“Nope.”
“You have your house back yet?”
“No.”
“Shit, man. It’s your turn to host poker this weekend.”
Alexei stopped punching the bag and glared at his teammate. “Seriously, that’s what’s on your mind right now? Poker?”
“Yeah. Cage scammed me at pool the last time we were at Buddy’s. I want to win my money back.”
Alexei felt like he’d stepped into an alternate dimension. One where life unfolded the way it always did while his own life was somehow falling apart.
“They’ll be gone by then,” he said numbly and then hit the bag again.
“Excellent,” Blade replied. “So you and Bailey… there’s nothing going on there?”
Alexei stopped again. Stared at Blade. “Why would there be?”
Blade held up both hands, palms out. “Man, I hear you. But Cowboy bet Cage you were falling for her. Viking took Cowboy’s side. I took Cage’s.”
They were betting on him? Him and Bailey? Shit.
“What about the others?” he asked.
“Even split, dude. I say you’re too much of a loner to ever let a woman get you by the balls. Cowboy and Money think nobody’s immune. Just because they’re pussy-whipped doesn’t mean the rest of us have to be, right?”
“Right.” But were they pussy-whipped or were they happy? Alexei thought of Cowboy and Miranda at the restaurant the other day. The camaraderie they had. The easy laughter, the shared jokes, the significant looks.
Had his parents ever had that? All he remembered were two stressed-out people trying to raise six kids. They never had enough money or enough time. His mother’s English hadn’t been very good to begin with—though it had gotten better over time—and she’d been isolated. Had that contributed to their breakdown?
He suddenly needed to know. Alexei walked away from the punching bag and toward the locker room. Blade called out something behind him, but he didn’t pay attention. He went to his locker and took out his cell phone. He wasn’t in a restricted part of the facility, and phones were allowed. He sat down on the bench, wiping sweat from his brow, and scrolled through his contacts until he found his mother’s number.
She answered on the second ring. “Alexei. Is everything okay?”
She spoke in Russian, so he answered her in the same language. But first he pulled the phone from his ear and frowned at it. Did he really not call her that often? Did something have to be wrong for him to call?
“Everything’s fine, Mom. But I wanted to ask you something…”
“Well then. I have my book club coming over soon, so I can’t talk very long, but what did you want to know?”
He stared at the wall opposite. How to ask her these things? Maybe he should call his father instead. But his dad was a big personality, a man with a healthy sense of ego who rarely accepted fault for anything. And isn’t that a partial answer, dumbass?
“Why did you marry Dad? Did you think it was forever?”
She was quiet for a minute. “What kind of question is that, Alexei? Of course I thought it was forever. But I was very young and naive. Your father… Well, he was incredibly dynamic and intelligent. I was dazzled by him. We should have waited, perhaps. But there was urgency. He wanted to apply for a position in the US, and he didn’t want to leave me behind. Why do you want to know this?”
Alexei drew in a deep breath. “I met someone. But I don’t think I know how to be in a relationship…”
“Oh, baby, of course you do. You and this lady are not your father and me. We were young—and I had no sense of who I was for many years. When I figured it out, we had grown apart. So does this lady challenge you, or does she agree with all you want?”
Alexei wanted to laugh at the mere idea of Bailey agreeing with all he wanted. “She definitely challenges me. And I like her. A lot. But I’m not sure if it means anything or if it’s just…”
Well, he wasn’t going to say what he thought it could be. Not to his mother. She surprised him, however.
“Lust?” She must have felt his surprise through the phone because she made a noise. “I know what lust is, Alyosha,” she said, using her pet name for him that she hadn’t used since he was probably about twelve and told her it was a baby name and not American enough. “I know how young people are. I used to be one.”
She laughed at that, and Alexei pinched the bridge of his nose. He was telling his mother about a woman? Asking her advice? Crazy. He was crazy. Bailey was making him that way.
