by Calista Fox
“Off doing whatever it is that he and Amano do when they’re not here.”
“Then I’m on bodyguard alert, eh? Cool.”
“Try not to enjoy it so much. You could get hurt as easily as I could. In fact, it would be best if—”
“Huh-uh,” he cut me off. “You don’t bother dipping your toe in hot water; you dive right in. So I’m hanging out with you this afternoon. I’ll go get my laptop and set up shop at your conference table.”
As he headed back inside, I said, “Kyle, you really should think twice about this.”
He turned to me and smiled. The pearly white, vibrant one. “And miss out on the chance to twist the knife because your boyfriend knows I’m spending all this time with you? Not a fucking chance.”
While he was gone to retrieve his computer, Molly popped in with a beautiful floral arrangement in her hands.
“These just arrived,” she said as she set the red and white roses in a square crystal vase on the corner of my desk.
I causally asked, “Has Mr. Bax returned yet?”
“No. I’ll phone when he’s back, if you’d like.”
“Thank you.”
She left and I quickly snatched the small card from the florist’s stationery. The flowers were from Dane, and he’d obviously ordered them online, because he couldn’t write out the card himself. Instead, it was a computer-printed one that read:
Ari,
Again, I’m so sorry about what’s happened. I’m fixing it, I promise. Meet me out front at five. Dane
I was more than happy to slip off with him at the end of the day. And I hoped he was in a better frame of mind, with whatever current plan of attack he had underway. Which I wanted to know about, yet … I didn’t.
I went back to my collage of decoration images, prepping it so I could display it for Dane this evening. Kyle joined me and we both immersed ourselves in our respective projects. Close to five, I packed everything up. Kyle went downstairs with me, since he was done for the day as well.
The tall doors were opened by the valet taking over Brandon’s shift. I hadn’t met him yet.
“Ari DeMille, Events Director,” I said. “This is Kyle Jenns.”
“Wayne Horton,” he introduced himself as we all shook. “I’ll bring your cars around.”
“Actually, I’ve got a meeting with Mr. Bax.” Dane’s Venom F5 sat in the circular drive. I turned to Kyle. “Thanks for babysitting me.”
“Not a problem. Be careful.”
“Of course.”
Wayne escorted me over to the flashy sports car.
Staring up at him, I asked, “Are you new?”
“No, I’ve been working with various departments the past few months—IT, Facilities, Distribution Services, Grounds crew—whatever they need me to do. I’m sort of a jack-of-all-trades.”
“That sounds handy for the hotel.”
“Seems to be working out.” His smile held a hint of mischief that perplexed me. He pulled open the door and I slipped inside, setting my bag on the floorboard between my legs. I glanced back at him, trying to read his expression. He added, “Have a nice evening, Miss DeMille.”
“Ari is fine.”
“Very good.” He closed the door and engaged Kyle in conversation. I reached for the seat belt, an uneasy feeling seeping through me. The car peeled away, rounded the center fountain, and raced down the winding road.
I turned toward the driver’s seat while saying, “No need to show off for—oh, my God!”
My heart leapt into my throat. It took several seconds for my brain to overcome shock and catch up.
“You’re not Dane!”
chapter 23
The dark-haired man flashed me a sinister grin and said, “No, I am not.”
He had an accent with which I wasn’t familiar and he wore sunglasses. With just a quick glimpse he could have passed for Dane.
“Who are you?” I demanded as I reached for the latch on my belt and unhooked it.
“Vale Hilliard. And don’t think you’re going anywhere, Miss DeMille.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you!” I searched the door panel, mumbling in a panicked voice, “Where the hell is the lock?” Prepared to throw myself out of the speeding vehicle and onto the stone drive, I was that desperate to escape.
“Sit still and buckle up—it is the law, after all.”
I shot him what I’d hoped was a menacing glare, though I knew it turned into one of terror when I saw he had a gun in his lap. And it was pointed at me.
