My eyes trail up the dripping blood until I find the three of them: Daisy, Gavin, and Lily. They’re all suspended in the air with chains and hang down by their ankles. All of them are covered in dirt and blood, which isn’t how I last saw them when they left the cellar.
“These three thought they could outsmart us and tried to be slick. They underestimated me and my men,” Luca explains as I survey my friends. Gavin’s eyes are closed, and I can’t tell if he’s breathing. Daisy’s chest heaves as she finally gave up moving and Lily just hangs there, staring straight ahead at no one in particular.
“I wanted to play along, to have fun too.” He smiles down at me. “They started a game by trying to leave and I had to finish it. Have you ever been hunting, princess?”
Swallowing hard over the lump forming in my throat, I will the tears away from my eyes as I silently shake my head.
“What a shame,” he murmurs, glancing up at his prisoners. “Next time, Kai will have to take you out.”
Luca lets go of me and takes a step back, looking behind me. “Shall we?”
Stan, Dexter, and Cade all walk past me, coming up beside him. My body starts to shake and the adrenaline courses through my body as my flight response kicks in.
Luca looks back at me, narrowing his eyes as I shift my weight nervously.
So much for playing it cool.
Fuck that. There was no playing it cool in this barn surrounded by these men.
“Kai,” Luca barks, keeping his eyes on mine. “Stand with her in case she tries to run.”
I divert my eyes to my peers as they hang helplessly. His smell and his touch flood my senses as he comes up behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders. Glancing over my shoulder, my gaze meets his soft brown eyes. He’s stoic and rigid, but his eyes speak to me and settle my soul.
Turning back around, I face the scene in front of me as Kai leans down and his lips brush my ear. “I promise you’ll be okay,” he whispers to me.
Luca clears his throat and stands tall as he raises a large butcher knife in the air. My body stills and my lungs deflate as he grabs Daisy’s hair, jerking her head. He looks at me, grinning madly and winks. “It’s showtime.”
He pulls harder on her hair, straightening her neck and digs the knife into her skin, right below her ear. Following her jawline, he swiftly slides the blade across her throat. Blood spills out onto the floor as her neck is cut wide open.
I’m frozen in place; my feet have become one with the cement below and I can’t breathe.
A blood-curdling scream tears through the room and rings in my ears as I stare at Daisy. Her body jerks, twisting back and forth as the blood drains from her body.
The screaming continues and Kai’s hands are squeezing the life out of me as I watch Daisy slowly stop moving. Her body twitches a few times as small spurts of blood squirt from her neck and then she falls still as her lifeless body hangs from the ceiling.
“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Luca screams at me. I shut my mouth that I didn’t know was open and the screaming stops. My face is soaked, and my throat burns as I swallow hard.
The screaming was coming from me.
Kai digs his fingers into my skin and gives me a small shake. His touch brings me back, but it doesn’t take away the blood staining the floor by my feet.
Luca strides toward me, pointing his bloody knife at me. I’m pushed back and Kai moves in front of me, shielding me from his evil father.
Luca cocks his head to the side, narrowing his eyes and presses the tip of his knife into the center of Kai’s chest. “Get her under control or she’ll be next, and you’ll be the one holding the knife.”
Grabbing Kai’s arm, I tug back on it hard.
He stepped in front of me, offering his life to spare mine. He put his own life on the line just to save me.
I step to the side of Kai and meet Luca’s eyes, giving him a curt nod. Kai looks over at me, burning holes through me and pulls me into him.
“Good decision, princess.” Luca smiles and slowly backs away from us. “Let’s wrap this shit up.”
Gavin is up next. Luca reenacts how he took Daisy’s life. I flinch as he slices his throat wide open, but I stay silent. My body is tense and my mind is numb as I watch him slaughter these poor kids right in front of me.
Lily is the last to go and she never even moves. She stares straight ahead the entire time, so much so that you would think she’s already dead. Only after he slits her throat does she look at me. Her eyes meet mine and she holds my gaze until the life leaves hers.
