by Alta Hensley
Now that he knew what was happening, he only needed to figure out who was on what side and when the move was going to be made.
And he needed to figure out a way to keep Ariana away from Lullaby.
He couldn’t have chosen two harder goals to accomplish. But achieving them both meant he could get Ariana out of the House and get him away from a life he’d been thrust into. He was a grown ass man now. He didn’t need to make the same choices his father had. He didn’t have to put those he loved in danger just to make a buck.
His hand froze over the gear shift.
Loved?
He sat back against his seat in the car. Yeah. Love. He fucking loved Ariana. And he wasn’t going to let anyone get in the way of him keeping her safe.
No one.
Not even the entire Romero family.
“Ariana, you may have an extra cookie if you’d like. Your daddy is coming to take you for a special naptime.” Nanny Maria smiled brightly as she offered the tray of sugar cookies.
Ariana shook her head. “No, I’m not hungry.” Her stomach was a bit off, but she wasn’t telling anyone that. The last thing she wanted was any more medicine. “Thank you, though,” she added.
Nanny Maria moved on to the next girl in the dayroom offering the sugary treat. Ariana went back to working on her Princess castle puzzle. Her head spun slightly, but if she blinked a few times, she could get her vision to focus. Strange, she’d felt really good when she woke up. But after drinking her morning medicine, she felt woozier as the time went on.
Daddy would be able to tell her what was wrong. He’d make it better.
“I heard something this morning.” Shelby sat down in the empty chair at the puzzle table. “My daddy was on the phone with someone, and he said the adoption party is being moved up.” Shelby picked up a loose piece and fit it into the puzzle with ease.
Ariana found another piece and put it into place.
“So what?” Ariana asked. Everyone was so fixated on the adoption party.
“So, you’re going to have a chance to get adopted too. Just like me,” Shelby said, leaning closer to her. “But I heard my daddy say he doesn’t think your daddy likes the idea.”
“My daddy already told me about the party. I’m not worried.” Ariana put another piece in and looked up at Shelby. “Are you?”
Shelby’s lips pressed together tightly, and she nodded. “I was listening when I was supposed to be asleep, but I heard Daddy saying this is my last chance. If I don’t get adopted…Uncle Frank will take me away.” Shelby’s bright blue eyes filled with tears. “I don’t want Uncle Frank to take me.”
Ariana reached over the table and squeezed her friend’s hand. “He won’t. We’ll figure something out. We’ll make sure you find a forever Daddy at the party and then it won’t matter.”
More tears fell down Shelby’s cheek. “I don’t want a forever Daddy,” she whined softly. “I want my daddy.”
“I don’t think it works that way,” Ariana said, trying to recall the rules. She knew she’d been told, but she couldn’t remember exactly what had been said. Why were her memories so muddled?
“It’s awful.” Shelby sniffled. “I don’t want to go, but I can’t stay. It’s not fair.”
Ariana nodded. “It’s not.”
“Ariana, your daddy’s here.” Maria touched her shoulder. “Shelby? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, Nanny Maria,” Shelby lied and wiped her face with her hands.
Ariana turned toward the door. Daddy stood with a concerned expression, his brow wrinkled, and he frowned. She’d been good all morning, so he couldn’t be upset with her.
“Go on, Ariana. I’ll stay with Shelby,” Nanny Maria said, taking a seat opposite Shelby.
“Ariana, don’t keep your daddy waiting.” Nanny Nancy stepped up to the table. Her hair was pulled more tightly than usual. The loose skin of her face near her hairline was strained. If she only had a mole on her cheek, she would look exactly like the evil characters in the books they read the girls before bed.
“Yes, Nanny Nancy. I’m sorry.” Ariana got up from the puzzle table and hurried over to her daddy.
“What did Nancy say to you?” he asked with a darkened scowl on his lips.
Ariana stiffened. “Just that I shouldn’t make you wait.”
He took her hand. “Okay, good.”
“Is that okay?” Ariana asked as he led her from the room. “Are you mad at me, Daddy? I swear I was super good this morning. I ate all my breakfast, and I even let Mae share my crayons.”