“Listen to me, Alyosha,” she said. “The point is that you don’t always know. Sometimes you think you can’t live without a person. And sometimes you don’t know what it is you want. But if you can’t stop thinking about her. If she has you twisted up inside—if you’re calling and asking me about her, a thing you’ve never done with a girl in your whole life—then maybe there’s something worth exploring there.”
She had a point. “Maybe.”
“Your father and I grew apart. It was both our faults really. We were very passionate for each other in the beginning, but we didn’t nurture it. Passion is like a flower. You must tend it, or it can wither and die. We didn’t tend it. That’s what happened. We ceased to be compatible, though we are still friends. Yes, it was painful when it ended—but I wouldn’t change my relationship with your father. It gave me you and your brothers and sisters. Every moment was worth the ride.”
Worth the ride.
“Thanks, Mom.”
“You’re welcome, honey. Now, before you go, when will you come visit me again? It’s been too long.”
“Soon,” he said and meant it. It had been too long. Too many deployments, too much work. And the urge to be alone with his thoughts when he returned from a mission.
“Bring your lady. I wish to meet her.”
“I don’t know if she is my lady,” he admitted. “She’s a little pissed at me right now.”
“Alexei, language.” She made a noise that sounded like scoffing. “You are a handsome and charming boy. You’ll win her over if you want to.”
Alexei snorted. Only his mother would call him a boy and get away with it. “Thanks, Mom. I really have to go. Love you.”
“Love you too, Alyosha. Come visit!”
Alexei promised he would before she would let him go. He put the phone down and sat on the bench, thinking about what he needed to do now. Go to Bailey and tell her he was an idiot? Yeah, she’d appreciate that. She’d probably lift an eyebrow and ask him what was new about that revelation.
Oddly enough, he couldn’t wait to see her reaction. He jumped up and headed for the shower. He was just toweling off when Blade came into the locker room, frowning hard. Alexei recognized that look. His heart skipped a beat. Were they about to get orders again? Was he going to lose his chance to tell Bailey he was a fool? When they returned, would he be able to find her again?
But it was something much worse than an impending mission.
“James Dunn was set free an hour ago.”
Bailey’s heart wasn’t in it tonight. She didn’t want to work, but she had to. If she and Kayla were leaving, she needed as much money as she could earn to get them somewhere new, especially since Kayla hadn’t been working in months and had no income at all.
It seemed strange to have to drive herself to the Pink Palace instead of Alexei driving her. But he wasn’t back by the time she was ready to leave, and she knew he wasn’t planning on coming back for a while. He was angry with her. Well, she was angry with him too.
If he wanted her to stay, he needed a reason. A damn good reason, not just that he wanted to have sex with her. Though, dammit, she loved the sex. It was hot and earth-shattering and perfect. Just like the man.
She sniffed as she got her crap together for the night. She hadn’t intended to push him about his feelings, but once she’d revealed that Kayla wanted to move and Bailey had to go with her sister, she’d needed him to tell her why he didn’t want that to happen. She’d needed
him to feel something. She’d fooled herself into thinking he must, because he couldn’t keep his hands off her and he’d trusted her enough to forgo a condom. For a man who swore he’d never done that with anyone, she’d thought it had to mean something.
It didn’t. Or not enough anyway. Hell, she’d even told him she would stay if only he’d give her a reason. She’d practically begged him to tell her he cared—but instead he’d asked when she was leaving. That was the moment her heart broke in two. That was the moment when she knew there was nothing between them. She was a body to him, nothing more.
Well, she could go and be a body at work too. At least she got paid for gyrating her hips—and there was no danger of emotional entanglements there.
Bailey fixed her makeup and hair, put on her tracksuit, then grabbed her bag with the sequined bra and G-string and her costume. She said goodbye to Kayla, who was rocking Ana on the couch, then went and tossed her bag into the ancient Volkswagen.
