Mario grasps both my hands and places them behind my back pushing me forward toward the right of the house. We walk down a corridor and come face to face with a wooden door.
I turn to him and ask, “Where are we? Where are you taking me?” Because fear has now well and truly taken over.
He doesn’t respond.
I guess I expect that.
Mario knocks on the door, and it’s suddenly pulled opened by another man with a shotgun. Swallowing hard, we walk past him. The floor is now a dark concrete leading to stairs which trail down. I look behind me as I take one step at a time and still see Paige in Pepe’s arms fast asleep. It’s probably a good thing because if she were awake, she would be panicking.
Once we take our final step, it turns darker, cold, and damp.
Where the hell are they taking us?
What are they going to do with us?
All these questions keep repeating inside my head.
It’s so cold down here, and the entire area is made of rock. Fire on sticks sits on either side of the long walkway. A creak sounds of gates being pulled open, and I notice we’re being thrown into a dungeon.
First, Paige is placed on the floor, and then I’m thrown beside her. I wriggle over to try and get as close to Paige as I can. She stirs out of her sleep, her eyes fluttering open.
Mario leans down to untie her feet and arms, and when she’s finally awake, her eyes widen, and she quickly wraps her arms around me and attempts to say something.
I undo the gag at the back of her head, and she instantly cries out, “Lexi… oh… Lexi, I’m so scared.” Paige starts to sob, and Mario clears his throat gaining our attention.
I snap my head up him. “You fuckin’ asshole. You lying son of a bitch.” I try to get up to hit him, but my legs are too damn weak—an obvious aftereffect of the shit they injected us with. God only knows what that was.
“I’m sorry it had to come to this, but business is business, and we must do what’s expected. You two are going to bring Mr. Clemente good money.”
“Good money?” I growl. “You can’t do this. Let us go, I beg you.” I slowly crawl toward him.
Mario steps closer and pulls my bag from around my body. “You won’t be needing this.”
“No…” I cry, knowing my phone is in there.
“If you’re smart, you will shut up and do as we say.” He looks from me then to Paige. “Both of you.”
Mario kneels before us and runs his finger down my cheek. I flinch and go to bite his finger, but he’s too quick to remove it.
Making a ‘tsk tsk’ sound, he shows his disapproval while shaking his head. “Don’t make this hard, Lexi. If you fetch good money, you will have a good life. You will have an owner.”
“An owner,” I shout. “You can’t be serious. Please. We need to go back to the hotel, our parents will be worried.” Then realization comes to me—we’re rich. “Is it money you want? A ransom? I’m sure my parents will pay you.”
He smiles, but then he straightens. “Sorry, ladies, but there’s no amount of money that could pay off Mr. Clemente.”
I drop my head as dread fills every inch of my soul.
Mario stands and walks toward the door. “I’ll be back later tonight. Till then, be good.” He turns and locks the door behind him.
I hear Paige begin to cry again, and I crawl over to her and pull her to me. “Shh, it will be okay,” I say.
The only problem is I’m crying as well, and trying to convince not only Paige but myself that we will get out of here, seems an unenviable task right now.
Not one I am capable of.
RHYDER
I enter the Sinners’ clubhouse noticing the party has already begun. Tracker and Tate are over at the bar having a drink, and the other boys are around the pool table or sitting with some club whore.
When I enter, a girl walks up to me right away. She’s cute, wearing a short skirt with a white crop top. Her dark curls lay over her shoulders reaching to her butt.
“Hey, baby, want to buy me a drink?”
I look from her to the bar, not sure what I’m in the mood for, and I decide that company isn’t it. “Sorry, darlin’, not tonight.” I walk past her as she voices her disappointment. I’m sure she’s the kind of girl who doesn’t get turned down too often, but there will be another brother willing to do my bidding, just not me tonight.
I make my way to the bar and order a beer.
Tate turns to me, “Hey, man, thanks for coming down.”
