I stood from my bed, running my hands through my hair again. “We’re gonna find Caity, and we’re gonna pull her out of this before something bad happens to her.”
“What if something already has?” Nicole whispered.
Tears stung my eyes as I looked at my friends, desperation clawing at me. My insides felt shredded, raw, incapable, but I couldn’t give in.
“I have to find her.” My voice wobbled. “I have to bring her home. I don’t care what it costs me, but I am not resting until she is back in my arms.”
TO BE CONTINUED...
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POKER FACE is due for release February 27th, 2015.
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KEEP READING FOR A POKER FACE TEASER...
POKER FACE TEASER
Chapter 1
Caitlyn
Darkness.
That was how it started.
And that was how it would stay.
There was no color. No light. Only desperate fear and hopelessness.
I was in a black tunnel and I could see no opening, no way out…no salvation.
My breaths were shallow and quick. I’d come-to a short while ago, my head groggy and filled with an aching fuzziness that pressed against my skull and made me feel like it was about to crack open.
It took me a few minutes to figure out where I was at first. I couldn’t remember how I’d gotten into the trunk of the car. Vague images of screaming and fear pulsed through me, a vice-like grip around my waist, a knife at my throat.
I’d flinched, reaching for the wound on my neck…and then I’d remembered. As my fingers ran over the dried blood on my skin, I’d relived my nightmare.
Miguel…pulling me into the secret doorway before Agent Rhodes could find me. Dragging me down a stairwell and throwing me into his car.
Shadow Man…clamping a cloth over my nose and mouth. It made me disappear for a while.
After that — darkness. Even now, as I lay in the confined space of a different car, it was the only thought in my brain.
Darkness.
Endless, hopeless darkness.
I was too afraid to move or make a sound. I couldn’t even cry. Instead, I focused on the sound of the tires on the road and wondered where they could be taking me.
I had no idea how long I’d been out; we could have been traveling all night or only an hour. My legs were cramping, my knees screaming at me to move them. It was a sure sign of distance. I wriggled my toes and stretched as far as I could. My bare feet pressed against the coarse carpet. They felt tender, as did most of my body.
My bottom lip was cracked and swollen. I ran my finger over it and winced, cringing further when I reached for the tender patch on my cheekbone.
Mendez…hitting me, calling me a whore and swearing to punish me.
Had he known that his head of security, Miguel Vera, was going to steal me?
Diego Mendez would no doubt be in the hands of the FBI now. They’d found the kidnapped girls who were locked in his basement; I’d heard Rhodes say it while he searched the room for me. If only I could’ve let him know I was behind the wall, wishing I could yell out to him, but knowing one sound would mean death.
Kaplan would have arrested Mendez’s sadistic ass and locked him up…hopefully for life. Any man who steals and sells young girls is not worthy of freedom.
Would he say anything? Would Kaplan question him until he broke or was Miguel working alone, snatching me away for my eyesight?
The car slowed and took a turn. My body pitched back as the car descended a steep slope and came to a stop. My heart rate accelerated, pulsing through my body in quick, static waves. Breaths punched out of my nostrils and my belly quivered as I waited, shuffling back until my butt hit the interior wall.
I heard a click and then the trunk popped open.
Light poured into the back. It was dim, but still enough to make me squint.
“Awake, I see. Perfect timing.” Shadow Man smirked, snatching my wrist and dragging me closer. In one swift move, he lifted me out of the trunk and placed me on my feet. His sharp, pointy face was handsome, his buff body something girls would swoon over, but I didn’t see that.
All I saw was his mask-less face, his gloating smirk, his sadistic glee.
My legs buckled and he caught me under the arm before I fell. The gold, sequined dress Miguel had forced me to wear to his high-class poker game was ripped and tatty. The split was so high, my entire side was exposed.
Shadow Man’s gaze traveled over my skin, his smirk blooming to a lust-filled smile.
I scrambled for the fabric, clutching it together and covering up as best I could. I was wearing nothing but a skimpy pair of panties beneath this dress.
Vulnerable didn’t even cut it. I was beyond that now.
My body wouldn’t stop shaking.
He hauled me towards an elevator in the corner of the parking lot, lifting me up the concrete steps and placing me down beside the intricate golden doors. After pressing the UP button, he looked at me and licked the corner of his mouth. He looked like a lion eyeing up his lunch.
I threw his mask up, preferring his bland, emotionless disregard. To any normal person he looked like a bored security guard, but I knew better, because I could see what others couldn’t.
The mask wouldn’t stay. I could feel fate mocking me, its callous laughter ringing in my ears.
I’d caught a glimpse of Shadow Man’s hunger and my pounding head and aching eyes wouldn’t let me forget it. Before I could stop them, two layers fell clear and once again, I watched his tongue skim his lower lip. He’d already undressed me in his mind and although I couldn’t read his thoughts, I could clearly see what he planned to do with me.
