Set Me Free

by Melissa Pearl

  "So, where you taking me, Billy?"

  "Well, mystery girl, I want to know your name and since you're so determined to keep it a secret, I thought we'd go somewhere really private."

  He nuzzled my neck, making my skin crawl. I tittered, forcing myself not to pull away.

  "And since we'll be somewhere private, no one will see us if we misbehave." His grin was leering, but I snickered.

  "Oooo, sounds interesting." I wiggled my eyebrows and let him pull me up the stairs, glancing over my shoulder to try and spot Zach. I thought I saw the edge of his shoulder, but lost sight of him again as we reached the landing and headed right. My gaze landed on the formal family portrait on the wall. William Tenner was smiling down at me. His pale green eyes bore holes straight through my chest. I jerked, nearly losing my character.

  "You okay?" Billy grinned, licking my neck and making me want to pull away and slap him.

  Yanking on his arm, I turned my back on the picture. Pressing Billy against the wall, I ran my finger down his jawline, making sure my breasts crushed against his chest as I brushed my lips over his.

  Pale green eyes taunted me from behind, but I squeezed my eyes shut and thrust my tongue into Billy's mouth. I had to focus.

  The plan, Lucy. Just follow the plan! I silently screamed the words.

  Billy hands ran down my back, spreading wide as they curved over my butt. The urge to wriggle free was nearly overpowering. I needed to move before I jerked away, but I wanted to buy Zach a little more time to get to us.

  Pulling back with a smirk, I tried to ignore the way Billy's fingers brushed the skin just below my hemline.

  "You know," I whispered. "Since we're planning on being naughty, why don't we do it somewhere naughty?"

  He gulped, his blue eyes catching mine. The slight tremor in his gaze told me he wasn't as experienced as he made out to be. It was a relief. It'd be easier to play him this way. He nervously looked down the hallway. "Where do you want to go?"

  "I don't know." I tucked my finger into the opening of his shirt, running my shiny nail over his skin. "How about your parents' bed or..." I bit my lip, my eyes sparking as if I only thought of this idea. "Does your dad have an office or something?"

  "Yeah, but I'm not really allowed in there."

  "Perfect," I breathed. "I've always wanted to do it on a desk." I ran my hand through his curls, grabbing the ends as I crushed my lips to his. His tongue was a sloppy mess that nearly made me gag, but I held my ground. I could feel him weakening as he ran his hands over my body.

  "Okay," he whispered, out of breath. "Okay, this way."

  His arm was tense as he pulled me back past the stairwell and around the corner to his dad's office. I wanted to cry with relief when I spotted Zach lurking near the bottom step. I made sure not to catch his eye, confident that he had spotted us.

  Billy's hands were twitchy as he opened the office door. He yanked me inside and I spun away from him with a laugh. He leaned against the door, breathing hard, struggling for his usual confident flair.

  I bit my nail between my teeth before beckoning him with my finger. He rushed towards me so fast he nearly knocked me over. My backside was shunted against the large wooden desk as he forced his tongue into my mouth, his hand running up my body and squeezing my breast.

  I pushed him back with a little laugh.

  "No fair, you're wearing more clothes than me. Let's even that up, shall we?"

  I slowly unbuttoned his shirt, kissing his neck and enjoying the fact I wasn't being slobbered on for a second. Billy sighed, running his fingers into my hair. I needed to keep control of the situation, those hands of his were itching to get access to my body. I kept my head low. The only way he could reach me was if he yanked my hair and pulled me straight. Would he have the guts to do that?

  I noticed a shadow flicker outside the door as Billy's grip grew a little strong. He started tugging me straight as the door crept open and I was forced to go with it.

  "Oh Billy you feel so good." I moaned as his lips hit my neck. I felt like a traitor saying it and I hated the fact Zach probably heard me, but it hid the sound of the door opening.

  Billy chuckled against my skin as his hands began to roam once more. I needed to get his mouth off me so Zach could do his thing.

  I pushed Billy's shoulders back with a wicked grin.

