"I … I have to."
"Why? Why are you even here if you don't have sex with clients?" I questioned.
Zell scrunched her eyebrows. "What do you mean? I live here."
I furrowed my brow. "You live here?"
"Madam is my mother."
My mouth fell open. "Are you serious?" She nodded. "You're telling me that your mom just sold your virginity?"
She opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out. Although, as I thought about it, my father had almost done the same thing because if I were a virgin, he was going to pay someone to take it.
"When do you turn eighteen?"
"Not until the end of January."
"That's only about a month away," I stated.
"Okay?"
"And what do you plan to do when you turn eighteen?"
She tilted her head slightly. "Why does my age matter?"
"Because you'll be an adult."
"So?"
"So, you can leave and do whatever you want to do."
Zell snorted. "I can't leave."
"And why not?"
"Madam won't allow it."
I stared at her for a moment as I processed her words. "Are you telling me that you can't go outside?"
"Yes. I used to be able to go and feed the ducks at the park, but that stopped when I was twelve."
"You mean you haven't been outside in over five years?"
"Well, I've been out on the balcony when Madam isn't home."
"Zell—"
A knock sounded on the door, interrupting me. "Let's go," Dad called out.
"Shit," I muttered under my breath.
"What do we do about the sex thing?" she asked.
"I told you that we're going to lie."
"Right."
I stood, not wanting to keep my father waiting or he'd become pissed. "Promise me that as soon as you turn eighteen, you'll leave this place."
"I can't." Zell stood to follow me out.
"Why not?"
"Because the guard at the elevator will stop me."
"What about the other girls?"
"They can't leave either."
"Why?"
She shrugged. "I don't know."
I wanted to take Zell by the hand and take her with me, show this Madam lady that she couldn't keep this poor girl locked up. But leaving with Frank Russo wasn't necessarily the best idea either because there was no telling what he'd do to her, especially since I didn't know his relationship with Madam.
I placed my hands on the side of Zell's arms and looked down into her azure eyes. "What if I come back? We can figure out how to get you out of here?"
"You'd do that?"
I shrugged. "If you want me to."
"How would we do that?"
"I don't know yet, but I'll come back if you want."
She smiled again. "I'd like that."
I watched Frankie walk toward the elevator with Mr. Russo and Madam. True to his word, Frankie had told Madam that I'd satisfied him completely and that he would return. I wanted him to return because I liked talking to him. I also liked that he didn't make me have sex with him. I was so nervous.
I stared at my new friend as he got into the elevator. Before the doors closed, a hand wrapped around my wrist and started to lead me down the hall toward the back staircase. When I turned to see who it was, I realized that it was Clarissa. "I need to clean the room," I stated.
She let go of me. "Shit. Okay. Go clean it and meet me and the girls in Erin's room when you're done."
"Why?"
She furrowed her brow. "Because we need to make sure you're okay."
"I'm okay." I smiled, thinking about my new friend. I was excited to tell them about him.
"Zell, you just had sex for the first time. We're going to take care of you afterward."
"I—" I was going to tell her that Frankie and I didn't have sex, but the clicking of Madam's heels became louder, and I knew she was on her way toward us.
"Come to Erin's room when you're done," she whispered and then hurried to the back staircase.
I nodded and walked into the room she had used with Mr. Russo, hoping Madam wasn't coming to speak with me. The clicking got louder and louder as I started to strip the bed, and just before Madam arrived at the room, I remembered the cameras. I had seen them in the last five years I had been cleaning the rooms, but I was so nervous I had forgotten about them. I sucked in a breath. She was going to know Frankie and I didn't sleep together. She would know he lied to her. Oh my gosh, I was screwed. Or was I? Frankie had said that I'd satisfied him. He didn't say that we had sex.
"You do whatever he asks. I don't care if you don't know how or if it hurts. He is to be satisfied, and if he isn't, it will be your head."
Would that be my saving grace? Did Frankie do that on purpose? But the cameras …
Madam stopped in the doorway, and I swallowed, waiting for her wrath. Waiting for her to tell me that she knew what really happened behind the closed door of the room. She placed her hand on her hips and stared at me. "Don't forget the room you used."
I blinked. What? Why wasn't she angry? She had to know that nothing happened. Unless she hadn't seen the tape yet. Was that possible? "Yes, ma'am," I replied, and returned to stripping the bed, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.
Madam didn't walk away, and I felt her stare on me for a few moments. Was she looking to see if I was different in some way? Did losing your virginity do that? Would I act differently if I had slept with Frankie? Finally, she walked away.
The clicking of her heels grew softer with each step. I usually relaxed when she left a room, but this time, I didn’t. It was only a matter of time before she found out the truth.
If she didn't already know.
When I was done cleaning, I went upstairs to Erin's room. All the girls were waiting.
"How are you feeling?" Erin asked.
Krissy reached out her hands. "I got you some aspirin and water."
"I drew you a bath," Tifarah stated.
I looked at the camera in the corner of Erin's room. "Madam wasn't mad."
Erin furrowed her brow. "Why would she be mad?"
I lowered my voice, hoping the camera wouldn't pick up what I was going to say. "Because she's going to know we didn't have sex."
