Chapter Six
A ndre and Kendrick drove toward LA with the address to one of the properties owned by Vigliaturo. The first rule of any war: know your enemy. His only rule of war: don’t fucking die. Sure, there were plausible deductions. An enemy from some family they’d dealt with—a member of a rival gang who wanted payback for shit. The list goes on and on.
Andre shrugged his shoulders. “What’s the plan?”
Kendrick stared straight ahead. His stillness tended to unnerve others. “We go to this location. The others tackle theirs. Hopefully, one of us will find her.” His face was a blank mask. If anyone were to look at him, they’d see nothing he didn’t want them to.
“You know I can see right through your act. You sit there with your green eyes that usually shoot fire, looking dead. Your arms hang loose as if your muscles are relaxed. Your entire posture screams of boredom. But you and I both know there’s a fire blazing inside of you. If we find her, what are you going to do, Kendrick?” Andre asked, barely taking his eyes from the road.
With a gruff laugh, he rolled his eyes. “Wow, that’s quite the assessment. I’d be freaked out that you’ve been studying me so closely if I didn’t know it was your job.”
A growl rumbled from his friend and bodyguard. His jaw ticked. A body language expert would say Andre was two seconds from strangling Kendrick.
“If we find her, I’ll protect her. We’ll get her somewhere safe and find out who and why they took her. If it leads back to me, I’ll ensure she’s properly compensated.”
Andre smiled at Kendrick like he’d won the lottery or some shit.
“Mmm, will you personally protect her or hand that off to someone else?”
“Protect, of course. We need to keep Jeter out of this while he enjoys his honeymoon. Fuck,” he muttered.
They drove the rest of the ride in silence. Andre veered off the highway, taking several turns until they moved into an industrial area.
“Shit, this isn’t a house. Look at the numbers on there,” Andre said, lifting his chin toward the blocks of white and black atop the buildings.
“Looks like the address we’re heading toward is a row of storage units. Shit, I’ll call King and let him know we’ve got a dead-end.” Kendrick balled his hands into fists to keep from pounding the dash.
“I swear, when I find and claim my woman, I’m going to have a tracker implanted inside her.” Andre’s voice held conviction.
“When my father had men trailing my mother, I always thought he was a fool. What was the point of tracking her movements if he didn’t trust her? If she wanted to kill him, she could easily do so in his sleep. He said he trusted nobody, least of all a woman who gave her freedom to a man. It sounded ridiculous to me. His way of thinking was fucked up in many ways. To suggest she went out and strayed when he’d fucked a different whore each time he visited one of our clubs sickened me. Yet, by his logic, she wasn't trustworthy because she stood in a church before their family and God, willingly giving up her freedom to him. That made her worth less than nothing. Now, your way of thinking? That makes perfect sense.”
“Your father liked to play games. The more evil, the better in his mind. Your mother was a pawn in his game. He moved her around when it suited him, but if knocking her off the board was called for, he’d do it. She was no queen to his king. My woman would know she was my queen.”
“Yeah, I see that. Hell, Jeter must’ve learned that lesson as well. All I learned was people drained you before you knew it. Most don’t know how to say no to me, like my father before me. Or rather, they fear the consequences of doing so. I don’t want my woman to stare at me with blank eyes and think she can’t break the plans we had. If she felt like she needed to save herself, even from me, she has a right to do so.” Kendrick looked away. Everyone had a right to autonomy.
The row of storage units showed no activity, so they moved on to their next target. Time ticking by like a timer on a bomb with the detonation getting closer drove him crazy.
“YOU LOOK GOOD SITTING there like a scared little rabbit.”
The man’s voice startled her, but from years of abuse, she kept her face blank.
“What do you want with me?” she asked, happy to hear her voice didn’t betray her inner turmoil.
Follow the rules. Wait. Survive. Gather information. God, she hated falling back on old habits. They’d kept her alive when she’d been a child, and they’d do it again.
She wasn’t an unwanted mistake. She wasn’t a runaway praying for salvation. She was missing, abducted, dammit, not an irresponsible adult who did dumb shit and fell off the grid without telling a living soul.
Wait. Escape. Survive.
“Hmm, it’s not you that I want. Although, you are a happy bonus.”
The bed dipped next to her as his heavy weight settled on it.
Sutton kept her lips closed, knowing he had an agenda. Men like him never did nefarious shit without a plan.