Luca tosses his knife onto the ground and walks around us as Stan and Dexter start to lower them to the floor. Every time I blink or close my eyes, all I can see are Lily’s staring back at me.
“Kai.” Luca pauses at the door. “The pigs need to be fed.”
Without another word, he slips out of the room, leaving us alone with the unlucky ones.
Kai
DAHLIA’S EYES ARE BLANK as she watches Cade and I carry the bodies out, one by one. My father and his men left quickly after they were done here and left the mess for us to clean up.
It was bloody and messy, but it had to be done. We had to get rid of their bodies and the pigs were our quickest option.
Daisy is the last to go. A small sob sounds from across the room as we lift her up. I quickly turn my head around and find Dahlia sitting on the floor with her arms wrapped tightly around her body. Her body wracks with her silent sobs as tears stream down her cheeks.
Fuck me.
She’s coming apart at the seams.
Cade clears his throat, pushing into me with Daisy’s body. “Move.”
Reluctantly, I tear my eyes from Dahlia and help Cade carry Daisy out of the room. I leave Dahlia alone in the room with her sorrow. She’s safer there.
We reach the loft area and throw the body over the railing. She hits the ground with a loud thud as the pigs squeal and surround her. They all attack her at once, ripping her apart limb by limb like they did to Gavin and Lily.
It’s a disturbing sight and the sounds are sickening. This was the last thing that Dahlia needed to see. The pigs grunt and shove one another aggressively as they destroy and devour the flesh of the unlucky ones.
If Dahlia didn’t wait for me, she’d be down there with them.
Cade wipes his bloody hands on his jeans and turns to me. “Get the girl and take her back to the house,” he commands. “Don’t try pulling any shit, you got it?”
I nod, sighing in defeat. A loud crash sounds from above as one of the windows is shattered. The glass falls to the ground with a metal can. Cade’s wide eyes meet mine just as a blinding flash fills the room.
“What the fuck?” Cade yells out as a loud bang follows his words. The deafening sound bounces off the walls and rings in my ears.
I can’t hear and I can’t see.
My body is in panic mode and my flight instinct is in overdrive. There is no fight here, not against whatever is attacking us.
But Dahlia... I left her alone.
Covering my ears and slightly hunched over, I run toward the door that leads to her. My vision is slowly coming back, but it’s blurred and fuzzy. I know this barn well enough to know my surroundings.
Using my other senses, I rush out of the room just as a loud sound crashes against the main door. The ringing in my ears is dying down and I hear voices, but I don’t stick around to hear what they’re saying.
Pushing through the plastic drapes, I stumble into the bloodied room and find it empty.
Dahlia is gone.
Where the fuck is she?
Surveying the room, I spot another door in the corner of the room.
The supply closet.
Wasting no time, I run to the closet and rip open the door. Cowered in the corner, underneath the bottom shelf, is Dahlia. Her face is tucked into her knees and her arms tightly hold her together.
Dropping to my knees, I quickly crawl under the shelf and situate myself in between her and the
door. I close it as quietly as possible and the closet falls dark. A small sliver of light shines from underneath the door and illuminates her stilled form.
She tilts her head, peeking at me with one eye and inhales sharply. “Kai,” she breathes as her chin quivers. “It’s you.” A small hiccup escapes her lips as her eyes fill with tears.
Grabbing her, I pull her close to me and envelop her in my arms. “Shhh,” I murmur. “You’re safe. I got you.”
She nods against my chest as she clings to me. “What’s happening out there?”
“I don’t know,” I whisper honestly. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Do you think they’re going to take us?”
Over my dead fucking body.
I shake my head. “No one is taking either of us.”
No one is taking you away from me.
“I don’t want them to,” she whispers in a shaky voice. “You’re all that I have, and I can’t lose you, Kai.”
