Page 13 of Gilded Locks
“What should we call you then?” The long-haired one moved close enough that she could see his eyes. They were the most exotic green she’d ever seen, like pine needles under ice. “We all know you’re name’s not really Mary.”
Did they? Wait. How? That was impossible. Even as Marigold, people sometimes called her Mari. She instinctively reached for her pocket, forgetting for a moment that she’d changed clothes. Shit. Where had she left her documents?
“Lose something?”
Her lips hardened. “I’m Mary. Mary Langford.” She tried not to tremble under their combined scrutiny. “I lost most of my belongings at sea, but my ID was with my clothes. It’s here.”
“Right.” The quiet one said, but his acceptance felt more like an accusation. “And what brings Mary Langford to our little corner of paradise?”
“I told you. The storm?—”
“Drove you to our island specifically?” The blond’s smile could have cut crystal. “How convenient. Tell me, little lamb, how did you even know this place existed?”
The question struck too close to the dangerous truth. “I…I lost control. I nearly capsized. It’s not like I planned this.”
Her stolen invitation still rested in the real Mary’s coat pocket, and if they found it, they would know her story was a lie, but it seemed safer than her original plan, if this was, in fact, the Isles of Kassel and by some miracle she made it to her destination.
“I’m not even sure where I am.” She continued, forcing her expression to remain neutral despite the panic clawing her insides.
“So, you were just out exploring, on a bitterly cold night like last night?”
Of course, they didn’t believe her. “I had no idea anyone lived here,” she said with manufactured lightness, brushing over their suspicions.
The dark-haired man moved to flank her other side. She was fully surrounded. “Exploring? In an ice storm that could have killed you, in designer clothes and heels that cost more than most people earn annually?”
They’d seen her clothes. Did that mean they also saw her paperwork? Her shoes must have washed up on the coast overnight. These men missed nothing, catalogued everything, and stored details like ammunition.
“I wanted to get away,” she said, keeping her lies as near to the truth as possible.
“From?” the quiet one asked with clinical precision.
Marigold’s pulse hammered in her throat hard enough to make her dizzy. They were too close, too observant, and too intelligent. The walls contracted around her, closing her in, making it difficult to breathe.
One foot before the other, Marigold. She pictured her mother’s voice, waiting for the calm to push back her creeping panic. You can do anything you?—
“We asked you a question.”
Her calm receded with the fading memory of her mother’s gentle support as they bore into her with the demanding question. But she was used to being bullied.
“Haven’t you ever wanted a vacation?”
The blond one held a black duffel. “Maybe this will help you cut the bullshit.” He extracted her stolen coat, still sopping wet, and dumped it onto the bed. “You won’t mind if we examine your belongings.”
She lunged forward, attempting to grab the coat, but the dark-haired man caught her wrists in an unbreakable grip. “Not so fast, Goldilocks.”
“Get off of me!”
“Be still.” His narrow stare dropped to her body. The corner of his mouth curved then flattened as he looked at her with those haunting green eyes, as if daring her to try his patience. He clamped her arms in one hand, passing her off to the silent giant. “Hunter, hold her while we look over her things.”
The largest one gripped her wrists behind her back. She jerked forward, but his hold was unbreakable. “You can’t do this!”
His enormous hand tightened until she feared he might crush her bones.
The green-eyed one with long hair laughed. “We can do anything we want, printsessa.” His accent transformed consonants into weapons, Russian heritage evident in every syllable. “This is our house. Our island. Our rules.”
She didn’t know what was worse, the large one’s silence or the other one’s taunting. She looked to the blond for help, but he only crossed his arms over his equally broad chest. Their united front was clear. She was the intruder, and they were the law. She glanced back at the giant holding her, her gaze meeting fathomless black eyes.
She instantly dropped her stare.
