Chapter 2 #4
Sauvage makes another noise of impatience and stands fluidly. ‘There is nowhere, not in this place. Perhaps at the university, but that lab was ruined too, non? It is…out of action.’
He waves a hand.
‘And who is responsible for the destruction of your club? Who came into your house and fucked with you? Do you know? Do you find out? No,’ he snarls.
‘You play the good boyfriends, staying with this Marguerite, this pretty petite fleur of yours, while she languishes in l'h?pital. Enfants idiots! Silly children!’
My eyes find Shade before I can stop them. I figured that he must have known about Daisy, but hearing him say her name… I feel sick. If he threatens her, all bets are off. If I kill him, I will probably die for it, but he isn’t going to get his hands on her.
‘So, I now must play the bon père! The good father. I will find this enemy of ours. I will ensure he no longer is a problem in my well-oiled machine, d'accord okay? But,’ he levels us with a sharp look, ‘you make the product in my lab.’
‘No,’ Shade snarls. ‘We have enough for a month. We’ll find a place before then. There won’t be a problem with supply.’
This is the first time I’ve heard him speak to Sauvage like this, so I know he must be reeling about him mentioning Daisy by name just as I am.
‘Non?’ Sauvage smiles. ‘You are in no position to be saying ‘non’ to me, Novelle.’
Mav sits forward. ‘We cannot make Envy in a lab you control. It’s a conflict of interest.’
Now, Sauvage laughs. ‘Perhaps, but you have no other option. How will you make it without one? You do not think.’
He taps the side of his head with his middle finger and raises a brow as he sits back in his chair. ‘Or, perhaps, you think but not with the heads on your shoulders. This petite fleur leads you with le chat her pussy.’
I’m standing before I realize it. ‘You don’t speak about her!’
Behind me, I hear the door bang open, but Sauvage is already on his feet and leaning over the table with his hands braced on the top.
‘Sit down, boy!’ he roars.
I feel the barrel of a gun at the back of my head, and I do as he says, sinking down hard, my fists clenched in front of me.
‘My stepsister isn’t part of this. She’s a Novelle and my father—’
Sauvage erupts into genuine laughter. ‘Your father, he does not care about his late wife’s daughter, I think. He does not watch her. He does not even know that you and your friends are with her. Her fiancé, though…,’ he tuts. ‘In true French style, you play with fire, my friends.’
He gives an uncharacteristic wry grin. ‘Ah, amour. Perhaps that’s why I like you. But you are young, and the young must be taught. I do not think you will like the lessons of the bon père.’
He sits down again. ‘My men, my detectives, already they look into the club. They will find the ones who did this. Of them, they will make an example. I do this for you. You will use my lab to make Envy for me. You will thank me for this.’
He waves a hand.
‘I will even give you the keys. I will not have you watched. There are no cameras for me to steal your recipe. I do not care how you make it. Only that it is made. You have obligations. As do I. We do not have time for these problems.’ His eyes narrow.
‘I do not like to threaten, but you will do as you are told, or you will buy out our agreement. Tell me, do you have the money to do this?’
‘No,’ Shade grinds out.
‘Non,’ Sauvage echoes innocently. ‘Of course you do not. It is a large sum. Perhaps your father could afford this price? Shall I ask him?’
Shade is silent for a moment too long before he says a quiet, ‘No.’
‘I thought not.’ Sauvage shrugs. ‘In truth, there is no discussion to be had here. You are, how you Americans say, between a rock and a hard place. I am a fair man, but to confuse my fairness for weakness would be une erreur a mistake. For you and for your petite fleur.’
We say nothing as the door opens on some unspoken command.
‘You will receive details of my lab. Do not ignore them, or I may have cause to go to the hospital, perhaps.’
Shade stands. ‘We’ll use your lab.’
Sauvage doesn’t gloat, just nods like it was a foregone conclusion.
I guess it was.
We leave and are given our phones back on the way out, finding ourselves on a corner in Richmond a few blocks from the club.
‘I’ll get us a taxi,’ Mav murmurs. ‘Shit.’
‘What is it?’
‘Daisy called me.’
‘And me.’
I unlock my phone and immediately call her back. One of us has been with her almost all the time. She’s woken up without us there and wondered where we are.
It goes to voicemail, and I snarl at my phone, messaging her instead, but it stays unread.
A black Prius pulls up a few minutes later and we get in in silence. Thankfully, the driver isn’t chatty. We’re at the hospital within fifteen minutes, but when we get to Daisy’s room, there’s a security guard at the door.
‘You’re not allowed in there,’ he says, drawing himself up tall.
‘What the fuck are you talking about?’ I snarl.
‘Your authorization has been rescinded. The patient is only allowed to have her guardian visit.’
‘What the fuck?’ Mav snarls. ‘Daisy!’
The security guard steps forward, his hand going to his belt. ‘You need to vacate the premises, or—’
‘Or what?’ Shade snarls in his face.
‘The authorities will be called.’
‘This is bullshit,’ Shade growls, taking out his phone.
He puts it to his ear and walks a little way down the corridor. I can’t hear what he’s saying, but the conversation is short and then he gets back, he looks pissed.
