Page 11 of Darkness

“Rough night, Pres?” Pepper asks in her sickly-sweet voice. She grabs the tequila bottle—exactly what I need right now—fills a shot glass, then slides it over.

I grab the glass, tilt my head in acknowledgment, then straight down the hatch. The liquid burns, but I welcome the intrusion, letting out a groan as I slide the glass back to her.

“Another?” she asks.

“I’ve got shit I gotta handle. Have it ready for me later, though. I’m gonna need a whole freaking keg by the time this night is through.”

She smiles weakly. “You got this, Pres. You always do.”

Pepper’s faith in me feels good. I’m glad someone thinks I am doing something right, even if she doesn’t have the full story. “Thanks, Pep.”

I spin on my heels and head straight for the stairs. I need to deal with the cargo and talk with Void, see what the situation is before he has a coronary, and I’m down a VP. As I stomp down the stairs, my tension levels are through the roof. All I want is to go back up to my room and settle things with Eva.

I left on a bad note.

I’m thinking long-term when surviving the present is our immediate danger. I can’t protect her unless she stays. I need to earn her trust, but how can I do that when I’m blatantly lying to her? I’m in over my head. Any damn minute, I’ll be getting a call from Andrés, that’s a certainty. I need to play my cards right where he’s concerned. Maybe I should ride out to see him, try and smooth this pile of shit over. It would appear more legit if I did.

And I will—right after this.

Walking into the Chamber, Void is sitting outside the Cell with his head in his hands. I stride up to him and release a deep exhale.

His eyes shoot up to meet mine, and he stands, gritting his teeth. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Pres.”

My eye twitches—I hope so too.

“Is the cargo secure?”

“Yeah.”

Void pulls on the giant wall made of bricks to open up a small cell. It’s dimly lit, but it has a bed, sofa, television, bar refrigerator, and a bathroom set up in the corner. It has a metal pole in the middle of the room, kind of like a stripper pole, with a set of handcuffs and chains linked to the metal bar. The chain is attached by a circular metal plate that rotates on the pole. From there, you can locate everything in the room. You just have to walk around to reach what you want. It’s like a private hotel suite, but make no mistake, it’s a prison.

Our own deluxe way of bricking someone behind a wall. When the door shuts, it’s like they are encased fully in brick. Thanks to a layer of soundproofing between the walls, they can’t be heard on the outside and can’t hear anything from the inside. It also has speakers installed, so we’re able to talk to the occupant and play loud music or sounds. We have full control of the lighting—dull, bright, strobe, or off—and when they’re off, you can’t see a damn thing.

Perfect for torture.

But, if you want to hold someone without torture, it’s a good place to keep them captive. It has every essential they could need. And if you want to keep someone hidden until you figure out what to do with them, then this is the place. From the outside, it looks like a brick wall.

Sitting on the sofa, a woman settles with one hand cuffed and the chain reaching out to the metal bar. Her chestnut hair is a tangled mess, and her frightened eyes meet mine. Her bottom lip trembles while I take in her features. She’s so much like Eva, but there’s something that doesn’t have quite the same attraction for me. Her red dress clings to her body and her giant hoop earrings give me more of a picture of how she and her sister are so different.

“I hope you like your new home?” I ask.

Her bottom lip trembles slightly as her eyes shift from me to Void, then back to me. “Where’s my sister?”

I can’t help but let out a small laugh. “You two are so alike. Nothing if not repetitive.”

Ivy sits up on her knees, hope building in her doe-like eyes. “Is she here?”

I step farther into the Cell, and she pushes back into the sofa, her body tense. I raise my hands to placate her. “I’m not going to hurt you, Ivy. In fact, I saved you from being hurt…” I grin. “You’re welcome, by the way.”

Ivy’s brow furrows, and her gaze shifts to Void. “You talk more than him.”

I peer over my shoulder with a smirk.

Void rubs his neck, turning his back to us as I chuckle.

“Void is… well… he’s void. Of emotion. Doesn’t do small talk. Don’t take it personally. And don’t bother trying to appeal to his good side. He doesn’t have one.”

Ivy deflates a little as I sit on the other end of the sofa. She observes my every move intensely.

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