Chapter 5
ELLIE
“Obviously they’re not going. We’ve been telling Harvey no for months now.
Why should we agree now?” Landon bites out from where he sits on the couch in the lobby.
The only evidence that he was stabbed a couple of months ago is his strained expression and the sweat cascading down his face.
His skin is abnormally pale, a striking contrast to the dusting of shadow on his jawline.
Okay, so that’s a lot of fucking evidence, but at least he’s no longer crying out in pain or cursing up a storm whenever he needs to move.
All of us have taken up residence in the expansive room. I sit between Dominic and Beckett on one couch, while Ryker, Landon, and Zane sit opposite us. Raymond chose to stand, his arms folded over his broad chest and his head tilted to the side.
“We all know this is a trap,” Dominic adds.
Unlike Landon, he at least attempts to keep his voice at a reasonable volume.
His emerald-green eyes flick from face to face before landing on mine, softening marginally.
The brief glimpse of vulnerability only lasts a second before his expression hardens once more and he shoots my uncle a penetrating glare.
“My father would sell me out in a second if it meant climbing the ranks of POP.”
“He wants you to be his prodigy,” Raymond points out.
“He’s been trying to convince you to join for months now.
If he knew about Ellie, he would’ve halted his invitations, at least for a little while, while he figured out what to do next.
The last thing he’d want to do is piss off The Divine One.
He’s nothing but an oblivious sheep, and fortunately for us, we can work with that. ”
Dominic scoffs and shakes his head, a strand of platinum-blond hair falling across his face. He lifts a hand to push it aside, seemingly irritated when the strand doesn’t behave the way he wants it to.
“This isn’t fucking happening. We’re not going back in the monster’s den.” He shoots his eyes to me before refocusing on Raymond. “Ellie’s not going back there.”
Raymond grits his teeth, an indecipherable emotion rippling across his face.
“The Divine One wouldn’t have told anyone about Ellie and all the drama surrounding her.
Everything Aria does is for a reason. I doubt your father knows that Ellie was put up for sale, now that the listing has been taken down—”
“It’s only been taken down because someone bought her.
A-fucking-gain. And who’s to say he didn’t see any of the previous listings?
” Ryker cuts in darkly, his husky voice resembling the serrated edge of a blade slicing at skin.
“He might even be the one who bought her this time, but we don’t know, because you refuse to allow us to look into it anymore. ”
A tense silence permeates the air, all of my guys glaring at Raymond, daring him to contradict them.
Raymond sighs and forks his fingers through his salt-and-pepper hair. “I think this decision needs to be Ellie’s. We’ve been sitting idle for too damn long. We need a smoking gun, and Harvey is quite literally offering us entrance into the den.”
“The lion’s den,” Landon snarls.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Zane bursts to his feet, his hands balled into fists. A tendon in his forehead throbs. “Aren’t you supposed to be an FBI agent or something? How could you possibly suggest this?”
Beckett scoffs. “Isn’t it obvious? He doesn’t give a damn about us or Ellie. All he cares about is taking down POP. We’re nothing but cannon fodder.”
The thigh pressed against my own begins to vibrate, and I immediately drop my hand to it, giving it a reassuring squeeze. Beckett captures my hand in his and begins to play with my fingers.
Anger hardens the line of Raymond’s jaw. “What, exactly, are you insinuating?”
Zane jabs a finger in Raymond’s chest, unencumbered vitriol spewing from his brown eyes. “I think you know exactly—”
A high-pitched yelp interrupts Zane’s dogmatic declaration. Zane freezes and whips around, a cry of terror catching in his throat…
Just as a six-pound chihuahua comes barreling around the corner, his tongue lolling.
Some of the tension melts from my shoulders as I bend down, wanting the comfort only my pet can bring.
“Hey, baby,” I coo as Frodo runs straight toward me. I scoop him up and settle him on my lap, allowing him to pepper my skin with kisses.
Beckett leans forward to pet the tiny dog behind his ears while Dominic attempts to give him belly scratches.
Zane simply stands there, some of the bravado draining from his expression, his face unnaturally pale.
It almost looks like he was the one who had gotten stabbed recently.
“It appears as if my mortal nemesis has returned,” Zane says stiffly, hurling daggers with his eyes at the tiny dog.
Frodo simply barks in response.
Zane narrows his eyes to slits. “Menace.”
The dog barks again.
Zane turns toward me. “Princesa, did you not hear what your pet just said to me? Do you allow that type of language in your household?”
This time, Frodo yips two times, stands, walks in a perfect circle, then throws himself back down in my lap, shooting Zane what I would almost describe as a smug smile.
“I allow you in my household,” I quip.
Zane places a hand over his chest, feigning indignation. “Are you comparing me to that…beast?”
“You do exhibit some dog-like qualities,” Beckett points out, always feeling the need to push every single button Zane possesses.
Dominic nods in agreement. “That’s true. He’s high-maintenance, energetic, and constantly feels the need to mark his territory.”
Zane’s narrowed eyes morph into a downright glower aimed at the tiny pup.
“Great. Now you’re turning everyone against me.