‘My father,’ he spits. ‘He was here while we were… there. We can’t see her. She’s being moved to his house.’
‘He can’t do that!’
‘He’s her guardian,’ Shade says through clenched teeth. ‘He already has.’
‘We can’t let this happen!’
‘Call her.’
‘I’ve been trying.’
‘The patient’s phone has been removed from her room,’ a woman’s voice says from behind us.
We turn to find a nurse somehow looking down her nose at us despite being about four feet tall.
‘What?’ I say so angrily that she takes a step back and she glances at the security guard, who tenses.
‘Why?’ Shade asks.
‘Her guardian expressed concerns.’
‘Concerns?’ I parrot faintly.
She nods. ‘I’m sorry but the three of you need to leave. You’re disrupting the unit. There are people here who are trying to heal.’
She points at the exit doors down the hall and the rent-a-cop begins to urge us toward it.
‘John can’t do this!’ Mav mutters, staring at Daisy’s door.
It doesn’t open.
‘Fuck, they could literally have her sedated, or cuffed to the bed in there and we wouldn’t even know.’
My stomach clenches unpleasantly as we’re escorted down two flights of stairs and out the emergency exit at the side of the building.
‘We were supposed to protect her,’ I mutter as the door slams shut, leaving us alone on the sidewalk.
It begins to rain.
‘This is a mess,’ Mav whispers. ‘What did your father actually say?’
Shade puts a hand against the side of the building and closes his eyes as if he’s afraid he’s going to keel over.
‘He said that Banderville has expressed concerns.’
‘They sure like that word,’ I mutter, staring at the ground as I try to come up with a plan to get Daisy back.
‘About what? Us?’
Shade shakes his head. ‘That she was at the club. That I wasn’t keeping her in the KIP house under lock and key, basically. It’s an excuse. A bullshit excuse to make sure Banderville has power over her.’
‘Why the fuck does he care so much?’ Mav wonders aloud. ‘I mean, what’s this about? Controlling her? Just because she’s going to be his wife? This is fucked.’
I nod and see Shade push himself off the wall. He closes his eyes, tilting his head back, and breathes slowly.
‘The Bandervilles are weird, but this is extreme, even for them. The weird tests by Marcus with the Pledges, the rules they’re giving her, the discipline.’
‘You mean the abuse,’ I snarl. ‘Call it what it is, you rich piece of shit!’
‘Fuck you, Blake!’ Shade snarls, pushing me against the side of the hospital’s outer wall. ‘I know what it is! I mean that this isn’t normal.’
‘Of course it’s not normal!’ I shout. ‘They’re making her into some kind of slave!’
‘But WHY?’
‘I don’t know, and I don’t care!’ I say, just about to lose it and break my best friend’s jaw.
‘Well, you should!’ Shade explodes. ‘We need to know what’s going on here! It’s not just Banderville wanting to marry Daisy. He wants to possess her. Her body. Her mind. Her soul. He wants it all. But there’s a thousand other girls he could have. Why her?’
‘Because she’s amazing!’ I snarl in his face.
‘But they don’t know that. They don’t even know her.’
‘Enough,’ Mav says, pushing between our little stand-off. ‘We all care about Daisy. Fighting amongst ourselves isn’t going to save her. What can we do now? Today?’
Shade takes a breath and steps back, raking a hand through his already disheveled hair. ‘We get her a new phone. That’s the first thing. Then we can at least communicate with her.’
‘How will we get it to her?’
Shade paces the sidewalk. ‘I’m still welcome at home for now. I just can’t see her or speak to her. I can give it to Stephens.’
‘Your butler?’ I ask. ‘How do we know he can be trusted?’
‘He cared about April. And he has a soft spot for Daisy. He’ll do it.’
‘Let’s go to the KIP house,’ Mav suggests. ‘We can buy a phone on the way and set it up there, and you can take it to her once she’s at your father’s house. They said this morning at the hospital that it would probably be tomorrow.’
‘And until then?’ I mutter. ‘We just hope that she’s okay?’
‘We won’t get anywhere near her while she’s in the hospital,’ Mav says.
I start walking in the direction of the parking lot where we left the truck. ‘What about Lu? Lu can probably get in there.’
The others fall into step beside me.
‘Yeah, Lu might be able to,’ Shade says. He puts a hand on my shoulder. ‘Look. I’m sor—’
‘Don’t worry about it,’ I interrupt. ‘We’re all freaking out. Mav’s right. We need to focus on what we can do to help, not fight amongst ourselves.’
‘What are we going to do about Sauvage?’ I ask as we get into the truck.
Shade sits in the back. ‘There’s nothing we can do. Mav, can you make Envy?’
Mav nods. ‘Yeah, I think I know the process. Thank God Daisy gave us the formula for Christmas.’
The rest of the car ride is made in silence, each of us probably thinking along similar lines. It’s been a little over a week since Christmas and practically everything has gone to shit. We’ve lost the club, both labs, and now Daisy.
No, not Daisy, I amend. We’re not losing her. I’m not losing her. We will find a way to fix this. All of it. No matter what.