  "My turn again." I kissed his neck. He tipped his head back, giving me easy access as I trailed my tongue over his chest. His fingers were digging into my hips, his desire pressing against me.

  It was grossing me out big time, but we had a plan and I wasn't going to flake.

  Thankfully it only took a moment for Billy to jerk away from me, struggling against the strong hand wrapped around his face. I tried to steady his body so he wouldn't throw Zach off balance, but it didn't really work. As Billy went slack, he toppled back, taking my boyfriend with him.

  I scrambled forward, shifting Billy to the side. Zach struggled out from beneath him.

  "Are you okay?"

  He nodded and I launched towards him, pressing my mouth to his...erasing Billy's filth. Zach's hand slid up my back, no doubt trying to calm my trembling body. He eased back from my desperate kisses and whispered, "It's okay. You never have to do that again."

  His breath caressed my skin as he ran his finger down my hairline.

  I wiped my mouth with the back of my fingers feeling forgiven by his soft embrace. With a shaky nod, I got to my feet, pulling him up behind me.

  "Let's just get this done." I flicked on the desk lamp and looked around the room. "Did anyone see you come in?"

  "No, I told blondie I was searching for the bathroom. I don't think anyone spotted me heading this way."

  "If they did, they'll be expecting for some kind of conflict, thinking you're coming after me. So let's make this quick."

  "Even if that isn't the case, let's make this quick."

  I nodded with a soft laugh. My insides were running crazy. Billy's touch still lingered on my skin and I couldn't wait to wash it off.

  My eyes had been scanning the room as Zach talked. "You check the desk," I murmured as I headed towards a large print resting on the eastern wall. Running my fingers around the edge, I shifted it, hoping to find some sort of safe behind it, but it was just a picture.

  I tutted and then systematically checked each painting in the room.

  "No luck?" Zach whispered.

  "None. How about you?"

  He shook his head.

  "No paperwork, no computer, nothing?"

  A spike of despair drove through my center at his mumbled no. My legs were getting jittery as I crossed my arms.

  No. I had to stay focused. No running. If I let reality in for even a second, I'd lose the plot. I moved to the bookshelf and began shifting books back and forth, trying to find some hidden compartment or lever.

  Zach was still by the desk.

  My heart began to pound louder and faster as each second passed. How would Tenner not have something in his office? How could we be so wrong?

  Zach grunted as he felt around the desk. "These drawers won't open."

  I whipped around to face him. "You mean they're locked?"

  "No, it's like they're glued shut." Shifting the chair over, he knelt down and felt beneath the desk. "Wait a sec, what's this?"

  I rushed over to the desk, crouching down behind him. Zach ran his fingers around the cavernous space beneath the desk, showing me the slight crack.

  "Is that a door?"

  "I think so. Those drawers on the front must just be for show. What do you wanna bet there's something hiding in this space?" He tapped his knuckles against the wood.

  Scrambling for the desk lamp, I pulled it down and shone it into the space. That's when I spotted the metal glint in the bottom corner. Crawling into the space, I ran my finger over the keyhole and nearly laughed.

  "I can pick this. Is there a paperclip or something up there?"

  I pulled a pin from my hair and strai
ghtened it out as I waited for Zach. A moment later he was pressing a small metal object into my hand. I straightened it out as well, curving it at the end just as Marlin had shown me. It was awkward working on my side, using my elbow to support my weight, but I didn't really have a choice. Forcing my breathing to flow in and out evenly, I pushed the two bits of metal into the keyhole. A few jiggles later and the lock turned.

  I shuffled back and slid the door open. Inside, I could see the edge of a black box. Zach reached past me and struggled to yank it out. It was a decent size and had to be perfectly straight in order to squeeze through the gap. Zach scraped his knuckles on the first attempted and had to hold the box awkwardly while he shuffled out of the space with a grunt. He placed it by my knees and we sat on either side of it, running our hands over the leather exterior. I looked at the padlock holding it shut, wondering if I could work out the combination, but before I even had to think about it Zach was pulling out his pocketknife and slicing into the leather at the back. He flicked back the material to expose two hinges. Freeing the screwdriver piece, he went to work and soon flipped the lid up. He swiveled the box and perched the lid against the edge of the fake drawers.

