Deception, p.22
Deception, page 22
Someone pounds on the door behind us and I shriek.
“Scout,” a deep voice growls. “Open this door.”
“No can do, Sparrow,” Scout calls out, grinning at me. “Me and the lady are having a discussion.”
Sparrow. I had sex with Sparrow in his car. Chevy.
“Chevy, please,” I croak out, begging the other man to help me.
Scout shakes his head at me. Sparrow slams another fist on the door making me jump.
“Open the goddamn door. I won’t ask twice,” Sparrow warns.
“Or what?” Scout taunts. “You’ll huff and you’ll puff and then blow the door in?” He laughs. “This door is solid. You’re not getting through.”
Sparrow slams another fist against the wood. “Fuck!”
His heavy footsteps thud away, leaving me alone with this crazy person.
“I can’t…I can’t…” I try to suck in air, clawing at my throat and wondering why I can’t breathe.
The room spins and darkens. With each unsuccessful attempt to bring air into my lungs, I grow dizzier and more lightheaded than before.
Help me. Somebody help me.
Tears continue to stream down my cheeks, but air is still difficult to obtain. A blanket of inky darkness covers my line of vision, blinding me to everything. My feet move but not on my own accord. He’s picking me up, I think. The world goes completely black and soundless.
Everything blurs into focus again, though I’m unsure how long I was unaware and out. I’m now on a bed that smells smoky, like I’m lying atop the devil’s favorite blanket. Cool air kisses my thighs, jump-starting my heart.
“W-what are you d-doing?” I croak out, frantic eyes meeting his.
“Undressing you.”
“N-no!”
“That word doesn’t work here.” He flashes me a sinister grin before divesting me of my jeans completely. “Remember, you promised not to scream.”
He goes for my panties next. I may have promised not to scream, but I didn’t say anything about not fighting. With as much force as I can manage, I kick at him, hitting him in the center of his chest. If I hurt him, he doesn’t flinch. Only smiles. Creepy and indicative of what’s to come.
“The more you struggle, the more I enjoy this.”
I shouldn’t give him what he wants, but I also can’t sit still while he strips me. I’m able to claw his face pretty good, earning a vicious snarl. That’s it. Too easily, he rips away the last of my clothing, leaving me naked and exposed.
“You can walk or I can carry you. Your choice,” he rumbles, nearly black eyes boring into me. “Decide or I’m going to decide for you.”
Sparrow must be back because the pounding on the door continues. Scout acts as though he doesn’t hear it.
“Make your choice,” Scout murmurs. “Three, two…”
I don’t know where he expects me to go but I’d rather walk naked than have him carry me. Shakily, I sit up as he counts to one and scoot to the end of the bed. It’s a futile attempt, but I try to cover my breasts with my arm and between my thighs with my other hand. It leaves my ass on display, but that’s better than nothing.
His starved gaze sweeps over my flesh and he smirks at my hand covering my pussy. “Walk. Into the bathroom.”
I’m not eager about having him at my back, but I don’t have any other option. Turning from him, I wobble on my way to the bathroom. Inside, the bathtub is filled with bubbles, smelling of lavender.
The pounding on his bedroom door is muffled now.
“What’s this?” I demand.
“You’re not sleeping in my bed smelling like a street rat.”
Sleeping in his bed?
Another fresh wave of panic hits my bloodstream.
“Get in.” He motions for the bath. “Now.”
I can’t move. My feet remain planted on the tile floor, sore and aching from my long trek. His warm palms on my hips, though, have me skittering from his touch. I nearly faceplant in my attempt to escape him. The second the hot water touches my sore foot, I cry out. Not from pain. It actually feels really good.
Sinking down into the hot water, I gladly hide beneath the suds to avoid his probing stare. I draw my knees to my chest, hugging them to me and rest my chin on top of them.
“Better?”
My eyes cut over to him and I glare at him. “Fuck you.”
His chuckle is deep and wicked. “Filthy mouth, filthy girl.”
Ignoring him, I try to make sense of my situation. How I got here. What will happen to me and Della. The events of tonight keep piling up.