Daddy squeezed her hand slightly. “I’m not mad at you at all, Ariana.” His tone lightened, but his frown stayed put. Something must have happened at work. That’s what Shelby told her happened when her daddy was grumpy; it was because of work.
“Was work hard this morning?” she asked once they were alone in her room and he’d shut the door. She grabbed hold of the hem of her dress and began to pull it up over her head, but he grabbed hold of her and stopped her.
“You don’t need to do that,” he said, smoothing her dress back down.
“But it’s our special naptime.” Ariana tilted her head a bit and the swirl and ringing in her ears came back.
“Ariana, are you okay?” He touched her forehead, his frown deepening.
“My head’s a little fuzzy,” she admitted and sat on the edge of her bed. “I’m okay though. Do you want me to give you kisses? Is that why you don’t want my dress off?”
He scowled.
“No. Ariana, listen to me.” He pulled the chair up to the bed and held on to her knees. “Did you take your medicine this morning?”
“Of course, I did. I drank it all up just like I’m supposed to.”
His jaw ticked. “Did it seem different? Taste different than before?” he asked, his eyes locked with hers.
She sighed and thought it over. “Well, a little. Usually it just tastes like grape juice, but lately it’s been really strong grape juice.” She stretched out her words for emphasis. “It tasted more like medicine than before. Does that make sense, Daddy?”
Daddy leaned back in his chair with a heavy breath. “They’ve increased your dose. Not they—fucking Nancy.”
“Shelby said the adoption party is really soon. Is she right? Am I going to be adopted soon?” Already she could feel her chest tightening at the idea of leaving Daddy behind. Much like Shelby, she didn’t want any other Daddy. She wanted hers.
“What? No. I mean, yes, the party is a lot sooner than I was told. Tomorrow night, in fact.” Daddy scrubbed his face with his hands. “Frank doesn’t have more Daddies coming to help with the extra girls in the House, so we need to shift…fuck, it doesn’t matter.”
“You look tired, Daddy. Maybe you should take a nap too.” She climbed into his lap, straddling him. With both hands, she held his face. “I can make you feel good, Daddy. You taught me, remember?”
Sadness touched his gaze, and he wrapped his hands around her wrists. Pulling her hands down, he shook his head.
“No more of that, Ariana. Not until we get the medicine out of your system. When they bring your sippy cup tonight, I want you to leave it alone. Don’t drink from it.”
“But Nanny Nancy always stays with me until I finish it,” she pointed out, confused. Not taking her medicine would get her in trouble, and she didn’t want any more spankings from Daddy.
“Okay, then I’ll be sure to be here when she brings it. Don’t touch it until I’m here, all right?” He brought her hands to his mouth and kissed them. “Do that for Daddy?”
She nodded. She’d do anything to make Daddy happy with her. It was her job as his good little girl.
“If the party is tomorrow, we should pick out my dress.” She wiggled off his lap and went to her closet. The nannies had brought in several new dresses for her to pick from for the party. She pulled them out and laid the four dresses on the bed. “I don’t like this one.” She picked up the pink one with all the lace and frills and put it bac
k in the closet.
“Are you excited for the party?” he asked.
She looked at him. “Truth?”
A shadow of a smile touched his lips. “Always.”
“Not really.” She quickly went on to elaborate. “I know I’m supposed to be. Finding my forever Daddy is supposed to be really exciting. But…” She bit the inside of her cheek then went for it. “But, I’d rather have you forever than anyone else.” Her cheeks heated with her declaration. She wasn’t supposed to think that way. The girls were never to get attached to their daddies, but she was.
Daddy reached out to her and pulled her back into his lap. He brushed the loose strands of hair from her face. The light touch of his fingers on her skin warmed her entire body. For a brief moment, she thought he was going to kiss her. She wanted him to. He hadn’t in two days.
“I want that too, sweet girl.” He pulled her close to his chest and rested his chin on her head. “And I’m working on it. Just keep being the good girl you are. Don’t take that medicine tonight until I’m here. All right?”