"You didn't?" Carla asked.
I shook my head. "No, he didn't want to."
"Why are you whispering?" Clarissa questioned.
"Because of the cameras."
"They don't have audio," Tifarah stated.
"They don't?"
She shook her head. "No, just video."
"Oh." My voice returned to normal. "Well, I don't understand why she isn't mad since I didn't have sex with Frankie."
"She won't find out," Clarissa advised.
Everyone turned toward her, and Erin asked, "What do you mean?"
"Mr. Russo reminded her to shut off the cameras before he went in with me."
"And did she?" Leanne questioned.
Clarissa shrugged. "I don't know for sure, but you know if Mr. Russo ever found out, he would be pissed."
"Why?" I asked. "Who are they?"
The girls all looked at each other, and then Erin said, "We aren't one hundred percent sure, but Mr. Russo and Madam are close. He supplies the muscle and also brings in clients."
"The muscle?" I questioned.
Erin shrugged slightly. "You know, Tyler, Ricardo, Marcus, and the others who have been here over the years." She was referring to the guards.
"Oh," I breathed. "How does he find those guys?"
"That's the million-dollar question, Zell," Leanne stated. "We don't know where anyone comes from."
I'd read books with bad people in them: drug dealers, mob bosses, motorcycle clubs that murder people. Sometimes I would like those characters, but other times, I hated them. Reading those stories led me to believe that Madam was right when she told me I couldn't go anywhere except to feed the ducks because the city
was dangerous.
"Are they bad people?" I wondered.
"You mean Mr. Russo and his son?" Carla asked. I nodded. "We'd never seen or met his son before, but we're all almost positive Mr. Russo is a bad guy."
"Why?" I whispered. I was shocked. Frankie seemed like a good guy. I didn't know Mr. Russo, of course, but it scared me to think that the girls had to sleep with murderers and drug dealers.
Erin motioned for me to sit on the edge of her bed. I did, and she grabbed my hand. "Zell, there is so much you don't know. Do you think we all do this because we want to?"
I looked around the room at each of my friends. I knew some of their histories. Erin had been a teacher, and Leanne was a pharmacy technician. Tifarah had styled hair, Carla was a waitress, Clarissa worked at a clothing store, and Krissy used to be an assistant to a dentist, though not the one who had come to the penthouse to fix my teeth. And me … Had I been born here? From what I remembered, I'd always lived at the penthouse.
"You don't?" I knew there was a life outside of the house, but I had thought that the girls had come on their own.
All of them snorted with laughter. "I don't think anyone chooses this life," Krissy stated.
"Then why are you here?" I questioned.
Before anyone could respond, the sound of Madam's heels clicked down the hallway from the end where the main stairs were. Everyone scattered, going back to their own rooms, including me. Or at least I tried.
"Zell!" Madam yelled.
I stopped in my tracks, my back going straight, and then I turned to face her. "Yes, ma'am?"
"I came to check on you." I tried to show no emotion, but I was shocked, completely taken aback. She was checking on me? "How are you feeling?"
"I'm …" I hesitated because I wondered if I should continue the lie that Frankie had started. Clarissa had said that the cameras were off. Should I tell Madam the truth?
Madam didn't let me make up my mind. "Your first time can be painful. Was Frankie kind?"
I smiled. It was a real one because Frankie was kind, and I couldn't wait to see him again. "Yes, he was so nice to me."
"Good."
I had so many more questions, but I was scared to ask Madam. For once, she wasn't yelling or angry, and I didn't want to upset her. It was also clear that she had turned off the cameras like Mr. Russo had told her to. I thought Madam ran things, but in light of this, I wasn't so sure. Mr. Russo obviously had some sort of control over her.
"Get some rest. Everything returns to normal in the morning," she ordered.
I nodded and hurried to my room.
Chapter Seven
Twenty Years Ago
Frank Russo and his younger brother Dominic—younger by only two minutes—thought nothing could stop their reign in New York City. Their father, Giovanni, had started the Russo Empire before he died of lung cancer, and Frank and Dominic had followed in his footsteps. Frank ran the drugs, and Dominic ran the whores. Everyone knew not to mess with the Russo brothers unless they wanted a bullet between the eyes and their body to wash up in the harbor.
Ironically, a bullet had found a resting place between Dominic's eyes one fateful night.
Nothing the Russos did was legal except Frank's new nightclub, which was merely a front for his drug business. Dominic found the girls to fund his business the old fashioned way. A woman would walk the city alone, letting her guard down. One of Dominic's men would lure the unsuspecting woman to a dark alley, or a waiting car, or any other place where they could get the upper hand. Then they would take the lady to a warehouse where she would be prepped by Dominic's wife, Saffron. She would come in and tell the women they were Russo property now. They would be groomed physically and mentally, and told that if they didn't follow orders, they would be killed. And they would never see their family and friends again.
There were a few lucky ones who weren't sold off to various men around the world. No, those few lucky ones got to live on the Upper East Side in a penthouse overlooking Central Park under Saffron's eye.
