Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
Dean Anderson
T he meeting drudges on as I sit there, taking in more information than I can ever need or want in a lifetime. Shifting in my chair, I do my best to seem interested, but all I want to do is go back to the dorm and fuck Ashleigh. As the chairman continues, I pull up the camera and turn it on.
If my little submissive is doing what she’s supposed to do, then she’ll be studying. Maybe I’ll catch her doing something naughty I can punish her for. My cock twitches as I wait for the screen to load. I’ve got it bad, but for some reason, I don’t seem to care anymore.
As the image clears, I sit forward, excitement zipping down my spine. Only, she’s not there. Her books lie open on the bed, but she’s not in the room. Maybe she’s in the bathroom. Nope. Not there either.
My brows furrow as I glance at the time. Normally we eat together, and it’s not time yet for dinner. She’s probably off in the journalism lab. Usually when I can’t find her, that’s where she is. A soft smile tilts up my lips as I turn off the image and force myself to concentrate.
My little snoop will certainly go far. I just hope I can convince her to stay with me as she reaches for the stars.
* * *
My shoulders ache as I press my thumb to the doorknob and open up her room. As much as I want to spend the night fucking my submissive, part of me just wants to hold her in my arms as we watch something stupid on tv and feed each other. A nice night in. Sounds divine.
As I step into the room, my heart clenches. The books are still where they were earlier, but there’s no sign of Ashleigh. This isn’t like her. She knows when to expect me. She’s never just not here. Not without telling me.
Scrolling through my calendar, I make sure there isn’t some function I forgot about, but no. There’s nothing. Where the fuck is my submissive? As I call her phone, it just rings. She doesn’t pick up.
The girl better not be bratting. I am not in the mood. A growl vibrates through my chest as I slam the door behind me and head out to the journalism lab. Even if she’s just engrossed in her work, this is unacceptable. She’ll look really funny if I attach a damn leash to her throat so I can keep her by my side.
Irritation and arousal swamp my senses as I stride over to the lab. Usually she’s the only one there. If it’s a hard fucking she wants, then that’s what she’s going to get.
My cock softens as I open the door and see it empty. No lights. No computers glowing. Nothing.
This isn’t right. Where the fuck is she?
Again, I call, but this time, I listen out to see if maybe she’s playing a joke on me. Nothing.
Fear grips me, robbing me of my breath as I tear down the hall and get back into my car. As I drive over to Todd’s office, I call up Grigori. If anyone will know what to do in this situation, it’s him.
Thankfully, Todd is a fucking technology vampire who never seems to leave his office. At least I always know where he is. As I slam into his small room, he jumps and curses under his breath as something small, metallic, and expensive-looking drops to the floor.
“You’re paying for that,” he grumbles as he uses tweezers to pick it back up.
“Bill me. I can’t find Ashleigh. She’s not in the dorm. She’s not in the journalism lab. She’s not answering her phone. What can you do?”
He sits up in his chair and clicks a few keys on his board. “Okay. I need you to calm down for a moment. When was the last time you saw her?”
“One o’clock. I left her dorm after having lunch.”
“Okay. That’s a start.”
His fingers fly over the keys, making the rhythmic clacks ring out into the small room. Every now and then, he nods and hums under his breath, but says nothing.
“Well? Where is she?”
“Not helping,” he barks out as he hits a few more keys. “Okay. So it looks like she studied for a bit, then got a series of texts around one-thirty. She left soon after.”
When he turns the screen toward me, my stomach plummets as I watch her car exit the campus and go onto the interstate. She could be anywhere. “And she hasn’t come back?”
“Not that the campus cameras show, and they record all vehicles in and out.”
“Fuck!” I roar as I slam my hand against his desk. “What else can you tell me? Can you track her phone? Anything?”
“Did you put the app on there like I suggested?”
“Of course I fucking didn’t. The last thing I wanted is for someone to see it and ask her about it.”
“Ahh. Well. I don’t really know what to tell you. I can have one of our officers look into it, but that might take a bit. Are you sure she didn’t just go visit her parents or something? They’re not that far from here.”
“No, they’re not. But I don’t want to call them unless I know something is for sure wrong. The last thing we need are the Hartwells breathing down our necks. You said she got some texts. Can you see who they’re from?”
“Not without the app. It’s essentially spyware allowing me complete access at any point I want.”
“Goddammit,” I roar.
“I’m going to need you to breathe, John,” Grigori murmurs as he comes into the room. “Anger and fear never help anyone.”
I whirl around to face my old friend and glare at him. “Easy for you to say. It’s not your submissive who’s gone.”
