by Ashlee Price
He had just taken care of something for me, in fact, but I wasn’t sure that I liked the way he’d done it. He’d most likely killed Greg, and that was something that he’d promised he wouldn’t do. He told me that he wouldn’t hurt him, but then he killed Greg anyway. I wasn’t going to come to Elie with any more of my problems. I’d learned my lesson the first time around.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’m sure he’s tired from his ordeal. I thought that the club was safe.”
“It is. That was a fluke thing. Nothing like that has ever happened before, and it wasn’t even at the club. It was at his house.”
“So what are you doing for the auction? Are you in it?”
Sasha nodded her head that she was going to be in it. I had to wonder what she was willing to give up, but she didn’t really get into it. Even though I’d known Sasha for years, it was strange how everything was going now. She felt like a stranger, and I knew it was because of Elie. Who would she choose if she had to?
“Let’s not worry about the auction this weekend. You’re not the only one who’s nervous. Why don’t you take half of this with me and we’ll go shopping or something.”
I looked at the blue pill that she’d broken and was handing one half of to me. I didn’t know what it was.
“It’s just something to relax you. After you take this, you won’t care about whatever has your mind all messed up. I like to use them from time to time. It will make you forget about everything for a while.”
It sounded too good to be true, but it was exactly what I needed to do. To forget.
***
“Thanks for seeing me, Elie. I wanted to ask you a couple of things and see how you’re doing.”
“Pretty good, considering.”
I knew what he meant about considering, and I could tell that he was going to use the shooting to his advantage. I was already feeling crummy that it had happened to him, and now I was going to feel even worse. He was going to make sure of that.
“So what do you have on your mind, Mariah?”
“I want to know what happened the other night, Elie. I haven’t seen you since we had that talk. From what I hear, it was Greg who came to your house with a gun. Is that true?”
Elie nodded. “You were right to come to me, Mariah. That man is dangerous.”
“Is or was?”
Elie smiled at me and told me that I was a smart one. I didn’t know if that was a compliment or not, but I was going to take it as one.
“You don’t want to know the details, do you?”
I was torn between wanting them and not wanting them. But in the end, I knew that I was going to have to know what had happened to him. It was on me, and I wanted to know, no matter how bad it was going to be.
“I have to know.”
“Well, I sent Bruno and Lex to go straighten him out. I wasn’t going to touch him, but I wanted him to know that his time here in New Orleans was over. He didn’t take it so well. Greg tortured both of my men until they gave me up and then came here to teach me a lesson. I have to say, I didn’t expect the gun, but that’s why I’m always ready for days like that.”
“So then what happened?” I was at a loss from what he was telling me. The man he described doing all of those things didn’t sound like Greg. It wasn’t the man that I’d loved for all of those years.
“Do you really want to know?”
He kept asking me that, and it should have been the first clue that maybe I didn’t want to know what happened. Maybe I was better off not knowing. But I didn’t take the hint. I nodded my head that I was sure I wanted to know. Bracing myself like I was about to feel an impact, I waited for what I already knew he was going to say.
“He shot me while I was sitting here. The hole is still in the wall. So I shot him back. My aim was a little better.”
“So he’s dead?”
Elie stopped and really looked at me for a time. “Yes, Greg is dead. It wasn’t my intention, but that’s what happened. I’m sorry for it, Mariah, but you have to know that I didn’t want to. I would have talked it through and tried to reason with him, but he wasn’t interested in that. Greg was willing to go to any lengths to have you, Mariah, and I can’t say that I blame him.”
His words didn’t comfort me. Greg was gone because of me, and I didn’t know if I was ever going to forgive myself. It took me a minute to remember that there was more to talk to him about. It wasn’t just about Greg. I wanted to know about the auction I hadn’t agreed to, but I could tell that Elie was going to use my guilt against me. It wasn’t going to be hard, as bad as I was feeling about everything.
Chapter 21 – Mariah
“Was there anything else, Mariah? You look like you’ve got something else on your mind.”
I did, but how was I going to say it out loud? After everything that he’d just told me, and after everything that he’d done for me, it seemed rather petty now. He’d taken a bullet for me and I wasn’t willing to do anything for him?
Whatever Sasha had given me was needed now as my anxiety went through the roof. I was in a place that I didn’t like to be in. What was I supposed to do?
“Yes, I… uh, I want to talk to you about the auction that I saw the flyer for?” You know, the one that has my half-naked body on it, begging for their money?
He smiled. Elie actually smiled, and I was feeling a little less sympathy for his pain. He knew that I wasn’t going to be happy with this and he’d gone through with it anyway.
“You don’t like that picture? I think you’re gorgeous in it.”
Elie was skirting around the problem. He knew exactly what I was upset about. It didn’t have anything to do with which picture he used, although it was true that I didn’t like him using my image for promotions like that. I’m sure it was part of the ten-page contract that he’d made me sign. It was too long to really read all the way through, and after a few minutes I’d just signed it.
