Sinful Palace: Ruthless Rulers Book 2

by Hart, Stella

  However, if Willow was found dead or disappeared entirely depending on how things went down, it would be a different story. The country would be in an uproar for months over her demise, and then it would only be a matter of time until the ugly truth came out about the last few months of her life.

  Saving her from Teddy’s bullet was simply the easiest option. A way to avoid all the danger and drama. That was all.

  I finally turned to glance at Willow again. “I saved you because I own you. I won’t tolerate anyone trying to destroy my property,” I said in a curt tone.

  “Oh,” she mumbled. She lowered her eyes again, fretfully twisting her hands on her lap. “Can I please ask one more thing?”

  I briefly flicked my gaze upward. “Fine. What?”

  “Did you read all the messages on the phone?”

  “Yes.”

  She looked back over at me, eyes wide and beseeching. “So then you know I wasn’t trying to escape. I never said anything that could get you in trouble or make you look bad. I just made you seem like a worried partner.”

  I scoffed. “Seriously? You’re telling me you were going to leave the house, grab that file from your source—if it actually existed—and then waltz back home like nothing happened?”

  “Yes,” she said in a small voice.

  I let out a short, sharp snort. “Give me a fucking break.”

  She clasped her hands in front of her, like she was praying. “Logan, I swear. I was going to come back. All I wanted to do was get some evidence to help my mom.”

  “Jesus.” I rolled my eyes. “You know she probably did it, right? They wouldn’t have formed a Judiciary Committee, appointed a Special Counsel, and ordered the exhumation of Rutherford’s body if they didn’t think there was a chance she did something to him.”

  “No. I know she’s innocent. I knew it when she looked at me during that interview. The way she talked to me.…” Willow trailed off and shook her head. “I just wanted to fix what I did so she’d forgive me. I swear I wasn’t going to escape.”

  I felt my blood pressure rising with every word that came out of her mouth. “You had my fucking house set on fire so you could get out.”

  “I had no idea Teddy was going to do that.”

  “Oh, well that makes it all better, then,” I said, tongue dripping with sarcasm.

  She didn’t say anything for a long moment. Then she drew in a deep breath and spoke up again. “I know you have no reason to trust me now, or ever again, but I’m telling the truth. I was going to come back. The plan was for you to be distracted long enough for me to go to the meeting point, grab the file, and go home. All without you ever noticing I was gone.”

  “So you’re telling me that when you walked through that gate, free as a bird, you didn’t feel different? The air didn’t taste a little sweeter?” I replied in a mocking tone. “Enough to make you change the plan and run away for good?”

  “No. I wouldn’t do that. I couldn’t let anything happen to Jared,” she murmured. “You made it clear you wouldn’t give me a second chance after last time.”

  “And yet you still took the first opportunity to run. You risked it all.”

  “I didn’t. Not really.” She started to cry again, tears dripping all over her face. “You know I’m not lying. You saw those messages,” she continued in a choked voice. “Please just have a heart for once and think about it. Punish me, not my brother.”

  I hated to admit it, but she had a point. She hadn’t given anything away in the online exchange that could make me or my family look bad. She’d painted me as a reasonably concerned fiancé, citing that as the reason she couldn’t leave the house to meet the alleged NSA source, and when he offered to help her sneak out, she made it quite clear that she couldn’t leave for very long. An hour or two at most.

  On top of that, I’d seen a message from him apologizing for the fire. While I wanted to blame Willow for the near destruction of my family home, I had to acknowledge that she was clueless about it until it happened. Sure, she agreed to let the guy do something to cause a distraction at the house so she could slip out undetected, but she didn’t know exactly what it was.

  She disobeyed me, clearly, but it wasn’t a true escape attempt. Not like the last one.

  With an exasperated sigh, I slammed my hands against the steering wheel. “Okay. Fine,” I said through gritted teeth. “I won’t touch your brother. But I will punish you. Consider this strike two.”

  “Yes, sir,” she whispered.

