Page 1 of Devious Secrets

Adjusting the catering vest I’d swiped from the supply cart, I balance a tray of champagne and try to pretend my entire life doesn’t depend on making it through the next door unnoticed.

Men in expensive tailored suits filling the air with thick cigar smoke crowd the cavernous antechamber. Dim sconces cast pools of amber light, their electric flames barely strong enough to reach the vaulted ceiling, giving the space an even more ominous feel. Heavy wooden doors, reinforced with iron, loom at the far end—just behind them is my prize.

The reason for this insane visit.

A single figure stands at the entrance, half-hidden in shadow, watching the room. He lifts his glass to his lips and a bit of light hits his knuckle where a heavy ring sits. My throat tightens when I recognize the shape. It’s a skull.

Gliding my gaze up from the glass, his gaze locks with mine. It’s only a moment. A fleeting second, but my breath catches. As quickly as he noticed me, his attention flickers away, his jaw tightening as though whatever he’s seeing is annoying him.

I slide behind three men huddled together, muttering to each other in a foreign language before he finds me again. Just as I turn to head back toward the front entrance of the room, a member of the waitstaff—an actual member, not someone posing like myself—breezes by with an ashtray.

I freeze and turn to the left. My heart is hammering so hard against my ribs, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to breathe comfortably again after tonight.

“Ah, I’ll take one of those.” A hand appears out of another huddled group and one of the three glasses on my tray disappears.

“Gentlemen. The auction is set to begin shortly. Please make your way down to the lounge and ready your wallets,” a deep voice carries over the room.

The heavy wooden doors creak as they open, and the men in the room file out, headed toward whatever debauchery this place offers.

Once the room is cleared, I leave my tray on a table and slip through the doors. My nerves settle a fraction now that I’m inside. The information I’d been given could have been complete bullshit. This whole thing could be a setup.

Taking a calming breath and reminding myself of how much I need to get through this, I put my focus on the task at hand.

Like the antechamber, the corridor before me is dimly lit with electric sconces on the thick brick walls. My rubber-soled flats make no sound against the cement flooring as I make my way toward what I hope is the office I’m looking for at the end of the hall.

A light flickers at the end and voices echo against the stone. Flattening myself against the chilled brick, I freeze. There’s nowhere to hide in this corridor.

Dammit. Shoes click, and the voices get a little louder. If I hurry, I might be able to get back into the antechamber before I’m seen. Fear paralyzes me, and I stay flattened against the brick when someone laughs.

“We’re going to be late, and the girl I want is up soon.” Another laugh fades as the footsteps move away from my spot.

They’re headed somewhere else. My lungs start working again.

His words give me pause. The girl he wants is up soon? What does that mean exactly? I glance around my surroundings, knowing I’m in unauthorized territory belonging to the Volkov family. This hallway should lead me to their offices, but there’s something more sinister about this place than just offices.

And what did that man mean by what he said?

Don’t get caught up in the details. Get what you came for and get the hell out.

I need to hurry. The sooner I get this done, the faster I can finally sleep through the night without a panic attack.

I would give almost anything for things to go back to how they were months ago. When I could curl up on the couch with my best friend for a night of bad movies, cheap wine, and takeout instead of lurking around secret mafia clubs, trying to save our lives.

Rushing to the end of the corridor, I find a foyer of sorts that splits off into two more hallways, all lit with the dim light of the sconces, no real markings as to what lies in either direction.

I grit my teeth.

What if my intel is wrong? What if I’m running right into a trap that’s going to make my life even more messed up than it was when I woke up this morning.

Panic kicks my heartbeat into a gallop.

Calm down.

Taking several more calming breaths, I try to remember what the strange man on the phone said. The hall to the… left? Right? Dammit!

Ugh! The right. He said right. Completely unsure of my decision, I turn down the hallway to my right.

The doorknob of the first door I come to is unlocked, so I softly push the arched wooden door until I can slip inside and shut it. It’s dark, but I find the switch for the lights easily on the wall.

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