Page 99 of Mad Love

“You’d have no clue where you were or where you were going.” His voice roughened. “And if someone other than me found you wandering around down here, you’d be in deep shit. The secrets buried in here could decimate democracies and upend the fucking world.”

I scoffed. “And yet all I spotted were two guards.”

He bared his teeth. “Every single person who works here is a guard.”

I blinked at him.

He gave an amused snort. “From the bartenders to the dancers to the waitresses. Every single person who works here is trained to kill a man a dozen ways with their bare hands. There are weapons hidden everywhere around here.”

“Shit.” I bit down on my lower lip.

He arched his brow. “Why do you think we’re in the middle of the fucking desert? It’s the perfect spot for a fucking graveyard. Pandora sits in the middle of a hundred acres of desolate, barren nothing. It’s monitored by the best security systems known to man and guarded by people who make the secret service look like amateurs.”

I could barely breathe as I watched him and the gravity of where I was finally settled on my shoulders. A chill swept my skin, leaving goosebumps in its wake.

He turned to me fully. “The vault levels were originally a bomb shelter that was expanded on. The world could explode in a nuclear war and this place wouldn’t ever be touched. You’re three hundred feet below street level, insulated by ten-foot-deep layers of steel, concrete, and tungsten. And even then? There’s a six-inch layer of graphene surrounding the vaults, which are on more levels than you can imagine.”

My breath whooshed out of me.

“Yeah. You aren’t getting in, and you’ll die trying,” he confirmed.

Sullen, I leaned against the wall as we continued our ascent. “Six inches doesn’t seem like much.”

He laughed softly. “Graphene is stronger than diamonds and can be stretched. Trust me, six inches is enough if you know how to use it.”

“Speaking from experience?” I quipped, my stress bleeding out in the form of being a smart-ass.

The amusement in his eyes died. “I’d say ask your sister, but…”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh,” he echoed.

We finished the rest of the trip in silence, and when the doors opened, it was to a small space with two doors where Nancy waited with my phone.

“Here you go,” she said, handing it to me with a smile. Her gaze moved to Jake. “Victor said—”

“Vic can go fuck himself,” Jake growled, ending her comment and sending her brows shooting up.

She sucked on her teeth. “Your funeral, babe.” Then she turned and walked away, disappearing behind a door at the end.

Turning to me, Jake raked a hand through his messy hair. “Car’s waiting out back. It’ll take you straight to your hotel.”

“How do you know what hotel I’m at?” That was a little unnerving.

“Because Pandora, contrary to the name, doesn’t like secrets.”

My nose wrinkled. “Pandora’s a strip club and whatever those vaults are. You make it sound like it’s a person.”

“Nah. People you can kill. Pandora never dies.” He winked at me and jerked his chin at the phone in my hand. “I programmed my number into that. You need something—anything—call me. I’ll do whatever I can. For Laine.”

“Thank you,” I murmured, my fingers tightening around the device.

“Take care, Madison,” he murmured, watching as I slipped out the back door and into the car he’d arranged. Once we started driving away, I texted Ryan to let him know I was safe and on my way to the hotel. He replied back instantly that he was on his way to meet me. Then I settled back against the seat and tried to keep my head from exploding from all the revelations of the night.

The drive back was quiet, the driver not bothering to speak or play the radio. I let the thoughts tumble in my mind like a broken dryer that wouldn’t stop.

I beat the guys back to the hotel room. While I waited, I scrubbed the makeup off my face and slipped into one of Ryan’s t-shirts and a pair of yoga pants before tucking myself into a corner of the massive sectional sofa across from the gorgeous lights of the city below. In my fist, I clutched Madelaine’s message, unwilling to let it go just yet.

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