Page 15 of Loki
After a few minutes of watching the crowd’s enthusiastic cheers and leering gazes, his focus shifted towards me.
“Follow me.”
He didn’t question whether or not I’d follow because by now I knew to follow directions or face the consequences.
He spun around and exited the expansive space with us and two of his goons following behind us. We navigated through the crowd of people, stopping every few moments for Owen Decker to speak to his guests, then down a narrow corridor, until he halted in front of a large door adorned with an intricately carved head of what looked like a demon and a relief of a man and a woman having sex positioned under it.
It was a perfect description of him and definitely what he was into.
The door creaked open under his firm push, and without a second thought, I followed behind him with Lila’s hand inmine. It had become like second nature to just follow orders. Something I loathed but something that was also necessary because it wasn’t the time to resist.
At least, not yet.
Lila had refused to leave my side. The only time we’d been separated was if I got pulled out of the cage to watch the other women’s abuse as a reminder to stay in my place. Tonight was the first time I’d seen her step foot outside the cage. Now I knew it was so he could preserve as much of her innocence so it could be destroyed by whoever purchased her.
“Have a seat.”
He motioned to the two brown leather armchairs sitting in front of a large wood desk. On the front it also had a woman and man having sex intricately carved into the wood underneath the head of a demon.
Sitting in the chair, I could feel the cool smooth leather against my skin, while he effortlessly slid into the chair behind his desk.
“So,” he said, steepling his hands, “I was eager to meet the woman who believed she could bring me down before she’s sold to the highest bidder. Ms. Honoré welcome to my world.”
The humor in his voice reached my ears, causing a mix of fear and anger to churn in my stomach. He thought the pain he inflicted on me, and these women was a joke, but once I escaped, I’d make him pay for every ounce of suffering we endured.
“How did you find out about me?”
He glanced at me for a moment, and a subtle smile curved at the edges of his lips. “Did you really think you could keep this kind of story a secret especially when you love pillow talk?”
In disbelief, he shook his head, unable to comprehend how I could have been so naïve. I can’t believe I trusted anybody enough to keep my secret.
“You really think you could keep the story of the century a secret?”
Motherfucker!
“How do you know Dylan?”
His booming laughter echoed through the room, causing Lila to jump in surprise. I reached out and squeezed her hand, hoping to provide some solace in the midst of this fucked up situation.
“Does it really matter?” he asked with his brow arched. “There’s nothing you can do about it, anyway.”
“Somebody’s looking for me,” I said, even though I didn’t know if that were true. Despite telling my friends to give me a week before worrying, I couldn’t be certain if enough time had actually passed. The days and nights blended together in this wretched place, but perhaps pretending that someone was searching for me would buy me some time. “I have some very powerful friends.”
He shrugged, his shoulders rising and falling with indifference. “None as powerful as me. I’m not worried, Ms. Honoré.” Rising from his chair, he made his way to the front of his desk and stood in front of us. “No one will ever take me down especially not someone like you. I’ve got big things planned for both of you.”
“Why me?” Lila asked, her voice barely above a whisper. “I trusted you. You were supposed to make a difference in the world.”
His face contorted into a sleazy grin, oozing with narcissism. “Let this be a lesson to you, young lady. It isn’t smart to trust anyone especially a rich and powerful man such as myself. Us politicians can be some of the worst.”
As I locked eyes with pure evil, a shiver ran down my spine. “You’re a fucking monster.”
His eyes widened for a moment, then narrowed. The disbelief on his face made a surge of pride move through me. Nobody had probably ever spoken to him like that. And they had taken somuch of my power, it felt good to get that off my chest. Despite what he might do to me, I wanted him to know how I felt about him.
He rose from where he sat on the edge of his desk and sauntered towards me. When he stood directly in front of me, he grabbed me by my hair, yanking me out of the chair, causing me to scream out in pain. He grabbed my jaw with his other hand, forcing me to look at him while never letting go of my hair.
“If you ever speak to me like that again, I will personally show you how much of a monster I can be.”
He licked up the side of my face, then placed a kiss on my cheek. “As a matter of fact, I may just keep you for myself just for the hell of it. Would you like that, Nikki? Isn’t that what your friends call you?”
