I just gave a nod, not knowing how else to react. His next sentence rendered me speechless. “If you were looking for a way out, I know the easiest around here.”
His gaze darkened and I instantly knew what he meant. There were some people you met and instantly knew they couldn’t be trusted, but there were others who you just knew to be someone on your side. “Has he“ I stammered. “Has he always been different?”
Lucas didn’t need to know who ‘He’ was referred to. It was quite apparent from his expression that he knew exactly what I was talking about. “Different isn’t exactly the word I’d use for him. My only advice to you, Kiara, will be to take this opportunity and leave.”
“You’re his friend, why would you suggest that?”
“Because I know him a lot more than anyone else ever will. He can be very selfish and persuasive when it comes down to something that he wants.”
I pondered over what he said for a minute.
“I have a special magical act coming up tonight. I will ask you, Kiara, to stay and enjoy the show.”
“I would have loved to, but this is my only chance to get away from him. I can’t let it go,” I admitted.
My decision was final. From the corner of my eye, I watched as Jasper approached us. He was halfway through the well-manicured lawn, but still out of earshot. To Lucas, I said. “I need your help.”
***
Jasper and I were seated in a wide room, kind of like a mini auditorium. We were in the front seat along with Jasper’s other group of friends; Dylan, Tom, Cecelia, and Penny. Everyone seemed excited about Lucas’s show.
I leaned sideways to speak to Jasper. “How long has Lucas been doing these illusions?”
“A very long time. He’s been doing it since his childhood, he says. It’s his passion, but as you’re aware, the heir of a multi-million dollar company cannot just be selfish enough and decide to make a career out of a mere hobby,” Jasper concluded.
“But that’s not fair,” I blurted out.
“That’s how life is, Kiara. It’s unfair,” he agreed. “Lucas was also featured in the Penn & Teller’s show. Can you believe it? Although he couldn’t take the trophy home, he knew what he was doing.”
The room plunged into pitch black darkness. Jasper took my hand in his and caressed it softly. Not once did he apologize for what he’d said after our dance. He was acting almost indifferent; like that particular scene hadn’t even happened.
The curtains slowly ascended, revealing a stage with numerous props and a cheerful young man in a black tailored suit. He spoke into the microphone. “Good Evening, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls. You may already be aware that the parties in this house are never complete without our host’s performance. Tonight is no exception as we are going to see some of the most popular acts by our very talented illusionist. Please welcome Lucas Johnson.”
The room filled with a round of applause and cheers as the lights dimmed and smoke erupted in the center of the stage. When the smoke dissipated, Lucas was already standing on his spot. A silver half cat mask revealed only his mouth.
Thirty minutes in, and I was already impressed by how good he was at this. He produced a white rabbit out of a hat, then a dove. He did some illusions with cards, including the sleigh of his hands. It was so clean and elegant. The audience was mesmerized.
The man in the suit named Ian spoke, “Now, ladies and gentlemen, we will see the last act of this show.”
A huge black rectangular box was wheeled onto the stage by two very beautiful women wearing black clothing. They had the whole gothic look going on. One of those girls I recognized was Amy who Lucas had introduced me to.
The girl had a spiky haircut and had a collar around her neck. Jasper told me that Lucas was into the BDSM culture and Amy was his submissive; a willing submissive, he’d added. I’d seen the way the two looked at each other like they were in love and understood each other like no one else could, and that was what mattered.
Lucas opened the door of the box; it was more like a tall cupboard, big enough to fit in a person. He then proceeded to showing the empty box to the audience as it revolved on all sides.
“This act will need a lady from the audience. Who would like to volunteer? Any takers?” Ian asked. “Although, I wouldn’t guarantee you will be going home in one piece ladies.”
Laugher filled the crowd.
“I wouldn’t mind.” That was Dylan who earned some more laughter from the audience, along with an elbow jerk from his girlfriend.
There were some hands raised from the audience for the volunteers. Penny was enthusiastically waving her hand. “Me! Pick me!”
