My mind kept drifting back to my blackmailer. Sadist. Whatever the hell he was. I’d only been playing his game for a week, and I was already losing… bad. So far, he’d seen my every play before I even made it. Knew my motives for wanting to touch him. For wearing awful clothing to meet him. He could even see that some sick and depraved part of me liked the things he was doing to me. I needed to gain back my control, and I needed to do it fast.
Six months wasn’t a life sentence by any means, but every day that passed by on the calendar still felt like too much. I couldn’t stop imagining Brayden sitting in his cell, depressed and alone.
Now that there was finally a light at the end of the tunnel, six months may as well have been an eternity. But if there was something I could do to speed the process up, then by all means I would do it. So I thought about bartering chips, of which it turned out I had none. Or at least that’s what I thought. But then my big head got this idea in it. This crazy idea that if I could convince my captor that I was truly invested in our time together, that perhaps he would be lenient.
It wasn’t a great plan if I was being honest. Brayden always told me I was the worst liar ever. He said I was too nice to be convincing, and the guilt always showed on my face. It was true.
But what did I have to be guilty for in this situation? I’d done nothing wrong. And after seeing the evidence, I realized Brayden hadn’t either. So who was the real monster here?
There was something my blackmailer said that rang true. My bloodline was tainted with darkness. And yet my whole life, I’d let everybody push me around. Always worried about offending them. Of letting them think I was like Norma. Or even worse, Frankie.
But maybe in this game, I needed to be more like them for a change. I needed to channel the darkness that ran through my veins and embrace it. To play this game better than this man ever could have predicted. After all, I’d only been with him twice, and already I could see his weakness.
His weakness was me.
Chapter Ten
When lunch time rolled around, I stopped by Nicole’s office to see if she wanted to grab a bite with me. She’d been distant the last few days, and I wanted to make sure I wasn’t overstaying my welcome in her apartment. We’d agreed I could stay for a couple months until I found my own place, but maybe that had changed. Either way, whatever was bothering her, I wanted her to know she could talk to me.
As I was about to duck into her office, I saw she was on the phone. The door was cracked and she couldn’t see me. I wasn’t sure if I should wait or go on in, but as her words drifted into the hallway, I couldn’t help but listen.
“It wasn’t supposed to be this way,” she hissed. “You never told me how far you were going to go.”
She clamped her mouth shut and rubbed her temples as she listened to the voice on the other end of the line.
“Of course I want that, but it doesn’t feel the way I thought it would. I know he wouldn’t have wanted this…”
Her words drifted off as a strong pair of hands gripped my shoulders from behind and I let out a squeal of surprise.
“Eavesdropping, are we?”
I spun around and smacked Matt in the chest, embarrassed I’d been caught out. I gestured to the break room and we started walking.
“I’m worried about Nicole,” I said defensively.
Matt frowned and shook his head. “It’s you I’m worried about.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Just that you’re a lamb amongst wolves here, and I think you need to be careful who you associate with.”
“Is there something you think I should know Matt?”
Stacey chose that moment to walk into the break room, eyeing us both accusingly.
“I need to get back to work,” Matt said gruffly. “I’ll see you around, Brighton.”
***
“You’re going to be away the whole weekend?” Nicole frowned.
“Yep.” I mustered up my best fake smile. “But before I go, I wanted to talk to you.”
“About what?” she pulled a coconut water from the fridge and perched on the bar stool across from me.
“I wanted to ask if there was anything bothering you,” I said. “Or if I’m overstaying my welcome.”
Hurt flashed through her eyes and she shook her head. “Of course not, Brighton. I love having you here. This apartment is too big for me anyway, so I’d like it if you’d consider staying here. There’s no need for you to find your own place unless you really want to.”
“Of course I’d like to stay,” I said. “But I wanted to make sure I wasn’t doing anything to upset you. You’ve seemed a little off lately.”
