Enthrall Climax

by Vanessa Fewings

  Barret refused to look at him. “I hit my head when I fell.”

  “Did she attack you?” asked Shay with an eerie calmness. He knew tempers were close to flaring.

  “We saw this woman by the pool,” Barret explained. “Mia approached her and spoke with her for a few seconds. I couldn’t stop it. She asked her to call you—” He looked straight at me.

  “She needed my help.” I let that sink in for Henry.

  “That woman followed us back.” Barret glared at each one of us. “The bitch tasered me. How are those things even legal?”

  “What did she look like?” snapped Henry.

  “I don’t know,” said Barret. “She sounded French.”

  I scrolled through Google images on my phone until I found a photo of Helete at a fundraiser and then showed it to him. “This her?”

  “Yeah.”

  I glanced at Shay. “Helete.”

  “So Mia’s fine, right?” asked Barret. “The woman thought she was doing her a favor?”

  “Let’s hope she was,” seethed Shay. He was staring at me in horror.

  “Well, that’s good,” said Henry. “At least you know her.”

  Dragging my hands over my face, I tried to think of where Helete would take her. Our last exchange hadn’t been cordial, and though Lance had proven he was dangerous, I wasn’t sure how far Helete would want to push me. Punish me. Mia hadn’t run from her, which was probably due to the relief she must have felt after being saved from a thug.

  “Find Helete,” I ordered.

  Henry pushed to his feet. “She sounds like a well-meaning friend.”

  Shay turned to Henry. “Why didn’t you let Mia keep her phone?”

  “Because she needed time to decompress.” Henry replied briskly. “Who is this Helete?”

  I scowled at him. “What were you thinking?”

  He moved closer. “Call your friend and ask her where they are.”

  I closed my eyes in frustration.

  He turned to Shay. “What?”

  Shay swapped a wary glance with me. “The Dionysus Club?”

  “What club?” Henry frowned my way.

  “Not now, Henry.” I glared back.

  Shay gestured for us to leave. “I’m sure it’s fine.” Though he was saying that for Henry’s sake.

  I pointed to Barret. “See a doctor. Get an EKG.”

  He looked surprised. “Why?”

  “You were hit by 50,000 volts.”

  “Is that bad?”

  “Well, it’s not good.” I headed out of there.

  Helete had been willing to bring him down with a street weapon and it made me wonder what she’d be willing to do to incapacitate Mia.

  We left Barret to lick his wounds. The more distance between him and us the safer it was for him. These hired men had dubious reputations, but I’d deal with them later. I’d also deal with Henry for hiring them.

  Our car pulled back into traffic.

  I felt conflicted when it came to Henry. He was vulnerable to high levels of stress and something like this could trigger his PTSD. I leaned forward with my elbows on my knees and locked my gaze with his. “Let us handle it from here.”

  He stared out at the cityscape and then turned his angry glare on me. “Why are you not okay that Mia is with this woman?”

  I sat back and Shay and I exchanged looks.

  Helete knew what Mia meant to me. The fact she was at the hotel at the same time was suspicious. We’d been tailing her and it sounded like she’d returned the favor. Her men had to have witnessed Mia leaving Cole Tower, and then followed her. Instead of alerting me, Helete had grabbed this opportunity.

  If this was about money, a solution would be within reach. But it never was with people like her—it was about power. I checked my phone again for any sign of a text or call from her.

  “I need Mia home safe,” I said. “Helete and I have had our differences.”

  Henry’s stare moved from me to Shay and then back to me. “What the fuck does that mean?”

  “It means we proceed with caution.” Shay made a slicing motion across his neck to warn Henry to draw back on the inquisition.

  We drove the rest of the way in strained silence, taking less than thirty minutes to reach the suburban parking structure of The Dionysus Club.

  Neither Lance nor Helete had answered their phones and by the time I stepped out of the elevator I was finding it hard not to storm in and make the kind of scene I’d regret.