My heart did a double somersault when Lucas passed a smile in my direction.
“Ohhh, looks like the magician wants to choose the subject himself,” Ian said as Lucas stepped down from the stage and started walking towards us.
He held out his gloved hand towards me. I threw a sideways glance in Jasper’s direction who nodded his approval. He seemed too ecstatic about this. Jasper loosened his hold on my hand and let go. I slipped my hand into Lucas’ as he led me onto the stage.
“What is your name?” Ian asked me.
“Kiara Reeves,” I said.
“Miss. Kiara, are you willing to take this risk?” Ian joked.
“Yes.” I nodded.
“Miss. Kiara, it would be best if you ask permission from your boyfriend because Lucas will teleport you to an isolated island somewhere. However, there’s also a high possibility you may leave tonight with a severed arm.”
“I’d still want her even with the severed arm,” Jasper screamed from the audience, wearing a devilish grin.
The audience guffawed.
“That’s commitment right there,” Ian commented. “So, she’s already made her mind. Everyone, please give a round of applause for the beautiful Miss. Kiara Reeves.”
Claps boomed in the little auditorium as there was another cloud of smoke on the stage. Before the smoke disappeared, Amy whispered, ‘when you step into the box, there will be a lever on your right, pull it. You will only have ten seconds. Don’t screw this up.’
“Miss, would you please be kind enough to step inside the box for us?” Ian asked.
There was a drumroll in the background, I could feel the audience’s gaze locked on me.
I stepped inside the coffin-shaped box. Jasper was smiling, and I watched as he waved one last time at me. I smiled and waved back at him. I stood inside waiting as Lucas closed the lid shut, leaving me in complete darkness. The sounds from the audience became barely audible; all I could hear was the soft thumps of my rapid heartbeats. Before I knew what was happening, the box began revolving. As Amy had mentioned earlier, I spotted a small lever that was barely visible.
Only five seconds remaining.
It was now or never. I could take this risk or remain confined in the golden cage with a man who didn’t have feelings for me.
I tightened my hold over the lever, and took a deep breath before I finally pulled it.
***
Jasper
I’d often wondered what it would be like to be tied down to one woman for the rest of my life, and it sounded rather boring considering the fact that I got bored easily. At first, Kiara had been someone who was a means to pass time; someone who could provide entertainment into my rather colorless life. A docile woman with a fierce streak, that she was and that’s what attracted me to her.
When she’d confessed how much she loved me, a sense of pride swelled in my chest but it wasn’t in my nature to tell her that I loved her back because that was impossible. I could feel obsessed, passionate, and possessive but never ‘love’. I’d been honest when I told her that, although I didn’t love her back, I did enjoy having her body under mine.
I thought that had to be enough.
If that woman had been someone else, I would have shown her her place but I couldn’t bring myself to tell Kiara off. I was possessed in the music room. I’d never in
tended to go that far, but one thing had led to another and before I knew what was going on or what she was saying, I was pounding inside of her. I saw the fear laced with desire in her eyes. After that day in the music room, I’d thought the cravings for her body would stop but that was beside the case. I ended up feeling hard every time she was around to the point where I couldn’t keep my hands to myself or concentrate at work.
I was insatiable for this woman, and she was ruining my life.
She wanted more. I could tell by the look on her face that she was sad. If only I could feel the same. I just didn’t. It was her fault partly for making me feel fucking horny all the damn time. That delicious body and those luscious breasts were just begging for my attention.
I smiled to myself, remembering Dylan and Tom’s envious stares as they appraised the woman on my arm when we walked in. It was beyond them how I could still keep a girlfriend because half of them had run for the hills within a week, and when Kiara admitted that we’d known each other for over two months, their eyes resembled tennis balls. She gushed about how much she adored me, and they ate it up with seething jealousy. To add fuel to fire, I kissed her in front of them.