” He steps even closer and lowers himself slightly, so he can speak directly to the dog.
Even still, his hushed voice carries, adopting a tone you would use to talk to babies, despite his harsh words.
“I hate you so much. So, so much. Yes, you. I hate you. Die in a hole.”
I lower my face to Beckett’s shoulder to hide my mounting laughter.
“Are you seriously threatening Ellie’s pet?” Landon asks, scoffing. I can hear the amusement in his voice.
“No threats,” Zane assures him. Then, in a darker voice, he adds, “Just promises.”
“Okay, psychopath. Sit the fuck down before you get your face bitten off,” Ryker rasps.
That threat seems to work. Zane backs away, continuing to eye the dog warily, and reclaims his seat between Landon and Ryker. Tension still reverberates through him, but at least he forgot the reason for his initial outburst.
Until Raymond speaks.
“I think Dominic and Ellie should go.”
The cries of outrage are instantaneous. Anger imbues the air, lifting the hairs on both of my arms. I’m not afraid of any of these men—not even my uncle—but, individually, they’re forces of nature, terrifying and unpredictable.
Together, they’re a storm, a tempest, designed to obliterate entire worlds.
You have no choice but to hold on for dear life and pray you survive the decimation.
“We would make sure they’re prepared and protected.
” Raymond has to raise his voice to be heard over the onslaught of angry voices.
“All we need is irrefutable proof of what POP has been up to. Once we get that, we can give the information to the correct people and take down the organization once and for all.”
“You already said that wouldn’t work,” I point out, my ribs cinching tight.
Dominic nods, his jaw clenched tightly. “If we take down the organization but not the leaders, they’ll just rebuild. If we take down the leaders but not the organization, they’ll find new ones.”
“We need to take out both, obviously,” Raymond says. “At the same time.”
“And how do you propose we do that?” Landon folds his arms over his chest, his fingers twitching. I can tell he wants to do something—pace, fight, scream—but his injury prohibits him from doing anything but sitting there, fuming. “Have Ellie and Dominic wear video cameras and wires?”
“That wouldn’t work.” Dominic releases a scoffing sound and leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Everyone wears masks and cloaks there. It would be impossible to identify anyone.”
“Then we find their membership roster,” I say, ideas frothing in my mind. Beckett was able to trace the IP addresses back to known members, but if we can find information on every single person who has ever participated in one of POP’s games? That would be the holy grail.
“The Divine One has damning information on every single member in the organization,” Raymond points out.
“It’s what Senator Reece was working on before he got…
Well…” Raymond scrubs a hand down his face as another uncomfortable silence permeates the room, this one laced with something akin to guilt.
Senator Reece helped us the best he could…before he sacrificed himself in an attempt to save us. The last time I saw him, he was bruised, bloodied, and naked, forced to fight to the death against other prisoners.
I have no idea if he’s still alive, and I hate myself for allowing him to be taken in the first place.
“We still have that list Reece gave us,” Beckett says. It’s the same list we’ve been using to hunt these monsters, one death at a time.
“It’s only a list of names,” Raymond says with a mocking scoff. “No damning evidence.”
“We have IP addresses—” Beckett begins, but Raymond cuts him off with a flippant wave of his hand.
“It doesn’t matter. That won’t hold up.” Raymond pushes away from the wall and begins to pace, his jaw clenching and unclenching repeatedly. “What we need is The Divine One’s list of collateral.”
“Okay, so we get this list. Then what? How do we take down The Divine One herself?” Landon asks, but Raymond either ignores him or doesn’t hear him. He continues to pace, seemingly lost in thought.
An idea occurs to me, a tiny nugget that grows and festers the longer I think it through.
“Fischer,” I whisper, my throat clogging, emotions barraging me from every direction. My skin suddenly feels too tight, and I scratch absently at the inside of my wrist.
Every gaze fastens on mine. Even Raymond stops his incessant pacing to blink down at me.
“Fischer,” I say, louder this time. “If The Divine One—Aria—is truly training him to take over for her, wouldn’t he have access to this elusive list of collateral?”
“Nobody has seen Fischer in months, Ellie,” Landon says gently, reiterating what I already know.
Surprisingly, despite disappearing off the face of the earth, there has been no investigation into his disappearance.
The state senate made an announcement that he was taking time away to deal with “personal matters.” And that was that.
Nobody asked questions or demanded answers, despite his being a semi-public figure.
It’s fucking terrifying.
POP’s reach goes beyond my comprehension. It expands in all directions, reaching into every shadowy corner and crevice, plucking at the dark secrets that people thought would remain hidden.
“If POP is hosting a gathering, then Fischer will be there.” I slowly shift my gaze to Raymond’s, holding his eyes.
I ignore the outbursts around me and keep my attention on my uncle.
A strange type of pain blazes up my body in a tornado of fire.
Not a physical one. A mental one. Because I know my decision will have consequences.
I also know that this is what I have to do.
It’s the only way to end this.
“Fischer will be there,” Raymond confirms, not breaking eye contact.
“We need to find him.”
Raymond dips his chin, a shadow descending over his features. “We do.”
Back to the hell’s den we go.