“Shit.” My pulse beat erratically. My eyes flashed to the dashboard, noting a different stereo and other options. “This isn’t even Dane’s car.”
“It’s a loaner. I told the owner in Las Vegas who has it up for sale that I was interested in a test drive.”
“To Arizona?”
“I told him I’d need it overnight—and paid him handsomely.”
Fuck! He’d found a car that, on the outside, looked identical to Dane’s. The guards at the entrance of the property wouldn’t have batted an eye as it came barreling toward the gates—as we did now on our way out. I wanted to scream at the injustice. This man drove a vehicle that was so rare, only twenty-nine people other than Dane had one.
We blew right through the opening without slowing down. Then he punched it, driving so fast that even if I could have found the lock on the door and had the nerve to attempt to get out just hitting the pavement might have killed me.
As though he sensed I contemplated an escape, Vale Hilliard said, “If you cooperate, you won’t get hurt.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“Kidnapping you is a start.”
With an aggravated shake of my head, I said, “You sent the flowers, didn’t you?” Damn it! I’d fallen right into his trap.
He grinned again. “Dane will panic when he realizes you’re missing. I’ll call him and tell him he can have you back, unharmed—for a price.”
I swallowed hard. “You want part of the Lux.”
“No. My father does.”
My gaze narrowed. “Your father?”
“Well, I get something out of it as well.” He slowed—barely—and I screamed as we took a hairpin turn onto a red-dirt road, the tires squealing as we left the asphalt behind. The car splashed through a puddle, coating the car crimson. The rugged terrain jarred me and we slipped a bit in the mud.
My heart now pounded fiercely.
“Where are we going?”
“We’ll stay in the canyon, since there’s no cell reception here. No reason for you to try to call Dane yourself. Or 9-1-1. I’ll have to leave you in order to phone him. But don’t worry, I’ll tie you up nice and tight. And since there’s no one within miles, you can scream as loud as you’d like—not a soul will hear you.”
It took a bit for me to recover. Eventually, I said, “You’re not seriously going to leave me in the middle of nowhere?”
“One of us will come back for you.” His tone turned dark as he added, “For your sake, hope it’s Dane.”
“Oh, my God,” I whispered. My stomach roiled. This couldn’t be happening. And there was no way out of it. The man had a gun. I couldn’t outrun bullets. Or him. Even if I had two seconds to reach for my phone and hit Dane’s speed dial number, it would do no good. I knew there was no service this deep in a box canyon. I even had trouble sometimes at the Lux.
Son of a bitch! What was I going to do?
What about Dane? He’d spit nails when he found out I was missing. Not to mention, he’d be hellaciously worried about me. Would blame himself for my precarious predicament.
My mind reeled. What had he done to piss off the senior Hilliard enough for his son to resort to taking me hostage and extorting some of the shares in Lux from Dane?
We came to a jerky halt alongside a two-story house with scaffolding lining the font. Brush and sycamores surrounded it, creating a secluded alcove.
Vale said, “I noticed construction had stopped because of the ra
in.”
How long had he been scouting a place to hide me?
He continued. “Roof’s on. At least you’ll be dry.”
At least?
“You can’t just leave me here.” My panic reached all-new levels.
“But I must. I can’t take any chances. Now sit tight for a moment.”
He got out of the car. I wanted to make a break for it, but I’d get my feet in high heels and thick mud.
I unbuckled and went for the phone in my laptop as Vale rounded the back of the F5. With trembling fingers, I held up the cell—no signal whatsoever. Not a single fucking bar.
The door flung open and he yanked me out, my bag falling to the wet ground, the contents scattering. My phone dropped from my shaking hands. He gripped my arm firmly and forced me toward the house. I stumbled along the way. His fingertips dug deeper into my flesh, despite the suit jacket I wore.
We took the steps to the porch and crossed to the door. The inside wasn’t finished. There were still exposed two-by-fours and tresses. Weaving our way through the mess of sawdust and plastic sheets, we reached the staircase with a metal railing on one side, clearly a safety measure while the banister was being built.
