Page 50 of Poison

"I figured since you couldn't return to the Sin District, I would see if your friend wanted to work here. She is, after all, one of the top female earners out there."

Cherry shrugged and grabbed my hand. "I'm gonna go show Starburst our matching outfits." She tugged me along to the dressing rooms, and Trevor thankfully didn't protest. After practically shoving me into the room, she slammed the door behind us.

"Are you fucking crazy? Why would you get into any kind of contract with Trevor Hobbs?"

"Because he killed Alex," she growled through clenched teeth. Glancing at the door, she ushered me to the other side of the dressing room so nobody could overhear us. "They did an autopsy on Alex. He was fucking drugged, Isaac. Someone drugged him and then lit the place on fire with him still inside it. And Hobbs was there right before the place went up."

"Is Vic safe?" I asked, afraid of the answer.

She nodded. "We're going to bring this motherfucker down, and Vic is in on it. He's not going to stop fighting for you, Isaac. And neither am I. We both want vengeance for Alex, too. I may not have known him as well as you did, but he kept me safe. When you weren't at Hell's Gate, he let me use your booth. He made sure I always had an escort home, and he kicked guys out for me when they made me uncomfortable. Vic and I know it was Hobbs because less than an hour beforethe place burned, your face showed up as the new star attraction for this club. It was like he wanted Alex to see that he won before he killed him."

"He thinks Alex helped me," I mumbled.

Cherry placed her hands on the sides of my face, making me look at her. "It's not your fault. Trevor Hobbs is a fucking psychopath." She smirked wickedly. "But what the dumb ass doesn't realize is that by coming to me, he fucked himself."

"What do you mean?"

"At first, Vic and I had no clue how we were going to help you. Not until Hobbs personally found me and offered me a job. He told me that you needed a friend up here. Obviously, I said, 'Fuck yeah,' 'cuz I miss your face, but he played right into Alex's hand."

"How so?"

"Alex needed someone on the inside, and he found someone who could help you." The look on her face told me that I wasn't going to like what she was about to say. "This is the tricky part. Alex found a guy who is utterly obsessed with you and…" She shuddered. "...me. Problem is, he's gross. Like gross, gross. He would do the job if we both fucked him." She rolled her eyes. "Together."

"Not like I haven't been forced to fuck gross before."

"Yeah, except he's broke, too. He can't afford to even enter the Nine Rings. Alex left Vic a lot of money in his will, but he can't access it until the investigation is over. Guess the police want to make sure Vic didn't kill Alex for the sinders. Apparently, Alex had a feeling Trevor would be gunning for him and wanted to make sure Vic had the cash to still help you. It's the other reason I took the job here. I'm going to save every singlesinder that I don't need to survive. As it is, Hobbs already gave me an apartment upstairs, so I don't have to worry about rent." Cherry smirked. "You know damn well I'm not cheap. It may take a few months, but eventually, we can get the cash we need to bring the guy up here."

"And what is he supposed to do?"

"Get your real records. We may never be able to prove that Hobbs killed Alex, but we can prove that he is keeping you as his slave. That alone will get him in big trouble. With a fine like that, they may just throw him over the wall."

I winced. I wanted to be free of Trevor, but I wasn't sure I wanted him killed either. Especially since I knew Cherry was right. The debt for the crime of slavery would most likely be astronomical. If no sponsor picked him up, he'd be sent over the wall.

Cherry placed a hand on my shoulder. "It may take a few months. Maybe even a year. Do you think you can hold on for that long?"

I nodded. I had no choice. I would suck it up. This wouldn't stop me from working on my own plan, but I would no longer try to harm myself.

Cherry headed to a wardrobe, pulling out a red outfit for herself and a green one for me. It was a leather thong encrusted with gemstone studs, matched with a "top" that was nothing more than a bondage harness. "At least it's not pink."

"Well, pink doesn't go too well with Christmas," Cherry chuckled. "Besides, I thought green was your favorite color." As she changed into her own red thong, I did the same. It wasn't made of real leather, but it was still stiff, and I disliked the feel of it on my body.

I glanced at Cherry as she wiggled into her top. "Bitch, you have a bra? Why do I just get straps?"

"You ain't got tits," she pointed out, squeezing her boobs into the tiny cups. They bulged over the top, showing plenty of cleavage. I always thought that look was dumb, but apparently, the breeders liked it when a woman's milk bags were spilling out.

"Come help me with this," I grumbled, slinging the harness over my shoulders.

She made quick work of the contraption, fastening every strap across my back. I shuddered, hating the confinement.

"We need to go practice our routine."

The routine was dumb and dangerous. Both of us started by sitting on large rings. Then, we had to use our arm strength to act out acrobatic stunts until the rings were lowered to the ground. After that, we were supposed to pole dance and sing a duet together.

I nearly fell at least five times while trying to practice. Cherry, on the other hand, must have done the act a million times because she was damned near flawless. Eventually, when we both got it right, we were given a break.

"I need some fresh air," I muttered to Trevor.

He pointed towards a door. "Don't try anything stupid. I have security all around."

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