Chapter Thirty-Five Isla
O ne Month Later
As I stared up at the sign for Club Marquis, I swallowed down the bile rising in my throat. If Alainn had been a Five Star club, this one would have hit somewhere between three and a half stars. It was certainly a last resort.
It had been a hellish month. What energy I had, I’d thrown into my studies. As for my job, I’d never gone back to Alainn after the night I was kidnapped. Caterina had been kind to bring me my things. It had been agony seeing her. She promised to stay in touch as a friend, but I knew I couldn’t and not just because of the pain her presence caused.
I knew Mikita wouldn’t take kindly to us remaining friends. I remained in a state of paranoia that he had the house and my phone bugged. Probably even my car. If I made one misstep, I imagined he would swoop in to retaliate against me.
With the money I’d stashed away dwindling, I’d spent the day driving around to clubs looking for a job. None of them moved me past filling out an application. It was like the universe was trying to tell me to get the hell away from stripping, but my stubborn self wasn’t taking the message.
“You’ve got to be joking,” Brooke sniped from the passenger seat.
“I wish I was.”
She shook her head vehemently back and forth. “You’re not dancing in this dump, Isla.”
“Trust me. I don’t want to.”
“Then don’t. Let’s get the hell out of here, and you can use my inheritance.”
“No,” I gritted out.
“Would you stop being so damn stubborn? I told you you could pay me back. Hell, if you’re going to be such a stupid Girl Scout about it, you can sell me your half of the house. I sure as hell don’t want you to do that, but if it would mean getting it through your thick skull you don’t have to strip, then I would do it.”
I reached over to squeeze her hand. “I’ll think about it, okay?”
“So we can get the hell out of here?”
“I need to see this through, Brooke.”
She snatched her hand from mine. “Unfuckingbelievable.”
“On that note, I’ll be right back.”
Turning her head from me, Brooke stared out the window. With a resigned sigh, I grabbed my purse and hopped out of the SUV. Deep down, I knew I should take her up on her offer. But I felt like I had to exhaust all options before I did that. Even if it meant dancing in a skeezy club.
When I entered the door, it was a lot smokier and darker than Alainn . Peering through the haze, I searched for someone in charge. A hulking bouncer approached me. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, I was wanting to inquire about a position.”
“Follow me.”
“Um, okay, thanks.”
As I fell in step behind him, I tried keeping my eyes down. I figured it was better to see less of what was in store for me. Yes, I was that deluded about my current situation.
When we got to a door labeled “Employees Only”, the bouncer rapped his knuckles against the wood. “Yeah?” came a voice within.
“Got a girl for you.”
“Bring her in.”
After the bouncer opened the door, my feet seemed rooted to the spot. For the life of me I couldn’t seem to make my feet get with the program. Finally, I pitched forward and walked through the doorway.
The stereotypical sleazy looking strip club owner sat behind an enormous black desk. If he’d only been puffing on a cigar, I would’ve felt like I’d stumbled into a bad Lifetime movie. “So you’re interested in a position here?”
“Yes, sir,” I reluctantly replied.
“Waitress or dancer.”
“Either. Although I have more experience with dancing.”
His gaze trailed down my body. “I’d say you’re exactly what we’re looking for.”
Although his leer made my skin crawl, I forced a smile to my face. “Great. When could I audition?”
“First, I need you to fill out our application.” He swiveled in his chair to grab a stapled packet. Motioning to the seat in front of his desk, he said, “Sit down.”
Reluctantly, I eased down in the uncomfortable chair. He then handed me the packet and a pen.
“While you’re filling out most of the info, can I get your name and social security number to start the background check?”
“Sure. It’s Isla Vaugh, and my social is–”
He held up a hand to me. “I’m sorry. Did you say Isla Vaughn?”
“Yes. Why?”
His over-tanned face paled. “I’m sorry, but I can’t have you working in my club.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
“You’re joking.”
“I’m very serious.”
“Just because of my name?” I sputtered incredulously.
He glanced left and right before leaning forward in his chair. “Don’t act like you don’t know.”
“I can assure you that I’m not acting. I’m completely clueless as to why you’re advertising for dancers, yet won’t audition me.”
He studied me curiously for a moment. “You really don’t know, do you?” When I shook my head, he exhaled noisily. “Look, I don't know what you did to piss off Quinn Kavanaugh, but whatever it was, he’s not taking it lightly.”
At the sound of Quinn’s name, a shudder ran through me. “What does this have to do with him?”
“That’s between the two of you. All I know is I received a hand delivered note telling me under no certain circumstances was I to hire a dancer named Isla Vaughn.”
I gasped. “Seriously?”
