Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
It was a fuckfest. No other way to describe it. Men and women scantily clad were performing a variety of sexual acts on the men who were the guests of the senator’s party above based on their attire. There was no doubt in my mind that Ruin was behind this. So I focused my attention on finding him. My gaze bounced around man to man until I spotted him.
Gone was the spiky, bleached-blond hair. Ruin looked more like the frat boy his father always wanted than the human trafficking king. His dirty-brown hair was quaffed as if he had just come from the salon. He was standing next to the young man who had been handing out keys upstairs. I gingerly walked in that direction while sending off a quick text message to Griff, letting him know I found our quarry.
When Ruin spotted me, I would have paid any amount of money to capture his expression. For a fleeting second, a surprise he probably hadn’t felt in years formed on his face. The wide eyes and his mouth frozen open disappeared as quickly as they arrived. A narrow-eyed glare manifested as his lips jammed closed in a flattened line.
A sly smirk bloomed on my lips as we stood toe to toe.
“Rook,” he snapped.
“Ruin, or is that Randolph?” I countered.
“What name would you like to be called, Shawn?”
So he hadn’t learned my real name, or he would have used it. Good. “Whatever gets me my money back.”
His sneer only deepened as he let out a dark chuckle. “You should know there are no refunds.”
“Really?” I asked, one brow up in question. “I would think it is bad for business that your clients pay and only get sent to prison in return. Maybe you’re working with the feds.”
Undeterred, he said, “I could ask you the same. How did you get out?”
It was my turn to laugh without humor. “Luck. While the cops were busting the rest of your clients, the feds didn’t Mirandize me. I got out on a technicality. I’m here to collect on what you didn’t deliver. Or maybe you want me to spread the word about your duplicity.”
I hadn’t come for my money, but I didn’t want him to know that.
“Maybe I have something to offer you instead,” he said without commenting on my warning.
He crooked a finger in my direction. “I’m not interested in what you have to offer,” I said, glancing around at the scantily clad working men and women.
“I think you might,” he said and turned, walking deeper into the large room toward a hallway.
The young man stood there watching me for my next move. I said nothing and followed. Farther in, the men who’d used keys to gain access were wearing masks. Everything from pig to bunny faces with only their eyes showing. We passed open doors where full-on orgies were taking place.
It reminded me of Connor’s sex club, taken to the next level. The difference was that half the participants paid to be there, and the other half were paid sex workers. I’d gone to Connor’s club once, and it hadn’t been my thing. Griff liked it more than me.
We were passing a room that had a window. Inside, men hung around, staring at something in the center. Ruin came to a stop and glanced at me before focusing on the centerpiece. I turned back and finally noticed the cross and the woman strapped to it.
“There’s your filly, unmolested so far. If you want her back, prove to me I can trust you.”
My jaw ached from how tightly I clenched my teeth. I wanted nothing more than to destroy the man next to me. If I thought I could get away with it, I would have.
Instead, I was back in the same position, like so many long nights ago. Fuck or flee.
Then, I hadn’t seen her naked. Now, the sheer bra and panty thing she was dressed in left little to the imagination. My heart beat in my chest like a caveman. Just like the first time, the mere sight of her stole my breath. There was nothing I wouldn’t do to get her out of that room and away from prying eyes.
Her name played on my lips as Ruin added, “Your choice?” As if there was any.
12
TAYLA
The position I was in was of my own making. I thought I could beat an unbeatable man. Instead, I was strapped to something hard at my back. A mask was fitted on my face, covering my forehead and over the tip of my nose. It didn’t have any peepholes, leaving my mouth exposed. At least this time, what bound my wrist was smooth and not metal.
I hadn’t made one move in resistance. Ruin ensured my compliance when he returned to the room I’d been held in and fitted a custom collar around my neck. It appeared to be made of white lace, but he was sure to show me the metal disk that lined the inside. The words he’d said replayed in my head.