“I won’t. I promise.” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Your chin is getting stubbles.” She ran her hand over his chin.
He laughed. “I’ll take care of that before tonight.”
She yawned. “Daddy, if you don’t want me to make you feel good, can I take a nap? My head keeps spinning off, and it’s making me tired.”
“Of course, Ariana. Get under the covers. I’ll sit here until you fall asleep.”
She slid off his lap and climbed into bed, kicking her Mary Janes off as she did so. Daddy picked up her shoes and lined them up beside the dresser before sitting back down.
“Close your eyes, Ariana,” he directed with a pointed finger when she kept staring at him.
She smiled, snuggled further into her quilt and let sleep carry her away.
Costello checked his watch again. They’d be bringing the medicine around to the girls in a few minutes. He had to time everything perfectly.
He’d spent the entire afternoon smoothing out details and getting things set up. If it went bad, they’d both be in danger of losing their lives. But he would do everything in his power to keep her safe, to keep her from facing any more abuse at the hands of the Romero family.
One last check of his watch, and he took a deep breath. Now or never. Making sure his gun was still nestled in the holster beneath his jacket, he went to the door.
“Hey, Costello.” Gianni met up with Costello on the stairs headed down to the girls’ floor. “Visiting your girl?” he asked with a smirk. “Me too. With the party tomorrow night, I want to make sure she’s completely ready.”
“How are you going to handle seeing her taken away by one of those assholes?” Costello asked as they started walking down the hallway.
Gianni stiffened.
“Don’t worry. I’m not saying anything to anyone.” He assured him. “Are you going to be able to do it?”
They stopped outside Ariana’s door.
“What choice to do I really have?” He frowned. “I don’t have the cash to buy her, and even if I did, Frank probably wouldn’t allow it. If he lets any of these girls go unsold to outside clients, it makes the House look bad. These jackasses who come to these parties aren’t looking for sloppy seconds. They want a girl who’s not attached, who’s going to be their sweet little plaything. And if she’s got feelings for her Daddy here, they’re ruined.”
All true.
“If she doesn’t get adopted?” Costello pressed. He didn’t need anyone to help him and Ariana, but it would be good to have an ally during the fallout.
A black shadow covered Gianni’s face. “That won’t happen. I’d kill her myself before I let Frank take her,” he said, his voice cold and firm. “A mercy killing.”
Costello stared at him. “Let’s hope that doesn’t happen then.” He slapped Gianni’s shoulder.
“Yeah. Let’s hope.” Gianni’s lips pinched together with worry and fear. “I’ll see you later.” Gianni walked off to Shelby’s room a few doors down.
Costello took another long breath before opening Ariana’s door. There would be no turning back. No second chances. If he failed, they’d both die.
Nancy was in the room already with Ariana sitting on the bed holding a book. She looked up and smiled at Costello.
“Good. You’re here,” Nancy said in her typical bitch tone. “She won’t take her medicine. Even after I promised her a solid punishment from you if she didn’t listen.”
Costello held up his hand to shut her up. It would be satisfying to put a bullet between her untended eyebrows, but he wasn’t looking to start a war.
“I told her to wait until I got here. I wanted to give it to her tonight. She did exactly what I said.” He pointed to the sippy cup in Nancy’s hand. “I want a bottle tonight.”
Nancy’s shoulders dropped and her lips pinched together creating little wrinkles all around her mouth. “I wish you would have said something sooner. I’ll get one.” She huffed and left the room, shutting the door behind her harder than necessary.
“I have to have a bottle? But, isn’t that for babies?” Ariana whined.
“Don’t worry about that,” he said, dragging the chair toward the bed again. They needed to give these girls bigger beds. A regular sized twin bed could hardly fit two grown adults, much less the narrower ones built specifically for the girls in the House. Just because the girls were drugged back into their early years, it didn’t change their body sizes.
He shook off the idea. None of it mattered anymore. It wasn’t his problem. His concern was only for Ariana.