“No. It’s not. But you do remember Chelsea was kidnapped by my uncle. Yes? She suffered horrifically until I found her. So if you are trying at all to imply I don’t know how you’re feeling-“
I raise my hand as I step back and shake my head. “No. You’re right. I was out of line. I’m just so fucking out of my mind with fear for the girl.”
“I get that. But we need cool, calm heads. That’s the only way we’ll find her.”
“Unless you have titty tracker,” Sergie barks out. “Do you have?”
“No. I don’t have a fucking titty tracker. I don’t even have a phone tracker.”
“I don’t understand,” Grigori muses. “I thought you cared about the girl.”
“Yes, I fucking care about her. I just didn’t think... Please. You have to help me find her. I’ll pierce her tits, her clit, whatever I need to keep her safe.”
“Well, there’s no use worrying about that right now. Are you sure she’s gone?”
“We had plans for this evening. She wouldn’t just go and not say something.”
“Even if it’s an emergency?”
“I’d like to think not.”
“Here,” he says to Todd. Show the footage just before she left." We all stare at the screen as my heart pounds in my chest. “Stop. Right there. She looks annoyed. Who would she be annoyed with? Friends? Family?”
“Yes? Her moods shift from moment to moment. I could be her mom. It could be a teacher giving her an assignment.”
“I think we need to start looking at who might harbor some ill will towards you. Any enemies come to mind?”
My shoulders slump forward as I lower myself into a chair. “No one outside of The Society even knows what I do when I’m not the dean. And it’s hard to imagine anyone inside would even try to pull a stunt like this.”
“Imagine it. I want you to think of any and everyone.”
“Honestly, I can only think of one person right now.”
“And?”
“And I need to make a fucking phone call.”
My heart pounds in my chest as I pace the hall right outside the room. All I can do is pray it’s not them. Anyone but them. Though I don’t know why they would kidnap my submissive. But the very last thing I need is for her to end up with those fucking psychopaths.
“You better have a good reason for calling me, John,” Louis’s smooth voice growls over the line. “You’ve been far too comfortable calling me up. What do you want?”
“Do the Ravens and Wolves have my submissive?”
“What are you talking about? Has someone gone missing?”
The syrupy tone in his voice makes me ill. It’s as if all my worst fears are confirmed. “Why did you take her?”
“One,” Louis grumbles. “I don’t know who we’re talking about. Two, I don’t take kindly to unfounded accusations. Now just tell me who you can’t find, and I’ll tell you what I can.”
“Ashleigh Hartwell.”
The line goes silent for a moment. “Can’t say I’ve heard of her outside a few conversations.”
“What. Fucking. Conversations.”
“Seems as if your little miss busybody has been sticking her nose into Marnie’s whereabouts. Preston isn’t all too happy about that.”
Blood drains from my face as he mentions that psychopath’s name. “What did he do to her?”
“Nothing. Yet. Give me five minutes.”
Time ticks by in hours instead of seconds. My fingers tremble as rage courses through my veins. With all the ways I’ve helped them. All the things I’ve done. If they harmed even one hair on her head, I will figure out how to slaughter them all. Friends or not.
When the phone rings again, I pick it up instantly. “Where is she?”
“Calm down, old man,” he teases. “Just confirmed we don’t have your girl. None of my boys have even stepped foot out of Florida recently. So take a breath before you have a heart attack. I’m guessing since you’re asking me where she is, you don’t have a tracker on her.”
“Don’t worry. When I get her back, they will be all over her fucking body.”
“No need. She’s already got one in her. I’m sending the login information and password over to your email.”
“How the fuck do you have a tracker in her? I thought you didn’t know her.”
“Apparently she became good enough friends with Marnie that Preston decided he needed to keep an eye on things, just in case. That information will help you find her. Oh, and John. I want to make it very clear that after this, we are done. Me helping you will pay back my debt for you taking in Luke and keeping an eye on Sean. You’ve done well by my boy, so that earns you my gratitude. But do not call me again. Our matters are now concluded.”
“Stay the fuck out of New York, and you’ll never hear from me again.”
“Likewise. Stay the fuck out of Florida. You and that Russian brute. Oh. And one last act of charity before you go. When you find the Hartwell girl, be sure to pass on a message. Tell her to forget Marnie. Pretend she never existed, if that’s what she has to do. For her sake, she needs to never have contact with her again. She belongs to Preston now, and he will put a bullet between your girl’s eyes without a second thought if she pisses him off anymore.”
With that, he hangs up, leaving me in silence. Right now, I don’t give a fuck about Marnie. Though it’s nice to at least have that part of all this confirmed and concluded, my Ashleigh takes precedence. I can only hope I’m not too late and can find my girl alive and well.