Joey shrugged and went back to Laurie’s nipples. Flick tipped her head back, while slipping off her shoes and bringing her feet onto the couch so she could twist her form into Rushe’s.
‘We never considered that we’d have to watch,’ Flick said, tucking her head under his chin and curling her arms in close.
‘Just close your eyes,’ Rushe whispered into her hair.
The next second saw Joey sit up again when the door opened. From here they couldn’t see it, but only a couple of heartbeats went by before Joseph Galante came into view. Unusually, Rosa was with him, and Whyte was there too, but he was conspicuously alone.
‘Everybody’s here,’ Joey exclaimed, and Flick began to wonder what substances he was using himself.
‘I see that,’ Galante said, ignoring his son’s salivating on the breasts of the doped up woman at his side. ‘There’s been a development actually; it’s got us slightly worried.’
‘What kind of development?’ Rushe asked. Flick found comfort in the vibration from his chest rumbling against her.
‘I don’t think it’s one you’ll like,’ Galante said.
Whyte came further into the room and sat on the couch closest to Flick and Rushe. Flick was unsettled by his proximity, and Rushe held her closer. Then she realised that Rushe wasn’t as concerned, the reason for why became more obvious when Flick concluded that Whyte was watching Joey and Laurie, who were now kissing as Joey fondled Laurie’s breasts.
‘Rushe, perhaps we should talk with you alone.’
‘You want to leave me alone in here?’ Flick said aloud. Maybe it wasn’t in character, and maybe it wasn’t appropriate, but she saw Joey and Laurie going at it, and Whyte in the chair next to hers with intent in his eyes.
‘I’ll stay with you,’ Rosa said, but Rushe shook his head.
‘You can talk in front of her, what is it?’
‘It really would be better if we—‘
‘Would you like me to leave?’ Flick asked, but Rushe’s hand clamped onto her thigh.
‘You stay put. Whatever the fuck is going—‘
‘It’s about her,’ Galante said, nodding at Flick but looking only at Rushe. ‘So we’d rather not discuss the matter with her present.’
‘About me,’ Flick said. Rushe let her move enough to sit up straight, but she remained in his lap. ‘What about me?’
‘Don’t freak out,’ Rosa said, shimmering with conceit. ‘If you haven’t done anything wrong then there’s nothing to worry about, is there?’
The trouble was that the definition of wrong varied between the factions. ‘Am I on trial? What are you accusing me of?’
‘Asking questions,’ Galante said.
‘Oh well, I’m so terribly sorry about that. Would you like another drink? Oh look, I’ve done it again.’
‘Sassy,’ Rosa said, with her gaze trained on Flick. ‘I knew there was more to you than met the eye. I told you.’
Her last three words were for Galante, who held up his hand. ‘Ok, yes.’
‘I told you!’ Rosa shouted, leaning to the side, clearly trying to rouse Whyte’s attention, but it remained elsewhere.
‘Rosie, come on,’ Galante said. His awareness remained on Flick, but he spoke over his shoulder. ‘What do we do now? Joe! Joey!’
With a sputter and a mutter, Joey came up for air. Diverting his focus around to his father, the grown man proceeded to huff like a teen. ‘Dad, give me ten minutes.’
‘Now,’ Galante said.
‘Fine,’ Joey said, and he shoved Laurie off the couch.
The laughing redhead clattered to the floor, all arms and legs. Joey advanced to throw Laurie over his shoulder, breasts still out and all, and then he went for the door. Rosa grunted in protest but she went with Joey, presumably to unlock the door, or to put the redhead back together.
‘You gonna tell me what the fuck is going on?’ Rushe asked.
‘We think you’re being played.’
Flick would have smiled if she wasn’t so terrified. Rushe being played by her was laughable. Rushe being played at all was unlikely. But at least that meant Rushe’s position wasn’t being questioned. Flick could handle having her own credibility called into doubt, so long as she knew that Rushe was safe. Rushe was used to sitting at the big boys’ table. He could control this.
‘Played?’
