Chapter 1
CHAPTER ONE
Collin
The gunshot was muffled by the thick door blocking my entry. Acid clawed up my throat until it burned my insides, fear coiling around me like a sinister blanket of doom. I tried the handle, already knowing it wouldn’t budge. Then I ended up jamming my fingers against the keypad beside it.
Access denied.
Access denied.
Access fucking denied.
One gunshot. One person injured. Was it Aspen, or Foster? Fuck. My hands tore through my hair as my panic increased, twisting my stomach until I felt like I’d be sick.
With shaky hands, I ripped my phone from my pocket, dialing Rocky’s number.
Answer you fucking bastard.
Ring.
Ring.
Ring.
“Hello?” Rocky asked, the sound of the party we’d left echoing around him.
“Thank fuck, you stupid fuck. Answer the goddamn phone faster when I call.”
He snorted in amusement, the sounds of the music and chatter becoming more distant, indicating that he was most likely stepping outside for some privacy. “Yes, master. And what do I owe this pleasure?” he asked dryly.
I licked my lips, the words getting lodged in my throat. “No time to explain.” I exhaled. “Aspen and Foster are in trouble. Talissa lured them to some private fucking room with a keypad. I can’t get in. There was a fucking gunshot, man.” My voice cracked at the end.
Silence stretched between us, his shallow breathing coming through the speaker. All I knew was that I had to get away from this door before they grabbed me, too. Or worse. Shot me. My legs were moving before my mind could catch up, and I was on the other side of the club in what felt like seconds. People mingling all around me like there hadn’t just been a murder right under their noses.
“You’re sure?” he asked, a hitch to his voice.
“Of course I’m fucking sure you dumb fuck. Would I be calling otherwise? Get your stupid ass here right now.”
“Call me a dumb fuck one more time and I’m going to make you choke on my cock,” he hissed. “Be there soon.’
I was too shaken up to even care that he’d just threatened me with his dick. Adrenaline was coursing through my veins, even long after the bastard killed the line between us.
That gunshot kept echoing in my mind, like a clock that was telling me time was running out with every passing second. I’d always known Talissa was a callous bitch, just never expected her to go to these kinds of lengths. I was pacing back and forth, a few people shooting me odd looks, but fuck them. One of the people I valued most in this world was hurt. Maybe even dead. Not knowing was an even bigger fear than hearing the gunshot in the first place.
Seconds turned into minutes, and then minutes turned into half an hour. What the hell was taking him so long? We didn’t live that far away from here.
When Rocky finally stepped into the club, he was flanked by Monroe, Myles, and Hunter. They all wore similar expressions. Determination mixed with deadly intent. Myles hoisted his backpack higher over his shoulder, the one he kept his toys, weapons, and drugs in. His blue eyes danced around the bustling building as he took in the large crowd of people.
He walked right past me, lifting his shirt up to reveal a fucking gun. My eyes widened as he aimed it at one of the speakers in the corner of the ceiling and pulled the trigger. Sparks exploded around it as the music turned fainter, people screaming out in panic.
“Get the fuck out!” he roared. “Next shot goes into someone’s fucking head!”
Monroe’s eyebrows were raised, but beyond that, he didn’t interfere or seem the slightest bit put off from the threat looming heavily around us. I didn’t even know he had a damn gun. He preferred up close and personal kills. That much I knew about him. He enjoyed feeling the life leave his victim’s body rather than shooting them point blank and calling it good.
For once, I was glad he was a damn psycho.
If anyone could save them, it was him.
People ran for the doors, staring at him with wide, panic-filled gazes. It didn’t take long for the club to be cleared, other than the ones occupying the sex rooms, but he didn’t seem too concerned with that.
He whirled on me, his chest heaving with restrained rage. “Show me,” he gritted out. “I’m going to slice that cunt from throat to pussy.” He paused for a moment. “Or pussy to throat. Can’t have her dying too quickly.”
I nodded and led the way back to the locked door. Once we were there, Myles shrugged off his bag and rummaged through it for a few seconds before pulling out an ax. A heavy looking one at that. He twirled the object between his hands before jamming it against the door. Over and over again. His muscles bulged beneath his tight shirt, the only sign that it took him any effort at all. His face was a mask of pure rage, and I knew that adrenaline was consuming him whole as it had done me. The door barely had a dent by the time he was finished.
“Fuck,” he hissed.
I glanced around the room, a guard having just rounded the corner, pausing when he saw us. His eyes were wide as he looked between us and slowly stumbled back a step.
“I don’t fucking think so,” Hunter growled, approaching the unarmed dude. He whipped out a knife from a holster he was wearing, holding it to the man’s throat. “If you want to live, find a way to open that fucking door.”
