Nevaeh made the introduction to Mr. Lucky, whose wolfish grin unsettled her.
Nevaeh yammered on, but he paid the madam about as much attention as Abrianna did.
“So are you enjoying yourself this evening?” he asked.
“How can I not? It’s a fabulous party,” Abrianna deflected.
“It is. It’s the perfect cap to a great week for me. I’d love nothing more than to end the night with a beautiful woman or two.” His black eyes performed a slow drag over Abrianna. “I don’t see why one can’t be with the most beautiful woman in the room.”
Abrianna chuckled, but was convinced that she’d officially met the oiliest man at the party. And it would be just her luck for him to be her first client.
PART THREE
Behind Dark Doors . . .
28
Just do it. Jump.
Trembling, Abrianna leaned over a balcony at the Hay-Adams Hotel. Her gaze locked on to the vast emptiness twenty feet below. She couldn’t see the bottom, but it was there. Waiting. Calling her name. Shame and disgust seeped into her bones. How could she ever look herself in the mirror again?
Mr. Lucky, as her john called himself, believed he was a real ladies’ man. Sure, he was a handsome black man, and she’d heard plenty of times from Madam Nevaeh throughout the night that he was an important man too. She’d bragged about his money and power and then made it clear when he’d selected Abrianna how important it was that she please him.
Abrianna had put on a brave face, but now it cracked.
The wind picked up and whistled through the manicured trees below. The shaking leaves sounded like angry voices. The buzzing inside her neared a breaking point.
You’re losing your shit, girl. If you’re going to do it, do it.
Abrianna placed her hand on the rail and leaned forward. Since she was alone, she allowed a tear to leap over her lashes and skip down her face.
She could still feel the bastard’s grimy paws all over her and even the stinging ache between her legs. He’d hurt her. He’d meant to—men always meant to. Sick bastards. Abrianna wanted to close her eyes, but she feared that, behind her eyelids, she’d see the long line of abusers she’d had to suffer all her life.
Just do it! Jump!
The rail rattled in her hands, but then that newspaper headline flashed in her head. Did she really want to end up like Shalisa Young?
“There you are,” Mr. Lucky boomed from behind. “I wondered where you’d run off to.”
Abrianna’s heart broke. She missed her chance—again.
“What are you doing out here?”
Straightening her face, she faced him. “Just getting some fresh air.”
His wide, veneered smile shone unnaturally beneath the moonlight. “Yeah?” He joined her, wearing a matching robe. “It is nice out.”
She nodded, but then cringed with every step he took.
“Mind if I join you?”
“Sure. I’d love the company,” she lied, smiling.
Lucky stopped before her and untied her belt. When he pulled it open, his eyes rounded as his greedy gaze roamed. “My god. You are exquisite.”
“You keep saying that.”
“And you keep being coy.”
He slid his hands around her hips and glided them over her ass. “Is it really true that tonight is your first night with Madam Nevaeh?”
She nodded.
“So I’m your first?” he boasted, puffing out his chest.
Abrianna dropped her gaze.
“Heeeey. Don’t be shy. I’m having a great time. You’ve been wonderful.” He pulled her forward so that his hard-on stabbed her inner thigh. “But you know that I’m not through with you yet, right, sweetheart?” He brushed her hair back from her face. “I hope that you’re ready for round two.”
Abrianna’s gut twisted, but she held her smile. “Whatever you want.”
“Good. But first I got us a little something to enhance the mood.”
Abrianna cocked a brow. “Oh?”
He grinned and reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet.
Her eyes widened.
“Mmm-hmm. I knew this would get your attention.” He leaned forward and nuzzled a kiss against her neck.
Abrianna’s lips stretched into her first genuine smile.
“C’mon,” he whispered. “Let’s go back inside.” He took her hand and led. “I’ll just chop this up, and then we can get this party started. Would you like that?”
“I’m for whatever you like. I’m here for you, remember?” Abrianna licked her lips and eyed his packet of cotton candy.