Is Dad alive or did I kill him?
If he’s alive…
For a split second, I’m thankful we escaped him. I can pretend we’re at Ty’s, safe and protected, not in the lion’s den.
“Why are you doing this?” My voice comes out as a quaky whisper. “Why, Scout?”
“Because I can.” He prowls over to the tub and sits on the edge. “You’re my prize—our prize.”
He’s not making any sense, but now that he’s talking, I don’t want him to stop. I need answers. I need to figure out how in the hell I’m going to get out of here.
“I want my sister.”
“Your sister is sleeping. Don’t worry. She’s with the softy.”
These three men tricked me into a false sense of security, kissed me, were intimate with me, and I’m supposed to not worry. Right.
“I don’t understand,” I admit, my bottom lip trembling. “Why me? Why us?”
“You were a job, prickly princess.”
“A job.” My blood cools at his admission. “What exactly was your job?”
“A little bit of this. A little bit of that.”
“Seriously? These answers are pathetic,” I say with false bravado. “You’re pathetic.”
“Oooh, kitty has claws.”
I want to rip his eyeballs out.
“What am I to you now?” I demand instead.
“You’re ours. For a job well done.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, chasing more hot tears down my cheeks. The water soothes my sore feet and achy muscles, but it does nothing for the anxiety clawing at me and shredding my mind.
“We did you a favor,” he murmurs, his fingers tracing down over my spine.
Shuddering at his touch, I jerk away from him and move to the other side of the tub.
“A favor?” I demand in a shrill tone. “Are you insane?”
“So they say. Sully thinks it. Sparrow says it.”
“I want to talk to him,” I say, lifting my chin. “Sparrow.”
He studies me for a beat, gaze roaming over every tearstained inch of my cheeks before he settles it on my lips. “No.”
“Why not?” I shake my head in confusion. “You just said I was a prize for all of you.”
Sully and I kissed. Several times. He was so good with Della.
“I didn’t say not ever. But the answer is not now.” He cracks his neck and then stands, his dark-clothed body looming over me like a thundercloud. “It’s my turn. They’ll have theirs.”
He reaches behind his neck and tugs at his black shirt. Tattooed, muscled flesh on his abdomen is slowly revealed as he removes the material. The artwork painted on his skin is beautiful—he’s beautiful—but it’s nothing more than a trap to lure in his victims. His hand goes to the button of his black jeans.
“W-what are you doing?” I attempt to make myself as small as I can, pressing against the side of the tub. “Stay away from me.”
He ignores me, shoving his jeans down his thighs. Black boxer briefs are molded to his thick erection that strains against the material. He’s hard. For me. For this sick situation we’re in.
I want to run but my options are limited. I’m naked and outnumbered. Not to mention, my sister is here somewhere in this apartment. I need to think. Plot an escape. Running and fighting against any of them is pointless since they’re all much bigger and stronger than me.
This is going to take more than physical strength.
Think, Landry. Outsmart the monsters.
Hell, I had enough practice with Dad over the years. I’m a master at pretend. These men think they can keep me as some fucked-up prize. I’m no one’s prize, and neither is my sister.
He flings his boxers away. I keep my eyes focused on the edge of the tub. The bubbly water rises with each footstep and then dangerously reaches the top edge as he settles his weight into the water.
“Come closer,” he orders, like one would call a dog. “Now.”
I meet his stare, pouring every ounce of hatred I can into it. If my eyes were a weapon, he’d be slaughtered, burned to a crisp, shredded beyond recognition. His lips curl into a devilish grin. It’s not an amused one. More like he’s smiling at the idea of tearing my throat out with his teeth. Certain death.
Shivering under the chill of his attention, I hug my legs to me tighter. My attempt to ignore him doesn’t work because he grabs hold of me and drags me between his legs. I’m unable to resist as he physically pries my arms loose from my legs.
“Relax,” he murmurs against my ear. “Relax or I’ll be forced to make you.”
I’m not sure what that entails, but I’d rather have full control of myself. It takes several deep, ragged breaths until I manage to calm down enough to straighten out my legs. His chest is warm against my back and his cock is throbbing between us.