Using my thumb, I brush the tears away from her face. “You won’t lose me,” I promise her.
Neither of us knows what the commotion is outside, so our words are all we have right now. Maybe they’re lies, but maybe they aren’t. When it comes between her life and mine, it’s always hers.
Everything is hers. Dahlia is everything.
“Kai,” she whispers. “I love you.”
Her bright green eyes are filled with emotion as she searches mine. Grabbing the sides of her head, I pull her face to mine as our mouths collide.
We both stamp our marks on each other’s souls as I bruise her lips with mine.
Pulling back, I rest my forehead against hers as she breathes heavily. “I love you, Dahlia.”
She sighs and her body relaxes as a sudden rush of cold air hits my back. The door is ripped open and a fist wraps around the collar of my shirt, dragging me out of the closet.
“Kai!” Dahlia screams as I fall back onto the concrete floor.
“Fuck!” A man with a black helmet stares down at me. He looks up at the room quickly filling with people. “We got two more kids here!”
Another person in all black crouches down in front of Dahlia as she sobs inside the closet. White lettering on the back of his vest catches my eye.
S.W.A.T.
It’s the Feds.
Glancing around the room, I see the different officers and agents surveying the room and watching the two of us.
The black figure above me reaches down toward me and pulls off his helmet. “Come on, son,” he says gruffly. I look back at Dahlia who slowly crawls out of the closet to another agent.
Grabbing his hand, I let him lift me to my feet. As soon as I’m upright, I take a step, moving closer to Dahlia when I feel a hand wrap around my arm.
Dahlia is out of the closet, frantically searching the room with her eyes when she finds me. She breathes a sigh of relief and climbs to her feet.
Jerking against the hand holding me, I struggle to move toward her as she starts to walk to me. One of the agents grabs her and we’re both held back.
Neither of us can move.
Her eyes grow wide and her face is filled with fright. “Kai!” she cries out, struggling to break free from their grasp.
“I need to be with her,” I demand, staring at Dahlia as I try to shake him off of me.
“She’s safe now,” he assures me. “I need you to come with me and you’ll see her again after we get to the hospital.”
“I don’t need the fucking hospital!” I yell as they move her farther away from me. “I need to be with her!”
“Kai!” she yells out as they lead her to the door.
Fuck this.
Using all of my weight, I throw my body away from him and get one arm free as he stumbles with me.
“Fuck!” he barks and grabs my arm again. He’s faster than me and steadier on his feet. “You gotta calm down, kid. You’re both safe now.”
“No! Kai!” Dahlia sobs as they pull her through the door.
“Goddammit,” I huff as I drive my elbow into the side of his vest. He barely feels it, but it’s enough force to make him stumble again.
He wraps his arms around my chest and lifts me off my feet. “Bart!” he barks. “I need that sedative.”
Kicking my legs violently, I flail around in his arms as I try to escape.
I need to get to her.
Something pricks me in the arm, and I look over, seeing a needle being withdrawn from my arm.
“Where is she?” I plead, feeling the haziness of the drug taking over my body.
“She’s safe with other agents on our team. They’ll be taking her to the hospital,” he assures me. “She. Is. Safe.”
“No,” I mumble and my head rolls as I try to shake it. “Take me to her.”
“Yeah, sure kid,” the agent tells me as my body grows numb and falls limp. He scoops me up into his arms and my head falls back. “You’ll see her in no time.”
I struggle to nod, but I can’t. My body is too heavy, too warm.
My eyelids fall shut and pull me deep into the darkness. Bright green eyes linger in the dark and her cries echo in my mind.
“KAI!”
PART TWO
Dahlia
“LACY, YOU GO ON IN five!”
Looking in the mirror adorned with lights, I wink at Vincent standing in the doorway with his eyes on me. “I’ll be ready in a minute,” I tell him, grabbing the dark red lipstick from the vanity in front of me. Vincent closes the door while I coat my lips and inspect my thick curled hair. After applying another coat of mascara to my fake lashes and touching up the rest of my makeup, I stand up adjusting my black lace thong and matching barely-there bra. Slipping on my heels, I give myself a once over before making my way out of the room.