I grab my Jack and Coke that’s been slid across the bar and take a swig. Shrugging, I reply, “No, problem, brother. We stick together, right?” I click my glass to his beer bottle and take another swig.
“So, what’s going on with you, Rhyder? You still single?”
I laugh. “Yeah, brother, ain’t nobody claimed this yet.” I laugh, pointing at myself. “You?”
“Yeah, I’m with you. Just can’t seem to commit to anyone.”
A club whore with long blonde hair, slim legs, and big breasts slides up beside Tate, kissing him on his neck.
I smirk. “And who’s this?” I ask, gesturing to her.
She looks up at me and introduces herself, “I’m Destiny.”
“Well, hello there, Destiny,” I tease and then wink at Tate.
Tate whispers in the girl’s ear, and then she turns and walks away.
Tracker turns and heads toward the other boys, leaving Tate and me to ourselves.
“So how have things been at the club? All quiet these days?”
“Sure are. Since what went down with the Foreseekers, it’s been easy street,” I reply leaning on the bar and looking over at Tate. “Seems like business is good and turned out well tonight.” Tate sighs, shaking his head. “What’s up, brother?”
He turns to me, taking another swig of his beer. “Things are just fuckin’ crazy out there.”
“What do you mean?”
I stand and cross my ankles leaning against the bar. “Got offered another deal last night by the El Pasos.” The El Pasos is a biker club that do runs from Mexico to the US. They have a reputation for drug smuggling and trafficking, a club that neither the Sinners nor our club want to deal in.
I raise my brows. “Yeah? What’s that?” Tate sighs and looks down at his beer. “It seems the El Paso’s need some help in our jurisdiction.”
I look over at him with curiosity. “What sort of help?”
“Things are picking up in the human-trafficking business, and they need an extra club to help with the transportation.”
“Don’t tell me you’re seriously thinkin’ about being that club to help?”
He shakes his head. “No, brother, just makes me sick to think that these girls, who are as young as ten years old, are being trafficked to be delivered to all parts of the world. Seems that the Foreseekers used to work with them, and now that they’re no longer in business, they’ve approached us.”
“What you gonna tell them?”
Tate shrugs. “No, of course, but part of me wants to help, so then I can maybe save some of the girls. It makes me sick to my stomach to think that this is happening to young girls. Luke wants in as well, especially when he heard and saw with his own eyes what his sister, Amy, went through. How she was stolen, drugged up, and ready to be sold to some rich-ass fucker. I tell ya, I’m tempted to take them up on their offer just so we can help out some of these girls. We just gotta be smart about how we handle this.”
I rub my jaw, trying to think of a way to help him out. “Fuckin’ hell! That’s totally fucked up. Don’t know what to say, brother.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
I tap Tate’s shoulder and nod. “If you need help, I’m sure Prez would be willin’. We’re family.”
“I don’t want to get your club dragged into this. I respect your club for all of your help as it is.”
“Brother, you’ve come down to help us plenty of times, and when we needed you, you were there. We would pay the
same respect.”
He nods in understanding. “Might need to take you up on the offer, and maybe I’ll talk to Quill. Perhaps we can come up with a plan to help stop this shit going down.”
“I’m down with whatever. Just say the word.”
Tate taps me on the shoulder. “Thanks, brother. I might go have that talk with Quill now.”
“Sure thing.”
I watch as Tate approaches Quill, and they walk toward the corner where they have an intense chat. I can’t believe this shit still happens—smuggling and selling women and girls as prostitutes or some other evil shit.
When we rescued Luke’s sister, Amy, and two others from the Foreseekers that night, it got to us all. To think if we weren’t there that night, then those girls would have been taken out of the country and sold.
Fuck, thinking about this shit makes me fucking furious. I need to order another drink.
Heavy metal rock sounds loud on the speakers to the point where I can’t even think. Walking outside to get a little peace and quiet, I grab my cell to text Lexi with a smile on my face.
Me: Hey, babe, I’ve been thinking about you.