“It’s not about the promotional material, Elie, it’s what you say is up for auction. My innocence?”
His smile widened, and I felt a little anger boiling up inside of me. How could he find any of this funny at all? I didn’t find it remotely entertaining.
“You were talking about it with Scott. I thought that was an indication that you were ready for it.”
“When I’m ready for it, I’ll give it to who I want. I’m not going to have some strangers bidding on that. It’s too intimate and too important to be sold away.”
“You’re going to do just that, Mariah.”
“What?” Did I just hear him right?
“You heard me. You’re going to sell it at the auction. I’ve put a lot of money into this promotion, and you’re what they’re coming for. If you want Scott to be the one that takes it, then you better make sure that he comes with his checkbook, because I’ve got a feeling that the bidding is going to get crazy. I’m also going to up the percentage on my end to forty percent since I had to put so much in the front end of this. All you have to do is show up, Mariah.”
I shook my head, not really believing what I was hearing. He was acting like I didn’t have a choice, like I couldn’t just refuse him.
“I’m not going to do it, Elie. I told you from the beginning that I’m not going to go there.”
“Things change, Mariah. That was before you were willing to give it away to a client and that was before I got shot because of you. You owe me. You know it and I know it. Are you the type of person that’s not going to honor her debts?”
It was the card that I was waiting for, but even though I knew it was coming, I wasn’t prepared for it. I still hadn’t gotten over the fact that it was my fault that Greg was gone. I should have just left. With Elie it was different. He was still alive and looking at me as if he might very well do the same thing to me.
“You ask too much of me, Elie.”
He pulled his shirt back so that I could see the bandage. “Really? Because I don’t actually think I am asking all that
much, Mariah. You owe me, and this is how you’re going to repay me. You’re lucky that I’m being so generous and giving you any of the proceeds at all.”
I had a vile taste in my mouth as I left his office. It wasn’t like before where I worried about how everything was going to work out. Now that I knew, I was no better off. I shouldn’t have asked anything about it. Then I wouldn’t know the truth of where I stood. I liked it better when I didn’t know.
My body felt numb. I couldn’t even cry. I didn’t know if it was tears for myself or if it was tears for Greg. Either way, the salty liquid wasn’t going to do anything for me, and it was pointless to let it bother me more than it already had.
When I got home, Sasha could tell something was wrong with me. It was hard to talk to her about it because she was dating Elie. I don’t know what she saw in him, and then I had to wonder if she did see that side of him. Did he have something that he held over her head as well? I didn’t think that Elie was just like that for me. It showed me what he truly was, and I suddenly felt bad for my friend for having to deal with a man like him.
“Did you talk to Elie?”
I didn’t want to talk about it, so I tried to put it off. I had a feeling that she knew exactly who he was. She was nervous about what we’d talked about.
“Yeah, I talked to him, but it didn’t do me a whole lot of good.”
“He wouldn’t let you pull out?”
“What do you think?”
“I think you’ve finally seen the boss the way he really is. He plays nice well, but it doesn’t last long. I’m surprised it lasted as long as it did with you. You’re usually a lot more vocal about things.”
Was she telling me that she’d wanted me to do something about it? It felt like I should have, but Elie had me in a tight spot. How had he gotten Sasha to agree to the things that she now did for him? What did he have on her?
“I don’t know what to think anymore, Sasha. That man who came to his house was Greg. You remember me and Kimmie talking about him, don’t you?”
Sasha nodded and I continued. “So Greg shot Elie and now I owe him. When I found out Greg was in town, I panicked. Elie told me that he would help me, and now Greg is dead and Elie has a hole in his shoulder.”
My friend just shook her head and made a sound that told me that it was very familiar sounding. “Elie helped me out with the police when I first got down here. You know I was a mess, and when I started at the club, I was at rock bottom. I don’t know what I was doing, but I was doing a lot of drugs. I got into a bad patch and Elie bonded me out and made sure that I had a lawyer that got me off. I’ve owed him ever since.”
“When does the debt get repaid?”
She shrugged and said she would let me know when she found out. It made me wonder why I was even feeling guilty about any of it. He’d helped me just to get his claws into me deeper.
“I’m sorry I got you into this, Mariah. If I’d thought it would be like this, I never would have told you to apply. If I could go back far enough, I would make it so that I never met Elie. He seems to want to help, but nothing in this world is free.”
I was starting to realize how true her words were. It wasn’t just the fact that he’d done so much to help me out; it was the false sense of security that Elie had provided in the beginning that I missed the most. I missed when the worst thing I had to deal with was the clients. Now I had to deal with the politics of it all and I can’t say that I was really enjoying it that much.
“I don’t want to go to that auction, Sasha. What happens if I don’t?”
Sasha looked away. I could only imagine why that was, but she was going to have to tell me, for my own safety. I needed to know what I was up against, and what he was willing to do to get his way.
