Chapter 16
Aleks
Despite Vaughn’s reassurance that I wasn’t broken, I was a far cry from being fixed.
Not that I’d expected some miracle cure with his words or because I’d given myself permission to shout a swear word a few times.
Even now as the men around me began strategizing, it was all I could do not to call out for the darkness that had been my comfort for so long.
Since I needed something to ground me, I began twisting my hands together as I tried to listen.
But it wasn’t enough.
Vaughn and I were sitting on the couch and our legs were touching, but I found that wasn’t enough either.
Since he’d seemed okay with his brother and friends seeing him holding me earlier, I had to hope what I was about to do wouldn’t upset or embarrass him.
I kept my eyes on whoever was speaking as I let the fingers of my left hand slide over my own leg and then brush against Vaughn’s.
My goal was to just have the little bit of contact with him, but he surprised me when he calmly slipped his hand down to cover mine. Then he was linking our fingers.
And he kept right on talking without missing a beat.
Like holding my hand was the most natural thing in the world.
I pulled in a breath, then another and felt my body relax a bit. My mind cleared and I zeroed in on Vaughn’s voice as he spoke.
“We need to let Stylianos seek us out,” he said to Luca. “If you just start parading around the fact that you have Aleks, he’ll get suspicious… most people will. He’s already going to be looking at you for killing his men.”
“I had my team plant evidence that points to a few other potential parties,” King said. “Hopefully that will throw Stylianos off… he’ll just think you were one of a few guys going after Aleks.”
Although I knew none of them considered me property, I knew it had to look that way if any of this was going to work. But it still made me sick to think about how that’s what I’d once been… and that there were people out there who wanted to make me that again.
“I think we need to throw Stylianos off even more,” Vaughn said.
“We need to make it look like an independent party took Aleks for the cash payout and Luca just happened to find out about it before anyone else… it’ll legitimize Luca too.
” Vaughn looked at King. “Do you have any guys who can play the role?”
“Yeah,” King said, his face pulled into a mask of seriousness.
“We’ll need to get Lex and his team on creating Luca’s posts saying he has Aleks—” Vaughn said.
“No,” King interrupted. “Lex isn’t available. I’ll take care of the posts.”
All three men looked at King in surprise. Con said, “King, he’d want to be involved in the search for Gio—”
“No,” King repeated, his expression unwavering as he pinned Con with frosty eyes. “He’s not available.”
I could see that Con wasn’t satisfied with the response, but when he went to say something else, Luca called his name and then shook his head.
Con frowned and there was a moment of awkward silence as he seemed to decide if he was going to confront King further.
He finally shook his head, then looked at Vaughn.
“We’ll need a picture of Aleks to show online,” Con said.
“It’s going to need to be convincing,” he said softly as he looked at me.
I swallowed hard. I looked to Vaughn because I couldn’t find my voice to ask what Con meant.
“We’ve been using photoshop to make up fake pictures for Luca to post online as he tries to get deeper in the ring.
People are suspicious of him because of who he is…
so we’ve spent the last two years making it look like he’s one of them with the fake pictures and posts in forums. It’s been a painstaking process because we also have to cover everything we do so it can’t actually be linked back to him, or he’d end up being prosecuted for all those things, even though he didn’t actually do them,” Vaughn explained.
I nodded. “The proof has to be so good that it fools even the police,” I said.
“Exactly,” Vaughn said. “While Luca hasn’t actually committed a crime, if the stuff we’ve put out there ever gets linked back to him by someone other than the people we’re trying to convince, it would all be over for him.”
“So you need to take a picture of me?” I asked.
“Not just any picture, Aleks,” Luca said gently. “It has to be of me and you and it has to show what our relationship is.”
I felt bile rise in my throat. I looked at Vaughn. “Father took pictures like that.” I began shaking my head. “No, I can’t. No, I’m sorry, I can’t.” I couldn’t stop from repeating the words over and over.
“Aleks,” Vaughn said as he grabbed my face and forced me to look at him. “They don’t need to be like those pictures,” he said quickly.
I closed my eyes. “You saw them?”
He caressed my face. “It doesn’t matter, do you hear me? It doesn’t change anything for me.”
I knew I was being ridiculous. He’d seen me do far worse things than those pictures, but the pictures had been a permanent tribute to what I’d been to Father and they were probably still out there for any manner of men to use however they wanted.
