Page 99 of Ruthless Desires: Vol. Two
Ludo:We’re here. Let us up.
Right.Grabbing one of our key cards, I say, “I’m gonna get Ludo.”
I take the elevator down to where Ludo is waiting on the ground floor. One of his men is with him, dressed in a hotel uniform and pushing a laundry cart.
“You got that together quickly,” I say.
“Best to always be prepared,” Ludo replies, tapping his temple and smirking.
There’s barely room for all three of us in the elevator, but the ride up doesn’t take long. Once I’ve gotten us all inside the penthouse, Ludo sighs at the two men on the floor.
“Recognize them?” Rhett asks.
“No.” Ludo frowns, circling them with his hands in his pockets. Then he grins. “But I’ll be getting to know themverywell soon enough.” Slowly, he crouches down to look one of the men in the eye. “You look like you’re planning on keeping your mouth shut.”
He doesn’t give him a response.
Ludo shrugs, and his grin widens. “No worries. The longer you refuse to talk, the more fun I get to have.”
I turn away to hide my grimace. These two men, most likely, were going to hurt Aubrey in some way. For that, they deserve to be put through hell. But the type of hell Ludo brings… it’s a level of agony that only the lowest scum of the earth should have to suffer through.
Ludo stands. “Where’s Aubrey? And Wren?”
“Bedroom,” I answer. “Didn’t want to be around the blood.”
“Right. I forgot about that.”
Beneath his cool exterior, I imagine Ludo is seething. He’s a master at keeping his emotions under wraps, but I’ve been watching the man for long enough to at least somewhat understand him. Coming after his fiancée like this was a major act of disrespect—one he won’t take lightly.
Ludo looks over the three of us. “You’ve earned my trust, so I don’t suspect any of you.” Gesturing to the men on the ground, he adds, “Obviously.”
Oliver narrows his eyes. “But?”
“Very few people knew where we’d be this week.” Ludo’s voice is reserved, as if he’s lost in thought. “If someone knew where to find us, that means I’ve got a rat. And rats… they get the worst punishment of all.”
My mind immediately goes to Andrew. Somehow, he’s caught up in all of this. If he’s connected to the rat—or he’s stupid enough tobethe rat—then he’s in deep trouble.
It can’t be him. That just doesn’t make sense.
I don’t look at Rhett. Can’t. I’m not sure how long he’ll be able to keep his composure for, so the best thing I can do is keep Ludo distracted.
“Do you need us to keep an eye on Aubrey while you deal with them?” I nod to the laundry cart.
“That would be helpful.” Ludo sighs. “And then we’ll need to get packed up and leave. I can’t deal with these two properly until I’m home, and I’m not moving forward with any business until I know who among us is a traitor.”
“Of course. Just text me when you’re ready for us to bring Aubrey to the condo.”
Ludo uses some kind of sedative on the guys before we load them into the cart. Thankfully there are plenty of sheets already in it to cover them up with.
Once they’re gone, we rush to clean up the blood. We need to finish our conversation with Aubrey before she leaves.
“We’ll have to get the proper chemicals to get it completely off,” I say as I scrub my hands clean. “But it’ll do for now. I’m not sure how long we have until Ludo texts us.”
Since the coppery smell still lingers in the air, we decide to finish talking outside. Rhett can’t stop pacing.
“You said you could give us information,” Rhett says to Aubrey. “Up until you leave, correct? Which you’re doing the night of the wedding?”
“Correct,” Aubrey replies. “But I need to know—are you planning on stripping Ludo of his power? Because if you do that…”