Of course, there were consequences for living the high life. They weren't allowed to leave the penthouse at all, no matter what time of day or night it was, and if a client came in and chose them for their fun, they had to do it, no questions asked.
The business plan worked for Dominic and Saffron for several years. They didn't live in the penthouse, so they didn't mix business with pleasure, and they were finally making their own money. They were planning on starting a family since the business was booming.
But Dominic died before they could make a baby.
The night he was killed was because his men took the wrong whore. Every pimp and trafficker knew the rules, the main one being that they could only take another pimp's girl if she chose up. Choosing up was when the whore would make eye contact with another pimp. That pimp was now hers, and if the original pimp wanted her back, he would need to pay a fee. The whore they chose that night had made the mistake of looking up from her post, but Dominic's men weren’t pimps, they were muscle. Without thinking, they took the streetwalker to the warehouse, not realizing her pimp was watching. Her pimp knew who the Russos were, and while it was known on the streets not to fuck with them, Manny was just starting his own business and thought he could become king of New York City by taking down the Russo Empire.
Manny followed Dominic's men to the warehouse with two of his own men. When they thought the coast was clear, Manny gave the order to go in guns blazing. When they did, they took Dominic's men off-guard. While Manny and his men were outnumbered seven to three, they had the upper hand and were able to take out Dominic's men with no problem, all the while the women’s screams were heard over the popping of each gunshot.
Dominic heard the commotion and came running from his office, gun in hand, expecting to be backup. The problem was that he was alone since all of his men at the warehouse were dead or severely injured. Dominic was no match for the three men coming in hot.
Manny was the first to see Dominic, and with narrowed eyes, he pulled the trigger before Dominic knew what was happening. The bullet hit Dominic in the forehead, killing him instantly. Manny and his men assumed they had succeeded. What they didn't know was that Dominic had been on the phone with Frank when they entered the warehouse.
Just when Manny and his men thought they were in the clear and all set to take their girl back, plus all of the women held in cages, they walked outside and met their maker. Frank had arrived on the premises and was ready with his own muscle to eliminate the interlopers and take back what was Russo property. Frank stared down at the lifeless bodies of the wannabe pimp and his crew and snarled, "No one fucks with the Russos and lives."
Two Years Later – Eighteen Years Ago
The last thing Frank wanted to deal with after a long day of working was someone stealing from him. He'd expected to go home to spend time with his newborn son, Frank Jr., but business came first, especially when someone was a thief.
When the limo pulled up to the curb where Russell was walking with his wife, Frank almost had a change of heart. But if he allowed one guy to get away with stealing, others would take advantage of him.
The scream was almost deafening after the poor woman realized that Frank had killed her husband. "You fucking killed my husband!" Jackie shrieked.
"I killed a thief."
Tears started to roll down her cheeks, and Frank was seconds from ending her life too, but she was pregnant, and he thought about his sister-in-law. Before Dominic died, he was going to start a family. Frank knew that Saffron always wanted a baby, and now he could give that to her.
"Are you going to kill me too?" Jackie asked.
Frank bit his bottom lip. "No, I have other plans for you and your unborn child.” He instructed his driver to go to the penthouse instead of heading home.
"What are you going to do with me?" Jackie inquired as the car came to a stop at the curb.
Frank grinned. "Put you up in a penthouse, of course."
Jackie furr
owed her brow. She looked out the window, seeing skyscraper across from Central Park, but then she looked over at her dead husband, who was still slumped in the seat next to her.
"Out," Frank ordered as he opened the back door. She didn't hesitate as she slid out.
The doorman opened the door for them, tipping his cap and saying hello to Frank. Jackie wondered if this was where he lived. She was walking into the unknown with the man who had just killed her husband, and now it was as though nothing had happened at all. She didn't want to be next. She had a baby on the way, and that baby was a piece of Russell.
Frank and Jackie walked through the lobby to the elevators. After Frank stuck a keycard into the waiting elevator, the lift rose to the thirty-third floor. Jackie was still silent, not believing that she was going to a penthouse. Her apartment in East Harlem was a shack compared to the high rise.
The doors opened, and she saw a man dressed in a suit. She caught a glimpse of a gun sticking out from his suit jacket.
"Where is Saffron?" Frank asked the guard.
"Her room, sir."
"Get her. Now," he ordered.
"Yes, sir."
The guard took the stairs up, and Frank led Jackie to a chair near a coffee table. "Sit."
She didn't hesitate.
A few moments later, she heard footsteps coming from above. Jackie turned her head and watched a pretty, dark-haired woman descend, dressed in a long silk robe and fancy heeled slippers.
"What are you doing here?" Saffron asked.
Frank smiled. "I brought you a baby."
"What?" Jackie shrieked.
Saffron looked at her and narrowed her eyes. "I don't see a baby."
Frank grabbed Jackie's arm, causing her to stand. He tore open the jacket and revealed Jackie's eight-month belly.
"I don't understand." Saffron crossed her arms. Jackie didn't understand either.
"She's going to give birth soon, and then you'll have your baby, the one you and Dom couldn't have together."
"You can't give her my baby!" Jackie protested.
Frank growled. "Shut up! I own you now."
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