against my chest as I scrambled off the bed and shoved myself into the corner of the room. I considered crawling into the bathroom, away from the door and out of sight, but just as I turned to do so, the thump of someone hitting my door caught my attention. My hands were trembling as I brought them up to cover my mouth, my mind and body flooding with adrenaline. I didn’t know what to think or how to feel but the screaming and gunfire continued, as did the hits against my door.
Three loud cracks later, the door flung inward and my hands no longer contained my screams. Even with his blond hair covered by a black stocking hat, Jordan’s eyes were unmistakable. I lunged for the bathroom in a blind panic. Some part of me was aware there was no escape, but putting a door between us seemed like the only logical solution.