I let out a strained laugh. There was nothing safe about this scenario. Not for me.
The landing at the top of the stairs opened into an enormous room. In the middle sat a chair. At its legs were piles of rope coiled high.
I screamed and tried to wrest free of Vale’s grip. He hauled me up against him and said, “Don’t make this difficult. We want our money. My father’s investments and assets are challenging to liquidate. Profits from 10,000 Lux are to be paid out quarterly. We need access to that capital. I need access to that capital.”
“And you’re willing to tie me up and hold me for ransom to get it?”
“I am willing—and have the authority—to do whatever’s necessary.” His intimidating stare unnerved me further.
“Whose authority?” I managed to ask, the fear distinct in my voice.
“The others who were part of the investment group for the hotel.”
“You’re the one behind all the problems on the property? On their behalf?”
“They paid me to persuade Dane to bring them back into the fold. He’s already figured all of this out and has been wreaking his own havoc. No one’s happy about that. It also causes trouble for me. So now it’s time to put an end to this, once and for all.”
I did not like the sound of that. Did they intend a hostile takeover of the Lux? What if Dane flat-out refused? What if Ethan, Qadir, and Nikolai stood their ground as well? Would this man really shoot me? Or leave me here? It could be two weeks before the construction crew returned. There was still rain in the forecast, since we had experienced a record-breaking monsoon season.
None of this boded well for me. Or Dane.
So as Vale slipped his gun into its shoulder holster, I lifted my foot and brought my four-inch heel down hard, stabbing his toe.
He let out an agonized growl and released me. I ran straight to the staircase. Reaching it before he reacted. I kicked off my shoes and had almost made the first step when he grabbed a fistful of my hair and tugged heartily so that I cried out from the pain.
He jerked me to him and ground out, “Big mistake, Miss DeMille.” He turned me to him and the back of his hand struck my cheek so hard, I screamed and fell facedown to the wood-covered floor several feet from him.
I lay there, stunned, an excruciating throbbing spreading from my cheekbone to my eye and temple. The thumping in my head was deafening and I felt disoriented and hazy.
“You stupid girl,” Vale spat. “The last thing you want is to make me angry.” His threatening voice rang in my ears.
I tried to latch on to the sound. Tried to let it pull me from the fog and the sharp ache.
His heavy footsteps came closer. I couldn’t imagine what he’d do now that I’d pissed him off. I didn’t want to find out.
Spying a small piece of discarded board within inches of my hand, I waited until he descended upon me and clutched my hair again to pull me up. As my body lifted, my arm shot out. I grabbed the wood and slammed it against his jaw with all the strength I possessed, fueled by rage.
“You fucking bitch!” he yelled as he reeled, letting go once more.
I didn’t wait around. I was on my feet again, miraculously, because the throbbing intensified when I moved. I raced to the stairs, made it to the midway landing, and was on my way down when he shoved hard against my back. I screamed again as I tumbled to the first floor, my head smacking against the damn metal safety railing that mocked me.
I might have lost consciousness for a moment or two. Huddled in a heap of sheer agony, I could barely breathe. It hurt too much.
“I’ll give you credit for fighting back,” he said in a deadly tone. “But you picked the wrong man to go toe-to-toe with.”
Ripping me from the floor with his hand wrapped around my arm, he pushed me through the shell of a living room. Dry lightning crackled and lit the clouds as we passed by a window. He shoved me against a two-by-four that helped to form an entryway into the dining room or den. I clutched it for support, because my knees were about to give out on me.
My body was wracked with pain, radiating unbearably from head to toe.
“You’ve fucked this whole thing up,” he insisted in a low, ominous tone. “For everyone. Including yourself.”
Swiftly he whipped off his suit jacket, followed by his tie. Before I could even react, he had my wrists bound with it and pulled my arms up and over my head as he secured the tie to the beam above us.
“No,” I uttered on a harsh breath. My throat felt raw and tight, my mouth dry.