  A slim, redheaded receptionist greeted us with a smile.

  “Helete Merrill?” I rounded the desk to get closer.

  “She’s not here,” she replied. “Can I take a message, sir?”

  “Galina?”

  “They’re both out.” Her smile became forced. “I can arrange for a VIP tour if you like?”

  “Where will I find Helete?” I held back my anger. “This is important.”

  Henry lurched toward her. “Where the fuck is she?”

  Shay grabbed the back of Henry’s shirt to restrain him.

  The redhead scrambled for the phone and I assumed it was to call for help.

  I pressed a finger down on the receiver. “Where is she?”

  “I think maybe The Belgravia Club?” she blurted out.

  “Think or know?” asked Shay.

  She threw me a nervous glance. “She’s meeting a friend for dinner.”

  “We appreciate this.” I leaned closer. “Don’t warn Helete that we’re looking for her. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  I held her stare. “We just want to speak with her.”

  The receptionist nodded, but there was no way to know if she’d keep her promise. We returned to the elevator and headed down to the car.

  “What kind of place is that?” asked Henry, as he settled into the back.

  I gave him a thin smile to let him know I wasn’t in the mood for any further criticism.

  “It’s a health spa.” Shay’s frown hinted at a lie, but Henry didn’t catch it.

  Henry looked relieved. “Sounds like Helete took Mia for dinner.”

  Leaning back against the leather seat, I checked my phone again to see if Mia had called. With a shake of his head, Shay indicated that he hadn’t received a call either.

  The last time Shay and I had trespassed into The Belgravia Club, we’d been chased down and escorted out. This time would be no exception, though they’d probably be on high alert now. All I needed was five minutes. All I needed was to see Mia safe.

  “Stay with Shay,” I warned Henry, and left the two of them arguing in the foyer.

  I stormed down the hallway, following the sign I’d seen last time that led to the dining room.

  Around me bold colors battled with the natural light from above, the scent of freshener and rich textured perfumes permeated the air, along with the scent of money and fine food. I heard the clank of cutlery striking plates and the thrum of conversations as I neared the starch-white dining room.

  Helete sat at a corner table, but the woman with her wasn’t Mia. My gaze searched for her and my heart raced as time hurtled out of control. Maybe Mia was home right now and wondering where I was. Maybe she was taking a hot bath to soak off this heinous day. Maybe she wanted to explain everything to me first to protect Henry. That’s the kind of thing she’d do. Look out for everyone and put herself last.

  Keep it together until you find her.

  When the fog of panic lifted and my vision cleared, I realized it was my ex-fiancée, McKenzie, sitting opposite Helete in that far corner of the dining room. They were alone and deep in discussion. Seeing their full plates of pasta, I had to assume they’d only just arrived.

  Hurrying across the room, I ignored the chatter behind me from security. Shay had caught up with me and I knew he could handle them. I just hoped he’d be able to keep Henry back long enough for me to get through to Helete.

  I had caught her attention—she seemed to be expecting me. Her eyes tracked m
y approach as I weaved around the other tables toward them.

  I recognized the blue Louis Vuitton handbag by Helete’s feet. It was the same one I’d seen when Galina had taken us into that private office in The Dionysus Club. That office belonged to Helete. A fact I shoved into the part of my brain that was currently focused on not killing her.

  “What are you doing here?” Zie smiled in surprise.

  I gave the women a dangerous smile. “Why don’t you tell her, Helete?”

  “This is a woman’s club.” Zie sounded incredulous.

  “I’m aware of that.” I glared at Helete. “Where’s Mia?”

  Zie looked confused.

  “I know you removed her from The Manhattan,” I said, my tone infused with a warning.

  Helete’s lips curled with a hint of triumph.

  Bravo, Helete, you’ve struck your revenge directly into my Achilles heel. You’ve won.

  Her smile widened as she read my emotions.

  “I’m giving you one opportunity,” I told her.

  “What’s going on?” asked Zie.