  In spite of my nerves, I shot him a grin of admiration. He grinned back and reached into the box.

  "Okay, so we just need anything that will prove him guilty of something." Zach flipped open a manila folder and started scanning the pages.

  I was about to do the same when I spotted a clear plastic bag tucked into the corner. My fingers trembled as I reached for it, recognizing the green gem within.

  "What's that?" Zach glanced up.

  "My mom's necklace. Dad gave it to her for her birthday...about two weeks before they...died." I pressed my thumb onto the emerald gem, remembering the celebration with clarity. "Why has he kept this?"

  "Maybe it was evidence." Zach's eyes rounded. "Maybe there's more evidence."

  Dropping the folder, he pulled off the thick stack of paperwork filling the top half of the box to reveal...

  "Dad's computer." I recognized it. It still had the smiley face sticker that I'd put on there one day. He'd kept it and laughed that he liked taking a piece of me to work with him. I ran my hand over the small laptop and clutched it to my chest. "We have to take this."

  "We have to try and take all of this." Zach went to pull out more files.

  "I don't—"

  A groan from the floor made us both jump.

  "Is he waking up already?"

  "He shouldn't be," Zach whispered. "But I didn't want to kill him so I only used a little bit."

  Billy groaned again.

  "Well there goes our long-gone plan. I'll have to wing to it. You gotta get out of here." Panic sizzled through each limb as Zach snatched the laptop off me and pulled out the cloth shopping bag he'd somehow managed to fold neatly and squeeze into his back pocket. He'd argued that it looked like a wallet, which it kind of did.

  His hands were shaking as he flicked it open and shoved the laptop inside. I dropped the necklace in with it and started to freak out when Zach tried to load up the bag with more files.

  "We don't have time."

  "Shouldn't we try and take everything?"

  "Not if it means getting caught!"

  Billy's third groan made me want to pee my panties. We were down to seconds.

  "Just go." I slapped the box lid down and wrestled it back into the desk compartment. My panicked actions made the task nearly impossible.

  "Just take a breath, baby," Zach softly whispered.

  I did, readjusted my angle, and carefully pushed the box back into place. Sliding the door shut, I knew I didn't have time to lock it before Billy came to.

  Zach paused at the door as I replaced the desk lamp.

  "Go, I'll meet you outside."

  His reluctance was resounding as he hesitated, the bag tightly clasped in his fist.

  "Try and sneak out the back so they don't spot that bag in your hand."

  I pushed in the office chair and jumped back over to Billy, falling to my knees at his side.

  "Go Zach, please, I'll be fine."

  "What are you going to do?"

  "Play pretend."

  His brow creased, but he finally eased out the door. I let out my breath, trying to deny the dread building within me.

  Billy winced, his head slowly turning. I only had seconds to spare, so I quickly opened up his pants and tried not to hate myself as I straddled him.

  I waited for his eyes to open and reached for the strap around my neck just as he came to, pretending as though I was fastening up my dress.

  "Oh my gosh, that was amazing." I ran my hands over his chest as if I was out of breath.

  "What happened?" he mumbled.

  I giggled. "Yeah, I nearly blacked out too." I rested my forehead against his chest.

  Lightly scraping my nails up his neck, I ran my hands into his hair and whispered. "That, I will never forget."

  Sitting back with a luxurious groan, I smiled at him expectantly.

  His blank stare was comical, but I couldn't let that show. Instead I started to frown, figuring ‘highly offended’ would be a good way to play this.

  "Oh yeah, yeah, me too." He grinned nervously, running his hands up my thighs.

  I got off him, straightening my dress and forgiving him with a flirty smile. "Well, I better go make sure my man isn't looking for me."

  He tried to stand up, but flopped back onto his elbow, feeling woozy.

  "Let's make sure this stays our little secret. I don't want him finding out just how good you are." I looked around the room, biting my lip. "And I'm sure you don't want your dad to know we did it in his office." I giggled. "Even though we didn't make it to his desk. Something to aim for next time" I winked. Reaching for the doorknob, I wrapped my fingers around it and grinned. "See you around, Billy."