“You’ll wish you had. Elie has a way of knowing everything. I don’t know how he does it, but even when I leave with a client he knows everything that goes on. Whatever you’re thinking you can do to get away from him, you can’t. I hate to say it like that, but it’s the truth.”
“Why are you still with him Sasha? This isn’t like you.”
“I can’t really say why. I guess because I can handle him most of the time. Being out here by myself wasn’t near as fun as I thought it would be. When Elie gets his way, he’s rather pleasant. He’s not like that all the time, but most of it anyway.”
She was making excuses for him, so I took that as an indicator that I was going to have to watch what I said. I don’t know how deep she was into him and what she was willing to do to keep that man happy. I didn’t know if Sasha was still really my friend or if she was Elie’s girl first now.
“That sounds like a lot of ifs.”
“It is.”
“Have you ever thought about leaving here and just getting away from it all?”
“I have, Mariah, but I’m so close to having the money to start a place. It seems like such a waste to do all of this, go through all that I’ve gone through, for nothing. I want all of this to have counted for something. It makes it easier to keep my head down and do what needs to be done.”
I started to understand her a little better. She was brave and I didn’t have to worry about her. It was still Sasha; she had just accepted the reality of the situation. None of us had loving families to go back to, so it was sink or swim. There was no padding to cushion the fall that was just around the corner.
“I hope you get that, Sasha. You deserve it.”
“Thanks, Mariah. If the auction goes as well as Elie thinks it will, I’ll be ready to quit right after that.”
“Are you really going to do it, Sasha?”
She nodded her head so hard that a few tiny braids fell in her face. I could see that she was serious, and I knew that I was going to have to find some of the same kind of strength that she had. Maybe I could get enough from the auction to get away as well. If it went through, though, I was going to have to make sure that Scott was there to bid on me. I didn’t want to think about what would happen if someone like Travis won the privilege for the night.
I shuddered at the thought. I was going to have to make sure that Scott was there. He might not want to be seen at such an auction, but he was going to have to for me. I just wished I was a little surer about what he was going to do. I needed him, and I would know soon enough if he was going to be there for me or not. Soon enough I was going to know the truth.
Chapter 22 – Scott
“I’ve missed you, Mariah. Are you free tonight? Is that why you’re calling?”
“No, I needed to talk to you, Scott. I have to go in for a while tonight, but I wanted to ask you about something.”
“Sure, what’s going on?” I wasn’t going to like this. I could tell by the hesitation and the tone in her voice. I steeled myself for whatever news Mariah wanted to tell me. This was not going to be good.
“Have you heard about the auction that the club is going to have?”
I hadn’t heard anything about an auction. The feeling in the pit of my stomach told me that I was right about my previous prediction. It didn’t sound like I was going to like this at all.
“No, what auction?”
“Can you go on the website for a minute?”
“Why?” Why was she being so weird?
“Because I don’t want to have to say it out loud. If you look on the site, I promise that it will all be clear to you.”
I did as she suggested, just because I was too curious not to. Whatever she wanted me to see there, I knew that it was making her more than a little nervous. I felt bad for her as the silence dragged on while I worked to find the website that I hadn’t visited in a while. There was no need to look anymore when I’d found what I wanted.
“Wow.”
“So are you looking at it?”
“I don’t know what to say, Mariah. I thought you weren’t ready for that?” How was she going to give away her virginity to anyone with the highest bid? How could she do that when she’d so completely turned me down? I didn
’t like this at all. I’d known that I wouldn’t.
My eyes were fixed on the picture in front of me. Mariah was half-dressed and she had a come-hither look that was hard to see without getting hard. I was at work, the very last place that I wanted to get horny, but here I was nonetheless.
“Say something, Scott.”
“I don’t know what to say, Mariah. What do I say to this?” Fuck I was confused. I wasn’t sure if I was coming or going. The upside hadn’t occurred to me yet. All I could think about was another man getting the one thing that I wanted most in this world. It was bad enough that I had to share her with other men. I was not going to let someone take her innocence. That was mine.
“Just tell me that you’re not mad.”
She had that tone that she’d taken with me in the restaurant, that small voice that sounded so vulnerable and naïve. It was the sound of me getting driven crazy, and I asked her again what I was supposed to say.
“I want you to tell me that you’re going to bid on me, daddy, and make sure no one else gets your little girl.”
She was using that title again, and so help me it was doing something to me, almost like I’d been conditioned for her.
“You want me to go to this auction and bid on you?” It was problematic. My shareholders would not be happy, to say the least. The board was already looking for a reason to take more of my power away, even though it was my own company. The last thing that I needed was for the media or anyone to get the ghost of a hint of what I did in my free time. I didn’t think my or the company’s reputation would be able to make it through that.
Her voice changed. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re going to tell me you can’t?”
“I don’t think I can, Mariah. That would put me in a really bad position. I don’t know if I’d be able to recover if it got out. What would people think if I bought a girl who was advertising the sale of her virginity? I’m in my thirties, Mariah, and the press would have a field day with it.”