13. Amorette
AMORETTE
I angled to face him while crossing my legs underneath me. His silence while we ate gave me absolutely no idea of how he would react to my story. What I should have done was start up random conversation questions.
“Before I tell you about me, what’s your name?
” I sounded tired even to my own ears. After almost a week of being alone in the apartment, I was exhausted from the small number of social interactions I’d had today.
This man didn’t seem to notice or care. If anything, he was amused by the fluff question.
“Grey…” He trailed off, like he was waiting for me to give him mine. At this point, it didn’t matter. They would all know my name soon enough because of Addict and the man in the hallway.
“Amorette.”
"Pretty name,” he said with a grin.
Shaking my head, I swiped my fingers over my forehead. What was I thinking? This wasn’t some blind date. If I started asking him random questions, he would be even more suspicious of me. Instead of jumping into my story, I decided to ask the question that meant the most.
“How much are you involved in the sex trafficking?”
The slightly mocking smile fell from his face and he bent forward.
“What do you know about it?” he growled. His top lip curled and his brows were deep slashes over his dark green eyes. Energy crackled around him as he seemed to swell in size.
“I know about it because I was abducted maybe two weeks ago.” My voice was rough, showing exactly how furious at the situation I was.
“I was taken to a place with lots of other girls and…” I stopped, sucking in a shuddering breath.
He didn’t need to know all of my details.
I was sure he knew precisely what went on there.
But was he a participant like Randall, or a silent victim of the bystander effect like Addict?
If I was looking for disgust, fear, or anything that shed any kind of human light on him, I was disappointed. His nostrils flared as he regarded me.
“That still doesn’t answer how you got here.”
Believing I could make an ally of him was a mistake.
But I carried on. “I met a man named Lafe.” I paused, waiting to see his reaction.
His rapid blink was the only tell he showed that this name meant anything to him.
Once. Twice. "We had a few encounters, and then he drugged me to bring me here. I didn’t come here on my own. ”
“You’ve been here by yourself for days?” He finally leaned back, a look of disgust on his face. "Where did he stash you?”
Rubbing my sweaty palms down my bare thighs, I couldn’t think of anything to tell him except the truth but dreaded it all the same.
“He had me in an apartment on the second floor. You should send someone to check on the woman who came to bring me food. I…” I swallowed.
I’d never actually harmed anyone before who didn’t deserve it, and it sat hard on my soul.
“I knocked her out. Now that it was all for nothing, I’d like to make sure she’s okay. ”
He blinked again as if that was his knee-jerk reaction, then he roared with laughter.
Deep lines formed in his cheeks where dimples would be.
As he neared the end of his mirth, his voice raised in pitch and he dropped his head onto the back of the couch.
“I like you, Amorette,” he wheezed, his body still quaking.
“I’m glad my skittish little brother found the cajones to steal you away.
” Another burst of laughter rocked through him.
I furrowed my brow. His reactions confounded me, and words escaped me as I searched for something to say.
Then he scooted closer and dropped heavy hands on my knees, digging his thumbs into my inner thighs. The smile stretched across his face as he dipped his head close to mine. “How’d you do it?”
“Knock her out?”
“Hell yeah. You’re barely bigger than a child. I can’t think of any women who work for us even close to your size. How’d you take her down?”
I could barely see his eyes from the way his cheeks pushed up.
"Please make the call to check on her,” I urged quietly. I’d tell him, but now that my secret was out in the open, I needed to know what I’d done.
He never took his gaze from mine, nor did he stop smiling as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and asked Siri to call Anton. “Anton, check the birdcages. There’s a woman that’s been hurt up there. Call me back and let me know how she is.”
The entire call, he’d spoken in English. If the man on the other side of the line thought that was odd… I would never know, but the small kindness was unexpected. So, when he eagerly watched me, I didn’t make him wait.
“I used one of the skillets from the kitchen.” My voice came out strangled. “Then I waited in the bedroom, hiding until she came in, and I hit her once she’d come far enough into the room.” I dropped my gaze, ashamed.
But he didn’t let me avoid him for long.
He moved one of his hands from my leg and used his fingers to tip my face up.
Slowly, I lifted my gaze. Light brown stubble covered his chin, and his mouth was no longer smiling, although the shape remained soft.
His eyes still gleamed with amusement, but something steely appeared as well.
“Don’t worry about it. You’re a survivor. I admire that. Respect it even,” he praised me in a low voice. “You were trying to escape?”
Nodding, I tried to pull my face away from his touch, but his hand shifted to the side of my neck to halt my progress.
“What did my brother say when he brought you here? Clearly, it wasn’t to kill you, or else you’d already be dead.
And Lafe, well, he never had the stomach for death.
It tears him up inside. So what did he offer you? Not to take you home, either, yes?”
Holding my breath, I bit my bottom lip. This conversation was starting to enter dangerous territory.
The more I talked, the higher chance I told something Addict didn’t want me to share.
From the lack of information both he and the man in the hallway had, they weren’t close. Who did I want to bet on?
“Amorette…” He warned, the glee melting from his expression as his fingers tightened on my neck. Grey was the one who had been the nicest to me. There really was no question about who I should trust.
“No, he said I couldn’t go home. I’m sure he believes I’ve seen too much.
My choices are simple. I could go back to that warehouse,” I was at least somewhat relieved when his gaze darkened.
“I could kill myself, because he’d left me quite a few useful tools in the apartment.
