The older woman smiled. “Yes, I guessed. You’re good at that.”
I watched her leave, happiness thrumming through me. Her house belonged to me now, but things weren’t just business when it came to Mrs Gaughton. I wanted her to be content because she’d looked after me when it felt no one else was.
I owed her.
My phone vibrated again. Fishing for it to delay the inevitable honing practice, I smirked at the missed calls from Neelan. And Safina. And texts from six other fanged pains in my ass.
You’re coming whether you like it or not.
Kyros would really love if you were there :) :)
There’s something you need to see at his house before I leak it to the paparazzi.
The more times you say no, the worse it will get.
Don’t come
Deirdre’s was the best.
Do you constantly say no because you crave attention?
“I’m falling in love with her,” I announced to the room. Because that’s what I did on Friday nights now—spoke to empty rooms.
Kyros had texted again.
Was this a thing now? Was he sliding into my messages like we were something? Was he my blood friend? Were we fang buddies?
Actually, there was a term for what we were. I just refused to acknowledge the phrase true mate.
I lowered my voice. “True mate.”
Yuck.
Not happening.
I skipped Kyros’s message and bolted upright at the last text.
Gina.
I hadn’t messaged her back after receiving proof of the triplets’ murder.
What did she want? It wasn’t near midnight, so it couldn’t be too dire.
I opened the message.
My brothers are up to something. Watch yourself.
Whoa, she was my warning system now? I’d be a fool to disregard the message. Just as I’d be a fool to disregard she could be part of said trouble. Hesitating, I slowly stood to switch on the noise-cancelling again.
Taking a deep breath, I called her.
The ringing cut off immediately, but a text came through a second later.
Give me a minute
Listening ears? I paced the room.
My phone vibrated and I exhaled before answering, “Gina.”
“What is it?’
“Interesting message.”
She was silent. “Like most people who enjoy killing and inflicting pain, my brothers have behaviours they exhibit before striking. You’re their only target right now. They’re showing those tells. You need to be very careful.”
Fear landed heavy in my gut. Fuck. “Why can’t they just handle your brother’s death like the rest of you? I didn’t mean to kill your brother even if he was attacking me. If I could take it back, I would.”
Gina didn’t answer straight away. “Thank you for saying that. My youngest brother was too decent for this life. But I wouldn’t say my other siblings are content doing nothing. What they are is content to let our most vindictive brothers handle you.”
Good to know. “What kind of shit are we talking then? Are they killing critters?”
She sighed. “Trenit likes to listen to a particular death metal band before he strikes. For Tynan, he sharpens his blades. Theodore likes to get laid.”
My heart stopped. “What did you just say?”
“To get laid.”
I sucked in a ragged breath. “The name.”
“Theodore.”
No.
The floor tilted and my legs crumpled.
“What’s wrong?” she demanded.
My heart hammered in my chest. “Does Theodore have a girlfriend?”
Gina snorted. “When doesn’t he have someone in his bed.”
“A petite brunette?” I whispered.
“I’m uncertain. Fuck. Is she seeing a Theodore?”
Fuck didn’t sum up my horror of this moment. “Yes.”
“She’s part of their plan then,” Gina rushed to say. “They’re going to lure you out. Do not do what they say. If you set foot—”
I hung up, vacant eyes landing on the office door. “Tommy.”
I burst to my feet and collected the table with my shin.
Ignoring the pain, I flung open the door. Tommy.
Please tell me she hadn’t left. Please.
Sprinting for the stairs, I took them two at a time. “Tom?”
“Miss Le Spyre?” Fred was at the bottom of the stairs. “I drove Miss Tetley to meet her boyfriend half an hour ago.”
My face crumpled and Fred rushed up the stairs to take my arm. He led me straight back to the office, clicking on the noise-cancelling once more.
I ignored my vibrating phone.
The triplets had Tommy. They had my only fucking friend. My family. The only person I loved in this world.
This couldn’t be right. It wasn’t happening.
“Miss Le Spyre, is Tommy in danger?” Fred gripped my arms.
A sob left my mouth. I nodded, my hands shaking as I gripped him for dear life.
His expression was grim. “Then I’m afraid you need to snap out of it for her sake, miss.”
He was right. She needed me.
By now, boxing up my fear was almost habit. Tommy is with the Tonyi triplets. I have to get her back. I’m afraid because they’re stronger than me. They’ll try to separate me from everyone, but terror will get in my way.
I straightened. “Where did you take her, Fred?”
My phone vibrated again.
“To a restaurant named Finale on the waterfront.”
Finale. They’d picked a restaurant that fit with the theme of their game. It was the triplets. I should check there first.
I met his gaze. “We need to go there.”
The butler bowed. “I recommend calling the restaurant first.”
Genius.
He moved to the landline on the desk.
I watched as he dialled.
“Yes, hello,” Fred spoke into the headset. “I was wondering if you could do me a favour? My granddaughter is at your restaurant for a birthday dinner with her boyfriend, but we’re setting up her surprise party at home. He’s meant to message when they’re having dessert, but I haven’t heard from him. She’s petite and has chestnut hair to her chin. She’s wearing a sparkling black dress. Is it too much trouble for you to—” He paused. “—thank you.”