  “That means you’re out of chances. You know what happens if you get to strike three.”

  She shook her head vehemently. “I won’t.”

  “You better not,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “If you take one step out of line again, I’m calling Frank.”

  “I know.” She swallowed thickly and reached one hand over to grasp at my jacket. “Thank you for understanding.”

  I shook her off. “Don’t fucking touch me,” I growled, trying to ignore the jolts of electricity blazing a path through my body, radiating from where she’d grabbed me.

  She jerked away. “Sorry.”

  “Stop saying that,” I said, twisting my face into a scowl as I took a left turn.

  “Why? I am sorry, for everything that happened tonight. For the fire. For Teddy.”

  “Sorry doesn’t take back all the shit you’ve done,” I snarled.

  “I know.”

  “You realize this is the second time your shitty, fucked-up decisions have almost killed my sister, right? Mal and I got her out of her room with only seconds to spare before the ceiling collapsed on her bed.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  I kept going, unable to stop myself now that I’d gotten started. “I know you didn’t light the fire, and you didn’t know Teddy was going to do it, but you still caused it in the end. It’s the same shit with the Vespa incident. You don’t remember doing it, but you still did, didn’t you?”

  She nodded morosely. “Yes.”

  “Maybe your mother was right about you the other day. You’re nothing but trouble.”

  That was all it took to get the waterworks started again. Willow covered her face with her hands, leaned forward, and sobbed loudly.

  I ignored her for the rest of the drive, too infuriated to look at her or speak to her again.

  We finally arrived at our destination, and I slowly steered my car through the palatial scrolled gates at the entrance. They were modeled after the gates of Versailles—plated with gold and topped with majestic baroque ornaments, cornucopias and crowns.

  A smooth, hedge-lined road stretched out beyond them, leading up to a sprawling structure which could only be described as a modern hotel crossed with a fairytale castle.

  Willow’s eyes widened as we headed down the rambling driveway. “This is where we’re staying?”

  “Yes. My family owns it, so we might as well use it,” I said.

  When we’d parked in my reserved spot, I got out of the car and went around to Willow’s side to assist her as she climbed out on unsteady legs. Her cheeks turned pink as she took in the glittering lights and soaring turrets ahead.

  I smiled thinly. “Welcome to Wonderland.”

  3

  Willow

  My palms dampened with a mixture of fear and anticipation as I stared up at the enormous building ahead. While I’d seen photos of Wonderland over the years and heard all about it, including the nasty rumors that often made the rounds, I’d never actually visited the place.

  The photos didn’t do it justice. It was far more impressive in person, resembling an enormous Disney castle. Even though it was the middle of the night, the building was alive with warm golden lights, illuminating the sky and land around it so brightly that it almost looked like daytime.

  With the combination of Gothic and Châteauesque architecture with ornate gables, massive circular turrets, and a sweeping central tower of eighteen floors, it was clear the Thornes had taken inspiration for Wonderland’s design
from historical hotels such as the Château Frontenac. In fact, the only major difference between Wonderland and the Frontenac was the coloring of the exterior walls and roof. Wonderland’s walls were pale sandstone, and the towering roofs were charcoal gray.

  “Holy shit. This place is crazy,” I murmured, lowering my eyes to the artificial lake outside the hotel. A replica of the famous Pont Alexandre III bridge spanned the shimmering water, decorated with gilded lamps and ornate stone carvings. All around it, majestic fountains rocketed glittering streams into the air.

  “You’ll get used to it,” Logan said, taking my arm. “You’ll probably even enjoy it here.”

  “What makes you say that?” I asked, timidly glancing up at him as he led me across the bridge.

  “I know how much you hate attention, and you won’t get much of that here,” he replied. “People visit this place to have fun and forget about the rest of the world, so you’ll barely get a second glance.”

  I nodded slowly and pondered his words as he directed me through the towering glass doors at the main entrance.

