15
Blood surged through my throat and ears so hard and fast I could nearly taste it. Once I’d left Illusion’s parking lot, I blew up Cambri’s phone. But every call was sent to voicemail, rattling my nerves even further. Either something had happened to her, or she was refusing to answer for whatever reason. Instead, she pinned her location.
I decided then that if she wasn’t already dead, I’d kill her myself for worrying me to the point of panic.
HELP.
That one word had me breaking every traffic law as I raced to find my friend. The text was sent with no explanation, but I knew she’d never be intentionally vague about something so dire. And if Cambri wasn’t picking up, it could only mean she wasn’t able to. That unnerving thought had my foot sinking against the gas as I gunned it down the dark stretch of highway, flying blind into a potentially dangerous situation—one I was fully prepared for. With a trunk and glove compartment stocked with guns, ammo, and all my favorite sharp things, I was ready to fight or die for the woman who’d risked it all to save me years ago.
As I rounded the bend, just feet from her pinned location, tires grinding against asphalt, my high beams caught the brief silhouette of a woman on the side of the road. I pulled up behind the disoriented figure. She was stumbling along the dirt, wearing only one stiletto, the other hanging by two fingers from her left hand. I recognized the tattered outfit and the long, dark hair that was just as tousled and ragged. If she was aware of my vehicle rolling up behind her, she didn’t acknowledge it.
“Cambri!” I called, pushing open the door and sprinting toward her. “Cambri, oh my god! What happened?” As I whirled her around, I wasn’t prepared for what I’d witness. My blood chilled. One of her eyes was swollen shut, lips bloodied and split in several places. The right side of her face was grotesquely enlarged, as if she’d been hit repeatedly with a fist or blunt object. And there wasn’t an inch on her body not covered in bruises, scratches, and lacerations.
The sight of her took me back to the night she’d found me on a similar strip of highway, broken and near death.
“Baby, look at me.” My voice was brittle as rage steeped in my veins. “Tell me right now, who did this to you?”
Crumbling to the ground and sobbing, she gripped my arms and cried, “I’m sorry…I was…so stupid.”
“No, this isn’t your fault. No one deserves this.”
She shook her head furiously. “I knew it. I knew I shouldn’t have gone.”
Her words slurred. Either she was intoxicated, had been drugged, or it was due to the wounds on her mouth.
“Cambri, we have to get you to a hospital.” I tenderly cupped her face. “This looks really bad. You could have a brain bleed.”
Again, she shook her head. “They’re looking for me.” Her tone grew frantic, and she attempted to push to her feet but crumpled again. “They’ll kill me,” she whispered, as if someone was close enough to hear.
“No one’s going to touch you. But I need names.”
“NO!” Her shout bounced off the empty expanse of land around us. “You can’t take them on. Not alone.”
“Well, since my trusty sidekick is a little indisposed at the moment, I’ll have to make do,” I said with a frail chuckle as tears filled my eyes. We’d promised to always look out for one another. And I had every intention of following through.
Cambri attempted to protest, but I hoisted her arm around my shoulder and lifted her on wobbly legs.
“I’ll drop you off at a hospital just outside the city. And on our way there, I need every last detail.”
I gave the bastard three nights and, like clockwork, he walked through the door, his goons in tow as they meticulously scanned the lounge. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind he was searching for signs of Cambri. While stupid enough to accept an invitation back to his home, by some saving grace, she’d left her purse and identification behind. All they knew was that she was a dancer at Illusion.
And here they were, coming to collect and silence the woman who got away. Luckily for him, I was feeling particularly stabby tonight.
“How’s Cambri doing?”
Santino’s voice startled me from behind. I’d been actively avoiding him since the night he’d followed me after my shift—when he’d almost caught me meeting up with a client who deserved to watch the sunrise with a blade to the dick. As much as I wanted to send that fucker to meet his maker, relief had washed over me when he’d texted to say our little date had been canceled, thus having to avoid coming up with excuses to get rid of my boss.
“She’s still sick. Tested positive for the flu,” I said, eyes still fixed on Ivan. “Cambri said she’d keep you posted. Did she forget to call?”
“I spoke to her earlier today.”
I turned to face him, confusion knitting my eyebrows. “So why are you asking when you already know?”
His handsome features brightened into a smile as he shortened the distance between us.
“I needed an excuse to come talk to you. You’ve been avoiding me.”
“I’ve been working.”
“And avoiding me.”
Santino was a distraction and a weakness. The last time I let myself get swept up by a man, I missed all the red flags and lost everything. I refused to let that happen again. The more time we spent being friendly, the more he knocked me off my game and made me second-guess myself and my motives. I’d spent years chasing the high of my first revenge kill. Mr. H’s death had given my life a new purpose. Instead of withering away and letting my trauma consume me, I’d made it my mission to seek out sadist men and women. I didn’t need to bleed on a contract anymore. I’d bled on enough perverse dick for a lifetime pass.
“Mr. Leone, I don’t know what you expect, but whatever that is, I assure you I’m not your girl.” My eyes flickered to a blonde by the bar. She’d come in on the arm of a man twice her age but had yet to take her eyes off Santino.
I convinced myself that I’d only noticed because I’d been on high alert in search of Ivan.
“Try your luck with the lady in the green dress over there. She’s been eyeing you for the past hour. You might just get lucky,” I teased, clapping his chest.
“Tell me now.” His accented voice vibrated against my ear as I turned away, intent on returning my attention back to Ivan, but fully taken by the man at my back. “How would you know that?”
Maybe it was the sudden intrusion, coupled with his closeness or the fact that he just called me out, but I thought I felt my heart stutter to a stop for a whole five seconds.
That’s new.
“If anyone asks for a private tonight, I’m open.”
Santino caught my elbow as I started for my dressing room. All traces of his flirtatious smile had vanished.
“I thought you didn’t accept those.”
“You thought wrong.”
His jaw ticked.
“I have to get ready. I’m on in a few.” My gaze drifted to where he held a firm grip, then back to his eyes.
I wasn’t in the business of asking men for permission to remove their hands from my person once they lost their minds and overstepped, but Santino…
Santino confused me, making me feel vulnerable in a way I wasn’t used to. I didn’t know how to process those sparks of emotion he awakened.