  Helete feigned a recollection. “I do remember Mia saying something about wanting to train as a submissive with the best of the best.”

  “You’re lying.” I held her gaze.

  “She knows you’re a hard man to keep, Cole. She needed to up her game.”

  “Helete.” I steepled my hands in prayer to draw on my fading patience. “If Mia is in any way harmed—”

  She quickly got to her feet. “I’ve lost my appetite.”

  A flash of movement rushed from my right. As I regained my balance, Helete leaped back and Zie moved out of the way. Shay and I both grabbed hold of Henry, restraining him.

  “Where the fuck is she?” Henry yelled at them.

  “Security!” Helete looked furious.

  Shay managed to overpower Henry and with the help of a security guard, he struggled to get him to the door. The staff had probably called the police. I faced Helete again.

  I had seconds left.

  “This will end badly for you.” I kept my tone even despite my growing rage. “Unless you tell me the truth.”

  “What is it that you see in her?” snapped Helete.

  “Her innocence,” Zie muttered.

  Helete looked triumphant. “What happens when Mia follows the same path as Zie?”

  “Path?” I knew what she was insinuating. Wherever Mia was, she was in danger. She’d been put in a position where men were free to abuse her. Though unlike Zie’s situation, this wouldn’t be with consent.

  Zie wallowed in depravity. If this was Mia’s fate, I would have to live with knowing I was to blame. I’d exposed her to these people.

  “You rejected Zie because she was taken by so many men.”

  Helete’s words saturated my senses.

  “Keep your voice down,” Zie snapped at her.

  Terror knifed through me as I tried to fathom how far Helete would go.

  “You brought this on yourself,” she hissed.

  This is what it is to love. I felt like I was being flayed alive while being dragged into the pit of hell. I’d walk through those fires for an eternity if that’s what it took to get her back. She was all that mattered.

  My fists burned with restraint. “One more chance.”

  A firm hand wrapped around my upper arm and dragged me backward. Turning sharply, I faced Shay and read his taut expression.

  “The police are close,” he warned. “We have to go.”

  I pulled away. “I’m not done.”

  “If they arrest you…” he said the rest with a glare.

  I’d blown it.

  Shay led me all the way back to the car with a steel grip.

  Back in the SUV, I vaguely listened to him trying to calm Henry down as I replayed my conversation with Helete. Maybe this was an empty threat? A trap to rile me up so I did the unthinkable and burned my reputation with the kind of violence there’d be no coming back from.

  “How the hell are you so calm?” Henry grabbed a bottle of water from the cooler and twisted the cap.

  I went for the door handle. “I have to go back.”

  Sirens blasted around us and I realized it was too late.

  Shay clutched my sleeve. “It’s a trap.”

  “You didn’t hear her threat to Mia?” My heart raced wildly at the thought.

  Nothing and no one would change the way I felt about Mia. What Helete couldn’t know and would never understand was that Mia had a pure soul, and that’s why I’d fallen in love with her. It wasn’t about her beauty; her very essence radiated the purest light that would never fade.

  Mia was quite simply my everything and I wouldn’t rest until she was in my arms again.

  Suppressing my panic, I focused on important details. “Zie was surprised to see me. She’s not involved.”

  Shay hung up his phone. “The penthouse is empty. Mia’s not there.”

  “What about Helete’s home?” Henry asked. “Maybe Helete believes she’s helping by keeping Mia away from all of us?”

  I ignored that banal comment which proved Henry had no idea of the danger. I was protecting him from himself, and I sent Shay a look of warning to let him know this was important to me. Henry wasn’t fragile, but we’d witnessed one PTSD episode a few months ago and I wasn’t sure how much more pressure he could take. He was desperately fond of Mia, which was the only reason I was giving him a pass…though my patience was quickly fading.

  “I have a man heading to Helete’s place.” Shay glanced over at Henry. “We’ll drop you off at the penthouse, Henry. Just in case Mia turns up there. Okay?”