Feeling that my words may scare her off, I delete the words saying thinking about you. Then think, fuck it, and type it once again and press send.
Here goes nothing.
Taking another swig of my drink, I wait like a fucking pussy watching my cell screen. Placing my beer on the ground, I take out a smoke and light up. Leaning back against the concrete wall, I continue to stare at the screen.
Fuck this shit.
I press the call button on her number and wait for her to pick up, but it rings out and goes to her voicemail.
“Hey, babe, it’s me, Rhyder. Just checkin’ in. Call me, let me know you’re okay.”
I hang up and shake my head. I’ve never been like this before. Since when have I called a girl other than my mom to see if they’re okay? But Lexi is not just any girl, she’s special and means something to me.
I keep my cell in my hand and finish my smoke. A few minutes pass, and with frustration taking hold, I shove my cell into the back of my jeans and walk back into the clubhouse in search of a distraction. I glance around the club trying to find the same girl who approached me when I walked in. I finally find her dancing with a Sinner and walk up to her and whisper in her ear, “Changed my mind.”
She turns to me and smiles. “Is that right?”
I look down and focus on her tits.
Yeah, she’ll have to do.
I grab her hand, not caring that the Sinner member shouts out that she’s with him. I’m not in the mood to fight over her. Plus, he’s drunk.
Turning to her, I ask, “What’s your name, darlin’.”
“I’m Sydney, and you are.”
“Rhyder.”
“Wanna take this to a room, Rhyder?”
I smirk, then say, “Lead the way.”
I follow her through the crowd and a long hallway, then walk down further. Sydney stops and opens a door, moans and grunts sound through the room.
She steps back. “Oh, sorry.”
The couple in there doesn’t reply, they just continue fucking.
Sydney shuts the door, then grabs my hand and leads me to the next room, and she peers inside. “This one is free.”
I follow her inside the room, shut and lock the door behind me. Not sure whose brother this room belongs to, but those sheets are going to be all messed up when I’m done with Sydney.
She kicks off her shoes and very slowly removes her top.
Sydney smiles, then slides her skirt down her legs, kicks it off, and stands there naked except for some skimpy underwear. I feel my cock harden when I take in her body from head to toe. I remove my cut and place it neatly on the nearby chair. With my eyes on hers, I pull my shirt over my head and throw it onto the floor. Pulling off my boots, I unzip my jeans and roll them off my hips, revealing my hard-on. I grab a condom from my pocket and unwrap it.
I hear Sydney’s intake of breath and watch as she plays with her nipples.
This chick is hot for me.
Rolling the condom over my cock, I kick off my jeans, and without waiting any longer, I strut to Sydney and place my hand on her torso, putting some pressure on her, so she falls flat on her back on the bed.
She giggles and lifts her legs in the air, and I step closer to the bed and her feet lay flat against my chest.
I can’t do this. I can’t—what was I thinking?
I roughly run my fingers through my hair. “Sorry, darlin’, this ain’t happenin’.”
She sits up on her forearms blowing her hair out of her face. “What do you mean? Finish off what you started.”
Ignoring her, I turn around and pick up my jeans from the floor. She continues to beg me to come back, but I ignore her. Right now, I need to get the fuck out of here.
Once I’m dressed, I grab my cut from the chair and place it back on. Turning around, I go to open my mouth and apologize, but the words don’t come out.
“See you around.”
“You fucking, asshole,” she shouts, but I ignore her and slam the door behind me.
Fuck, I need to get my shit together.
LEXI
I come back to my senses in this dark, wet room that Paige and I call the dungeon. I can’t remember the last time I’ve eaten anything. They keep giving us water, and I guess I should be thankful for that, but my stomach is churning with hunger pangs.
How many days has it been?
“No, please, no.” I hear a cry from Paige and notice the man we call Scar injecting Paige again with drugs. This shit, whatever it is, is what’s making us so out of it. So much so, we can barely function. Just when we start to come too again, they inject us with more.