‘We want to know what your deal is,’ Galante said, pointing his gaze at Flick. ‘What’s your history, Felicity Hughes?’
Flick assumed that they didn’t associate her with her family, because she hadn’t used her middle names, nor did they live anywhere close to her parents. The Hughes family home was hundreds of miles from here. Any search on her wouldn’t bring up very much; she used a false social security number, which Rushe had gotten her for use at the library.
In the past, they had been burned when people discovered her family’s wealth, and they didn’t want that to happen again. Especially since the last time Rushe had to cover the ransom bill that her father wouldn’t. It would be quite a drain on their resources if that happened with any regularity.
Joey and Rosa returned to the room, coming in at Galante’s back. This was the point at which Whyte left his seat. With no more to watch, he came around to stand with the others.
With the information at their disposal, the only two things that this group knew for sure about her were where she lived, and that she had a library membership.
‘It was you,’ Flick said. ‘You broke into my apartment, you trashed the place.’
‘You think Joseph dirties his hands?’ Rosa smirked.
‘Not him specifically,’ Flick said. ‘But you were the one who ordered it. Why did you do that?’
‘We like to know the associations of our employees,’ Galante said.
‘What business is it of yours what I do or where I came from? I came here for a job, just to serve drinks.’
‘But ended up in a relationship.’
Flick glanced at Whyte. ‘You were checking up on me, because of him?’
Being with Whyte meant they all assumed she would die at their hands. Checking that nobody would notice or question her death must be par for the course. She wondered if Scott’s reaction to Whyte’s relationship with Susan had anything to do with their vigilance.
You had information on the history of our businesses in your apartment.’
‘I was coming for a job; I wanted to know what I was getting myself into. Google didn’t warn me about this.’
‘We weren’t overly concerned,’ Galante said. Flick was glad she’d had her library bag on her person during the break-in, because that contained the more sensitive information and her computer files.
‘We socialised together on Monday night,’ Flick said. ‘Lisa threw a tantrum and stormed away. Why did you choose to violate my home the following night?’
‘We had a conversation,’ Whyte said. ‘Galante and I, and I told him then that a relationship between us was likely.’
So Flick had been chosen as the next victim, since Lisa’s card was marked by then, and the poor girl had less than three days to live. The burglary was orchestrated for the Tuesday night to ensure that Flick could be disappeared without much fuss. By the Wednesday, Flick’s date with Whyte in the X-Lounge, they would know all they needed to about her.
Then she had fallen over Rushe, riled Whyte, and left early. Lisa died on the Thursday night, setting the ball in motion and bringing them to now.
‘Seeking the details of your life gave us the chance to ensure that Evan was safe from anything... unsavoury,’ Galante said, which Flick thought was rich.
‘You didn’t have to trash the place so thoroughly,’ Flick grumbled.
‘A scared girl is a horny girl,’ Joey said, and with a glimpse of a smile, Flick was assured of his complicity in these incidents. He didn’t seem to take a very active role, other than the seductions, and though not quite as daunting as the others in the clique, Joey was still determined. From where his focu
s had been not so long ago, the turnaround was impressive.
‘The library too, you were the one who sent those men to question Liam?’
‘He wasn’t very helpful,’ Galante said with a bold, practised smile.
‘But why? Evan and I had already broken up,’ Flick said.
‘Your interest switched to Rushe very quickly, which intrigued us,’ Galante said. ‘We knew then that there had to be more going on than it had first appeared.’
‘Why are you all so paranoid?’ Flick asked, taking the chance to turn the tables. ‘What do you think I know?’
‘We know you lied. Your chastity was clearly a fabrication. There was evidence of male companionship at your apartment. We initially assumed the falsehood was meant to entice. Such a startling revelation would tempt men, as it did with Evan.’
‘So you broke into my apartment, assumed I was a liar, but let it go?’
‘You wouldn’t be the first woman to lie in order to gain the favour of a man, especially one with means as extensive as Evan’s.’
‘But you no longer believe it’s minor?’ she asked.
