“I’ll shoot him, Luca. I swear to fucking god. I’ll blow his god damn brains out all over this sixty-five hundred dollar per night fuck pad of a whorehouse you’re staying at if you even blink your eyes.”
I shake my head, struggling to breathe. I watch in horror at the man I trusted with my life stands there and squeezes the life out of the man I love.
“You? It’s been you this whole time? Why? I don’t understand?’
“Of course you wouldn’t understand. You’ve had your pussy shoved in the face of every man on this planet, except for the one who’s been standing right in front of you the whole mother fucking time. Now shut the fuck up and get your ass over here. I’m not stupid. I know you’ve called the cops.”
“Screw you. I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“You’ll never get away with this, asshole. You fucked up man.” Camden rears his elbow back right into our enemies gut. He grunts and Camden spins on him. I take a step backward, ready to go get his gun. The next thing I know a shot is fired. The only man I’ve ever loved crumbles to the floor. I scream for help.
“Colin! What have you done?”
Before I can even comprehend the deceit, the true savage nature of the hatred directed at me by the man I’ve trusted with so much of my life, I’m the one being held at gun point.
“You better move those fine feet of yours or you are next,” Colin growls out in a low tone. He has got to be fucking with me. Yet, when I am shoved toward the door, passed Camden’s still body, I know that I am in big trouble. Nothing has ever felt so damn real until this moment. I feel like I’m walking across hot coals and spiky nails at the same time. Everything in my body hurts. Every single cell screams for me to halt and remain with the man I love.
The scene replays itself over and over in my head. A dark cloth is placed over my head and I hear Annie’s small giggles behind me as we walk down a corridor. It’s long and I know Colin has passed the elevators. Of course, they won’t take me out of the hotel through the elevators.
Then it hits me again. Colin, my driver and friend, has been watching me. He followed me to at least Georgia when I met with Heath. Why the fuck is Annie giggling so much?
“Can you please tell her to shut–” I start to say, but I’m pushed from behind.
“You can keep your fucking mouth shut for once, Ms. West,” Annie seethes out.
“Annie, stop. We need to get out of here without notice. Chill out,” Colin barks out in a stage whisper so no one can hear him.
I stand quietly and try to think of a way to send love and prayers to Camden. I don’t care what they are going to do to me. But if Camden doesn’t live, I will never be able to live on, either.
Loud metal scraping against metal fills my eardrums as a descending sensation begins underneath my feet. It had to be the service elevator that was locked behind the “employee only” door down the hall. How had Annie and Colin gotten the access to that? I mentally shrug at the thought, listing all of the demonic shit that they had imposed on my life in the past two weeks.
They stay quiet as I think about the robbery in my apartment. Colin had said he was close by when I called for a ride. Danny probably didn’t even think twice about the fact my driver made his way up to my place that morning while I was in the shower. Colin came over two or three times a day and Danny always waved him through.
Then, Annie had lied when she said she saw Heath in my office. Somehow, Colin gave her the jewels and the photo to stash in my desk. And like the fucking idiot I am, I sent her packing to Miami with Leo. Once she knew I was onto Heath, she bowed out to Leo and probably has been shacking up with Colin for the weekend, plotting my demise.
So, again, where the fuck is Heath?
“I have one question,” I say, a phony relaxed tone soothing the panic attack I am currently suffering through.
“Shut up, bitch,” Annie spats out. I think I felt spit hit my hand that she is gripping, a grip so tight I’m sure it will leave bruising. If I manage to get free, I’m going to show this little worthless lying skank how much of a bitch I can be.
“Do not talk to Luca like that, Annie. She’s misunderstood, not a bitch. She needs me now more than ever.”
Annie’s gasp is louder than my own. What the fuck is he talking about? Misunderstood?
The hand holding my other wrist loosens a little as I feel fingers lightly feathering my forearms. “Now, Luca, my love, what is your question?”
His love? Is he fucking serious right now? Does he know how hard Annie’s grip on my other wrist is? Crazy, please meet psychotic bitch. They both have agendas and I am not so sure that they are on the same page with those.
“I want to know where Heath Landon is,” I say in the best monotone voice I can muster. Even though I can feel the tremble in my voice. Fuck, I need to stay cool and not show them any fear. Colin wants me and loves me. He won’t kill me. Then again, Annie might find no greater joy.
They both laugh heartedly and my stomach drops to the floor.
“Funny you should ask that,” Colin says laughingly. “Actually, you’ll be seeing him in a few hours. We thought it would be nice for you to witness his execution. See, I normally take care of your escorts without an audience, but since Annie came on board with me a few weekend trips ago, I find it more pleasurable to engage an audience.”
“You what?” The morality of what Colin says about taking care of my prior escorts tightens every organ in my body. My breathing becomes so sporadic I’m about to hit the center of hell.
“Colin, please tell me you did not hurt any of those men?” I don’t even want to think about all those men. Oh god no. They all have families; brothers, sisters and many of them have small children. I shake my head. I feel lifeless. This is all my doing. “No,” I whisper.
“Yes,” he screams.
“H…how many?” I choke the question out. This man I loved as a dear friend. I thought I knew him, but I know nothing about Colin at all. It seems I know nothing about anyone anymore.
“What the fuck does it matter how many of them I killed, Luca? You fuck them and leave them, carrying on with your life. Are you going to tell me you care?” he spits out angrily.
“I do care.”
“You fail to forget I know you and the only person you have ever cared about is yourself. Now, shut your fucking mouth and move it. Another word and so help me god, I will fuck you up right here.”
The excruciating hurt and betrayal from these two people have me dying slowly without them even completing whatever they have planned for me. They could leave me to die right here, internally bleeding to death from my heart at the damage they have already done.
And he claims to love me? I’ve just learned the true meaning of love and this is so far off base. This is an obsession on his part. A man on a mission to destroy and kill, while he embarks on this journey of a fascination so deep he’s lethal. My misconceptions are askew here about him loving me and not killing me. He may as well pull the trigger, slice me open even farther than he already has.
The elevator comes to a halt and I choke on the information I’ve just been given. Low whispers and then Colin’s barking demands can’t be heard through the numb I feel now. It’s as if someone wrapped me in bubble wrap and nothing is clear through the plastic.
Colin takes both of my hands and shoves me face first into the back of what I assume is a limousine. That’s incognito. Not.
No one knows where I am. If I had my phone, someone could use the tracking on it. Only Camden knows who came and kidnapped me and from the way we left him, he is either still unconscious or… I can’t think of him like that. His warms fingers encircling my face as he moves toward my lips with his. That’s what I need to think of, him warm right now. He is safe. As long as I know that, I can stay in my world of nothing. I may not live to see another day, but I sure as shit better know he will before I take my last breath.