I snapped back to reality as Dylan whispered something to me from the next seat. I smiled politely, having little to no clue what he’d been blabbering for a while. I had a certain ability to tune out when a dumpster suddenly started talking. My thoughts went back to the stage where Lucas was performing his trick that I’d watched over a dozen times, but this time it was interesting because my Kiara was right there.
Kiara waved at me as Lucas shut the door. He revolved the box around a few times while the stage became engulfed with a puff of smoke. I knew what was going to happen next. When he opened the box, Kiara had disappeared, replaced by a tall blonde assistant. The show ended, and the audience roared into loud cheers and claps. Lucas bowed before the curtains descended. I knew Kiara would be waiting for me in the backstage, so I climbed to my feet and strode out of the auditorium, making my way towards the backstage.
I entered to find Lucas seated in the makeup booth, Amy stranded in his lap, topless. His hand rested on her breast and the other hand held her close to him, their lips locked in a passionate kiss. They either hadn’t noticed me walk in or were ignoring me on purpose.
I walked across the room and opened the door leading to the props room downstairs where I was positive I would find Kiara. The room resembled a basement, but when I entered, I just saw Lucas assistant, Jen, packing things back into a chest. When she noticed me, she quickly averted her eyes and concentrated on the task at hand, clearly intimidated.
“Where is Kiara?” I questioned her.
Jen swallowed as she stared at me.
My instinct told me something was not right.
“Kiara, sweetheart, if you’re in here, come out now.”
The silence in the air thickened.
I scanned the cozy room. “I asked you a question, Jen. Where is Kiara?”
“I don’t know, Mr. Lockhart.” Her voice was almost inaudible. “I did not see her when Mr. Johnson asked me to pack his things.”
I turned on my heels and climbed the stairs leading to the backstage room where it was filled with moans and groans. My anger was going to shoot off through the roof.
“Lucas, where the fuck is she?” I was trying to act as calm as possible, but inside, there was a burning volcano ready to explode.
Lucas placed a quick peck on Amy and turned his bored gaze towards me. “Not the first time you’ve cock-blocked me. What’s gotten up your ass?” He placed Amy beside himself on the love seat and tossed a t-shirt towards her, buttoning up his own.
“Kiara was supposed to be in the props room downstairs after the illusion. I can’t find her there. Where is she?” I asked, digging my hands in my pockets.
Lucas had a knowing smirk on his face one I didn’t like. “She’s gone.”
I glared at him. “What do you mean she’s gone? Where did she go?”
“Well, my assistant, Ian, did warn you that she’d be transported to an island. I guess that’s where you’d find her right now.” Lucas made a lame attempt at a joke.
“I’m serious.” I glared at him.
“I don’t know. After Kiara slid into the props room from the stage, she told me she didn’t want to stay for the after-party, so Amy opened the emergency exit downstairs and let her go.”
I chuckled. “I don’t have time for jokes, Lucas.”
Lucas laughed. “Wish I was joking, but I’m not.”
I stared at him for a good minute, thinking that he would finally declare this to be a practical joke, but that never happened.
“Kiara’s my girlfriend. She’s my responsibility and you…” I jabbed an accusing finger into his chest. “You let her fucking leave. She doesn’t even have a home. Where do you think she’s gonna go, huh?”
Lucas had his fingers balled into tight fists. His face had turned red. I thought the vein in his forehead was about to burst. “She’s not some pet that you can play with whenever it pleases you, and then let her fend for herself. She’s a woman who has feelings, unlike you, and I think you should save this “girlfriend” bullshit for someone else. You and I both know you don’t do relationships. It was just plain screwing where you’re concerned. The girl didn’t want to remain as your slave, so I did her a favor simple as that.”
“Don’t you dare psychoanalyze me, you kinky sonofabitch,” I spat at him, kicking the chaise off the floor.
“Do you remember Violet, Jasper?”
“Violet?” I tried to rack my brains.
“You don’t recall the girl you and Dylan toyed with? The girl you bullied enough in school that she resorted to committing suicide. No? Doesn’t ring any bells?”