Fear took me then, my flight instincts kicking in with a frenzy.
I struggled to wriggle free of his grasp, pulling away from him, my bare feet itching to run along the smooth concrete floor and hide away in the darkness.
His grip grew tighter the more I struggled, but I had to get away from that tongue, those eyes.
“Calm down.” He yanked me back to his side, my head jerking painfully.
“Let me go,” I cried. “Please, let me go.” I pushed at his fingers, trying to peel them off me. Panic made my movements frantic and useless.
“Stop struggling and I won’t have to hurt you.”
“That’s not what your face is telling me.”
He snatched me towards him, grabbing my other arm and looking down at me, awed fear tripping over his expression. “What do you see?”
I froze, shrinking away from his hard gaze.
He knew.
He knew I could read emotions. He knew I could see things others couldn’t.
I clamped my lips together and looked to the floor.
The elevator dinged, the doors opening smoothly. With a snicker, he pulled me in and pressed the button for the top floor.
My lips trembled as my mind raced to figure it all out. That’s why he’d been watching me so closely at the poker game. He must have figured out that Miguel had used me to cheat and win. That’s why he’d pulled Miguel aside after the game.
The phone call Miguel got just before he left me alone with Mendez...that look on his face!
“One hundred thousand,” I mumbled, the static words coming back to me like a dream.
“Let’s hope you’re worth it.” His snappy words felt like a slap in the face.
I’d been sold.
Oh, shit, I’d been sold!
POKER FACE is due for release February 27th, 2015.
If you'd like to be the first to receive purchase links and release details, please sign up for Melissa Pearl's Evatopia Press Newsletter.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Once again, I have a long list of people I want to thank for their contribution to this story.
Margery - my publisher and editor. Thanks for being so great to work with.
Kate from Dwell Design & Press, your cover is beautiful!! Nailed it!
Cassie Hart and Rae Sontheyon - thank you SO much for your feedback. Cassie - you always have the best insights and Rae - your knowledge of Spanish was so brilliant.
Lindsey, Karen, Kristin & Marcia - thanks for being the final eyes on this project.
Mark My Words Publicity - you guys are great to work with and a very special mention to Ashley. I love you, hun. Thank you for working so hard for me.
Indies Ink and Inklings - I can't write an acknowledgement page without mentioning you. Thanks for your support.
My Fan Club - I love hanging out with you guys!! Thanks for your enthusiasm and awesomeness.
My readers - what would I do without you! Thank you so, so much.
My dear friends and family - thank you for always believing in me and giving me the right pep-talks on the days it gets too hard. I love you for everything you pour into my life.
My Lord and Saviour - thank you for giving up everything to rescue me, for never turning your back on me and showing me what real, unconditional love looks like. I love you with all my heart.
OTHER BOOKS BY MELISSA PEARL
The Masks Series
True Colors — Two-Faced
Poker Face (due for release February 27th, 2015)
The Betwixt Series (Dale & Nicole's Story)
Betwixt -— Before — Beyond
The Fugitive Series (Upper YA Romantic Suspense)
I Know Lucy — Set Me Free
I'll Find You & I'm Not Lying (due for release 2015)
The Time Spirit Trilogy (YA Urban Fantasy)
Golden Blood — Black Blood — Pure Blood
The Elements Trilogy (YA Fantasy)
Unknown — Unseen — Unleashed
The Mica & Lexy Series (YA Romance/Suspense)
Forbidden Territory (due for release March, 2015)
The Songbird Novels (Adult Contemporary Romance)
Fever — Bulletproof
Everything (due for release April, 2015
Find out more on Melissa Pearl's website:
http://www.melissapearlauthor.com/news
ABOUT MELISSA PEARL
Melissa Pearl is a kiwi at heart, but currently lives in Suzhou, China with her husband and two sons. She trained as an elementary school teacher, but has always had a passion for writing and finally completed her first manuscript in 2003. She has been writing ever since and the more she learns, the more she loves it.
She writes young adult and new adult fiction in a variety of romance genres - paranormal, fantasy, suspense, and contemporary. Her goal as a writer is to give readers the pleasure of escaping their everyday lives for a while and losing themselves in a journey…one that will make them laugh, cry and swoon.
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EVATOPIA PRESS
For more information about Evatopia Press visit http://www.evatopia.org/evatopia-press/
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Lizzy Ford - http://www.guerrillawordfare.com/
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Table of Contents
Dedecation
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
POKER FACE TEASER
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
OTHER BOOKS BY MELISSA PEARL
ABOUT MELISSA PEARL
CONNECT WITH MELISSA PEARL
Snake Eyes (The Masks Series Book 3) Page 25