“But I already have. You’ve been gone for nearly two days and not one person even cares. I can’t imagine what that must feel like for you.” He taunts me. “What’s that like Samantha? What’s it like existing in a world where you know not one living soul cares if you live or die?”
“Fuck you.” I spit, his behavior making my anger flare from deep inside of me.
“Fuck me?” He clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
Reaching out, he slides his fingertips across my chest, the feeling of his touch through the thin material of my dress causing a violent shutter to run through my body.
“Such a waste.” He shakes his head slowly, dropping his hand away on a long pause.
I sit in silence, holding my breath, anticipating his next move.
“It’s too easy really.” He finally continues. “No one will even know you’re gone. You did all the work for me. I mean, Allie Reynolds is already dead.” His words send a panic that constricts my chest making it difficult to breath.
“It won’t be like Sarah.” He continues, smiling when he sees the shock and fear that display so clearly across my face.
“Still haven’t put it together have you? And here I thought you had it all figured out.” His wicked smile spreads.
“What did you do?” The words fall weakly from my lips.
“There you go putting it on me again.” He shakes his head slowly back and forth, relaxing back into his chair as he crosses his arms in front of himself, his eyes remaining firmly fixed on my face.
“I don’t understand why you just automatically assume that I am the bad guy here.” He plays innocent, the smile on his face showing me he knows the truth.
“Because you are.” My statement comes out thick, the words hard to form through the rawness of my throat.
“I guess from where you’re sitting.” He laughs lightly, clearly amused at seeing me in my current predicament. “Anyways, I digress.” He continues.
“Sarah Trammell was a lot like you; young, beautiful, stubborn as hell. Well, at least until I stuck a needle in her arm. I’ll never forget that feeling. Knowing that in that moment I had all the power. I could choose to save her or I could let her die and never have to worry about her causing problems for me again. I’m certain you can figure out what route I chose.” His smile sickens me and it takes everything I have to keep my eyes on his face, fearful of what he will do if I don’t give him the attention he so clearly expects right now.
“She deserved it.” He continues without even a hint of remorse. “Telling her roommate I raped her and that she was going to go to the authorities. Hell, if I had let her live she would have seen to it that she destroyed me and any future I hoped to have. She had to go. She left me with no choice. Just another college student who couldn’t take the pressure and turned to drugs to cope. No one even questioned it. Well, with the exception of your brother that is.” He says, raising his eyebrows at me in a way that I can only describe as excitement.
“You see.” He continues. “Sean knew her very well, so you can imagine his reaction when the girl he was head over heels for, who never did drugs, suddenly turned up dead of an overdose.”
“He tried to piece it together of course. But with no proof, there was very little he could do. But that didn’t stop him from poking around where he shouldn’t have. What is it with you Cole siblings not being able to leave well enough alone?” He cocks his head to the side, his eyes burning holes into my face.
When I don’t respond immediately, he continues speaking like he didn’t stop to ask the question at all.
“Sean started pushing the authorities to look further into Sarah’s death and he wasn’t quiet about it. Knowing I had to act fast, I invited Sean out for drinks, which was nothing out of the ordinary for us so obviously he thought nothing of my invite. After knocking a few back, Sean opened up to me about Sarah, even going as far as to tell me that he had proof her death was not an accidental overdose as it had been ruled. He truly believed she had been murdered but still hadn’t pieced together who had done it. After that I knew what needed to be done. There was only one way I was going to be able to silence Sean Cole. So, being the good friend I was, I proceeded to pump him full of shots and then when he could barely hold his head up, I offered him a ride home, which he accepted. It wasn’t until we got a few miles outside of the city that things took a turn. In his drunken state, he asked me in complete seriousness if I had something to do with Sarah’s death. I didn’t say yes but there must have been something in my reaction that made him believe it was me because within moments he was accusing me of killing her. He turned violent, demanding that I pull the car over. I guess we both know what happened next.” He stops, gauging how that comment sits with me.
“You see my dear Samantha, the accident that killed your brother was actually his own fault. It ended up working out better for me in the end. Even if he had not grabbed the wheel and pulled us off the road that night, he was still going to meet the same fate.” He smirks as tears flow freely down my face.
“You’re a lot like your brother. You have good instincts but have a bad habit of making enemies of the wrong people. You could have had a long happy life and now you are doomed to the same fate as your brother. It’s sad really.” He shakes his head, his smile showing clearly that he’s not the least bit sad.
“You’re sick.” I spit, anger boiling in my throat as I fight against my restraints.
“I do what I have to do to protect myself.” His smugness turns to anger as he pushes his chair backwards, the wood skidding across the floor.
He steps towards me and violently grabs my face, squeezing so hard I feel like my cheekbones are going to cave in.
“You came at me remember? You started this. You have no one but yourself to blame.” He screams in my face before shoving it to the side, his hand finally releasing its hold on me.
When I turn back towards him he is still hovering above me, his face just inches from mine.