Mr. Lucky’s awful laugh and wolfish gaze wrecked her nerves. “Hot damn. I’m a lucky man, the luckiest in Washington. Did you know that?”
“That’s what you keep telling me.” Playfully, she placed her right index finger against his lips, really wanting him to shut up, and he pretended to bite it off. From there, they moved to the living room part of the suite. He sat on the couch and poured the coke onto the glass table. “Now, fair warning: you have to be careful with this, baby. This here is primo, top-of the-line shit. I’m gonna get you so high that you’re never gonna want to come back down.”
Like an eager puppy, Abrianna followed him to the table. Hurry. Hurry. Hurry.
Mr. Lucky made his perfect pink lines and leaned over and vacuumed one into each nostril. “WHOO! Wow!” He rubbed his nose. “Goddamn. That’s some good shit!” He grinned at her. “C’mon. You got to hit this.”
“Yeah?” Abrianna didn’t hesitate. Her head was wired to explode. She needed this hit bad.
You have a problem, Shawn said inside of her head.
Abrianna ignored him and got down on her knees. However, she only did half a line before she threw her head back and gasped.
“What did I tell you? That’s some strong shit, huh?”
Abrianna grinned as her head cleared and lifted her higher.
Mr. Lucky brushed her hair back lovingly. “Go ahead and finish. I got another surprise for you.”
Greedily, she polished off the last two lines. Almost immediately, a kaleidoscope of colors twirled before her dilated eyes and she could hear her own blood rushing through her veins.
He beamed. “Didn’t I tell you that I knew how to make you feel good?” He leaned over and nibbled on her neck. “Just ride the wave, sweetheart. Ride the wave.”
She enjoyed the thrill of being light as a feather while a cool breeze drifted from an open window.
“That’s it,” he moaned, sliding his hand down the front of her naked body. “So fucking beautiful.”
Abrianna released a long, winding moan. She couldn’t help it. The world inside of her mind went soft and hazy. Lucky lowered his head and tugged a dark nipple into his mouth while his left hand wrapped around his cock to jerk himself off.
Abrianna’s defenses melted away until the knock at the door.
Mr. Lucky’s head sprang up from his late-night meal with a crazed look in his eyes. “That must be the other surprise.” He grinned.
Popping up from the couch, Abrianna’s mind slowed as she wondered where he was going.
The man strolled toward the door, his dick swinging between his legs. After a look through the peephole, he snatched it open. “Kitty! Welcome to the party.”
A tall woman, whose pale skin looked as though it had never spent a day beneath sunlight, strolled into the room wearing a long, black trench coat. “Hey, handsome. I hope I haven’t kept you waiting too long.”
Abrianna sat up and assessed the woman. She was average: thick, brassy brown hair that was cut into layers but was in serious need of conditioning. Brown eyes, minimal makeup, but the carats sparkling from each ear were definitely real.
Madam Nevaeh employs all types.
“I hope that I haven’t missed all the fun,” Kitty said huskily.
“You’re right on time, my love,” Mr. Lucky said, closing the door behind her. “Can I take your coat?”
The
smiling woman was already untying her belt. “You most certainly can.” She took her time with the buttons, turning it into a mini seductive burlesque performance. When she snatched both flaps of the coat open, she revealed a black, leather teddy. It only made her pale skin more blinding, but she had an impressive body.
Mr. Lucky whistled and rubbed his cock again. “Yeah. We’re about to have some fun.”
Belatedly, Abrianna realized that Kitty’s gaze had fixed on her.
“So who do we have here?”
“Our little pet for this evening.”
“Really?” She handed Mr. Lucky her coat and strolled toward Abrianna. Lust shone brightly in Kitty’s eyes. “Have you tasted her yet?”
“I couldn’t help myself,” he chuckled, tossing the coat over the back of a chair and following.
Abrianna’s skin prickled. A threesome? Madam Nevaeh hadn’t said anything about that. But she had mentioned how much of a valued customer Lucky was. Not for the first time that night, Abrianna felt like cattle.
Kitty caressed the side of Abrianna’s face. “You have a name, sweetheart?”