I can’t handle it. My mouth is dry, and I constantly feel like I’m on cloud nine. I can barely talk. I crawl over to where they are and try with all my strength to push Scar away from Paige. But it’s no use, I have no energy to lift even one finger.
With a sickening smile, Scar turns to me with another needle in his hand. “Come here, you beauty.”
“No… please no… I don’t want it. Please,” I slur on my words as he grabs my left arm and taps the skin on my arm, waiting for a vein to show itself. I try pulling away, but I have no energy. He injects the drug, and immediately I’m knocked out.
The last person I think of is Rhyder, and whisper, “Please come, please help me.”
***
I wake to cold water being thrown over me, and I quickly sit up wiping away the water from my face with the back of my hand. With a shivering body, I look up at Scar and Mario, both standing with empty buckets in front of Paige and me.
“You need your strength,” Mario states, placing a tray of food in front of us.
Scurrying to my knees, I quickly grab hold of the dry bread and shove it in my mouth, barely chewing on it. I begin to choke and gulp a drink of water beside the apple. I can hear Scar and Mario laughing as they watch Paige and I both gulping down our food far too fast. I can barely swallow the food with my mouth being so dry.
Somehow, I swallow the last piece of bread, then without taking a breath, I chew down on the apple, frantically biting until I’m left with only the core. I push myself back against the concrete floor and shove the core in my mouth.
My body has odor, my hair feels oily and wet, and my clothes are also damp and sticking to me. I need a hot shower badly.
I look over at Paige and smile, trying to give her some sense of comfort as she continues to eat. She looks terrible, too. Her hair is flat against her face, and her clothes that were once white are now light brown, and she has dark circles under her eyes.
I’m sure I look the same.
I glance down at my attire, noticing my dress is also dirty and slightly torn.
“Now, it’s time for you to get cleaned up,” Scar says.
I whip my head to his, not believing what I’ve just heard.
Did he
say cleaned up?
When he sees my instant attention, he laughs. Then he walks slowly to me and kneels facing me. I can hear Mario laughing in the background when Scar picks up a lock of my hair and twirls a curl in his finger. I try and pull back, but with the wall behind me, it doesn’t leave me much room to move. He pulls on it, forcing me to keep still. Then he leans into me and licks a wet line from my shoulder to my earlobe which makes my skin crawl.
His acrid breath makes me sick to my stomach almost throwing up my recent meal.
“Quit, playing, Scar. We have shit we need to do.”
Scar smiles, exposing his yellow teeth. “What a shame, I was just starting to have some fun. He then gets up and walks to Paige. Her lips tremble, and her body turns taut. She’s scared.
Quickly, I’m grabbed by my arm and lifted to my feet by Mario while Scar does the same with Paige. She screams when he pulls her up and rubs his hard-on against her hip.
“Leave her alone,” I yell, trying to get Scar’s attention.
He doesn’t listen, though, and slaps Paige’s ass then pulls her by the arm. We’re both dragged out of the cell down the dark and grim corridor once again.
We step up the stairs and come face to face with a door.
Scar unlocks and opens it wide, dragging Paige behind him. Mario follows with me in hand. Suddenly, I’m blinded by the whiteness around me, so I cover my eyes. The floor is a white marble gloss, and the walls are bright white. I’m almost scared to walk on the floor thinking I might dirty it with my filthy feet. Looking to my right, I notice another corridor that leads down a hall, and to my left are huge double doors that look like they’re made of solid wood. I take everything in, making sure I don’t miss any details. I need to remember everything, so I can plan our escape.
To my surprise, we are taken up carpeted stairs with a wooden banister that leads to the second floor, the design of it reminding me of an ancient castle.
Mario speaks to Scar in another language, and by the sound of the accent, it’s Spanish.
Damn! I wish I took more notice in Spanish class, then perhaps I could understand what their plans are.
Lexi, Property of Rhyder: A Motorcycle Club Romance (Blood Brothers MC Book 6) Page 9