Or…he said he would find work for me, and I’d stay here. ”
“Done.” He sat up, the smile once again on his face. “You’ll stay here. Every evening you can spar with me in the gym. I can teach you how to drop a man two, shit, probably three times your size. You’re just so small.” His mouth twisted to the side as his gaze moved over my body.
I flushed with heat. “I need to go home. I have a career, a family. I can’t stay here.” I kept all of my opinions on who they were and what they did to myself. They didn’t have any place here, not when it would decimate any agreeability he felt right now.
Seriousness fell over him. “Lafe had one thing right, Amorette. You can’t go home. Not now that you were with Maikel, and most definitely not now that you’ve been here. As much as I like you, I don’t like you enough to risk my own ass. And make no mistake, you’re a liability.”
No, no, no. I couldn’t accept that. There had to be a way out of here.
Bracing my elbows on my knees, I covered my face in my hands.
Breathing became difficult as I struggled to believe that, just like that, another chance was taken from me.
It didn’t matter if I was nice or if I played by his rules.
It didn’t matter how many times I tried to escape. They weren’t willing to let me go.
Were these truly the only options I had?
Grey got up, and from the sounds of it, he cleared our dishes away.
He was giving me a moment to myself, as if he understood how hard this was for me.
I’d barely said more than a handful of words to him, and he was showing me more compassion than I expected while stomping on my free will at the same time.
It seemed to take an act of Congress to raise my head. I fisted my hands on my knees and sniffed. My revelation hadn’t brought about any tears, or at least not any that fell, but lingering wetness clung to my eyelashes.
Grey was back on his end of the couch, facing me with his arms crossed.
He was still shirtless, and his muscles flexed while his chest steadily rose and fell.
There was no fear in him. No anxiety or sign that he was anything other than calm.
Patient. Allowing me the time to process how my life was no longer my own.
One thing was obvious, he was comfortable with who he was.
He just didn’t know me very well.
“You think I can just accept everything that’s turned my fucking life on its head?” I tried to remain calm, though a thread of obstinance still bled through.
Shrugging, his head dipped close to one shoulder. “You don’t have a choice.”
“Then give me information, because I have none. I don’t know where I am, who you are, why I’m suddenly this liability…” I didn’t know anything, and it was crippling.
Holding my breath, I waited to see what he would do. I wanted him to prove he was the monster by refusing to answer any of my questions. I also wanted him to prove there was something good in him.
“Amorette, you only need to ask. I can’t say I’ll lay all my secrets at your feet, but there’s certainly no reason for you to run around blind. That’s only going to get you killed. We already determined I’d like to keep you very much alive.” He smirked, but there was an element of darkness to it.
He answered my questions, because they would never let me go. He wanted to keep me here because it suited his needs, whatever they were.
“How are you and Lafe connected to the sex trafficking?” I asked, my voice low.
Completely nonplussed, he answered, “You’re familiar with organized crime?”
I nodded when he didn’t go on.
“Let’s just say we’re part of the largest organized crime syndicate in South America. There isn’t just one branch. There are many. We don’t have anything to do with that part of the business. You can say it’s a sister company under the same organization. Does that help?” He raised his eyebrows.
That wasn’t surprising, not with how…shit. What was I trying to say? I understood because they employed the dregs of society in sprawling estates.
“How are you and Lafe connected?”
He grinned. “That bastard is my brother.” When he didn’t offer up any more information, I scowled. Grey was giving me crumbs for answers and enjoying the way it prickled.
“And what do you all do for this organization?”
His grin spread into a smile. “I’ll let him tell you what he does. But,” he leaned forward, tipping his chin down as he held my gaze, “I run the fights.”
The fights. That wasn’t so bad. With MMA and other fighting leagues, that was practically mainstream. I nodded.
“Not what you expected?”
“No.” I opened my mouth to ask another question when his phone rang.
“Anton,” he greeted. “Yeah, I’m trying to get to the bottom of it. I think I have a pretty good idea of what happened…Oh shit.” The corner of his mouth twitched. “That’s not good.” Except he was at least amused.
I needed that woman to be okay. From his expressions and the one-sided conversation, it was a toss-up. Glaring at him, I willed him to end the call so I could get the update.
“Not necessary. I’ll deal with him.” Then he hung up and slid the phone back into his pocket. “You want the good news or the bad news?”
“The good news.” Please, please let that woman be alive.
“Blanca’s fine. She’s got a nice bump on her head and you’ve made an enemy out of her, but otherwise, no damage. She’s also shouting the compound down as we speak.” He was enjoying this too much. It practically oozed from his pores, making my hand itch to slap the smug expression off his face.
Releasing a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding, I briefly closed my eyes. Relief swept through me. “Now, the bad. Rip it off like a Band-Aid.” I steeled myself for the worst, digging my nails into the skin of my knees.
“My brother, Andre, is on his way here right now.” Swinging his leg off the couch, he grabbed his water from the coffee table and took a swig.
Lafe. Parker. Grey. Andre.
At least four brothers in this organization. It felt strange to refer to it as a business when it capitalized on crime. Just how many brothers were there? How did they all get sucked into the same corruption?
“You might want to prepare yourself. He’s an asshole,” Grey warned as a dark, gleeful vibe surrounded him.
Great. Just great. Let’s hope my multiple personalities won't come out to play. Something told me I’d regret it.