“Abrianna.”
“Lovely. It suits you.” Kitty’s gaze dragged over Abrianna. “Do you mind if I touch you?” she asked, but didn’t wait for an answer.
“Look at the titties on you,” Kitty panted, licking her lips.
Lucky moved to a chair across from them to watch and stroke himself.
Abrianna tuned out. Mr. Lucky’s Cotton Candy kicked in and mentally drew her away. She couldn’t process her emotions. She didn’t want to. Her mind committed to divorcing itself from what was happening. It was the safest thing for her sanity, she knew. She was there for one reason and one reason only—to pay a debt. But inwardly, she wept all the same.
Soon the room blurred as tears rushed to her eyes, but even in this state, Abrianna was a pro at not letting anyone see them.
“Goddamn, baby. You taste so fucking good,” Kitty moaned.
They were the last words Abrianna heard before she drifted off on a pink cloud. It took her blissfully higher than she’d ever been—where nothing and no one could touch or hurt her.
29
Rise. Morning prayer. Breakfast.
Kadir changed things up and skipped stealing the Washington Post from his eighty-year-old neighbor at the end of the hall. He needed a break from the want ads. Jobs that he was never going to be hired to do. The problem right now was that he couldn’t stop Ghost’s revolution from looping in his mind. It was stupid because he knew exactly where that road would lead him.
And yet, he was tempted.
When he wasn’t thinking about the offer, he was thinking about Autumn Breeze. Surely, he wasn’t the only man. However, he promised himself that he would return to the Stallion.
This is what my life has come to?
There was a knock at the door.
Who in the hell? The only person who popped into his head was Special Agent Bell—again.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
“I’m coming. I’m coming.” He sighed and then pushed his chair back and climbed to his feet. But before he opened the door he shot a cursory glance to the writing desk by the bookshelves and wondered whether he needed to find a better hiding place for the gun. Deciding against it, he opened the door.
“Excuse me, but are you Kadir Kahlifa?” a short Arab man asked, staring intensely.
Hesitating, Kadir raked his gaze over the stranger. “That depends on who wants to know.”
“I was told that you are a cab driver?”
“An Uber driver,” Kadir corrected.
“Right.” The man assessed Kadir again. “My brother and I would like to use your services. We called for a cab some time ago and they haven’t shown up. Mook, uh, the guy that—”
“Yeah. Yeah. I know who Mook is,” Kadir said, rolling his eyes.
“Well, he recommended you. Are you available to take us the airport?”
“Oh.” Kadir relaxed and finally eased on a smile. “Sure. I can do that. Give me a few of minutes and I’ll meet you downstairs.”
A relieved smile broke across the man’s face. “Great. We really appreciate this.”
Kadir closed the door and rushed to clear the table. He shoveled oatmeal into his mouth, made a disgusted face as the slimy texture slid down his throat. “Yuck.” He tossed the rest of it in the trash and washed the bowl.
He rounded the corner back into the living room and grabbed his shoes by the door. While he laced up, CNN droned on about the president’s possible impeachment. However, the report went in one ear and out the other.
Kadir finished tying his shoes and grabbed his jacket, phone, and then, lastly, the paper-bag-wrapped gun from out of the desk. Quickly, he tucked it inside his jacket and zipped it up.
Still, Kadir was nervous, walking with his illegal weapon through the empty halls of his apartment building. It would serve him right if Agent Bell sprang out of nowhere and busted his ass. Halfway out of the building, he’d all but convinced himself that was exactly what was about to happen. Instead, it was Mook who bum-rushed him the moment he stepped outside the building.
“Kadir, my main man!”
Kadir spun around with the gun pointed through his jacket.
Mook threw up his hand. “Whoa! Whoa! What’s up? It’s just me, brother. Don’t shoot. It’s all good.” His smile wrapped around his whole head. “We’re cool, right?”
Kadir relaxed and looked around. “What the fuck are you doing rolling up on me like that?”
“Heeey! No disrespect intended, my man. I just ain’t seen you in a couple of days. You’ve been walled up in your apartment since those Men in Black paid you a visit.”