The car started up right away, as if being neglected the past few days had given it a chance to rest. It was dark out and a little chilly, so Bailey cranked the heater on. It didn’t do much besides move the air around. By the time she pulled into the parking lot, it still hadn’t warmed up.
“Stupid car,” she grumbled as she shut off the engine. There were a few cars already in the parking lot. Guys who came early to drink and then stayed for the show. She stared at the building, the neon-pink sign flashing on and off, the little gold crown at the top of the word Pink. Was this what her life had come to? Really?
She’d never been ashamed of what she did. It was performance art, albeit without a lot of clothing. But tonight she wanted to walk away and leave it all behind. She wanted to get started on the next phase of her life. Go to college, get a degree in nursing, get a real job with benefits and security.
But this was what she had to do right now. Bailey shoved her car door open and grabbed her gym bag. She’d go to Deke and tell him she was leaving soon. Then she’d get through three sets, try to sell some lap dances, and go back to Alexei’s place after work. Tomorrow she’d take Kayla and Ana back to the apartment, and they’d start looking at places to go.
Bailey closed her door and locked it. A hand slapped down over her mouth. She started to scream, but something sharp pierced her arm. A needle? She jerked and tried to fight, but she wasn’t as strong as her assailant. He hauled her backward and then shoved her forward quickly, knocking her head into the doorframe. The blow stunned her, and he used the opportunity to wrench her wrists behind her back and bind them with a zip tie.
Then he opened her car door and shoved her inside before getting in beside her and starting it up. He’d taken her keys from her hand. She tried to sit up, tried to shake her hair from her face and see who he was. But she was starting to feel groggy, and movement was harder now.
He jammed the pedal to the floor and her car lurched into gear, throwing her back against the seat. When he took a sharp turn, she fell against the door. Her head throbbed and her stomach roiled.
“Who?” she managed to force out with what felt like a superhuman effort.
There was no answer.
Chapter 24
“What do you fucking mean he was let go?” Alexei growled as he and Blade piled into his truck and headed for the Pink Palace. Neo and Dirty were on the way to his place. Alexei had been dialing Bailey’s number, but she wasn’t answering. That didn’t mean anything since she could be inside the dressing room at the club, getting ready for the performance.
“The judge in the case set bail. He made it. He’s out.”
Alexei was angry. And scared. Fear wasn’t the kind of emotion he was used to feeling, but it was definitely there. A strong, acidic emotion that he didn’t like at all.
“Why the fuck would the judge let that motherfucker go? We were told it wasn’t going to happen.” But there were things that went on behind the scenes sometimes that nobody had an explanation for. Somebody owed somebody else. Somebody had dirt on somebody. Favors, marks, threats—something was called in and a decision was made. Someone, somewhere, had fucked up. On purpose or not, it didn’t matter. The result was that Dunn was out—and he was pissed.
“No idea, dude. But I bet some heads are gonna roll over that one.”
Not soon enough for Alexei. They reached the Pink Palace, and Alexei searched the parking lot for Bailey’s Volkswagen as they careened through. He didn’t see it, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t there. He and Blade jumped out of his truck and stormed the club. Brian the bouncer was at the door. His gaze flickered with recognition.
“Is Honey with you?”
Alexei’s heart dropped. His stomach flipped. “No. She didn’t come to work?”
Brian shook his head. “It happens. The broads don’t show up sometimes. But Honey never did that before. She’s always been reliable.”
Alexei clenched his fists at his sides. “You see James Dunn in here tonight?”
“Dunn? No. Cops arrested him last night.”
“Yeah, and today he posted bail.”
“Fuck.”
“Right. You got cameras in the parking lot?” Alexei asked.
“On the building, but they cover most of the parking lot. Come on, let me take you to Deke. He’ll pull up the footage.”
She was chained to a bed. That much she knew. Bailey moved her aching head, grogginess clouding her mind, making the room spin. She wanted to hurl, but there was nothing in her stomach. She knew that because she’d already hurled everything she had. She remembered that each time she woke. Remembered stepping out of her car to walk into work and someone putting a hand over her mouth and a needle into her arm before throwing her into her car. She hadn’t passed out right away, but it seemed to happen within minutes.