“Aleks,” Con said, and I made myself look at him. “The picture with Luca just has to have a certain essence to it… you guys will be acting and nothing more. He won’t be touching you in it and you can be fully dressed… it’s about portraying a certain dynamic.”
I didn’t really understand the last word, but I got the gist of what he was saying. I looked at Vaughn. He was still holding my face. “So it can be like when Father had me sit on the floor next to him?”
Vaughn swallowed hard and nodded. “Yes,” he said, though it sounded like the word was hard for him to get out.
“Okay,” I said. A picture like that wouldn’t be so bad. Father hadn’t always made me undress when I’d knelt next to him after I’d pleasured him. I’d just have to pretend Luca was like Father.
I glanced at Luca and felt a little better when he dropped his eyes. He clearly wasn’t happy about needing to do this either.
“Okay,” I repeated and Vaughn released his hold on me but picked up my hand again.
“Do we stay here or in Chicago?” King asked. “I need to plan for logistical support.”
“Here,” Vaughn said.
“Isn’t Chicago where that man is?” I asked. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out how to make my tongue pronounce his name. “I heard his men say that was where they were taking me in the van the night they took me,” I added.
“In all likelihood, yes, Stylianos is in Chicago. But Luca going there with you so soon after acquiring you would set off red flags.”
“If we’re lucky, we can draw him here on our turf,” Luca said to me. “The goal is to play it like Marcus did… that I have no interest in selling you but if the price were right…”
This time I actually had to swallow the bile down and the burn made my throat hurt.
King cleared his throat. Everybody looked at him but me. I was still trying to keep from throwing up.
“My people found chatter online about a viewing party that’s happening weekend after next.
If Luca takes Aleks to that, it’ll get back to Stylianos faster.
He may even show up there if we mention the party in a post. He’ll be worried about losing out to another potential buyer, especially if we hint that Luca’s not entirely satisfied with his new acquisition…
that he was hoping for someone a few years younger and with lighter features. ”
“No, absolutely not,” Vaughn said, shaking his head. “We don’t have enough control in that kind of environment.”
King put his hands up in supplication as Vaughn’s anger grew with every word.
The idea of going to one of the very events I’d so often been forced to attend, sometimes as someone’s property and sometimes as merchandise, made my stomach turn violently and part of me was glad Vaughn was so adamant about the whole thing.
But then I remembered none of this was about me.
“Will it work better if we do that?” I asked. “Will it help us find Gio faster?”
“Aleks—” Vaughn began, but he quieted when I squeezed his hand and then did to him what he was always doing to me to comfort me – I began running my thumb back and forth over his.
“There’s no guarantee,” King began.
I sighed and looked at Vaughn briefly, then back at King. “But you wouldn’t have mentioned it if you didn’t think it would help.”
King didn’t respond.
It was answer enough.
“I think we should do it,” I said, even as my mind screamed at me to keep my mouth shut, or to at least say no.
“No,” Vaughn said. “Out of the question.” He released my hand and jumped to his feet.
“Vaughn—” Con began, but Vaughn cut him off.
“No! We’re not risking it. It’s not up for discussion!”
With that, Vaughn suddenly left the room. I watched him go. No one in the room moved or spoke. I knew there was a lot left to discuss, but it would have to wait. But there was one thing I could take care of before I went to find Vaughn.
“King,” I murmured.
“Yeah, Aleks,” King said. I could hear in his voice that he knew what I was going to say. It appeared that Vaughn was the only one trying to deny the inevitable.
“Get us into that party,” I said softly, then climbed unsteadily to my feet.
It was Luca who said, “He’ll be by the water… east side of the house.” He pointed in the direction for me.
I nodded my thanks and then left the room. It wasn’t hard to find him. He was by the water, but when I got closer and saw the white wooden bench he was sitting on, I knew it might not have been the beautiful view that he’d been seeking out.
The back of the bench had the words, For My Theodora carved into the top slat.
I went around the bench and sat down next to Vaughn. I leaned into him so my head was resting on his chest. He put his arm around me.
“Was this her spot?” I asked.
Vaughn began playing with my hair as the slight ocean breeze blew it around. I could feel a slight tremor in his hand.