A black dress? Tommy never wore black.
I paced and wrenched to a halt. Five Indebted were tailing Tommy at all times. Laurel hadn’t been in touch, so they can’t have sensed anything wrong.
Maybe things weren’t beyond control.
“Sorry, sir. There’s no one here by that description. Do you know if they went on our sunset cruise?”
His face fell.
I closed my eyes, dread curling around my heart. Tommy’s guards would be waiting on land.
“They must have,” he said smoothly. “I don’t suppose you could put a call through to your staff there?”
“I can try, sir. But they may be out of reception already.”
When Fred hung up a few minutes later, he didn’t need to tell me the verdict.
I covered my face.
“They’re after me,” I whispered. I could say that much. “Triplets.”
Fred crossed the room with a speed belying his age. “If they’re after you, then Tommy is bait. If that’s the case, they’ll want you to go alone.”
I’d come to the same conclusion.
“You need people you can trust not to charge in,” he said.
Which meant him and the Indebted. Except Kyros would never forgive them for failing to report this. It could mean their deaths.
Fred glanced at my cell phone. “The person on the other end knows something has happened.”
I stared at Kyros’s name flashing on the screen.
“If he’s the charging kind, you need to get rid of him.”
Not so easy when he’d literally felt what I’d felt fo
r the last ten minutes, but Fred was right, when it came to me, because of the bond we shared, Kyros would charge.
I couldn’t let him in until I knew what was going on. One wrong move could mean Tommy’s life.
The call ended.
Should I call Gina back to work with her?
No, I couldn’t risk that if she was on their side. Without information of any kind, I’d have no idea how to interpret her answers.
I whirled, stumbling slightly before recovering my balance.
Where would the triplets have taken Tommy? There wasn’t any alarm from the Indebted, so they must still be waiting for the cruise to come back in.
“Think, Basi.” I tapped my forehead.
Fuck it, maybe I’d have to let Laurel into my confidence. Out of everyone I knew, I trusted her nearly as much as Fred. I didn’t want to endanger her, but to save Tommy, I was capable of almost anything, including shitting on other friendships.
My phone rang again. Private number.
The timing was too coincidental. It was them.
Fear filled me, but somewhere, I managed to locate a sliver of resolve. Channelling Agatha Le Spyre, I snapped my back straight.
Lifting the phone to my ear, I answered, “This is a private number. Do not call again.”
And hung up.
Fred watched on in grim-faced silence.
The phone rang again a bare second later, and I held a finger against my lips, warning the butler to stay quiet.
Accepting the call, I opened my mouth for a second round. A voice that chilled me to my core cut in.
“I’d suggest you stay on the line, Basilia Le Spyre. Or should I say Basil?”
“Who the fuck is this?” I demanded.
Laughter echoed down the line. “Don’t act coy. My brothers heard you running up the stairs shouting for your little friend ten minutes ago. And I heard the waitress answering questions about a petite brunette in a black dress back on shore. Smart. We expected you to rush down to the restaurant.”
“Is this Theodore?” I asked softly.
He hissed. “So nice to be on first-name basis at last. I feel closer to you already.”
I bit back on a sob.
“Would you like to see your friend?” he asked next. “Crap lay, your bestie. One more day with her looking at me with that pathetic expression and I might’ve slit her throat. Maybe I’ll do you a favour and kill her anyway.”
My throat worked. “Kill her and you’ll never get to me. Stop the shit talk and show her to me. Then get on with whatever psychotic plan you have in place.”
Savage growls abruptly cut off.
“Careful, careful,” Theodore breathed down the line. “Let’s not forget who’s in charge. You may have a cunt dipped in gold, but from now on, you’re our whore. And because you’re a stupid whore, I’m going to spell the rules out clearly for you.”
“My Indebted would love to hear what you have to say,” I snapped back.
“So many lies, Basil. My brothers are on your property and can’t hear this conversation. That soundproof room of yours has come in handy. All Indebted, but the useless five I left on shore, are accounted for.”
I remained silent, listening in on the background. They were in an echoing room—maybe like a garage. I couldn’t hear Tommy or any sounds of struggle. Was she knocked out?
“Here’s what’s going to happen. After this call, you’ll go outside and inform your chauffeur that Tommy doesn’t need to be picked up tonight. Her boyfriend hired the entire boat and she is staying there overnight. Do you understand?”
My mind worked frantically. There had to be some way out of this.
“Last chance before she loses a hand.”
I clutched the base of my throat. “I understand.”
“Good,” he purred. “Now, you will meet us alone. In return, your friend lives. If you bring backup, inform Kyros, or if we’re ambushed at any time… well, you can guess the rest.”
“What’s my guarantee she lives? I’m supposed to trust that you’ll let her go? I’m not stupid.”
“Oh, but you are. Didn’t you hear me? You’re a stupid whore. Tell me what a stupid whore you are or I’ll carve my name in your friend’s pretty face.”
My chest seized, and the words flowed from my mouth. “I’m a stupid whore.”
Fred jerked beside me as though slapped.