“I listened that night you were in your office with Dane,” he said in my ear. “Before you talked about the rattlesnakes and scorpions.”
He let out a gruff laugh. My insides chilled.
Continuing, he said, “I knew that day in the bar that you were going to be his downfall. He’s never let a woman get to him, never gave one the power or opportunity to screw up everything for him. But that’s exactly what you’ve done. He lost sight of his goal, dropped the ball—because of you.”
“I’m not to blame for what’s happened at the Lux. You already admitted it’s all your doing.”
It was a wonder I could speak, but anger and fear propelled me forward, even as blood ran down the side of my face from where I’d hit the railing and dripped into my eye so that I had to try to blink it away, along with my tears. My cheek burned and my breath was still scarce. I’d never fathomed such pain in my life. Had I not practically been hanging from the rafters, I would have crumpled to the ground.
“How’d you do it?” I asked. I might have been stalling. I wasn’t wholly sure, because I really couldn’t think straight. It just seemed that the more he talked, the less damage he’d do to me. That was likely wishful thinking but I encouraged him anyway. “All of it. How?”
“I was there that day in the bar.” He still remained too close to me, whispering into my ear. “I followed Dane to see who he’d meet with off-property. It was Ethan Evans. I knew I had to find out what they were planning. Then you came barreling in and he lost all concentration. He couldn’t take his eyes off you. Fool.”
A lump of emotion swelled in my throat.
Dane.
Maybe it was true; maybe his attraction to me, everything we felt for each other, had kept him from working out all of his issues at the hotel. I didn’t know. I doubted I’d ever know. I wasn’t exactly convinced I was getting out of this mess alive.
“Later on,” Vale continued, “when the two of you spoke at the restaurant in Tlaquepaque, I knew he’d offer you a job at the Lux. I have someone on the inside. He was aware of the office Dane assigned you, because he took delivery of all the furniture and set it up. It was easy for him to wire the place.”
I had no idea why, but Wayne Horton’s voice cut through the hammering in my head.
… I’ve been working with various departments the past few months—IT, Facilities, Distribution Services, Grounds crew—whatever they need me to do. I’m sort of a jack-of-all-trades.
And that smile he’d given me. As it flashed in my head, it seemed less mischievous and more … devious.
Fuck. How convenient. Working with IT, Wayne could screw up the Web site and deactivate my access badge. With Facilities, he could have the furniture Dane ordered for the penthouse delivered to Monaco. He could have cut the security wires while part of the Grounds crew.
“How’d the snake get into the stairwell?” I asked.
“Brilliant, really,” Vale murmured. “Dane helped with that. So, too, did you. By wanting to keep this—what did he call it? oh, yes—sensational body in shape for him, you offered an easy way for me to prove how serious I am with my plight.”
His hands moved over my hips. I recoiled. “Don’t touch me.”
“I’m going to do more than that,” he said, his tone pure evil. “But about the rattler. Do you remember the gentleman in the bar whom you bumped into? The one with the diamondback tattoo on his neck?”
My blood ran cold. “Yes.”
“Seems he took offense to being shown up—and foiled—by Dane and was all too happy to help me out when I offered him the chance for retribution. I ascertained that a man with a snake tattoo likely had access to the creatures you loathe. As a matter of fact, he helped me with the scorpions as well. And if you ruin my negotiations with Dane, I’ll not only leave you here alone, tied up, but I’ll fill this house with everything that terrifies you.”
So Dane had been right. I wanted to scream again. I didn’t have the strength. My heart beat way too fast and more tears filled my eyes, cresting the rims and streaming down my cheeks, mixed with the blood still oozing from the cut on my forehead.
He said, “I was also listening when he got you off that night. All your moaning and begging him to fuck you…” His hands slid along my rib cage. “That made me hot.” His lips grazed my throat. My eyes squeezed tight as a violent tremor ran through me. “I had my dick in my hand, pumping with every hitch of your breath and every cry of pleasure.”
My stomach revolted. Bile burned my throat.