  Wonderland’s interior was just as extravagant and impressive as the exterior, decorated with a combination of old-fashioned and contemporary touches. Massive tiered chandeliers lit the space, and the walls were adorned with custom moldings and painted artwork.

  An enormous round pool with marble statues and a soaring fountain lay in the center of the lobby. The main reception area stood on the other side of the pool, with dutiful, impeccably-dressed staff checking people in and giving them directions to their rooms or different entertainment areas. To the right of that, a sweeping staircase led to a curved observation balcony with a glitzy restaurant beyond.

  The whole place was buzzing with activity, despite the late hour, but Logan was right. No one paid any attention to me whatsoever, even though I looked like a complete mess. It was nice to be invisible for once.

  “This way,” Logan said, gesturing to our left. “We’re going to take the private elevator.”

  On our way there, we passed the main entrance to the casino. It was filled with well-dressed men and women, drinking and laughing as they tried their luck at the gaming tables and gambling machines. At the same time, beautiful young escorts in sexy, barely-there costumes paraded around them in brazen attempts to lure them to the Wonderland Club.

  I wasn’t surprised to see that. Prostitution at Wonderland was an open secret. Despite all the nasty trafficking rumors surrounding the place, nothing would ever be done about it. The Thornes were simply too rich and powerful to be held accountable for breaking the law.

  Logan led me over to an elevator and typed a code into the exterior keypad. The doors opened to reveal a plush royal blue carpeted floor, mahogany-paneled walls, and a gilded console. Each button had a label next to it, marking out different entertainment venues, restaurants, clubs, and accommodation on the lower and middle floors. Three of the upper floors had ‘Wonderland Club – Members Only’ written next to them, and the top floor was marked as ‘Thorne Suites – Code Required’.

  Logan pressed the button for the seventeenth floor, and the elevator ascended with a smooth hum. When we arrived, he escorted me out with a hand on the small of my back. “I can’t take you to our room just yet. It’s not ready, because the staff weren’t expecting us to show up in the middle of the night,” he said, noticing my confused expression.

  “So we’re staying here for now?” I asked, looking around the top floor of the Wonderland Club.

  It wasn’t what I expected for a high-class bordello at all. It was serene and well-lit, with soft classical music filtering through the air. Young women in outfits ranging from lingerie to casual sweats lounged around the place on comfy chairs, eating, drinking and chattering to one another. There wasn’t a single man to be seen apart from Logan.

  “I’m going to leave you here for a while,” he said. “I need to go and get a few things sorted out.”

  “What am I supposed to do while you’re gone?” I asked, eyes widening. “Just sit and wait?”

  He pointed to a hallway on our left. “There’s a bathroom by the dressing rooms, so you can go and get yourself cleaned up a bit,” he said. “After that, if you go through the glass doors over there, you’ll find a cafeteria. You should probably eat something. All the food is free, so don’t worry about that.”

  Now I knew why we’d taken the private elevator. The elevator for guests probably opened up at the main entrance to the Wonderland Club, but the one we’d taken opened into the back, where the escorts hung out and got ready in between shifts. That explained the quiet, casual atmosphere and the multiple girls in sweats and ponytails.

  “I’ll be back in half an hour,” Logan went on. “Try not to talk to anyone if you can help it.”

  He returned to the elevator, and I headed down the hall to find the bathroom. When I stepped inside, I felt safe and comfortable right away. It was lit with warm lamps and decorated with pale pink marble tiles and pretty golden fixtures. Directly ahead of me, there was a long row of sinks and vanities, and a wide passage on the right led to several large shower cubicles and bathtubs.

  I gasped as I stepped up to one of the sinks and caught sight of myself in the mirror. I knew I looked like a mess, but I had no idea I looked this bad. My eyes were puffy and red from crying, and my skin and clothes were flecked with Teddy’s blood and a few dark smears of soot from the fire at Thorne House. My hair also reeked of smoke.

  “Oh my god, what happened to you?”

