I gripped onto the wall, the feeling of my skin scraping against it was a brief relief from the thumping in my head. Pushing up into a standing position, I let the wall support me as I gained my bearings.
After a few more deep breaths, I took a slow step forward and made sure I had my balance. Being able to stand without the support of the wall, I stepped closer to the door.
Banging on it, I screamed for them to bring her back. I screamed until my voice couldn’t any longer and I was basically croaking out as loud as I could.
I didn’t give up though, I shuffled down the wall and kept banging on the door. I couldn’t cope knowing that they hadn’t only taken Lindsey, but now Ava as well.
I drifted in and out of sleep, not being able to keep my eyes open as the throbbing in my head was getting worse and worse. I desperately needed water, the one small paper cup they provided us with each day just wasn’t enough.
I stumbled against the wall at the sound of footsteps. Stepping back, I faced the door, ready to confront whoever was about to open it. The window in the door was too high for me to see out of so when they opened the door and threw Ava inside, I wasn’t prepared. I barely caught her as we both fell down on the floor.
The brute winked at me, then slammed the door shut. “Dick.” I croaked, my throat burning with using my voice.
I looked down at Ava, checking her for injuries. Her bra was ripped, the straps barely holding it on.
“Ava, sweetie? What did they do to you?”
Her answering sobs racked her whole body so I stayed silent and wrapped my arms around her, rocking her back and forth until she buried her head into my shoulder.
After her sobs started to slow down, I pulled back and smiled softly. “Let’s sit,” I said. Tilting my head over at the wall.
“Th…they…” she stammered.
“Oh, sweetie,” I whispered. I had to stay strong, I couldn’t let her see how much my heart was breaking for her. I hated to think what they had done to her.
“Did they…” I asked, letting the question hang in the air between us.
“No.” She sniffled and shook her head. “They took me to a man who wants to buy me.”
“They’re selling you?” I pulled back, my head swimming. We needed to get out of here. Now.
Did that mean that Lindsey had been sold? Would I ever see her again? Was she even still in this building?
I was starting to piece things together in my head. These girls were being taken off the streets, not just because they were there or for convenience, but because their parents had sold them to clear their own debts, their own mistakes. Once they were here, it looked like they were then being sold off to the highest bidder.
How many girls had been sold already? Were there more girls in here? I hadn’t been outside of this square room and I really needed to. I needed to scope the place out. Look for possible escape routes.
Just as I was trying to think of a way to get out of this room, the door flung open again, only this time, we hadn’t heard any footsteps coming. I didn’t know whether that was because I was inside my own head or because he didn’t want me to know that he was coming this time.
Ava lifted up off me and I stood up, using the wall as support. “You dick,” I spat at Max. His eyes widened in surprise, yeah, I’d shocked him with never having spoken to him like that before.
“Watch your mouth,” he growled, stepping closer to me. I matched him, step for step, meeting him in the middle of the room.
I wouldn’t back down from him, I was stronger than I’d ever been. I knew how to protect myself and I wasn’t afraid to use it to get us out of here. To get back to Eli and Ty.
“I won’t watch my mouth you piece of shit!” I smiled when I saw his hands clench into fists. That’s what I wanted, I wanted him to be distracted. To lose his cool.
“You’re pushing it,” he gritted out through clenched teeth.
“Awww, am I?” I pointed my finger, jabbing him in the chest. “What you gonna do about it?”
His hand flew up, grabbing my finger and twisting it. I squealed as I felt the snap of bone.
“Kay?” Ava said from behind me.
Yanking me forward, I fell into his chest, the force making me bite my tongue.
“I’m trying my fuckin’ hardest here and you’re pushing my fuckin’ limits.”
Pulling back just slightly, I smiled, blood flowing out of my mouth.
“Yeah?” I mumbled, though it didn’t quite sound like that with my tongue swelling.
I did something then that I’d never thought I’d ever do, I spat in his face. I hated it but I knew that I’d get a reaction from him. I watched as the blood dripped down his face and onto his t-shirt.
He came at me, throwing me down onto the floor. I tried to break my fall with my hand but I couldn’t get it out in time and my back slammed off the floor with a hard crack.
The bottom of his boot came down on my ribs and I squealed. He always went for the same place. He stomped his boot down a second time and I screamed from the pain, knowing straight away that he’d cracked several ribs.
“No! Stop!” I heard Ava shout, the shock of her shouting caused me to look over to her. I shouldn’t have, I knew never to take my attention away from Max, not when he was like this.
“Why!” he yelled, so loud that my ears popped. “Why do you make me like this!”
“I don’t make you like anything,” I said turning back to him. “It’s all you. You’re an evil bastard and I’m so glad that Eli is away from you!”
His eyes turned black while his face went bright red. Reaching down, he gripped me by my throat and lifted me up off the floor.
My head spun and I knew that I would pass out any second but just as I was starting to lose consciousness, I felt his fist slam down onto my face.
“Stop,” a gruff voice said from the doorway.
Max stopped, just like that, no argument. His hand stayed around my throat, the only thing holding me up right now.
“Boss wants to see her.”
