Chapter 46
Chapter Forty-Six
Eva
My heart pounded in my chest as I followed Tony down a hallway with cement walls, tile flooring, and fluorescent lighting. We passed several rooms with metal doors, but they were closed. I heard crying coming from the rooms, and nerves stirred in me.
Were there captives in those rooms?
As Tony walked beside me, a pensive look spread across his face. The deep lines on his forehead and those around his eyes made him look older than Kain. I doubted Tony captured me only to care for the bleeding hearts. Was he after Kain?
If I were going to die here, I’d want to know everything. And if I escaped, then any information could assist Kain.
Inhaling a quiet breath, I looked at him. “Why did you kill them?”
He paused his steps, and his eyes darkened, making goosebumps skitter down my spine.
I remembered his comment and adjusted my question. “I mean, why did you send them off to the afterlife? What did they do to deserve that?”
Though terror threatened to stop my tongue at any moment, I tried to remain unaffected by this horrible place and this man who believed he was doing God’s bidding.
“You’re not afraid of me?”
Pretense gave me courage. “I feel like I already know you. You supported my shop, and I appreciate that.” The muscles in my stomach constricted with the lies, but I continued, “What crime did the women commit?”
Tony considered me for a moment before a slow smile emerged. “They misbehaved.”
Awful scenarios formed in my head, but I abandoned that line of thinking. I needed to hold on to courage as long as I could. If I kept him talking, he wouldn’t have time to think about ways to hurt me. That was probably an incorrect analysis, but right now, it was all I could do.
“Are they your girlfriends?” I asked. “People don’t buy flowers for strangers. Especially flowers that have meaning. What were—are those women to you?”
A quizzical eyebrow rose above his left eye. “Why do you want to know?”
“Questions help me understand my customers better. That’s how I’m good at selling flowers and taking care of them.
The more I know, the better I can assist.” Sweat formed on my palms, but I curled my fingers to hide them.
“If I know what they did wrong, it’ll prevent me from making the same mistake, right? ”
Something sparked in his eyes. “That’s why Kain loves you.”
My heart hammered in my chest. Was he using me to hurt Kain?
“I don’t think so,” I shrugged. “He has a lot of women after him. Women with status and wealth. I’m just a florist.”
“He loves you because you offer him what the other women can’t,” Tony said and continued walking down the hallway.
I didn’t know what to say to that. He stopped at a wooden door and pulled out a key to open it. He gestured for me to enter, but I hesitated. I’d watched too many MacGyver episodes to know that sometimes the enemy had awful things waiting in the room for you. I glanced in and saw plants everywhere.
As though sensing my caution, Tony said, “The plants won’t hurt you.” To prove it, he entered first.
I stepped into a greenhouse with potted plants on tables and metal racks. Browsing, I gasped when I saw marijuana plants on a rack against the wall.
“Hawthorne is a wise businessman. He grows money.”
An additional layer of dread settled in my stomach. The man who had hurt Kain was still alive.
“You work for him?” I asked, walking over to an intricate irrigation system with small pipes running along the floor under the tables and racks, keeping the walkway unobstructed. The pipes hanging from the ceiling offered light and mist. “Where is he?”
“I don’t know, Laura,” he said casually. “Let’s focus on your job.”
Laura?
“I’m Eva, remember?” I studied him, wondering who Laura was. Something flashed in Tony’s eyes as though my comment yanked him back to reality.
He sighed. “I meant Eva.”
“Who’s Laura?”
“My sister.” He reached into a closet, pulled out a box of supplies, and placed it on a wooden table. “You look like her.”
Oh. Did he have a good relationship with his sister? How should I navigate this? One stupid response could get me killed.
Thoughts churned in my mind as I followed him to the back of the spacious room with a display of potted bleeding hearts. Next to the display sat a table with empty pots and bags of soil.
“Harvest them so they fill up this back area. If you need more room, I’ll have another greenhouse set up.”
I counted ten pots of bleeding hearts and twenty empty ones that needed to be filled. A question sparked in my head.
“If you had this many, why did you need to come to Happy Flowers and Helena’s Flowers?”
“You look like Laura, so I wanted your help. Helena’s Flowers can’t compare to your shop. They don’t offer the same warmth.”
I wanted to ask more questions, but a bearded man with a cross tattoo on the side of his neck entered. “Everyone’s here for the ceremony.”
“I’ll be there.” Tony turned to me, and I looked for his cross tattoo, which was on the back of his neck.
Were they going to brand me?
“There are more pots and soil in the storage room over there. You don’t need to finish all of it today. Do five, then go down the hallway to the door that says Packaging.”
“Okay, but what am I going to do there?”
“Avery and Hailey will teach you how to package products. Now, put this on.” He gave me a chain necklace with a wooden seal engraved with the initials H.N.E.C. and an image of a bleeding heart flower. “No one will hurt you if you keep this on.”
“What do the letters mean?” I placed it around my neck.
“Hawthorne’s New England Chapter.”
Questions bloomed in my head, but I wasn’t sure if I should ask them. Were there more chapters around the country? Where were they located? The thought of it sickened and terrified me.
I didn’t understand why Tony treated me well. Or was he acting? Was he pretending to be nice to extract information from me? Was he not afraid I might escape? But then again, I’d heard enough about what happened to those who defied orders.
His eyes darkened, looking threatening. “Don’t even think about running. Stay and help me make this chapter successful.” He tapped my shoulder, and the threat in his eyes transformed into warmth. “You’ll be rewarded, Laura. You can travel the world like you’ve always wanted to.”
There it was again. What happened to his sister?
I played along. “Okay.”
“You can be inducted in the next ceremony.” He studied my face. “Where do you want your tattoo?”
No . . . Terror squirmed within me.
“I’m afraid of needles,” I lied.
His eyes hardened. “My sister ought to be braver.”
The brave facade cracked a little, and he noticed.
“Some fears aren’t easy to face,” I said, referring to my phobia and not the needles.
He considered me for a long moment and finally sighed. “We’ll postpone the ink until you’re comfortable.”
“Thank you.”
“Now go take care of my bleeding hearts.”