Chapter 48
ASHA
I’d been neglecting the podcast lately, so I spent the morning following up on possible sightings of Sierra and cold-calling shelters in neighboring states in case she’d shown up there. Still nothing.
I visited Catalina and little Niall at Torin’s penthouse in the afternoon, as I’d done a few times. Orla usually joined us, too, and despite the three of us coming from vastly different backgrounds, we were fast becoming friends.
Rook had texted earlier to say he missed me and that he’d be home in time to see me off for girls’ night, which was sweet.
I felt lighter than I had in a long time and looked forward to my man getting home.
My man.
My gangster.
My kinda-fake, kinda-real husband.
It was going to take time to get used to that.
Only two weeks ago, I’d been firmly committed to remaining single for life, believing I’d never be able to trust a man again.
Now, I was living with Rook, sleeping in his bed, and wearing his ring on my finger.
And I didn’t hate my life.
I was about to leave my office to get ready when Finn appeared at the doorway, carrying a large black box wrapped with a red ribbon. “Knock knock,” he said, and I waved him in.
“Gift from the boss.” He laid it on my desk.
“Thanks, Finn.”
“Not at all.” He smiled and turned to leave.
“Finn,” I called out before he reached the door.
He spun around. “Yes, Mrs. O?”
“I’m sorry you have to work late again tonight. Is all this overtime interfering with your fight training?”
“It’s okay. I get up early to train. I prefer when the gym is quiet, anyway.”
“Well, I appreciate it. But if you need time off, let me know. I’m sure Rook can find someone to fill in.”
He ran a hand over his short hair. “I’d rather not. It’s an honor that the boss has asked me to do this. He’s trusting me with the most precious thing in his world, and I don’t want to let either of you down.”
Everything he said tugged at my heart. “You could never let me down, Finn. There’s no one I’d rather have as my bodyguard.”
His cheeks reddened, and he bowed his head as if my compliment had made him, this six-and-a-half-foot tattooed Irish fighter, bashful.
“Still meeting up with your friends at eight?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
He nodded. “I’ll be ready to leave whenever you like.”
Then I was alone in my office with Rook’s gift. I’d have guessed it was lingerie, but when I brought the box to my lap, it was too heavy to be scraps of lace or silk.
I untied the bow, lifted the lid, and peeled back the tissue paper. I froze. Nestled inside was a cocktail dress in deep forest green, the velvet so rich and soft it practically shimmered under the light.
I stood and held it in front of me. The neckline was off one shoulder, and the sculpted bodice narrowed at the waist before flaring into an asymmetrical ruffle that fell to mid-thigh.
Somehow, it was both sexy and regal at once, and when I saw the Dolce & Gabbana label, I knew it must’ve cost as much as my first car.
I didn’t need to try it on to know it would be the perfect size, complement my fair skin and red hair, and make me look incredible.
Which was surprising. I’d assumed Rook would insist I cover myself with a trench coat tonight.
I showered, did my hair and makeup, and was zipping the dress when Rook walked through the bedroom door.
He paused, breath catching when he saw me. “You look bloody awful. You should change.”
I scrunched my nose. “It’s the green, isn’t it? It’s giving swamp troll.”
He pursed his lips, pretending to give it thought. “More Princess Fiona in ogre form.”
“Heard she got that way when she kissed one.”
“But only because Shrek was her true love.”
Damn him for remembering that inconvenient detail. It’d been a long time since I’d seen that movie.
My eyes narrowed. “You watched Shrek with Neve recently, didn’t you?”
Rook smiled before moving behind me to do up the last of the zip. “I’m already regretting buying you this dress, but when I saw it, I knew it was for you.” His warm hands landed on my waist, and he kissed below my ear, sending a delicious shiver through me. “Beautiful.”
“Thank you.” I turned, clasped the back of his neck, and rose on tiptoes to kiss him. “When will I meet her?”
“Neve? She’s at boarding school until break. I’ll introduce you then.”
“You’ve never mentioned her mom. I take it she and Aidan aren’t together?”
“No.” Rook’s lips thinned. “They split before Neve was born. Cora, she’s—how should I put this?
—a wrecking ball. In and out of rehab more times than I can count, gambling debts, a suspended sentence for disorderly conduct.
Sometimes we won’t see her for months, then she’ll get clean and turn up wanting to act like a mother again.
It messes with Neve’s head, but she still wants to know her ma.
It’s the only reason Aidan allows it. Cora always falls off the wagon eventually, and Aidan’s the one left to pick up the pieces. ”
“Poor kid. That must be really hard on her.”
“Aye. It’s rough for Aidan, too.”
It was strange to picture the tattooed and pierced mobster comforting his teenage daughter, but it aligned with what I knew of the O’Connells. Tough on the outside but with a heart of gold and always prepared to protect their inner circle.
“I look forward to meeting Neve.”
“She’ll love you.” Rook cupped my chin, and his thumb traced a path over my lips. “Have fun with your friends tonight. Just remember what’s waiting for you at home.”
His other hand dipped under my dress and slid into my panties. I gasped when a finger parted my folds and pushed inside me. Once it was slick, he pulled it out and circled my clit.
“Rook,” I whispered, my legs about to buckle.
“Aye, love?”
“You don’t play fair.”
“Never have, never will.” He smirked, brought his finger to his mouth, and sucked it clean. “I’ll miss you tonight.”
“I’ll miss you, too.”
He kissed me, brief but firm. “I have to go talk to Finn. Are you ready?”
“Just give me five for shoes and lipstick.”