“You know it is a shame really.” He pauses, running his tongue along his lower lip. “The things I could have done to this body.” He rasps, roughly pressing his lips to mine.
A cry sounds from my throat as pain shoots through my swollen bottom lip.
“Perhaps it’s not too late.” He breathes against my mouth before pressing harder into the kiss.
Panic floods through me, my mind struggling to find a way out of this situation. I try to turn my head but his hand shoots out, holding it in place. His other hand goes to my thigh, squeezing so tightly I open my mouth on another cry of pain.
“That’s it baby.” He purrs against my mouth.
I struggle against his advances, trying to fight against his touch but my efforts get me nowhere. I am powerless to stop him. Powerless to keep his hand from traveling upwards and sliding inside of my panties, powerless to stop his fingers from jamming inside of me one and then two, the vicious nature of his touch sending pain spiraling through my body. He adds a third finger, thrusting it into me as he groans in pleasure, his face still just inches from mine as he stands over me.
“Fuck.” He grinds out, increasing the speed of his hand.
“I am going to fuck you so hard Samantha.” He breathes. “I’m going to fuck you and then...” He stills his hand inside of me. “Then I am going to kill you and toss you into the ocean.” He smiles, pressing his mouth roughly against mine once more.
Desperately needing to find a way to stop his advances, I struggle against his touch, trying to squeeze my thighs together. He laughs at my efforts, shoving his fingers into me more forcefully as punishment for trying to fight him.
Finally I do the only thing I can think to do. I open my mouth and bite down on his bottom lip as hard as I can. His fingers immediately stop their assault, pulling out of me as he hollers in pain. Jumping backwards, he raises his hand to his now bleeding lip.
“You fucking bitch.” He seethes.
He lays a hard backhanded slap to my f
ace, the impact immediately bringing the taste of blood back to my mouth. Another hit, this one to the side of my head, renders me near unconscious but the feeling quickly fades and I look back up just in time for another blow to land just below my left eye.
I cry out from the pain, tears and blood now flowing freely down my face. Ryan stands above me for several long moments. I hold my breath, keeping my eyes tightly shut as I wait for the next hit to come.
I don’t look up until I hear Ryan’s voice, the sound so chilling it instantly paralyzes me with fear.
“I can’t let you bleed too much sweet Samantha, at least not yet.” He smiles, sliding his shirt off.
Twisting the material, he drapes it around my face, forcing the fabric between my lips before tying it tightly around the back of my head. The thickness of the material against my already dry tongue makes it hard to keep myself from gagging.
Ryan gives me a satisfied grin straightening his posture to look over his handy work. He jumps slightly when his cell phone starts buzzing in his pocket. Reaching for it, his sick smile spreads wider.
“It’s your boyfriend.” He shows me the name flashing across the screen.
Luke.
I try to scream through the fabric but it’s too thick and my voice barely breaks the surface. Tears flow harder when Luke’s face flashes through my mind. The thought of how he will react when he finds out the truth is crippling. Then again, if I know Ryan, no one will ever find out the truth. I’m not sure which thought scares me more.
“Don’t you go anywhere.” Ryan teases. “I have big plans for you.” He promises as he backs slowly out of the room, putting the phone to his ear as he does.
Chapter
Twenty-Six
Luke
Pressing the call button for the fifth time in the last two hours, I hold the phone to my ear. It rings over and over again and like all the times before is met by a recorded message telling me the person I am calling is unavailable.
Dropping the phone onto my desk, I let out a frustrated sigh. Where the hell is she? It’s nearly two o’clock and not only has Allie not shown up for work but I have been unable to reach her.
This is your own fault, I tell myself.
How long did I think she was going to hang around here with the way I have been treating her? At this point I don’t know if I am more upset with her over the Ryan situation or if I am more pissed at myself for just rolling over and letting my brother have her.
She was worth fighting for.
She is worth fighting for.
Picking up the receiver of my desk phone, I call Hannah in Human Resources and ask her to pull Miss Reynolds file for me. She agrees and I quickly hang up, grabbing my suit jacket off the back of my chair before heading out of my office.
****
“There must be some mistake.” I stare back at the older woman across from me. “Her employment records list this as her address.”
“I’m so sorry Sir but I have no one by that name listed in our system.” The front desk receptionist of the Regency repeats her previous statement. “I’m afraid there’s no mistake. The apartment number you have for her is currently occupied by a young couple and their infant son. There is no Allie Reynolds registered to any apartment in this building.”
I want to argue with her, insist that she check again but I know that the attempt would be futile. It’s clear that Allie lied on her paperwork, I’m just not sure why.
Thanking the woman for her help, I quickly turn and exit the lobby. Pulling out my cell I immediately call Travis, the head of security at ScoTech.
“Travis it’s Luke.” I say the moment his voice comes on the line. “I need you to run an extensive check on my new assistant Allie Reynolds. Hannah will be able to provide you with all the information she has on her. I already know that she lied about her residence. I need to know what else she’s falsified.”