I snorted. He wanted to dig up old skeletons. “That was ten years ago. What does that have to do with anything now?”
“It has everything to do with it. I loved that girl, Jasper, and if it weren’t for your sick games, she would have still been alive.” Lucas said, his voice turning menacing.
“The girl died because she was weak. I thought we were friends. You want to ruin our relationship because of some stupid girl you can’t get over?”
“Friends?” Lucas snorted. “As far as I know, I tried to become your real friend in hopes that, eventually, you’d get the fucking help you need. But, it never ends, does it? Playing these childish games, toying with people’s emotions, driving recklessly for the thrill of it; it doesn’t stop at that, so you convinced a poor girl into becoming a slave. I’m sick with your fuck ups. If it weren’t for me, nobody would want to be anywhere near you, Jasper Lockhart.”
My jaw was ticking and my head was pounding which wasn’t a good sign. This usually happened when I was mad as a bull, and what Lucas had said hit home, but he was wrong. Kiara wasn’t my slave. She was with me because she wanted to be. She loved me. Lucas knew how bad my temper was, and yet he was testing me in the worst way possible.
“I saw how important Kiara was to you. Your shiny new trophy to parade around.” He smiled cockily. “I realized it was time you paid your dues.”
“So I take it, you won’t tell me where she is.” I narrowed my eyes at him.
Lucas walked to his mini bar, poured himself a drink, and raised the glass of scotch towards me. “Cheers to Kiara’s new freedom.”
With Lucas, I had never had to maintain a charade. Masks were off because he knew the real me. He stepped on the wrong foot, knowing what I was capable of. It was time he paid his dues as well.
“I warned you,” I said, and then everything happened too fast after that. The raging nerves in my head began to burst as I grabbed Amy by the back of her head and bashed it against the wall hard, once. I heard a loud thump followed by a blood-curdling scream, and I pounded her head one more time. Her blood was on the wall as her eyes rolled back, her body slipping towards the floor.
“Amy!” Lucas screamed as he launched for her, and she sank to th
e floor in his arms. “You bastard, how dare you?!”
“Amy, you should watch where the wall is, darling.” I couldn’t keep myself from laughing.
Her head was matted with a cake of blood. I knew she wasn’t dead. Although I wanted to kill her, I thought this was enough to teach Lucas a lesson not to mess with his best friends.
“Jenny! Call the ambulance right now!” Lucas yelled out to his assistant as she rushed into the room, her eyes wide as she noticed the scene that had unfolded.
I fixed my blazer jacket and started leaving the room. “This should teach you not to fuck with me, Lucas.”
He fixed his glare at me. “You’re going to pay for this, Jasper.”
I strode out of the room without so much a glance in his direction, making my way out of the house. A few people were rushing towards the backstage room. I knew Lucas wouldn’t press charges against me, because if he did, some of his dirty secrets were going to spill out too. Once it started spilling, my mouth would have a hard time stopping, and that would stir up the media, which would cause good ol’ Lucas trouble, not to mention a big blow on his reputation.
I tapped the driver’s side of the car and ordered the chauffeur, Morgan, to take the passenger seat. He appeared confused at first, but then decided to obey my orders rather than question me. I slid into the driver’s side and pressed the button for the ignition.
I pushed the car into drive and maneuvered it out of the driveway with a loud screech. I felt Morgan stiffen in his seat. My hands were shaking on the wheel as I took a sharp turn.
“Sir, you may want to reduce the speed,” Morgan suggested in a meek voice.
“Don’t tell me what to do, Morgan, unless of course, you want to be pushed out of a running car.”
He remained silent as I drove through the streets like a loose manic fresh out of prison. I’d wasted enough time talking trash with Lucas. I realized he’d done it on purpose so he could engage me in a frivolous conversation and Kiara would have the time to get out of there .That had bitten him in the ass; nothing he didn’t deserve.
Psycho Billionaire: A Dark Romance Page 11