And with that, Max grabbed me by the arm and dragged me out of the room. My last view of Ava was of her sat in the corner holding herself tight. I just hoped that I would be coming back because she needed me.
Four days. Ninety-six hours. Five thousand, seven hundred and sixty minutes.
That’s how long Kay had been missing for and we were at a complete dead end. None of the leads that we actually had, had brought anything up. To top that off, we hadn’t had any fresh new leads.
She’d been taken in broad daylight and not one person had seen a thing. How could they not have seen anything? It just wasn’t possible, she was out in the open, not behind a wall or in the darkness of the night.
It was clear that someone had seen something, but were keeping their mouths shut. It was all too suspicious. There was something more going on here.
We’d tried to keep things as normal as possible at home and we’d even told Eli that Kay was staying with Miss Maggie. It was Miss Maggie’s idea to tell him that Kay was looking after her because she wasn’t well. I didn’t want to lie to Eli but I had no choice. The alternative was devastating and I wouldn’t subject him to that, I’d shield him from it for as long as I possibly could.
We’d tried to keep everything else as normal as possible, he continued to go to preschool, having Corey here helped because he was occupied in getting to know his uncle and telling everyone who Corey was.
Having taken a quick power nap, all I’d allowed myself to have since Kay had been taken, I walked back into the warehouse and into the center of things.
“Anything?” I asked Charlie. He’d stayed here with me but we had a constant flow of other people coming and going.
“Nothing.” He shook his head and stretched his arms up in the air.
“Damn it!” Slamming my hands on the table, I bent over. I couldn’t take this much longer. I owned this fucking company and I couldn’t even find the one person who meant the wo
rld to me.
“I know a guy,” Corey said from the opposite side of the table.
I moved my eyes to him, seeing the guilty look on his face. “What?”
He looked down at the table where he was drawing circles with his finger. “I err…I know this guy.” I stood up straight, frowning at him. “He might be able to help us find Kay.”
I stared at him, sure that I had fire shooting out of my eyes. Why was he only telling us this now?
“And why the fuck didn’t you mention this before?” I growled.
“Fuck.” He looked at me, his eyes blazing. “It’s complicated, he’s not even meant to be alive.”
“What?” I stepped forward, none of the shit that he was saying made any sense.
“Look.” He held his hands up. “It’s a long story and I probably shouldn’t be saying anything.”
“Yeah?” I chuckled, the sound sinister to my own ears. “You’re gonna fuckin’ explain yourself, right now.”
He huffed and leaned back in his chair, gripping his hair and groaning. “He’s undercover. Only a few people know about him.”
“And?”
“If I reach out to him,” he said, his face going pale. “I’ll owe him big time.”
“Wait. Let me get this fuckin’ straight. You haven’t asked this person for help, because you’ll owe him?” I raised my brows in disbelief. I couldn’t believe he’d done this. Out of all the people that want to find Kay, I thought he’d be the first person to sacrifice anything and everything.
“Fuck, Ty.” He stood up, matching me in height and size. “You have no fuckin’ idea what they make us do over there. I wanted out but if I do this I won’t be out, I’ll be in deep.”
“The fuck you talking about?”
“I’ve said too much,” he murmured. “Just…Forget I said anything,” he said, shaking his head and pulling his cell out.
“Wait. What are you talking about?”
Ignoring me, he walked off and left me staring at his back.
I stood and waited for him to come back, determined to know just what he had been talking about and what he was getting himself in for.
I opened my mouth as he came through the door, but before I could get a word out, he said, “don’t.” The warning in his voice clear.
“Corey…”
“I already said too much and I didn’t want to make this guy aware that I had family. He’ll use them against me.”
“What fuck are you in with, Corey?”
“Man, if I told you, you wouldn’t believe me. But if this is the only way that we can get Kay back, then I’m willing to sacrifice my future. It’s killing me not knowing where she is.” He raised his brows at me. “And I know it’s killing you too. I can see it every time I look at your face.”
He was right but the look in his eyes frightened me. Whatever he had just got himself into wasn’t good and I knew Kay wouldn’t like this, she wouldn’t want him to do this.
Me? I was worried about him, but the fact of the matter was, Kay needed to be out of wherever she was. And quick.
Max dragged me down the hallway, his fingers biting into my skin. Another bruise to add to the collection that he’d already given me. I took in all of my surroundings, making sure I remembered certain marks on the walls.
Several doors lined the hallway, all exactly the same as the one to our room. My mind was spinning, were there girls in those rooms too? I couldn’t hear anything but that didn’t mean they weren’t in there.
My whole body screamed in pain the longer we walked, my feet hurt from the floor, my ribs made it hard to breathe and my head was spinning. But I wouldn’t let myself show how much pain I was in. I wouldn’t look weak in front of Max. Not anymore.
“Keep up,” he growled, walking faster.
I kept my mouth shut this time. I’d gotten what I wanted, out of that room. All I needed to do was figure out the layout of the building and find possible escape routes. I wasn’t going to wait for someone to come and rescue us, I needed to rescue myself and take the girls with me.