  Henry looked defeated. “I can’t just wait around and do nothing.”

  “Consider it?” I said.

  Henry leaned back and folded his arms.

  “Shay, turn the car around,” I said. “Take us back.”

  “How do you propose getting access to Helete’s phone? Even if we can get back into that dining room, she’s probably left by now.” His expression changed as we came to the same conclusion.

  “I need access to her private emails,” I said, nodding.

  “Head over to One East Sixtieth Street,” Shay directed the driver. “We’re going back to that subterranean parking structure.”

  We navigated the traffic back to the club, barely making conversation. I blamed myself for not seeing this coming. Henry was a gentleman, old-fashioned just like my father, and anything out of the norm rattled him. Hell, this guy was a staunch conservative and had placed his life in harm’s way to defend his beliefs.

  All paths of guilt led back to me.

  The car slowed as it drove through the underground parking structure of The Dionysus Club. Judging from the flashy cars lined up, they had some of their wealthiest clients visiting.

  “Stay here,” I warned Henry.

  He shook his head. “I’m coming with you.”

  “I don’t need criticism right now,” I told him. “I need you to have my back.”

  He let out an exasperated sigh. “After this is over you’re breaking it off with Mia.”

  My glare held his. “I need to find her to do that, Henry.”

  Shay went in first and by the time Henry and I stepped out of the elevator, he’d successfully led the receptionist away from her desk. With no idea how long we had, I hurried toward the office that I’d once believed to be Galina’s. Now I was fairly certain it was Helete’s.

  Henry followed me into her office and together we searched the desk for anything that might reveal Mia’s whereabouts…a receipt, a phone number, or even a faded message on a post-it note.

  I shook the mouse to awaken the iMac’s screen and sat down in the leather swivel chair. I threw the back pillow across the room.

  Shay was the seasoned tech and without him I might not be able to crack the code to hack the computer. Perhaps it would have been better to have Henry distract the receptionist, but the risk of having him running loose was a worse idea.


  He’d burn down the place with us in it.

  “It’s like a needle in a haystack.” Henry exhaled his frustration.

  “This is why we need to be focused.” I checked beneath the mouse pad in hope of finding Helete’s codes there. They weren’t.

  Henry yanked open the top drawer of a silver cabinet in the corner and rifled through the files. “Who is this Helete?”

  “She’s married to Lance Merrill. Well, she was. They’re divorcing.”

  “The Senator? Why would a billionaire’s wife want to busy herself with running a health spa?”

  I sat back and answered with a shrug.

  “Well, that makes more sense now.” His frown deepened. “If she runs it she calls the shots?”

  “Exactly.”

  “She gets to live out her fantasies anyway she likes.” Henry huffed his disapproval and rifled through the folders. “Sounds like she has the resources to hide Mia away anywhere she wants.”

  My mouth went dry. He was right. Helete had properties all over the world and searching each one would take the kind of time we didn’t have.

  “Hello there.” Henry was looking toward the doorway.

  Following his line of sight, I met the gaze of Omani. She was dressed in a long, sleek evening gown that clung to her figure.

  “You look nice,” I told her, silently cursing Shay for failing to rescue her already.

  He’d done a shitty job at getting her out.

  “How are you, Nadia?” My gaze flitted to that tattoo on her left wrist—she’d been branded as belonging to a club so it was interesting that she was here now. I wondered just when her name change had come about, and whose idea it was.

  I could feel Henry’s disapproval. He was probably thinking the same thing I had when I’d first seen her—she was too young for this place.

  Omani leaned against the doorjamb. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m trying to break in to your boss’s computer.” I went for honesty.

  She came in a little farther and her lips curled with amusement. “Why?”

  With that idiosyncratic facial expression, Omani had revealed she likely knew the code to get into this desktop.

  I spoke gently. “Because your boss may have done something very bad and I’m trying to save her from herself.”

  “What kind of something?”

  “How long have you been Helete’s personal assistant?” I asked.