He nodded. “I would imagine that if I got a letter, your name is shit in all the clubs all over the city.”
That’s when it hit me. All the time I’d spent beating the pavement today and being turned down wasn’t about my looks or my dancing ability. It was all because of Quinn and the power he held.
Unable to speak, I merely nodded. Then I whirled around and sprinted out of the office. I didn’t stop running until I got to the car. After I tried opening the door, I had to wait for Brooke to unlock it. She’d gotten in the driver’s seat while I was gone.
At the sight of me, her eyes popped wide. “Isla, what happened?”
It took a few moments for me to catch my breath. As I paced around the open door, my mind whirled with out of control thoughts. When I could finally breathe again, I shook my head. “I never would’ve believed Quinn would sink so low as to sabotage me having a job.” At Brooke’s confused look, I said, “He sent a note to all the club owners threatening them if they hired me.”
She gasped. “You’re joking.”
“No. The owner of this club just admitted it to me.”
“So that’s why you couldn’t get an audition anywhere?”
“Exactly.”
Brooke let out a low whistle. “That’s harsh.”
“I know.”
“I guess that answers how he’s dealing with the break up.”
In a way, I couldn’t blame him for lashing out. I’d broken his heart. If the tables were turned and I had the chance, I would’ve probably done the same. With a sigh, I jerked my hands through my hair, wrapping it into a messy bun.
“You’re ruining your hair!”
“Thanks to Quinn there’s no need for it to look good for any more auditions since I won’t be getting a job.”
“Home or the liquor store?” Brooke suggested.
“Liquor store,” I grumbled.
“Good choice. I’ll drive us home in case you want to get a head start.”
I snorted. “With my luck, we’d get pulled over by the police, and I’d have another mark against me.”
As we pulled out of the club parking lot, my phone rang. When I grabbed it out of my purse, our local bank’s name flashed on the screen. “Jesus, could this day get any worse,” I grumbled.
“Don’t tell me it’s Quinn?”
“No, the bank.” I swiped to answer it. “Hello?”
“Yes, may I speak to Isla Vaughn?”
“This is her.”
“Hello, Ms. Vaughn, I was calling on behalf of Regions. We had flagged your account for some suspicious activity.”
Great. What little money I had someone must’ve tried to steal. “Has there been fraudulent charges?”
“No. It’s more about a pending wire payment.”
I furrowed my brows. “I don’t know anything about any payments.”
“Normally, we don’t alert customers about funds being deposited into their account, but because of the size of this deposit, we just wanted to confirm everything was normal.”
“I’m sorry. Are you trying to say someone is depositing a large amount of money into my checking account?”
“That’s correct?”
“How much?”
“A million dollars.”
At my wheeze, Brooke jerked her eyes off the road. “What’s wrong?”
Unable to speak, I just clutched the phone to my ear. “Someone has deposited a million dollars into my account,” I choked out.
Now it was Brooke’s turn to shriek. “Holy fucking shit!”
Turning my attention back to the call, I asked, “What is the name or the business associated with the transfer?”
“It’s sort of an odd name. Let me look at it again.” I heard the click clack of a keyboard in the background. “Cliodna Enterprises.”
My heart did a dizzying flip-flop at the name Cliodna. It was from Quinn.
I cleared my throat. “Yes, I know that business. It belongs to my ex.”
“So you were expecting this payment?”
How in my right mind could I be expecting a million dollars? I hadn’t expected any money from him, least of all that much. I’d never wanted any of his money–only him.
“Yes, well, I mean, I knew a deposit was coming. Just not that much.”
“Oh, good. Have a nice day then.”
“You, too.” I ended the call and turned to Brooke.
She stared wide-eyed at me. “Quinn sent you a million dollars?”
“Yes.”
“Holy shit!”
“My sentiments exactly.”
“So much for him being an asshole,” she mused.
“Just because he sent me a lot of money doesn’t take away from what he did about my job.” At Brooke’s gasp, I questioned, “What?”
“He wasn’t being an asshole with the job thing.”
“Excuse me?” I demanded.
“Don’t you get it? He didn’t want you to risk getting hurt again. That’s why he sent the letters for no one to hire you.”
“But he knew I’d still need the money,” I murmured.
“Exactly. So he made sure you would be taken care of without having to take your clothes off.”
My heart clenched in my chest. At that moment, I wished his motives had been vindictive to me. I couldn’t take the thoughts of him still looking out for me. But there was also the matter of the money. How could he honestly think I would accept a million dollars? “Why does he have to be so damn infuriating?”
“I don’t see a problem with this situation at all.”
Turning to her, I asked, “How can I accept it?”
“How can you not?” Brooke countered back.