Theodore’s laughter rang in my ears, and I just couldn’t give a fuck what he forced me to say. If they hurt Tommy, I wouldn’t make it in this life. That realisation made what might happen next almost insignificant.
The thought calmed me more than anything else had so far.
“Good girl. Want a look at her as a reward?” His cold laughter faded away as he turned the video on.
Pulling the phone away from my ear, I scanned the concrete room on the screen. A garage. I was right. At least five cars. Not a tower—too small. Private house, perhaps?
“Hey, Tommy?” Theodore sang, his voice echoing through the room now. “Say hello to your rich friend?”
They hadn’t bothered to tie her up. She’d thrown up at some point and lay in her vomit. In response to his question, she mumbled, a small frown between her brows.
“What did you do to her?” I said, fury shaking my voice.
“Whores don’t ask questions,” Theodore replied. “But I’ll answer this once. I know how stupid you are. We gave her a little mix of a few pills we had lying around. Doesn’t look like she’s reacted too well.”
A smirk that chilled me to my core spread across his face. He couldn’t see me or Fred, but I had to doublecheck because his almond-shaped hazel eyes seemed to bore into my own.
“Listen very closely,” he said, eyes gleaming with a twisted fever. “Because we don’t hand out second chances. You’ll meet us out the front of your property in thirty minutes. If Kyros is there, your friend will die. And it won’t be clean.”
I couldn’t fuck this up. Kyros couldn’t be part of this. Or anyone, barring Fred.
“That won’t work,” I told him. “I’m surrounded by Indebted, and Kyros can feel what I’m feeling. He could already be on the phone to them as we speak. They won’t let me out of this house.”
The smirk in his voice was evident. “Not our problem. If you aren’t there, don’t expect to see your friend again.”
If they could get to me, they would have by now. Instead, they were relying on me to get out. My Indebted’s defence was too good.
And now it was a near-impossible obstacle for me.
I closed my eyes, struggling to keep it together for Tommy. “What happens when I get to the front gate?”
The call disconnected.
I stared at Fred in mute horror.
“Did you get that?” I whispered.
His lips pressed together. “Enough. We don’t have much time before the rendezvous.”
Kyros’s name appeared on the screen again. If he was frantic, I was unable to focus enough to feel it through my own frenzy.
“He’ll come over,” I said softly. Or could already be on his way.
That couldn’t happen.
I glanced up at the butler. “You need to tell Rosie not to wait up. Tommy just called and said she won’t be home tonight. She’s staying overnight on the cruise with her boyfriend.”
Fred nodded, his gaze dropping to my phone. “I’ll do so immediately. Remember to switch the noise-cancelling back on.”
I did as bade when he left, thinking rapidly as I answered the phone.
“What do you want?” I snapped. “Jesus, Kyros. I’m busy.”
Silence.
“Busy doing what?” The menace in his voice shook me.
I steeled myself. “Catching up on Truth Ranges. So if you don’t mind—”
He snarled. “You’re lying. Something just happened. You’re terrified. Panicked. I’m coming over.”
I let real anger fill me, all of it aimed at the Tonyi triplets. “Don’t you dare.”
&nb
sp; “Non-negotiable,” he said coolly, his voice echoing.
“Like all our interactions then,” I seethed. “You want to know why I’m terrified? Because three fucking psychos are after me. I have Vissimo all over my fucking property. And I made the worst decision of my life.”
I gripped my hair, pacing.
“What decision are you talking about?” he said in a low voice.
I sobbed, thinking of Tommy. What the fuck were they doing to her? “I’m not human anymore, Kyros.” My breath was harsh. “I’m not human anymore.”
“Basilia—”
Would they kill her? How would I know she was alive. Oh fuck. I couldn’t breathe. “I thought I could handle it,” I whispered. “I thought a few days would clear up my doubts, but it all just hit me. I don’t want to be a fucking monster like—”
“Like who?” Kyros said tersely.
His voice was echoing. Was he in the tower garage?
Shit.
Metal crunched on his end. Probably an innocent car. “Like who, Basilia?”
I swallowed, focusing on the moment I first heard Theodore’s name from Gina’s lips. I focused on the triplets and the disgust I felt for them. My utter loathing and abhorrence.
“Like you,” I forced out. “I’m finally doing something about it.”
A tinge of desperation wove through his fury, but otherwise, he wasn’t swallowing enough of my academy award performance.
Time to switch tactics.
Gritting my teeth, I said, “I won’t be returning to the tower or to work, Kyros. I’m leaving Bluff City. I won’t be back.”
That hit him. Hard.
I wouldn’t have otherwise known it from his calm tone though.
“You’re not leaving this city before I see you and we discuss this matter further,” he replied. “I’m in the car and on my way.”
I latched on to every speck of black rage—a lot right now—attempting to push aside my mounting panic. “I don’t want you in my house. Not after everything you’ve done.”
Hurt. Regret. Suspicion.
“So the sensory changes take more of an adjustment than we thought,” he rushed to say. “It will get better. I’ll make it better, Basilia. If that’s all this is about—which I don’t believe is the case. Hate me for coming, but I will see you.”
Vampire Debt: Supernatural Battle (Vampire Towers Book 2) Page 32