I had no doubt that Ty was looking for me but that didn’t mean I could rely on him to come and save me.
We went through a set of doors after the brute swiped a card in the reader. So I needed a card to get through these doors, I filed that away, already figuring out how to get one as I watched which pocket he put it in. The whoosh of the doors sent a blast of cold air over me. Shivering, I wrapped an arm around my middle, gritting my teeth when my ribs screamed in pain again.
My feet hurt as we walked on the jagged concrete floor, each step scraping against the already open wounds. I longed for a pair of shoes, especially my boots. I loved those boots, they were the one thing that Ty had got for me before we were even together, plus, they were the most comfortable boots I’d ever worn.
We came to another door, this one different from the others. It’s color a deep red and had no peeling paint, in fact, it looked like it had been painted recently.
“Stay there,” Max growled and pushed me up against the wall. I kept my face level with his, I wouldn’t look down, I wouldn’t show him one millimeter of weakness.
He nodded at the brute and pushed through the door. I moved my eyes to the brute, giving him the same look that I’d given Max. Men like this got off on making a woman submit. Having once been one of those women, I swore that I’d never submit to anyone ever again.
I didn’t know how much time passed before Max came back out but when he did, his face was a mask of confusion and anger as he headed straight for me. I gritted my teeth and planted my feet on the floor, ready for whatever he was about to do to me.
“In you go.” He smirked. He seemed so pleased with himself, he obviously knew something that I didn’t.
Taking a small step forward, I hesitated. Was this all one big elaborate set up? What the hell was I walking into? Or the better question was, who was I walking in on?
The brute pulled the door open, giving me a small push on my back which caused me to stumble into the room. The door slammed shut behind me, I looked back at the door, then slowly spun around and took in where I was.
The door that we had come through didn’t look like a door at all from inside here. It was concealed really well, and if I hadn’t just come through it, I’d never have known that it was there.
The whole room was bathed in light and swathes of purple and gold material. A giant desk sat off to the side, opposite a leather couch. The whole room was grand, and it occurred to me then, I was about to meet the boss. The one behind all of this.
The giant double wooden doors opened and I inhaled a deep breath, preparing myself for whoever I was about to meet.
“Hello there, Miss Anderson,” she sang.
I frowned, closing my eyes and opening them again, not believing what I was seeing.
“Serena?” I gasped.
I knew it. I knew all along but then again; I couldn’t believe I was right.
She cackled as she moved closer, circling me and looking me up and down. “I don’t know what he sees in you,” she sneered, backing away and covering her nose. “Jesus, you stink.”
“That’s what happens when your left for days in your underwear with no fuckin’ toilet,” I fumed at her.
She harrumphed and walked over to her couch, sitting down and crossing her legs in one fluid, controlled movement. It didn’t go unnoticed; the extra perfume that she was wearing or how perfect her makeup was.
“So it was you all along?” I stepped forward not caring when she scrunched up her nose in disdain at me. She’s the one who made me look and smell like this so she could put up with it.
“What was me all along?” she leaned back, her eyes assessing me, she wanted to hear me say it.
“Taking those girls?”
“Hmmm, I don’t know what you mean.” She smirked.
She knew exactly what I meant. Why she was playing all coy now, I didn’t know.
“There’s only you and me here
, Serena,” I said, stretching my arms wide, not caring that my whole body ached with the movement. “What’s the matter? Can’t admit to what you’ve done? How sick in the head you are?”
“Oh.” She pushed forward, standing on her sky high pumps, not even wobbling a little. “I can admit it. I took all those girls for money. Simple as that. But you…” Walking forward she came to a stop right in front of me and leaned down into my face. “You were purely for personal reasons. I can’t have my husband running off with a piece of trash like you.”
“He’s not your husband,” I gritted out.
“Oh, honey, he is, and I’ll be making sure he comes back to me. I just need to get you and your offspring out of the way first.”
“Excuse me?”
“I got rid of one before, shouldn’t be too hard to do it again.” She smirked, taking a step back.
“What-”
She snorted, her lips spreading even wider. “Ah.” She sauntered over to her desk and balanced on the edge. “He never told you.”
I counted to ten in my head, trying to keep my cool, if she was saying what I thought she was then…I couldn’t even comprehend it.
“Hmmm, interesting,” she said, looking over at the windows, not paying any attention to me. That was her first mistake. “See, when I found out I was pregnant with that…thing…I had to get rid of it. I couldn’t share Ty. I won’t share him, he’s mine.” She turned back to me but it was too late.
“You fuckin’ bitch!” I screamed as I lunged at her. There was no stopping me, my hand flew out and slapped her, the sound echoing throughout the room.
Gasping, she turned to me, her arm moving out in a pathetic attempt to hit me back. I was faster than her though. I’d trained with all the guys, and even though I didn’t have my full strength, I knew that I could take her down. I opened my palm, my hand coming up and hitting her nose. Blood sprayed everywhere as she screamed for help. I didn’t stop though, I took her down to the floor and was just about to hit her again when I was lifted off her and dragged to the other side of the room.
Exposed: Book 2 MAC Security Series Page 17