‘Not after what happened today,’ Rosa said.
The group remained intent on her, and Flick was beginning to feel the pressure of being so closely scrutinised.
‘Your visit from the man we questioned concerned us enough to probe further. Now we wonder if your claim of chastity was cover used to guarantee that you would not have to get intimate at all.’
‘You didn’t want things to get sexual,’ Rosa said. ‘Why would a woman come here, and start dating rich men, but be unwilling to sleep with them?’
‘You wanted to close the door on the possibility of sex completely.’
‘Meaning...?’ Flick asked, taking a look at each face. ‘What?’
‘Are you a cop?’
Laughter burst out of Flick. Rushe had been accused of the same in the past, and now that the shoe was on her foot she realised how ridiculous it felt.
‘You think I used the virginity cover so that I didn’t have to sleep with any of you, but I could still get close? Was I supposed to make you feel sorry for me?’
‘It makes sense that your focus would shift when Rushe got involved,’ Galante said. ‘He, I’m sure, has pertinent associations and access to a vast amount of criminal knowledge, certainly far more than we would.’
‘Which brings us to the question,’ Flick said. ‘What have you all been doing wrong that the cops would want to investigate you for in the first place?’
Flick herself had thought how interested a vice cop would be in monitoring what was going on here, if there was criminal activity. She hadn’t for a second considered the possibility that it might be an accusation laid at her door.
‘We have a close relationship with the police department,’ Galante said. ‘We keep them informed of any misdeeds that we witness or have proof of.’
‘Then,’ Flick said, feeling somewhat triumphant, ‘as Rosa said, if you haven’t done anything wrong, then there’s nothing to worry about, is there?’
‘We worried when we saw that you had another man in Rushe’s suite today,’ Galante said, with an arch of his eyebrow.
‘This is about trying to separate me from Rushe? If he believes I’ve been messing around on him, and he joins your side, what next? He’s supposed to do your dirty work for you? What are we talking about? A beating? Rape?’
‘You don’t seem very concerned,’ Joey said.
‘I haven’t done anything wrong,’ Flick replied, reaching to the floor to hook her feet back into her shoes. ‘You people, on the other hand, obviously have; you talk of police and committing criminal acts.’
Flick stood up with all the indignation that she required to leave, hopeful that Rushe would follow her lead. But as soon as she had her weight Galante’s group moved in closer, evidently not willing to let her go anywhere. They blocked her forward exit. Rushe’s legs were in the way of a backward exit, but it didn’t matter. If she got around Rushe, she’d still have to double back because the only door was the one out to the X-Lounge, and it was behind the odious group.
Chapter Twenty-Three
‘You can’t go,’ Rosa said.
‘Are you holding me hostage?’
Hostage would be preferable, if the smirk that spread on Whyte’s face was anything to go by.
‘Crazy fuckers,’ Rushe muttered. Flick was glad when he came to his feet behind her. ‘We’re out of here.’
With a hand on the back of her neck Rushe began to move forward, but the crowd didn’t budge out of the way. ‘Excuse us,’ Flick said.
‘We can’t let her go until we know what she knows,’ Galante said. ‘She had another man in your suite today.’
‘I threw him out,’ Rushe said.
‘We saw that.’
From what the cameras in the corridor would show, Rushe was the one at the suite entrance, and he was the one slamming the door on Liam. Flick wouldn’t be visible.
‘Am I not allowed to have a friend?’ Flick said.
She had no idea that they would be interested in something so mundane, or in her life at all for that matter. As far as she could perceive, none of these people had any reason to be monitoring her, and there was no history of this group tracking anyone.
Her role was as a distraction, a plaything meant to entertain a man in their alliance, and so she was entirely without consequence. It wasn’t as though she and Liam had been alone in the suite for long enough to get naked.
‘Is he the fuck buddy?’ Rosa said. ‘The one you were screwing at your apartment?’
‘No,’ Flick answered.
‘A cop?’
‘No, he’s not. He works in a library, you sought him out yourselves.’