With a groan, I placed my head in my hands. “I’d be morally and ethically bankrupt if I did.”
“Says the chick who just tried to be a stripper. Again .”
I jerked my head up to stare incredulous at Brooke. “Now is not a time for jokes.”
She grinned. “If there was ever a time for jokes, it’s now.”
“Come on now. This is serious.”
“Only because your stubborn ass is making it.”
“You know how I felt when he was going to pay me for not doing lap dances. This is the same thing.”
“It is not.” When I opened my mouth to protest, Brooke squeezed my hand. “Because of Quinn, you were kidnapped and emotionally abused. Consider it like severance pay or parting gift.”
“He doesn’t owe me money for my kidnapping.”
“He will for your future therapy bills.”
At that moment, all the stress of keeping Mikita’s secret finally snapped within me. I knew I had to tell someone, or it was going to drive me crazy. “Pull over!” I demanded.
“Excuse me?”
My frantic glance took in the businesses around us. “I want Taco Bell.”
“Ew, seriously?”
“Yes. Pull over. Now !”
After flicking a quick look in the rearview mirror, Brooke then whipped the car across the lane and careened into the parking lot of Taco Bell. Once the car came to a stop, I reached over to Brooke and grabbed her phone. After I tossed it in the backseat, I put my finger over my lips.
“Isla, what are you–”
I shook my head wildly back and forth. Finally, Brooke nodded her head. Then I jerked my thumb for us to get out of the car. I left my phone as well.
Brooke willingly followed me. I pulled her inside the building and over to a secluded booth. There was no way in hell Mikita could’ve possibly bugged a random Taco Bell.
She grabbed my hands in hers. “Isla, you’re scaring me. What’s going on? Are our phones and the car bugged or something?”
“I don’t know.”
“Does this have something to do with the money Quinn sent?”
“No. It’s nothing like that.”
“Then tell me what the fuck is going on!”
“You can’t breathe a word of what I’m about to tell you.”
“I promise.”
“I didn’t leave Quinn because I wanted to.”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
“It was Mikita’s plan. He wanted to punish Quinn, and he felt making me leave Quinn would hurt him worse than killing me.”
“Jesus,” Brooke muttered.
“I know.”
“But why didn’t you just lie to him and tell him you’d break up.”
“Because he threatened that he would retaliate against you and Henry.”
Brooke gasped in horror. “He did?”
“Yes. It was his form of fucked up psychological torture.”
“How did he threaten me?”
Bile rose in my throat as Mikita’s twisted threat flashed before my eyes. “It’s not important.”
“Obviously it is if it made you leave the man you love.”
Pinching my eyes shut, I shook my head. “Don’t ask me to tell you. I won’t do it.” A sob tore from my throat. “I can’t do it.”
“Jesus, Isla,” Brooke murmured before she drew me into her arms. “You’re always doing too much to protect me. You should’ve told me this from the start.”
“I was too afraid.” I swiped my eyes. “I’m still afraid, but I knew if I didn’t tell you, it was going to mentally break me.”
She shook her head. “You can’t let him get away with ruining your life, Isla.”
“But there is some truth to the lies I’ve told about leaving Quinn. As much as he tries, he cannot guarantee my safety and in turn, yours and Henry’s. How can I possibly live a life where I’m in constant fear of being kidnapped or having you or Henry kidnapped?”
“You know how I’ve always felt about Quinn’s world.”
“I do.”
“But what kind of life will you be living if you deny yourself the man you love?”
“A safe one.”
Brooke shook her head. “A life lived in fear isn’t a life worth living–”
“Exactly. I couldn’t spend all my time in fear.”
“But you are now, and you don’t have Quinn.”
I opened my mouth to argue with Brooke but then shut it. She was right. I was constantly looking over my shoulder for Mikita. I would be living in fear of him until he died or I died.
At the same time, I was doing it all alone, and I was miserable.
Brooke grabbed my hands in hers. “You don’t have to do this, Isla. We can go to Quinn and tell him the truth. They can take out this bastard Mikita. You can have the happiness you deserve.”
I wanted to believe it was that simple. That I could just run back into Quinn’s waiting arms without any repercussions. Or that it would be easy to take out a Bratva mastermind. Men would die in the conflict. Quinn could die. Or Kellan. Caterina could lose Callum before her daughter was born.
In the end, I just shook my head. “I can’t think about it right now.”
“Always so fucking stubborn.”
I gave her a sad smile. “That I am.”
“Come on. I think we both could use a drink.”
“Liquour store?”
She shook her head. “Let’s use my fake ID and go out.”
Although it was the worst idea possible, I nodded. “Let’s go.”