“Here you go.” Nancy breezed back into the room and held out the bottle to Ariana.
“I’ll take it,” Costello said, stepping forward and snatching it from her hand before Ariana took it.
Nancy gave him a curious stare. “Well, if you’re going to feed her, then I’ll leave you to it.” She went back to the door, pausing before leaving. “I’ll admit there’s been a nice change with her. And you, Costello.” She held a civil grin on her wrinkled lips. “Maybe the extra medicine helped.”
His blood ran cold. She never should have increased the dose without talking to him first. She could have hurt Ariana, killed her even with an overdose.
“It seems like it. She’s been a perfect girl for the past few days.” He swallowed down the bile rising in order to keep his tone even. She couldn’t suspect anything. Or all would be lost.
“I really think she has potential to be adopted tomorrow evening. Perhaps making a few tweaks in the program would help these girls speed through their training.” Nancy’s teeth peeked through her satisfied grin.
“I leave that stuff up to Frank. I’m just here to do my job until my time’s up.” He held up the bottle. “If you’ll excuse us. I have a special session planned with her.”
Nancy nodded. “Of course. I’ll see you at breakfast then, Ariana.”
“Good night, Nanny Nancy. Thank you!” Ariana waved her hand excitedly as the bitch left the room.
“Shit.” Costello laughed when the door finally shut. “She must have really increased your dose to make you so happy with her.”
Arianna’s brow wrinkled. “What does that mean?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.” He reached behind and yanked the bottle he had tucked into his belt, covered by his suit jacket. “I want you to drink this all gone, Ariana.” He handed it to her.
“But, that’s not what Nanny Nancy brought in,” she said with a squished face.
He sighed. “I know. It’s fine. This is what Daddy wants you to drink.” He wiggled the bottle. “Go on, take it.”
“Okay, Daddy.” She grabbed the bottle and brought the nipple between her lips. She scooted down in bed until she was lying down and suckling the bottle. His cock reacted to her submissiveness, her sweet obedience.
“Fucking hell,” he muttered, angered at himself and marched into the bathroom to pour out the crap Nancy had gi
ven him. Once the bottle was empty, he rinsed out the sink thoroughly and recapped the bottle. Checking his watch to be sure they were on schedule, he hurried back into her room.
Costello sat in his chair watching her play with her hair while sucking down the drink he’d given her.
Finally, she finished.
“All gone.” Ariana pulled the bottle from her mouth and shook the empty bottle at him with a grin on her sweet face. When she licked away a small droplet of liquid from her bottom lip, his cock twitched. He was a complete fucking bastard.
It had been days since he let himself touch her. Once he realized Lullaby had started to work on her and she wasn’t who she had been, he’d left her alone. At least physically.
“Good girl,” he said, swiping the bottle from her and tucking it back in place in his pants under his jacket. “How do you feel?” he asked, putting the empty bottle Nancy would be collecting on the nightstand.
“Fine,” she said but countered the word with a large yawn. “Just really, really sleepy. Like sooo sleepy.” She dragged out the word dramatically. She sank lower in the bed. “And my tummy doesn’t feel good. It’s kinda swishing around a lot.”
Costello checked his watch. If they waited too long, Frank would be arriving. He always stopped at the House the night before an adoption party to check on the girls. They needed to get moving.
“Daddy,” Ariana whined, her eyes closing. “I need…” She was asleep before she could finish her sentence.
“All done in here?” Nancy swept back in. “Oh, did she fall asleep already?”
“No.” Costello picked up the empty bottle. “I think you put too much in.” He thrust the bottle at her then began to lightly tap Ariana’s cheek. “Ariana, wake up. Come on now, don’t sleep yet. Wake up.” He tapped harder. He could probably land a heavy blow with his fist and she wouldn’t wake. He’d given her enough sedative to keep her under long enough to get them to safety.
“I put the same as yesterday,” Nancy stammered, moving closer to the bed. “Is she okay?”
“Ariana!” he yelled into her sleeping face. “Fuck.” Costello yanked the quilt off of her and slid his arms beneath her. “Open the door.”