Page 26 of Betrayal (Corrupt Empire 1)

Chapter Six

Aiden

I’d broken her without even really trying. Keeping her in that cell had done the work for me. I hadn’t realised when I’d left to go deal with what Chuck wanted, she’d completely lose her mind. Hallucinating her own father’s death all over again. Shit. That would fuck anyone up, especially what she’d imagined he’d said to her.

Her father was right. I wouldn’t save her. I planned on ruining her entirely. Yet, here and now, I just held her because she needed me. She’d said it herself.

I didn’t like seeing her like this. Scared. Terrified. This wasn’t the girl who challenged me and told me to go to hell.

“Are you hungry?” I asked her.

“Yes.”

She looked up at me, her eyes still wet with tears. Fucking doe eyes. I couldn’t resist them. And a part of me didn’t even want to.

“Come on, you can have a shower and I’ll make dinner, okay?”

She nodded, pulling away from me. I shifted, pulling the keys out of my pocket and unlocked her ankle manacle. I took her hand and led her into the bathroom.

I could clean up her cell later when I’d put her to bed. The thought of having her in my bed did things to me, but I was pretty sure if I left her alone for too long, she’d freak out again. I couldn’t have that. Pushing her further wouldn’t get me anywhere.

“Are you going to be okay in here without me?”

“Just leave the door open,” she replied.

I nodded, walking out and away into the kitchen. I pulled out a bunch of stuff from the fridge and cupboards. Avery wasn’t picky, which made things easier.

As I chopped vegetables, my mind wandered back to when I’d seen Chuck earlier. I’d gone to his office after he called me last night to say he had things for me to take care of. I’d heard from him a couple of times over the past three weeks.

The police had released details of Mitchell and Kathleen’s deaths and Avery’s disappearance to the press. They had no leads and no clue where to start when it came to finding Chuck’s niece.

There was nothing but speculation all over the internet. Some people said she might be ransomed. Some people thought she’d killed her own parents and others that she’d run away. Stupid really.

It was just as well I’d kept her away from all of this. She didn’t need to read that shit about herself. Especially not now when she was in such a fragile state. The one I was about to exploit for my own benefit.

Chuck had been sitting behind his desk when I walked in. He looked like Mitchell except younger with lighter hair. There was a strong resemblance between him and Avery.

“Thank fuck,” he said, looking up at me. “It’s been crazy around here for weeks. No one knows how to deal with Mitch being gone.”

I nodded, sitting down on a chair in front of him. Chaos was exactly what I wanted.

“I’ve got some leads I need following up.”

“Leads…?”

“Well, people who haven’t been paying their way to be exact.”

“I see.”

“Business can’t just come to a standstill. The board is looking after the company until Avery is found and I’m stuck dealing with the other side of things as usual.”

The other side being their underhanded dealings. There were many sides to Daniels Holdings. So many sides the public didn’t see. The fact that anyone thought they were a reputable property business was testament to their ability to keep secrets and silence anyone who threatened to talk. It helped that they had so many powerful people in their pockets.

Shaw Associates dealt with the legal side of their property business. A shit hot solicitors firm run by Frazier Shaw, Mitchell’s best friend and the man who made sure none of their dirty secrets came to light. That fucker needed to be torn down too. Him and his snivelling little son, Tristan.

Fucking prick was about as stuck up as a little rich boy could get. He was sick in the head. Worst of all, they had always intended for him to marry Avery so he could run the business by her side. Made me sick to think of Tristan touching her. No one was allowed to touch her except me. No other man would ever get close enough to Avery again. I wasn’t going to sleep with her, but she was still mine. I ignored the voice in my head telling me it was idiotic to believe I wouldn’t give in to temptation and bury my cock deep inside her tight pussy.

“So, you need me to shake down some doors.”

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