At twenty-five, this is what my life has become.
I work at the strip club five, sometimes six nights a week and spend the rest of my time partying or sleeping. I live comfortably by myself in my two-bedroom apartment, although Tierney tends to occupy my guest room often.
Tierney is only twenty-one, so she’s new to the game here. I was pissed when Vincent sent her my way to learn the tricks of the trade. She is a quick learner and over time we’ve gotten close.
Well, as close as someone could get to me.
Relationships are fleeting and futile, so everything tends to stay superficial. Letting people in gives you a weakness and that will only destroy you in the end.
I don’t need people and I don’t need a weakness.
Once upon a time, when I was young and naïve, I let someone in, and it almost got the two of us killed.
Never again.
Some might say that I never recovered from that and some might say I never will, but in my own way, I have. I took my life back and lived it the way I wanted to.
Standing behind the curtain, I wait until the lights from the ceiling begin to change colors and the song playing slowly ends. I step out onto the stage as it fluidly switches to a seductive song that screams sex and I strut down the center with an overwhelming sense of power.
I own this fucking stage.
Tierney and another girl, Bailey, both occupy the smaller stages on either side of me, dancing around their poles. I stop at mine, pressing my tight body against it as my full breasts rest on either side. Reaching up above my head, I grab the pole and slowly drop, dragging my pussy along it as I watch the men gather around with their eyes locked on me.
My hair brushes against my ass as I throw my head back with a low moan from the friction against my clit.
Sometimes the men aren’t the only ones who get off on this shit.
I dance like they’re all watching, and they are. I give them the show that they came here for and their disgusting eyes watch my body twist and turn as I flip around the pole like it’s made of gold.
Being exposed under the spotlight with the power to bring them to their knees is the ultimate euphoria that I thrive off of.
&n
bsp; My last song fades out as I slide down the pole one last time and land effortlessly on my heels. Bending down and showing them my ass one last time, I collect my tips from the floor. My nipples are hard and my pussy is drenched as I stride back down the stage and into the dressing room.
All of the girls are either dancing or walking the floor, so I have the room to myself. Walking past my station, I quickly make my way into one of the private dressing rooms.
Most of the girls use them when they have their period and shit or need their own personal space.
I need my own personal space.
Dropping onto the couch, I roughly slide my lace thong to the side and slip a finger inside me. I’m already wet and revved up from my performance.
I need it. Now.
I picture their eyes on me, underneath the bright light as I add a second finger and fuck myself harder. A moan escapes my lips as I press down on my clit with my thumb and start to rub circles over it.
With my free hand, I grab my breast and pinch my nipple hard, pulling and twisting it. The heat builds in the pit of my stomach as my body starts to tingle. I moan out loud, not giving a fuck if anyone can hear me or not. I’m driven purely by need as I fuck my hand in a frenzy.
In the crowd watching me in my mind, I see his soft brown eyes glued to mine.
My pussy clenches around my fingers as I lose it. I come hard and ride out the waves of ecstasy with his lingering brown eyes and his name teasing the tip of my tongue.
After taking care of myself, I quickly clean up and go back into the main room to freshen up. I wipe away the sweat, touch up my hair and makeup and reapply some deodorant and perfume. With one last glance in the mirror, I’m walking out onto the floor looking as flawless as I did on the stage.
The entire club is packed and crawling with men of all walks of life. This isn’t some run-down, back woodsy place. It’s an exclusive club, it’s sophisticated and they don’t just let anybody in here.
Stepping foot in this club comes with a hefty price and you gotta have the paper to get in. The men here, whether they’re old or young, married or single, they come in here throwing their money around like confetti.
Entangled Chaos (Entangled Duet Book 1) Page 8