Page 49 of Power
It's finally over, and I can go home and cry about this hideous experience for the next few weeks. If they think I’m going back to work, they have another fucking thing coming. Ineverwant to see that place again.
“Welcome to Solitaire,” Archer says loudly, in that commanding tone again, which grabs everyone's attention. “Bailey Chase has been brought in to be Alice on our House of Hearts Court, but that isn’t the right role for her.”
“Ha, I knew it!” Trish shouts in triumph from the darkness somewhere in front of me, obscured by the spotlight still shining on me.
“Silence!” Archer thunders.
I take a step back at his tone. It chills me even more than the water dousing.
I gape and hear the hushed murmurs as Archer drops to his knees and takes my hands lightly. “Bailey Chase’s role here is far more important than any of us could’ve imagined. She will be my Queen of Hearts and be coronated by my side in a few weeks' time, where you will all bear witness to the rise of a star in our midst.” He turns my hands over and kisses my palms. Then he stands up and moves in closer. I stiffen, but I’m sandwiched between him and Owen. Archer gives me that panty-melting smile, which is unfortunate for him because I ain’t wearing any right now. I narrow my eyes in fury. But then shiver in a perverse delight when he leans forward and flicks his tongue out at the base of my throat. He draws it slowly and seductively up the side of my neck to my ear before he moves his mouth over and presses his lips lightly against mine.
“Ours,” he murmurs.
“Ours,” Owen says.
“Ours,” Finn repeats softly.
Then, with an arm loosely around my shoulder, Owen leads me from the horrible room, removing me from the awful humiliation and leading me back into the room with the book, which I eye up in disgust.
I feel myself going back into a shutdown. I can’t deal with it. I don’t want to.
ChapterThirty-One
Bailey
I don’t really cometo until the car stops outside a rise-high building. We are still in the city, but the extremely affluent area, I note, when I’m helped stiffly out of the car by Owen. Archer and Finn are keeping their distance, which is probably for the best. They have both hurt me tonight. Owen has been nothing but kind.
“Where are we? I just want to go home.” I try to keep the quiver out of my voice, but it doesn’t happen. I’m in pain, wet, naked, and exhausted, both mentally and physically. I don’t know why I didn’t get my clothes back before we left that hole in the wall. I didn’t even have the capacity to ask where they were. Although my bag seems to have made the journey with us, so that’s something, I suppose.
“You are home,” Archer murmurs, barely audible over the pounding in my head.
I scowl at him, but I don’t have the energy to fight him, or anyone. Owen wraps his arm around me again and leads me into the posh building with the night doorman, who seems to know Archer. I wonder if this is his building and, in his demented state, he thinks I’m now living with him because I joined his cult. It’s not like I had a choice. I keep telling myself this. They were going tokillme if I didn’t. What am I doing here? I glare at Owen and pull away.
Somehow, he knows my thoughts which scares me. “It’s just words, Bailey. If you had refused, you would’ve walked away.”
“Well, thanks for fucking tell me that now that you’ve stripped me naked, drenched me in icy cold water, andmaimedme,” I hiss, my temper firing up.
“We had to leave it so you had no choice,” Archer says. “We wouldn’t have killed you, but someone else would’ve.”
“Fuck’s sake, Arch,” Owen grumbles. “Shut the fuck up.”
I shake him off when he tries to hold me close again but give up in the end. I’m weak and pathetic and have allowed these psychos toinitiateme and bring me home with them.
Way to go, Bails. Way to fucking go.
The only thing I can think of is to get some sleep and plan my escape tomorrow. I just can’t right now. I have nothing left in the tank.
We ascend in an elevator that Archer uses a keycard to get moving, and it opens up directly into a very large, gorgeous penthouse apartment high above the city.
I try not to look impressed, but this is precisely the type of place I’ve dreamed of a million times, me up here in the clouds with all my money and power and influence. Secure andsecure. I never have to worry about being broke again in my fantasy.
“We will have your things packed up tomorrow and brought here,” Archer says, still quietly and soothingly now.
“What things?” I ask absently, going to the windows to stare out over the magnificent view.
“From your apartment,” Owen explains. “This is yours now, Bailey.”
I turn my head sharply, feeling the cuts on my back pull as the blood has dried. “What?”