‘He works with information,’ Galante said. ‘Perhaps he may be useful for finding out things that people don’t want known. Was he part of your snooping?’
‘I’ve fucked the bitch, she’s nothing but a dumb ‘ho,’ Rushe said. ‘You telling me you think she’s a criminal mastermind?’
‘We’ve got enemies,’ Galante said. ‘She fooled us all.’
‘I knew there was something off,’ Rosa said. ‘That’s why I never let her in on the deal.’
‘The deal?’ Flick asked.
‘We’ve heard the rumours and conducted our own investigations.,’ Galante said. ‘None of our employees have acted inappropriately.’
‘What rumours?’
‘About guys waking up in rooms they never booked with empty pockets,’ Joey said. Rosa tsked and hit him in the ribs. Galante and Whyte maintained their concentration on her.
‘You think this is about a few empty wallets?’ Flick said.
Rosa had alluded to such a thing. Now that Flick saw the truth of the people in front of her, it didn’t come as a surprise that Rosa had been running such a racquet. The hostess had to be the leader. None of the men here had the ability to access and charm men in the way Rosa would.
Her particular charisma would be required to drug vulnerable men, lure them to their rooms on the promise of sex, and then rob them. It was one of the oldest cons in the world.
‘If not about that, then let us find out what your motive is,’ Galante said, and for the first time he glanced backward. Something went unsaid between him and his mistress, and Rosa left.
‘We’re going, too,’ Rushe said, and again he tried to direct Flick out, but the men remained in their path.
‘You’re not concerned by this?’ Galante asked Rushe. ‘If she’s a cop—‘
‘If she’s a cop, what’s she doing riding my cock like a pro?’ Rushe said.
‘That guy today could be her handler or something,’ Joey said.
‘More like a lovesick puppy,’ Rushe replied. ‘Pathetic.’
‘So if she doesn’t want Evan’s money, and she’s not a cop,’ Galante said, narrowing his gaze on Flick with laser precision. ‘Who are you working for? Davis? Johnson?’
‘You think I’m
working for one of your competitors?’ Flick asked. Her impression of Davis was that he was a friend to Galante, and that he belonged here. Tonight he was absent, which was revealing.
‘Industrial espionage is not a new thing,’ Galante said. ‘You better tell us.’
‘I don’t have to tell you anything,’ Flick said, pleased that Rushe’s hand remained against her neck, because her skin was growing clammy. ‘Unless you plan to kill me, you’ll have to let me leave eventually. Sooner is better than later. You’ve shown your true colours; you’re all sick and twisted.’
The group, who kept their eyes glued to her, obstructed her forward movement. Flick regretted her choice of words, because by not letting her go they were confirming their intentions.
‘No one’s killing anyone,’ Rushe said. ‘What the fuck—‘
‘We can handle this, Rushe. If you want to walk out the door, you may. I didn’t have you pegged as the type to have a weak stomach.’
‘You want to murder an innocent woman.’
‘We don’t know if she’s innocent,’ Galante said.
‘Murder is preferable to the benefit of the doubt?’ Rushe asked. ‘No, we don’t want that heat on us.’
Rushe drew Flick back, placing his body between her and Galante, who was still at the head of the knot barricading their escape route.
‘Rushe,’ Flick said, placing a hand on his back, but Rushe didn’t flinch.
She could see how her own hand shook even with his mass to steady it on. Circumstances had changed in a heartbeat, something Flick should get used to. Not that she would have the time if Galante got his way.
‘She was never walking away from this,’ Galante said. ‘You’re a part of our group now. As soon as you chose her you sealed her fate.’
Flick did not want Rushe thinking that any of this was his fault.
‘I chose her for sex.’
‘We visited her colleague in the library today to verify her identity for your security, Rushe. Despite her dealings with Evan, we allowed you to stake your claim on the girl. It was important to us to show you that respect.’
‘You could’ve come to me.’
‘That was our intention tonight. We believed we were anticipating your concerns... it may have been ahead of schedule, but Flick gave us the chance to bring you to the inside of our group.’
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