The man swallowed thickly, realizing immediately that there was no way in hell he was getting out of this. With jerky movements, he nodded. “I can put in the key, he offered.”
“Do it,” Hunter seethed.
He dropped his arm to his side before pushing the guy who was much bigger than him toward Myles. The guard glanced at the ax between Myles’s hands and trembled like a pussy. He hurriedly typed in the cold, a green light flickering on the keypad.
Relief spilled out of me, and I reached forward, jerking the door open. I took my first step toward it, but a hand on my shoulder was pulling me backwards.
Rocky.
“Not yet,” he said.
I was about to flip the fuck out on him, but before I could, Myles was swinging the ax at the guard, jamming the blade into the side of his neck. Blood squirted out of him, splashing the side of my face. My stomach twisted with disgust, the warm substance of the man’s bodily fluids, sending bile to the back of my throat.
I buckled over, heaving.
“What the fuck?” Monroe said, scrunching up his nose. He sounded more disturbed than bothered by it, though.
Myles wiped the blood from the ax on the guard’s clothing after he’d toppled to the floor and then he shot our teacher a maniacal grin. “He would have locked us in there the first chance he got.”
“A fucking warning would have been nice,” I hissed, torn between leaving the blood on my face and trying to wipe it off. I’d probably vomit if I touched it, though. I never got used to the violence, no matter how many times we’ve had to clean up after him.
Myles ignored me, dropping the ax on the floor and kicking the door open. He grabbed a block from inside the room, one hand still on the door, like he was afraid it would lock automatically behind us if we didn’t prop it open with something. He wedged it beneath the door, shaking it after to make sure it was sturdy enough and then he turned, disappearing into the darkness.
I swallowed thickly, my heart racing with anticipation and fear. Hesitantly, I followed. A single bulb was positioned near the back of the room, shining a dim light over the back half of the vicinity.
“Is that blood?” Hunter asked, stopping a few steps to the right. He knelt, peering down at the puddle of crimson.
“Looks like it,” Rocky offered, concern gripping his features.
My hands were tearing through my hair again. The room was stuffy, like an underground tunnel full of lifeless energy. A sense of foreboding, gripped me in its clutches, burrowing deeply into my stomach until it was all I could feel.
I glanced around the room, panic encasing me. It was empty. Meaning we were too late.
Myles stormed past me; the gun kicked back like he planned on using it again if the opportunity presented itself. He glanced around the room, his footsteps loud in the quiet space. When he reached the opposite side of the room, he opened some kind of door, cursing under his breath.
Another exit.
Hunter and I exchanged looks before hurrying after him, leaving the others to follow. I glanced around the door, my throat going dry. It was a large parking garage with big white vans decorating the entire room. The kinds of vans parents were skeptical off, ushering their children in the other direction when one drove by at a slower speed than could be considered normal.
“Holy fucking shit,” Hunter breathed. “Why would this many pedo vans be necessary?” He turned to Myles like he had all the answers.
Myles stumbled back a step, showing more emotion than I’d seen from him in probably…ever. “If it means what I think it means, then they’re in deeper shit than any of us realized.”
He turned on his heels, letting the door slam behind him. His pace was fast and determined, a deadly intent shining through his eyes. He crossed the room in seconds, slipping back into the club. His body was vibrating with rage, and I felt sorry for the next fucker to cross his path.
He knelt, picking up the ax he’d discarded there earlier. He handed it to Rocky who quirked an eyebrow in response. “Destroy every goddamn van in that fucking garage. Take Hunter with you. Think you can manage that?”
Rocky rolled his eyes, but didn’t bother to comment. He nodded at Hunter before the two of them disappeared back through the door.
“What’s the plan?” Monroe asked, folding his arms over his chest. His face was calm, but the tick in his jaw indicated that it was a facade. He was worried shitless about Aspen.
Myles turned to him, almost as if he just now remembered that he was here. “We’re going to fuck this place up.” His eyes were alight with fury, his posture rigid, like it was taking everything in him not to burn the entire place to the ground right this instant. He reached into his bag before offering me a gun and then handed one to Monroe. “Just in case.”
My stomach twisted as I stared down at the heavy object in my hand. A gun might as well have been a foreign object to me. It wasn’t like I went around shooting people or hitting a shooting range. I’d never even touched one. I remember the way Myles had grabbed his, aimed, and shot with expert precision. He looked like a damn maniac. Completely unhinged, his true nature shining brightly in those dark blue eyes of his. If there was one person who could bring Aspen and Foster back, it was him.
Myles took off, crossing the dance floor. We followed behind him as he led us to Talissa’s office—the one we were all very well acquainted with, except for Monroe. Myles tested the doorknob, and it opened with ease. He held the gun out in front of him before poking his head around the door, making sure the coast was clear. When it was, his posture relaxed, and he stepped inside.