His black, beady eyes watched her with an all-encompassing gaze. He draped both hands over his crossed knees as if he were sizing her up. She gripped her knees tighter and rested her cheek over the top, stunned to find her heart beating normally.
“Cat got your tongue, cagna?” he asked, moving faster than she’d expected, gripping her chin in a vice-like grip between his thumb and forefinger. “Do you think you’re better than me?”
“Nnno,” she stammered. “I didn’t know what you wanted me to say.”
Breathe. Wait. Stay Calm.
He brushed a rough thumb across her lips, forcing her mouth open. She clenched her teeth, not wanting to have any part of him inside her.
“Ah, I like it when they fight me.” The pressure increased so much that she feared he’d push her front teeth into her mouth.
Sutton opened with a cry of pain.
“Good girl,” he growled.
She wanted to pull back. The need to force him out overwhelmed her. Her stomach rolled.
“Close your lips around me and suck. Do not bite, or there will be consequences. I promise you won’t like what happens to those who disobey me.” The man shifted closer so that his larger body pressed against her side while the thumb inside her mouth pushed onto her tongue. Her gag reflex threatened to make her hurl. Only the fear of being beaten kept her from yacking all over his ass.
Obeying his order, she closed her lips around him, doing what he said. Her mind shut down, going away from the here and now.
“Ah, you will be a lovely addition to my collection.” He pulled back. Sutton’s mouth made a pop, bringing her attention to his words. She blinked, focusing on her surroundings.
“What do you mean?” Her voice came out a raspy croak. God, she needed water.
He gave her cheek a little slap. “Don’t play dumb, cagna. First, I’ll use you to break that Bastardo Kendrick, and then I’ll have my fun with you. After I finish using you for my desires, I’ll send you to be with my other treasures until you’re of no use.”
He stood, making the bed shake. There was no mistaking the bulge as he adjusted himself. “I’d have you take care of this if I had more time.” His hand patted her head like she was a pet or child. “No worries, pet. It won’t take me long to get back to you. Do you need anything before I go?”
The fucker repulsed her. He talked about raping her as if speaking about the weather.
She tried to swallow past the lump in her throat. “Can I have some water, please?”
His hand brushed down the back of her head, making her flinch. “Don’t do that. I’m trying to be nice. Since you said please, I will grant you something to drink. Look at your surroundings. I don’t even have you restrained.”
Breathe. Wait. Stay Calm. Escape.
“Thank you.” She figured he wanted praise. Men like him liked having their egos stroked.
“See, I knew you would be perfect. Kendrick is probably going out of his mind wondering what has happened to you,” he said, laughing.
Her eyes widened. Now that she wasn’t panicking, Sutton realized he’d said Kendrick’s name before. “Why would he care about what you do with me?”
He smiled wickedly. “Is he not your man? Don’t play me for a fool. The two of you were together when you arrived for the reception. And then one of my people said he saw both of you disappear during the party at that clubhouse.”
“That doesn’t mean anything. The first time I met him was today. I swear, this is a huge misunderstanding. If you let me go, I swear I won’t tell a soul.” Her entire body trembled. Sweat poured down her back and between her breasts, like she’d run a marathon.
“I am not stupido,” he snarled.
Sutton recoiled as he lunged toward her. His face was so close that his hot breath fanned hers. It took all that she had to not recoil in disgust. “Please,” she whispered.
“You beg so prettily, pet. I will get you that drink and do some checking. If you lied, there will be consequences,” he warned.
Spittle from his words hit her face. Before he pulled back, he brushed a finger down her cheek, following the path with his tongue. “So soft. Fragile. I can’t wait to break you.”
The moment he turned and walked out the door, she wiped her face with the backs of her hands, wishing she could erase his touch and memory from her mind.
How long would it take for him to bring her something to drink? Would he make her wait until he confirms she hadn’t lied?
Sutton pushed her legs forward, wincing at the slight ache from keeping them held against her chest for so long. She needed to get up and walk around. The fear of being caught in a vulnerable position held her in place. “Like being on a bed isn’t worse,” she whispered.
She’d sworn never to be a victim again. If, at fourteen, she could look in the mirror and not see a shattered, utterly broken girl full of anguish after a horrifying experience, then this wouldn’t break her either.
Wait. Escape. Survive.
The familiar mantra filled her mind, heart, and body, strengthening her. Failure would be her death.