  Heart hammering, I whirled around to see a petite woman with black hair, tanned skin, and mesmerizing blue eyes standing behind me, wearing nothing but a black leather bra, matching panties and black thigh-high lace-up boots. Despite the chunky heels on the boots, I hadn’t heard her enter the bathroom.

  “House fire,” I said softly, hoping my eyes didn’t give away the fact that it was only a half-truth.

  “That’s horrible. Are you okay?” The woman stepped up to the vanity next to me, still eyeing my dirty face as she dropped a bag on the tiles. Now that she was closer, I detected a faint Eastern European accent in her voice.

  I stared at myself in the mirror again, biting my bottom lip. Am I okay? Let’s see…

  I was still a prisoner to the Thornes, and I’d just seen a man get shot to death and dumped in the bay. On top of that, my mother and Jamie Torrance were still in hot water over Rutherford’s death, mostly because of me, and Mom had practically exiled me from the family as a result.

  Given all that, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be okay again. I couldn’t tell anyone, though. Couldn’t share my pain and misery with a single soul in this world.

  “I’ll be fine, thanks,” I murmured, lowering my face so I could splash some water and soap on my skin. When I lifted my head back up to pat my face dry, I glanced over at the dark-haired woman again. She was leaning close to the mirror and applying dark makeup to her eyelids.

  I suppressed a horrified gasp as I noticed a terrible purple scar running around her throat along with a series of red and purple scars on her bare abdomen and arms.

  She noticed me looking and arched an eyebrow. “Do you want to borrow some makeup?”

  I abruptly turned my head away, pretending that I hadn’t noticed the marks on her skin. It made me feel as if I’d intruded on a private moment. “No thanks,” I murmured, cheeks turning hot with shame.

  She tossed a small purple container over to me anyway. “Try this,” she said. “It’ll help with the puffiness.”

  “Oh. Thanks.” I shot her a small smile and opened the container to scoop out a bit of the sweet-smelling cream within. It was cool and refreshing on my skin, and my eyes looked better almost right away.

  “See? It’s a miracle-worker,” the woman said, smiling brightly at me.

  “Yeah, it’s great.” I handed the container back to her, trying my hardest not to look at her scars. “Thanks again.”

  “No problem,” she replied, staring ahead at the mirror as sh
e clinched a black choker around her neck. A silver pendant with the letter ‘M’ engraved on it dangled from the center. “I hope your night gets better.”

  I smiled again and nodded politely before leaving the bathroom. After I headed back down the hall, I went over to the glass doors Logan mentioned earlier. They opened automatically with a swish, and I found myself in a large cafeteria decorated in a gorgeous Art Deco style.

  I wasn’t particularly hungry, but I figured I may as well grab a bit of food anyway. It wasn’t like I had anything better to do right now.

  Several tables were dotted around the room, and a few women shot surprised looks at me when I stepped past them toward the serving counters. A couple of them even leaned over to their friends and murmured as they peeked in my direction. Apart from that, no one spoke to me or bothered me in any way.

  I grabbed a plate and scanned the food options, eventually deciding on sushi. As I reached for a California roll, a familiar voice piped up behind me. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

  I turned to see the dark-haired woman from the bathroom. “Sorry, what?” I said, brows drawing together.

  She smiled and took a step closer. “I was in here earlier and I saw one of the girls put every single piece of sushi on her plate,” she went on, wrinkling her nose at the silver tray. “Then she changed her mind and put it all back. Normally I wouldn’t care if someone else touched a bit of food for a few seconds, but that girl had just finished with one of her regulars, and everyone knows he enjoys a few fingers up the ass. I know she always washes her hands after, but still…”

  “Oh. Yikes.” I grimaced and pulled my hand away from the sushi.

  “Try the crab puffs instead,” the woman said, nodding toward a different tray. “They’re to die for.”

  “Sounds good. Thanks.”

  “Do you want me to show you a quiet place to sit?” she asked, cocking her head to one side. “I’m guessing you’d prefer that over the communal tables after the night you’ve had.”