My throat felt tight, my gaze wandering around the empty room. The faint scent of Aspen’s body wash lingered in the air. Eucalyptus and Spearmint. It had become my favorite smell. And the fact that it was lingering in the air, told me that she’d been in here before being lured to her probable death. I should have known something was up when Talissa would only let two of us enter.
Myles slid into Talissa’s chair behind her desk and glanced at her laptop before muttering a curse. “It’s locked,” he growled. Inhaling deeply, he cracked his knuckles together. He glanced over at us where we still lingered near the door. “Either of you know how to use a gun?” he asked.
Monroe nodded while I shook my head. I raised my eyebrows at our history teacher, mildly concerned and impressed at the same time.
“Great,” Myles continued. “Check the perimeter. See if there are any guards lurking around. One of them should know how to get into this damn thing.” He motioned toward the computer. “If you find yourself outnumbered?—”
“I got it,” he replied sharply. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Myles arched an eyebrow. “Then why the fuck are you still here? Go.” He waved him off dismissively as if he were nothing but a dog.
I had to bite back a laugh, reveling in how the tables had turned. Monroe flipped him off before slipping out into the hall. I snorted in amusement, striding walking across the room to slip into one of the chairs adjacent to Myles.
Repulsion flooded my system as the reminder of how familiar I was with this room shot through me. The first time I’d given myself to Talissa, I’d been a minor. She took and took and took until I felt like a shell of myself. At the time, I felt powerful. Having so much control over a grown woman that she’d let us into the club, that she’d give us drugs to sell for her. Back then, I didn’t realize how much of a screwed-up deal that had been. Not only did she profit from those sales, she also profited from the amount of money we spent here, and got her sexual needs met.
I could still feel her hot breath on my skin, her firm grip on my body. Her skin wasn’t nearly as soft as Aspen’s, not nearly as gentle. She took control in the worst way.
Shoving those thoughts to the back of my mind, I looked over at Myles who was still staring at the computer screen like it offended him. “Why are you so obsessed with getting into her computer, anyways?” I asked. “It’s not like she has anything incriminating on there.”
“You never know,” he replied simply. “I plan on exhausting every last option. I’m not giving up on this. Not until that bitch is mutilated and dead for touching what’s mine .” His words sent a shiver down my spine, knowing they weren’t empty threats.
“Last time I checked, Aspen was the one who agreed to be mine,” I corrected. It wasn’t the full truth. But it wasn’t a blatant lie, either. It just pissed me off that he felt like he had some claim over her. I was done following his rules. Done following Foster’s. Once we got her back, I was going to make sure she knew how much she fucking meant to me. I’ve made mistakes in the past. Commitment wasn’t something that had ever come easily to me. But I wanted to try. For her, I would try. I was done pushing her away.
“What did you just say?” Myles asked, narrowing his eyes at me.
Thankfully, Monroe chose that time to return so I didn’t have to piss him off any further. He barged through the door with a gun pointed to the back of some dude’s head. His hair was disheveled and there was a cut on his lip, indicating there had been some kind of fight before Monroe got the upper hand.
Myles looked over the guard slowly, cataloguing his features to memory before leaning back in the chair—the same chair I’d fucked Talissa in on a few occasions. My skin felt hot, crawling with disgust at that unwanted memory. “What’s Talissa’s password?” he asked smoothly, speaking so calmly that you wouldn’t even know he was enraged.
The guard spit, blood flying from his mouth before he settled his beady black eyes on my best friend. “How the fuck should I know?”
Myles sighed, like this entire thing was a huge inconvenience to him. “I’m going to ask you again before things get ugly. What is Talissa’s fucking password?” He tilted his head to the side, his fingers twitching where they rested along the desk, one hand over the handle of his gun.
The guard swallowed, his gaze tracking the movement. “I told you. I don’t know.”
Myles stood abruptly, causing the stranger to flinch. “If that’s true, then you’ve ran out of purposes for me.” He rounded the desk, steadily approaching the man with a wild look in his eyes. As soon as he ate away the distance between them, he smashed the handle of his weapon against the guard’s face with restrained strength. The man’s head whipped sideways, a pained groan flying from his mouth. “What the fuck if her goddamn password you stupid son of a bitch?” He pointed the snout of the gun beneath his chin, showing him just how serious he was about killing him.
I knew Myles would kill him regardless, but the man didn’t know that, and it gave Myles the upper hand because of it.
“P-please,” the guy stammered, tears pooling in his eyes.