“Oh.” She pouted her lips. “It’s nothing to do with you, I swear. Just work stuff.”
“Does it have anything to do with Ryland?”
She jerked her eyes towards mine in surprise. “Why would you ask that?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “I noticed he calls you a lot outside of work.”
Nicole let out a shaky laugh. “Oh, it’s nothing like that. We just have a ton of projects we’re working on at the moment.”
“Okay.” I nodded. “Well, I better get going.”
Nicole gave me a weak smile before I walked out the door. Time to see what I was made of.
Chapter Eleven
When I stepped into the hotel room, I had to cover my mouth to keep from screaming. A strange man sat at the table, his hands folded across his lap as he read from a newspaper. I had no idea who he was, but when he glanced at me, I knew he wasn’t my blackmailer. He was older, with fuzzy wisps of white hair and a wiry frame. He had to have been in his sixties, and judging by his pale blue eyes, he was no threat to me.
“Sorry to scare you, Miss Valentine.” He stood up and smoothed out his black suit. “My name is Ted, and I’m here to drive you.”
“Drive me where?”
“My boss informed me that you are to stay the weekend with him.” He crinkled his brows together. “He said it was already arranged between you two, and you would understand.”
“Oh.”
Of course I understood what he meant. Either I went with this strange man to an unknown destination, or Brayden’s evidence would disappear.
This was our agreement, but the thought of being somewhere else out of my control was a bit daunting. At least in the hotel, I could scream if I needed to. But at the end of the day, what choice did I have? If I wanted to see Brayden released, this is what I had to do. I’d spent the entire day trying to figure out how to gain my blackmailer’s trust, and I wasn’t about to back down now.
“Alright,” I relented. “I guess I’m ready then.”
I walked towards the door, and Ted followed, rushing to open it for me. We stepped into the elevator and silence engulfed us. I caught him giving me a curious look, and I shifted uncomfortably. I wondered how often he did this sort of thing for his employer, or what exactly he knew of our agreement.
He was all business as he escorted me through the parking garage to a shiny black car. Belatedly, I tried to get a glimpse at the license plate but Ted caught me. He opened the door and cleared his throat, holding out a simple black blindfold in his hand.
“My employer said you understood this is required as well.”
Ted looked more uncomfortable with the idea than I was as I reached out and took the material. If only I’d had the courage to look into my blackmailer’s eyes that first day, I wouldn’t have to keep up these childish pretenses. I wanted to know who this man was. I wanted to know everything about him. And I wasn’t entirely sure anymore if it was because of what he was doing, or the warring feelings inside of me.
I sat down on the soft leather seat and buckled myself in before placing the fabric over my eyes. Only once it was secured did Ted begin to drive.
It was stupid, but the temptation to pry information out of him was too strong. Ted looked harmless, but would he tell on me if I said something I wasn’t supposed to?
I took a chance and hoped for the best.
“So you know about the game then?” I asked.
Ted didn’t reply right away. He cleared his throat and answered me in a soft voice.
“I’m sorry, Miss. I’m not certain I know what you’re talking about.”
“Your employer,” I clarified. “You’re aware of our agreement?”
“I’m really not supposed to be talking to you…” he said. “He requested that I didn’t. I’m sorry, ma’am.”
A hollow laugh echoed from my chest as I sank back against the seat and crossed my arms. So much for that idea.
The car filled with silence again, and I thought that was going to be the end of it. So I was surprised when Ted spoke again a few minutes later.
“I don’t know about my employer’s proclivities,” he stated. “Nor do I want to. I’ve known him since he was a boy, and I trust his judgement in all matters. He’s a good man.”
His words were defensive, which showed me he cared for my blackmailer. It was an unexpected development, and I wasn’t quite sure how to handle it.
I tapped my finger against my thigh while we drove, wishing we’d get there soon. But Ted wasn’t done yet. For someone who wasn’t supposed to talk to me, he had a lot to say.