Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 129980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 433(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 433(@300wpm)
He heard the rustle of clothing as she donned the pair of jeans he’d chosen for her. He found himself feeling warm and even happy, liking that she was wearing something he’d given her. He wanted everything she wore to be from him. He’d never thought about purchasing gifts for anyone until he’d laid eyes on her.
“Keep talking, Zelie. I’m listening.”
“It’s soundproofed down there, and I think, but I don’t know, that the entire floor is taken up with various rooms. I’ve never explored because it’s strictly forbidden. Cameras and motion detectors everywhere. Around two-thirty in the morning a couple of months ago, while I was working, I heard a woman scream. I’m not crazy, I know what I heard. She sounded in pain. Agony. It was terrifying, especially since I had been told never to go anywhere but the office, but I couldn’t just leave her.”
Maestro’s heart clenched hard in his chest. She was so damned courageous. But she’d just confirmed the suspicions Torpedo Ink had about those underground rooms hiding trafficking victims. They were definitely held and trained below the Adventure Club before they were auctioned off.
She came out of the bathroom dressed in the vintage blue jeans and ash-blue off-the-shoulder sweater he’d gotten for her. The denim hugged her curves, and the off-the-shoulder sweater was perfect, sexy and innocent at the same time, just the way she was. His cock hardened just looking at her.
“You’re so fuckin’ beautiful, Zelie,” he said. It was the truth. Absolute truth. He caught up her jacket. “You’ll need something to take notes with, your laptop and your glasses unless you’re wearing contacts.” He was certain she didn’t wear colored contacts. Her eyes were just that blue. “I’ve got everything else under control.”
That got him another flutter of her long lashes and a quick smile that lit her eyes. “What are you planning?”
“You’ll see. Hustle, baby. And we’re going to finish talking about the woman you heard once we’re on the way.”
“We can’t exit the building together, Andrii,” she cautioned as she allowed him to take her hand. “I’ll go out first and make sure Billows’ man is nowhere around.”
“No, you won’t,” he denied. “He’s gone for the night. My friend saw him drive off and he hasn’t been back.”
“Your friend?”
He took the keys to her apartment from her and locked the door. “Shit lock, babe. We’ll have to get you a better one.”
“I have a chain.”
He looked down at the top of her bent head in exasperation. “Do you think a chain would stop me if I kicked your door? News, baby, it wouldn’t.”
“I wouldn’t expect you to kick down my door.”
There was that hint of amusement in her voice. Despite everything, she’d still found something to laugh about and teased him with it. His ray of sunshine.
“You’ve met my friend a couple of times. At least you saw him with me. We went into the coffee shop together. His name is Lazar. We’ve known each other since we were boys. He was in the same school I was in. I’ll tell you about that later.”
He opened the car door for her and then rounded the hood to slip into the driver’s seat. He didn’t want them to be late. This was a special surprise that he was certain would mean something to her.
“Tell me about the woman, Zelie.”
There was silence. She twisted her fingers together in her lap, portraying nerves. He reached over and laid his palm over her restless fingers, driving with only one hand. That had been practiced like every other skill he had. He was nowhere near Transporter’s level, but he knew how to drive a car.
“You’re safe with me, baby. Take a deep breath and tell me what happened.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw she had turned her head to look at him. Assessing. He remained silent, waiting for her to decide. She’d brought the subject up for a reason. She just had to let go of her fear of Billows and tell him.
“I heard her scream and went to investigate. It’s really dark down there and it’s a maze. The hallways end and you’re just looking at walls. I’m sure there are ways to enter more corridors and find rooms, but I don’t know how. I tried to follow the sounds, and then all of a sudden, she just stopped. Really abruptly. That was worse than the screams.”
Azelie crossed her arms over her chest, hugging herself. Maestro was aware of the shiver running through her body. He touched her shoulder, reminding her he was with her.
“You’re doing great, Zelie. I know this is difficult to relive, but you had a point to this you wanted to make. It’s scary, but you’re safe with me.”
She turned those vivid blue eyes on him. “But you’re not safe with me, Andrii. I get that you’re a badass in your circle, but I think Billows is involved with the Mafia.” She sighed and rubbed her temple as if she had a headache. “I think he’s part of it, or something very similar. Whatever it is, it’s bad. His enemies disappear.” She whispered the last.