Monroe grabbed a fistful of the man’s hair, jerking his head backwards. A cry fled from his mouth as he stared back at our history teacher with fear etched into his features. His lower lip was trembling, and it was almost laughable. Not so much of a bad ass now, huh? Myles looked up at Monroe, seemingly impressed, but Monroe paid him no attention, his gaze was focused on the sorry bastard in front of him.
“We’re going to ask you one more time. The password. If you fail to comply,” Monroe began, fishing something out of his pocket. A black wallet came into view moments later and he flicked it open, revealing a few photos. “Then it won’t just be your ass on the line. Your family will be massacred for your sins.”
I took a step back, momentarily stunned by this new side of Monroe. He’s worked at the academy since I started going to school there. I’d always thought he was just an asshole with a stick wedged up his ass. He had a hot wife, knew how to fight, and taught history. But despite being able to throw down, I’ve never seen the unhinged look in his gaze that was there now. The way he was looking at the guard was similar to the expression Myles used when he got to play —as he liked to call it.
The guard stared back at Monroe, blubbering like a petulant child. “It’s 0716.” His shoulders dropped in defeat.
Myles’s eyebrows rose, a flicker of confusion flashing across his face. “Why is Aspen’s birthday her password?” he demanded.
“Who’s Aspen?”
I rolled my eyes. “Violet.”
“I don’t know. All of the guards know her password except for the new recruits. She never told us why she chose that specific one.” He blubbered, snot running down his face. “Please, just let me get back to my family. I’ve told you all I know.”
Myles took another step toward him, a hard look etched into his features. I know what that look meant. He didn’t intend on letting this guard leave here alive. But my stomach twisted with the thought of him being massacred right here, leaving his children and lover behind. I subtly shook my head, drawing my best friend’s gaze. Maybe I really was weak, but I couldn’t let him do it. I’ve already made a number of mistakes when it came to following my friends blindly.
The door opened again, drawing our attention. Hunter and Rocky strolled in, kicking the door closed behind them. “It’s taken care of,” Hunter supplied.
Myles nodded, not moving his gaze from the stranger for even a second. “What are those vans parked in the garage for?” he asked, absentmindedly stroking his forefinger over the snout of the gun in his hand.
The guard’s face paled, and he started struggling against Monroe, but he just tightened his grip in the man’s hair. When he realized there was no escape, his body started shaking with despair. “Talissa owns a trafficking organization,” he confessed. “The girls she had no use for in the club get taken there. The ones who don’t bring in enough money, or the girls that are extremely popular and guys want to buy.”
Acid burned the back of my throat at the realization that this just got a lot more complicated for us. Talissa was a fucking pimp. That’s what the sex rooms were for. Guys sampling the goods so she could sell them without their knowledge.
“Was Violet going to be sold?” I couldn’t help but ask.
The guard’s gaze flicked over to me, his throat moving as he swallowed. “She had a potential buyer. He was going to come see her tonight and make his decision.”
“And you did nothing to stop it,” Rocky accused, anger radiating off him.
“I couldn’t! Not without being killed. I have a family to think about.”
Myles clenched his jaw, clearly unsatisfied with his response. “If your daughter ended up in Talissa’s clutches, would you have just let her get taken?” he demanded.
The guard sobbed, the sound ugly to my ears. “Of course not.”
“Didn’t think so.” Myles looked up at Monroe, motioning for him to step away. Once Monroe released the guard and moved, Myles pointed his gun at the man’s forehead and pulled the trigger. The gunshot was loud in the quiet space, making my ears ring.
He placed the weapon on the desk before rounding it and slipping back into the seat. He typed in the password, his lips curled into a smile when it worked, and he started scrolling. I made my way over to his side, peering down at the screen. The first place he went was the video footage. It was a video from the room we’d been in earlier. Foster and Myles were standing there, their voices echoed through the speaker of the computer. Myles fast forwarded a few minutes to see Talissa whip out a gun and point it at Aspen. My stomach coiled with fear at the sight, and confusion tore through me when Foster stepped in front of Aspen to shield her. A guard grabbed Aspen from behind, tearing her from Foster, and putting her in the line of the bullet again. My friend rushed at Talissa, and she pulled the trigger, the bullet tearing through him. He collapsed almost instantly, his breathing going calm. And this was all because of me . Because Aspen refused to adhere to her fucked up requests.
Aspen was screaming, calling Talissa every name in the book and telling her to go to hell, but what really shocked me to my core, was when Talissa told Aspen that she was her mother.
“Holy shit,” Hunter murmured. I hadn’t even seen him approach, but he was standing on Myles’s other side, staring at the screen with disbelief.
The guard scooped an unconscious Aspen off the floor, throwing her over his shoulder before heading for the garage. When he came back, he did the same to Foster.
“What’s the plan now?” I asked.
Myles looked over at me. “We find them. And we kill ever last one of them.”