He nodded, then headed toward the living room.
As I slipped into my heels in the closet, a phone rang close by with an unfamiliar tone.
Strange.
I followed the sound to a drawer on Rook’s side of the closet, and when I opened it, I found a bunch of cheap-looking phones. Must’ve been Rook’s collection of burners.
Only one was lit with an incoming call—an old-school flip phone. I waited for it to stop ringing before fishing it out.
I wasn’t sure why, but something compelled me to open it.
It was locked, which meant I probably had three attempts at the PIN.
I tried all zeros first. No luck.
One, two, three, four?
Holy shit. It unlocked.
I glanced toward the doorway. Rook and Finn’s voices carried from the living room. I had time to toss the phone back in the drawer if I heard them coming. Besides, Rook had never told me anything was off-limits here.
I thumbed through the phone. Missed calls, messages about meetups, photos of—
No.
My stomach lurched so hard I had to slap a hand over my mouth.
Dozens of women. Bound wrists. Tear-streaked cheeks. Bruises like ink stains under the skin. Some sobbing, some staring blankly into the lens.
All of them were terrified.
My pulse thundered in my ears. These had to be trafficking victims. There was no other explanation.
Ice shot up my spine as a cold thought gripped me.
Was this one of Rook’s burners? Oh my God. Were the Beasts involved in human trafficking?
No. They couldn’t be. Rook would never be part of something so vile.
But why hadn’t he told me about these women? We had to help them.
And if we found them, it could lead us to the Soul Collector. This was the biggest break of the investigation yet.
It didn’t make sense why Rook hadn’t shown me what was on this phone.
And then I found her.
Sierra.
Her face was so gaunt that her cheekbones cut shadows. One eye blackened, pupils blown so wide the blue had nearly vanished. Drugged. Dazed. Barely hanging on.
I wanted to reach into the phone, put my arms around the troubled teen, and tell her that it was going to be okay. That I hadn’t given up on finding her, and to hold on a little longer.
And Rook had hidden this from me.
Why?
Anger, fear, and confusion warred in my veins until my hands shook so badly I almost dropped the phone.
I’d trusted him. I’d let my walls down and started to fall—
No. Now wasn’t the time to feel sorry for myself. It was the time for answers.
Rage, sharp and hot, pushed aside all other emotions.
I stormed down the hallway to find Rook and Finn in the kitchen. “Where’s Sierra?”
Rook glanced at the burner in my hand. “Shite.” He held his palms up. “I can explain.”
It took all my effort not to throw the phone at him. Instead, I yelled, “Tell me!”
“I don’t know. Christ almighty, woman. Calm down and let me talk.”
“You’ve been lying to me.”
He didn’t answer. Didn’t even try. Something inside my chest cracked like a rib snapping in two.
Moisture blurred my vision. “Why, Rook?”
His gaze flicked to Finn. “Leave.”
I held out my hand. “No. Stay.”
Finn froze, caught between us.
Rook’s jaw clenched. “I only wanted to keep you safe.”
The words hit like another betrayal. “Safe?” My voice broke, the fury barely holding the grief back. “Say something that makes sense in the next five seconds, or I swear to God I’ll walk out of here and you’ll never see me again.”
Rook drew a deep breath. “That burner belonged to a gang member Aidan and I interrogated at the docks three nights ago. It wasn’t the only thing we found. There’d been women in a container, a dozen or more, but they’d already been moved. Sold to buyers overseas by the Soul Collector.”
Overseas? My stomach turned. Sierra wasn’t even in the country anymore?
“The trafficking ring’s expanding.”
Rook nodded.
“But Sierra’s alive?”
“I believe so. Torin has spoken to Brandon. He was pissed about the trafficking ring but agreed to let us handle it while the Zulu mercs recover the women and take down the buyers.”
I steadied myself on the counter. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because we can’t go public with this intel.”
My head snapped to Rook. “What? No. We have to tell people what’s happening.”
“And drive the Soul Collector underground?”
“Or provoke him into doing something that exposes him.”
“This is exactly why I didn’t tell you.”
I folded my arms. “Because my opinion’s different from yours?”
“Because I didn’t want to argue with you, and now, we’re bloody arguing.”
My throat tightened. “What am I even doing here, Rook? When did you decide to go after the Soul Collector on your own? When did my part in this become nothing but an excuse to keep me bound to you? Were you ever going to let me go?”
He opened his mouth, then shut it.
That silence was the final nail.
“I thought so.” My voice went quiet. “I can’t believe I trusted you.
Do you know how hard that was for me? I swore I’d never trust a man again, but I let you in because I thought you were different.
” I shook my head. “You’re not. You’ve been manipulating me from the moment you had me in your sights. ”
I moved to pass him, but Rook grabbed my wrist and spun me to face him.
“Hate me all you like, Wildfire. I’ll be the bad guy if it’s what you need. But I’ll never compromise your safety, even if it means keeping you in the dark.”
The truth struck like a sucker punch straight to the gut.
Rook would lie to me, again and again, justifying it with whatever weak excuses he sold himself.
But I wasn’t buying it.
“Can I leave now?” I bit out through gritted teeth.
His nostrils flared. “You’ll come back here after. You’re still my wife.”
My lip curled. “How could I forget?”
I tore free and strode to the elevator, Finn in tow.
I kept my chin high until the doors slid shut. Only then did the rage falter, leaving an ache so deep I’d never find the bottom.
I didn’t know if I was angrier at Rook for lying or at myself for being dumb enough to believe he wouldn’t.