Page 72 of Auctioned Surrender

I shower in a few minutes, get dressed, and then find Ian, who was in the middle of a session when I went to see Layla. He’s talking with his sparring partner but rushes toward me when they finish. “Hi, Dereck.”

“Hi. I heard you got into the competition at the end of the month. Congratulations. That’s a huge accomplishment, Ian.”

His eyes light up with excitement and pride. “Do you think you can make it?” he asks.

“I wouldn’t miss seeing you compete for anything. It was on my calendar the moment I heard you placed,” I tell him. “Will your parents come?”

He shrugs, and the ugliness of his home life casts its shadow over his young features. “I don’t know, but I asked them both.”

“Good. Encourage them now and then, tell them what it would mean to you, and be truthful. That’s all you can do,” I tell Ian, knowing his parents are not supportive or proud of any of his extracurricular activities or much else aside from their addiction.

“I’ll do that,” he says, and I know he will.

“I’ll be back Sunday afternoon for a workout. If you’re around, we can get some sparring time in, a little prep for your competition.”

“Are you kidding? That would be awesome!”

I laugh at his exuberance. “I’ll be here around one and see you then,” I tell him, heading toward the ladies' locker room to pick up Layla.

When I reach the room, she still hasn’t come out. I rap on the door. “Time’s up, princess. I’m sure you look beautiful. I’m hungry,” I say, having worn off the breakfast croissant hours ago, after expending my energy with Layla.

I decide that we should have a little fun while teaching Layla that she should not keep me waiting when I ask her to do something. I smile as my thoughts head south with the idea of giving my little submissive a lesson she won't soon forget and that we’ll both enjoy.

I look down the hall and smile to myself, hoping no one sees me stalking the ladies' shower room. I walk in and make my way around to the sinks and mirrors where I expect to find her primping, but there’s no sign of her—no gym bag, hairdryer, or anything. “Layla?” I call, walking through the dressing and toileting area, glancing into each of the opened stalls with not one sign that she has been here at all.

I call her phone, and it rings and rings and rings, and finally, her voice comes over the line, but it’s her recording telling me to leave a message. I make my way back to the sparring area in case she finished getting ready while I was talking with Ian, already knowing the chances that she finished before I got done talking are highly unlikely.

When I reach the gym, a couple of instructors and two students are left, but there is no sign of Layla. “Did you see a young woman with long dark hair?” I ask, but the tightening in my chest already tells me what I don’t want to accept.

The younger student nods. “I did. She passed me in the hall. She was heading to the front door. I forgot to plug the parking meter, so I went back out to do that and saw her getting on the city bus,” he says, causing my chest to tighten with something that I’m entirely unaccustomed to feeling.

“Thank you, Kenny. If you see her again, get ahold of me,” I tell him, handing him my instructor business card before heading to my car.

I hit the overhead as I back up to get Murph on the line. “I need some help. I’m looking for Layla. She gave me the slip.”

“Seriously, man? How’d that happen?” he jokes, but I’m in no mood.

“It’s a long story.”

“Are you still trying to get more information from her? I thought you had everything you needed about Bryanna. That job’s going as planned,” Murph says.

“No, it’s for personal reasons.” I’ll deal with his jesting if I need to. I know it’s personal, but Layla's information could also give Marenah the intel she needs, and she has a vested interest in this particular case for a variety of reasons.

“She was seen getting on a bus right outside the martial arts center,” I tell Murph, listening to his fingers fly over the keyboard in the background.

“How long ago?” he asks.

I glance at the time on the dash. “I’d guess close to half an hour ago, outside thirty minutes.”

“Got it. Hang on; we’re processing right now.”

I take a deep breath because every single minute that Layla’s out of my sight, she gets farther away, which puts her in risk of doing something dangerous without me to back her up.

I head back to the condo while waiting for Murph. It doesn’t take long. “There were only two buses that stopped outside the center during that time. One was heading west, and one was heading south. I have a list of all the stops and will send them to you shortly. In the meantime, I’ll put a flag on her credit card and see if something pops up and put an alert out to the camera guys monitoring the city cams. Still, without a vehicle or something specific to look for, it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Murph says.

“Thanks, Murph. Let me know if anything comes up, and I’ll do the same.” Layla had bags with her that she didn’t take with her to the gym. All she had with her was her purse and gym bag,and then I remember her car. I call the Prestian Towers and get Ramon on the line.

“Hey, have you seen the lady I was with earlier?” I ask.

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