Kadir side-eyed him. “You knew about that?”
“Yo, man. I hear about everything in these parts. Like, uh, you stealing your neighbor’s paper. Brother in three-B got some bad news down at the clinic. That fine bitch that stays in the apartment above you ain’t had no dick in two years. The—”
“All right. I got it. You’re a nosey fucker. You’ve made your point.” Kadir started to march off, but then pulled up short. “Wait. You mean that you sold me this gun when you knew that I had two federal agents in my apartment waiting for me?”
Mook’s wide grin grew another couple of inches.
“The fuck, Mook? You trying to get me locked back up?”
“Nah. Never that. I knew that you could handle those two federal cockroaches. And you did. No biggie.”
Kadir walked away before he shot the man.
“Aww. Now. Don’t be like that,” Mook whined before racing up behind Kadir. “We’re still cool, right?”
Kadir blocked all the bullshit tumbling out of Mook’s mouth.
“You mad, man?”
Silence.
“Yeah, you mad,” Mook answered his own question. “All right, then. Check it. I’m going to make it up to you. Next time you need something, Mook is your man. You feel me?”
Kadir removed his car keys and hit the automatic unlock button on the key ring.
“I’m serious, man. Totally one hundred. Whatever it is. Day or night, you’re my number-one VIP! Fifty percent off whatever deal I got going. And you already know that I got the low-low on everything, right?”
Kadir slid behind the wheel, rolling his eyes. “Give it a rest, Mook. We’re straight.”
“Yeah?” Mook asked, hopeful.
Kadir slammed the car door in his face.
“All right. Cool. I see you got places to go. Got to make that money. Probably taking the Al-Sahi brothers to the airport. Am I right?” Mook rambled from the other side of the window.
Kadir unzipped his jacket and tucked the gun under the seat.
“That’s good. Smart move,” Mook continued. “Keep the weapon close, but not too close. Smart.”
Kadir started the car and rolled down the window. “Enough with the commentary,” he snapped. “I don’t need the whole world knowing my business.”
/> “Oh. Right. Gotcha.” Mook twisted an invisible key against his lips and mimed throwing it away—but he ruined the performance by talking again. “Trust me, man. My lips are sealed.”
Kadir shifted into reverse. Mook shouted and waved as he drove from his parking space to pull up in front of the building.
Minutes later, the Al-Sahi brothers exited, rolling several large luggage bags.
Kadir hopped out of the car, smiling. “Let me help you guys out with those bags.” It was a good thing that he was in good shape—each of the men’s bags weighed a ton.
Mook hugged the corner and watched. “All right now. Y’all have a good trip,” he shouted after everyone piled into the vehicle. To Kadir, he gave an added thumbs-up.
Annoyed, Kadir waved back and pulled away from the curb, starting the meter on his app. “Reagan National, right?” he double-checked with his silent passengers.
“Yes, sir. If you could hurry, that would be great,” the tallest brother informed him.
“Not a problem. I’ll get you there in a jiffy,” he assured them.
The brothers nodded, then fell silent. True to his word, Kadir made a couple of cuts through some lesser-known roads. In no time, he had them cruising down I-395 South to the George Washington Memorial Parkway and then straight to the airport.
“Who are you flying on this morning?” Kadir asked, glancing back in his rearview to the quiet brothers. The short one who had come to his door kept mopping sweat from his forehead.
“Air France.”
“Ah. France. I’ve always wanted to go there,” Kadir said off the cuff as he took the ramp for the Air France terminal of the airport. “You guys going for business or pleasure?”
“Business,” the tall brother replied, his face void of expression.
“Business? Huh. As much stuff as you packed, I figured you were moving.” Kadir laughed.
The brothers did not.
Kadir ditched his failing comedy act. “All right. Here we are.” He pulled up to the curb and parked.
The three men exited the car simultaneously and got their bags from the back of the SUV.
“Here you go. Keep the change,” the sweaty brother said, handing Kadir two folded hundred-dollar bills.
Conspiracy Page 15