Now she was in a room, on a squeaky bed with a musty mattress, and she had no idea where she was. There was laughter coming from somewhere. Male? Female? She wasn’t sure.
“She’s awake,” someone with a rough voice said. Raspy, like they smoked a lot.
“Oh? Good. Nobody likes fucking a cold fish.”
Fucking a…?
Panic settled into her brain, rolled through her in waves, stirred up the nausea in her belly again. She started to retch.
“Goddammit,” the same voice said. “She’s gonna be useless if she can’t stop that shit.”
“She’ll stop,” the rough voice said.
“How much did you give her?”
“Enough to knock her out and get her here. I’ve never had anyone hurl from it though.”
“Get her in a shower. Clean her up.”
“Fucking hell,” Rough Voice grumbled.
“You got a problem with doing your job?”
“No.”
“Good. Do it and shut the fuck up.”
The chains clanged and then Bailey was levered up, blanket and all, and carried somewhere. Cold water sluiced over her and she yelped, fighting the weight of the wet blanket. She managed to get free of it, but every effort she made to leave the shower was met with a shove back into it.
Then the water was turned off and rough hands stripped her of her clothing while she slapped at them and fought ineffectually. Her gaze eventually focused on the man stripping her naked. He was big and mean-looking, with tattoos and a long beard that was divided into braids. He wore a leather vest with patches. One patch stood out from the others. It was big and consisted of a skull with coffins on either side that had a K and a D in them. A banner over the skull said Kings of. Below the skull, the banner said Doom.
Oh shit. Alexei had said the Kings of Doom were going down, but apparently they weren’t done yet. Her heart dropped into her toes.
“Nice set of tits, girlie,” the man said as he tossed her sodden clothes onto the shower floor and left them. “I enjoy a shaved pussy too.”
“No,” she said, that one word dragging from her. She could form the words in her head, but nothing wanted to come out. What the hell had they given her?<
br />
The man laughed. “You say that now, but pretty soon you won’t say a damned thing except yes, please. If you want your next fix.”
Bailey’s heart pounded. What? She dragged the recesses of her brain for what Kayla had said. A suitcase. Condoms. Drugs. Sex trafficking.
Anger filled her. She would fight. She had to fight.
He tossed a towel at her and she barely caught it. Her fingers didn’t want to work right, but she somehow managed to get the towel around her body before she sank onto the floor and tried to force the breath in and out of her lungs.
“Come on, girlie,” the man said, reaching for her again. He didn’t pick her up this time. He just dragged her back down a hallway and into another room with another musty mattress. She heard music thumping through the walls, and laughter. She could smell cigarette smoke—and marijuana smoke—and whiskey. There was also the smell of sex. Panic filled her lungs, expanded the throbbing in her head. She remembered hitting the side of the car, the exploding pain in her skull.
“Well, there’s our lovely Bailey Jones,” a man said, standing up from where he’d been waiting in a chair.
James Dunn.
His was the voice she’d heard earlier. The one saying she needed to be ready. He was loosening his belt. Unsnapping his jeans.
“I’m going to enjoy fucking you good, Bailey. When I’m done, you’re gonna tell me where Kayla and the baby are. And if you don’t, I’m gonna let Dirk here fuck you. And if you still don’t talk, I’m gonna haul your ass into the common room and let every single motherfucker in there have a go at you at once. Pussy, ass, and mouth, all getting used. How many dicks can you take at the same time, Bailey?”
“No,” she forced out again. Nausea rolled. Her head pounded.
Dunn advanced on her, caught the edge of the towel, and ripped it from her body. His gaze traveled over her as she scrambled backward, hitting the edge of the bed, falling back onto the mattress. He reached out to shove her down when she tried to spring back up.
“I’m going to enjoy this. More than you realize.”
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