  He raised his hand in farewell as I snuck out the door, checking both ways to make sure no one was watching. Knowing people would have seen us go upstairs, I made sure I swanned my way back down, shooting bashful, flirty looks at Billy's friends as I left.

  They were all awestruck, their gaze flicking up the stairs as they waited for their friend to appear. He would no doubt regale them with some bullshit story about what he got up to, but how could he? Surely he'd figure out the lie. All I'd done was unzip his fly. It's not like his pants had ended up around his ankles. Surely he'd figure out he hadn't actually done it. I never had and I was pretty sure my body would feel it afterwards.

  My step faltered as I glimpsed some movement up the stairs. What if he'd already worked it out? My heart scampered through my body, making a beeline for my feet.

  Clutching the wall, I squeezed past a group of revelers and lurched for the door. Stumbling down the driveway, the full force of what I'd just done caught up to me in a torrent. My body acted before my mind could stop me. Whipping off my shoes, my feet hit the pavement and I made a run for it, sprinting into the night at break neck speed.

  Chapter 25

  ZACH

  Zach spotted Lucy sprinting towards him. She looked petrified, which put him on high alert. Was she being chased? He looked over her shoulder, but couldn't spot any shadows or hear any yelling.

  Stepping into her path, he stopped her frantic run. She crashed into him, gasping for air.

  "It's me. It's just me." Zach's smooth tone extinguished her scream. She swallowed it down as he grabbed her arms to stop her from falling and pulled her against him. "It's over."

  Her head bobbed against his chest as a near hysterical laugh burst from her lips.

  "It's over," he whispered again, running a soothing hand down her back.

  He wasn't exactly right. It wasn't really over, but at least tonight was. They had something from the case. Something that would hopefully be a lead. It was a step in the right direction and if it wasn't for the fact that his girlfriend had been making out with a murderer's son, he'd probably be feeling really triumphant.

 
"Come on, let's go." Zach opened the passenger door, wanting to tuck her safely away for the night.

  He'd hidden the bag of potential gold behind the driver's seat. He'd felt pretty conspicuous sneaking out of the office with it bunched in his hand and he hadn't been able to find a back exit that wouldn't have him jumping a story to the ground. In the end, he'd rushed down the stairs, looking pissed off, hoping it would draw attention away from the bag in his hand. People had seemed to assume that his girlfriend had gone off with Billy and that's why he was leaving in a huff. No one chased him and he made it to the car without any hassle.

  Pulling away from the curb, Zach drove east towards Danville, gripping the steering wheel and trying not to think about how wrong tonight could have gone. Billy was not supposed to wake until after they'd left. He wanted to ask Lucy how she made it out of there, but her pale complexion kept his lips tightly sealed.

  How far had she gone to sell her lies? How pretend had her play really been?

  His knuckles turned white as he steered his way over the bridge and up the hill.

  She suddenly let out a breathy laugh and shook her head. "I can't believe he bought into my lie about doing it."

  "What'd you say to him?"

  "I just pretended like I'd just had the best sex of my life, and he agreed with me. What kind moron doesn't question that? He just bought into my breathy giggles and...and..." She bent over in her seat, her breaths punching out in rapid succession. "That could have gone so wrong." She ran her fingers into her hair.

  "But it didn't." He rubbed her back, a little surprised by her sudden reaction. Wasn't she used to conning people?

  "I was in his house, Zach. I let his son kiss me and touch my body." She shivered. "Tenner's son. A part of him." Her shoulders quivered beneath his hand.

  "It's over now. You never have to do that again." He kept his voice as steady and smooth as he could manage, trying to shunt aside the images of his girlfriend pawing another guy. He'd wanted to break Billy's neck when he put that gauze over his face. Feeling his body go slack and fall to the ground had been oh so satisfying. "Never again," he repeated.

  "I know." She breathed in. "I know." She closed her eyes, sitting back and resting her head against the seat. "I just want to be home and go to bed and fall asleep in your arms. I just need to erase this night from my mind."