“You got is boss.” He responds without hesitation.
“Call me the minute you know anything.” I instruct, ending the call before he has a chance to say anymore.
****
“So you’re telling me you found nothing?” I stare back at Travis blankly, unable to believe what I am hearing. “How is that possible?” I question. “We ran a background check did we not? How are we just now learning that there is no recent record of this girl?”
“The background check human resources performs for standard employment is a simple social security check. They make sure it comes back stating no criminal history on file and leave it at that. Upon further inspection it appears as though a fake social security number was used.” He states.
“Well whose social security number was it?” I demand, frustrated that I even have to ask.
“It belongs to a young woman who died two years ago. Her name was Allie Reynolds and she shares the exact same birthdate as the employee in question. I checked and verified the information this morning myself.” His words take a moment to really sink in.
My mind races with the information, unable to process the notion that the woman I have spent the last five weeks falling for doesn’t actually exist.
“I did a little more digging and found this.” He says, sliding a photograph across the desk to me.
“What is this?” I ask, staring down at the picture of a young brunette girl standing in front of the main campus sign at Stanford.
“That is Allie Reynolds.” He states, pointing to the young girl in the photo. “She graduated from Stanford four months before she was killed in a car accident.”
“There must be some reasonable explanation.” I finally speak, trying desperately to make myself believe my own statement.
“Perhaps, but I doubt it.” Travis doesn’t try to candy coat it for me. Being an ex-Marine, he is about as honest and honorable as they come.
“Advanced Global?” I question, just now remembering that Human Resources verified her internship there. Clearly she couldn’t have falsified that too.
“Never worked there. In fact, when I called to speak to Ms. Osborne she claims she never received a phone call from us in regards to employment verification. So whoever they talked to wasn’t her.”
It takes everything in me to hold my shit together. Finding out someone you thought you knew is someone else entirely is one thing, having fallen for that person is quite another. I can’t seem to accept the truth, even if it’s all laid out right in front of me.
“What about an address?” I ask. “Did you have any luck pinpointing where exactly Miss Reynolds actually lives.”
“We did find an apartment on the far side of the city leased under her name. I haven’t had a chance to check it out yet.” He adds.
“No need. Just give me the address and I’ll take care of it.”
“With all due respect Mr. Scott, I really think you should let me and my team handle this one. You have no idea who this girl actually is or what you’re going to be walking into.” He warns.
“I may not know who she really is but I know her. I’m not in any danger I can assure you of that. If she meant to harm me she would have done so already.” I say, my mind immediately flashing to the two nights I spent holding her in my arms.
“Even still, I don’t recommend you going over there alone.” He tacks on.
“I appreciate your concern Travis but I can handle this.” I say. “Text me the address and I would appreciate this staying between us for the time being. Are we clear?”
“Yes Sir.” He nods, standing and exiting my office without another word.
The moment the door snaps closed I go slack in my chair. I can’t seem to grasp the reality of the situation taking place around me. How does someone falsify who they are and then keep up the façade so seamlessly for weeks?
It just doesn’t add up. In the moments I spent with Allie, I didn’t feel like she was pretending. If anything I feel like she let me in during our time in New York and showed me a side of herself that she doesn’t show easily.
; I can’t let myself believe this was all a lie. I won’t.
But then flashes of our last conversation come flooding to the surface.
Ryan...
This isn’t about me at all. It’s about my brother. I knew something didn’t add up with the two of them. This is why. This is why Allie walked away from me for my brother. This is why I could sense that her heart wasn’t in it. Because whatever she’s up to, and why she’s even here, has everything to do with Ryan.
Immediately going for my phone, I click on Ryan’s name and wait impatiently as it rings over and over again. After what feels like an eternity his voice finally comes across the line.
“To what do I owe this pleasure?” His sarcasm bleeds through his voice.
“I’m looking for Allie. She hasn’t shown up at the office and I can’t get ahold of her, I was hoping maybe you had talked to her.” I state, not yet ready to share the information I have learned with my brother.
“Haven’t seen her.” He replies casually.
“So you haven’t talked to her at all?” I question.
“She was at my place Friday but we didn’t do much talking if you know what I mean.” His words send a weight crashing down on my chest, the impact making it difficult to find my breath.
“But you haven’t talked to her since?” I push on.
“No, but then again you know how I am. One and done.” He laughs, stirring the anger that has been building silently inside of me throughout the course of the day. “So she didn’t show. I’m sure you can find someone to fill her position in no time.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.” I grind out through my teeth.
“What? Hoping you could hop on for some sloppy seconds? I gotta say, you must be getting desperate Luke.”
“Fuck you Ryan, stop playing games. Have you honestly not talked to her?” I bite, unable to tolerate my brother’s ridiculous nonsense any further.
“Calm down Luke I’m just messing with you. No, I have not talked to her but I will let you know if I do.”
“Make sure you do.” I clip, ending the call instantly.
Beyond Love Lies Deceit Page 14