Page 29 of Corrupted Union

I smiled broadly. “Hey, Mr. Wellington!”

“Rowan, I didn’t realize you were here.”

“Yeah, sorry about that. I just stopped in to leave a note for Stetson since I couldn’t make it to his game.” I took a couple of casual steps downward, desperately trying to control my breathing so I didn’t sound winded.

“That’s very thoughtful of you,” he said without any real feeling.

“I was in the area helping Mom anyway, so it wasn’t a big deal. Hope you don’t mind.” I flashed him another grin, this one dripping with beguiling innocence, though the mask almost cracked when my eyes cut briefly to the scarred man. His eviscerating stare cut straight through me.

“Not at all,” Wellington said.

“I’ll just get out of your way and head back to my parents’.” I seized the courage to rush past them. “Sorry again to interrupt.”

“Tell your father hello from me,” he said in an even, chilling tone.

“Sure thing,” I called out without turning around. I couldn’t because fear had drained the blood from my face. Had that been a threat? Would Lawrence Wellington hurt my father to keep me silent? Was I just being paranoid?

I pictured the poor girl shackled upstairs and knew that every fear where he was concerned was reasonable. The man was an evil monster, and I’d just put myself square in his sights.

* * *

I never madea conscious decision to go in search of Keir, but that was where my feet took me. I texted him and called but got no answer. Giving up wasn’t an option. I had to find him.

The afternoon sun had descended enough to streak the sky with hints of tangerine by the time I walked up to the entrance at Moxy. This time, I didn’t pause before pulling open the door and marching inside. I came face-to-face with a behemoth of a man working the entrance.

“I’m looking for Keir.” Please, please don’t be difficult.

“Boss ain’t here,” he said without hesitation. He was telling the truth.

I swallowed back the bitter taste of disappointment. “Can you tell me where he is? I tried to call him, but he isn’t answering.”

The man smirked. “Maybe that means you should take a hint?”

“I’ll just wait, then,” I bit out, folding my arms over my chest to indicate I wasn’t going anywhere.

He glanced back into the club. “That’s not a bad idea, now that you mention it. You were pretty fuckin’ hot up there. Maybe while you wait, you can show us what else you can do.” He rolled a piece of gum from one side of his mouth to the other with a lascivious grin.

I refused to react to his goading.

“Look, princess. You can’t stand there all fuckin’ night.”

“I’m happy to leave. Just tell me where I can find your boss, and I’ll be out of here.”

He took two intimidating steps forward. “Or, I can just pick that skinny ass up and toss you out onto the street.” He’d donned his professional bouncer demeanor, which was admittedly unsettling.

“Listen, I really,reallyneed to talk to Keir. This is urgent. And I told you—"

“There a problem here?” The scowling man who’d been working at the front the last time I was at the club joined us by the door. I tried to recall his name—Thor or Tor—that was it, Torin.

“Chick wants to see the boss, but he ain’t here,” the bouncer eloquently explained.

“Keir and I are working on something, and there’s been an urgent development. I need to talk to him. My name’s Rowan.”

“I know who you are, Rowan.”

Relief collided with worry because I couldn’t tell if knowing me was a good thing or not. “Can you help me? It’s incredibly important.”

He studied me like a wolf might warily assess food suspiciously left in the open. “Yeah,” he eventually muttered. “Asshole left his phone in his office. Need to take it to him anyway. Come on.”

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