Is he going to make me have sex with him?
The thought of being forced into it nearly makes me nauseous. If I fight, it’ll hurt. If I scream, Della might get hurt. I’ll have to take it.
“You remind me a lot of her,” Scout murmurs, stroking my stomach beneath the water. “Not in looks or anything. It’s the fire in your eyes. I crave to snuff it out.”
Psychopath.
“They didn’t like Ash like I liked her. They weren’t obsessed.” He drags his fingers up, tracing beneath my breast. “You, on the other hand. You are very special, Landry.”
“So this is what you three do? Find some poor girl, trick her, and then share her?” I sneer at him. “You guys are royally fucked up.”
“We’ll have a family meeting soon to discuss your fate,” he assures me, his voice dipping a few octaves, “and then the fun can begin.”
Chapter Two
Sully
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
I pace my bedroom, unable to tear my gaze from Della’s sleeping form buried under the comforter on my bed. She’s going to freak the fuck out when she wakes up, especially when her sister is nowhere to be found.
Fucking Scout.
I’m going to kill my brother. Sure, there have been times when I’ve wanted to beat the hell out of him, but tonight I actually want to get my hands around his throat and choke him.
That’s not going to happen.
Because Sparrow and I let him take her to his room. He’s in there doing God only knows what. We let him. We fucking let him.
Though, from the sounds of it, Sparrow quickly came to his senses because he’s been trying to beat down the damn door ever since. I’m kind of glad Della is deaf in this situation because she won’t hear anything that’s being said. And even though I didn’t stop Scout right away, because I wanted to protect Della from the scene, doesn’t mean I’m not going to.
Once I’m sure Della isn’t going to wake, I slip out of my room and make my way to Sparrow’s. He’s not in there and Scout’s door is closed. Landry hasn’t been screaming but that doesn’t mean anything. Knowing Scout, he probably gagged her.
Or knocked her out.
The thought of him hitting her ignites the blood in my veins making every inch of me fiery hot with fury. I nearly slam into Sparrow when he rounds the corner, a big-ass screwdriver in his fist. His nostrils flare and every vein in his neck bulges.
“Move,” he barks out. “I can’t believe he fucked everything up again.”
“No, he hasn’t already done it. He’s presently fucking everything up.” I rub my palm over my face. “We have to get in that door.”
Sparrow’s eyes darken. “I’m working on it.”
I follow him over to Scout’s door, listening for any sounds of terror. It’s quiet.
“What does he plan to do with her?” I ask, frowning as Sparrow jabs the flat end of the screwdriver into the doorjamb.
“Fuck if I know.” He grunts and his bicep flexes as he tries to jimmy the screwdriver in between the wood. “We have to get her out of there.”
“We can try, but have you met our brother? He doesn’t like when we take his things away from him.”
“He’ll get the fuck over it.”
“Accosting Landry is one thing, but man, we have a fucking kid asleep in my bedroom. Do you know how bad this is going to get?” I start pacing the floor in the hallway, popping my knuckles over and over. “This is worse than Ash. This is kidnapping a child plus whatever fucked-up shit he’s doing to Landry right now.”
“She’s not screaming.” Sparrow grunts. “I hope that means he hasn’t done anything stupid yet.”
“He better not be fucking her.” My stomach turns at that idea.
“I’ll kill him if he raped her. So help me, Sully.”
It’s too quiet. I think if he were hurting her, we’d hear it. Even if he was somehow getting her to have sex with him willingly, I think we’d hear something. Dread coils in my gut like a poisonous snake.
“The water was running,” Sparrow mutters. “I think he filled up the tub.”
The wood cracks and groans, but the door doesn’t open.
Unable to keep my cool any longer, I start banging on the wall beside the door, hard, so he knows I’m not fucking playing. “Let us in, asshole!”
“Give us fifteen minutes,” Scout calls out. “Then we’ll have a family meeting in the living room.”
“Scout,” I growl, the tone in my voice saying everything I don’t.
You better not hurt her.
His laughter resounds from beyond the door. “Don’t worry, guys. We’ll be out soon and then you can check with your very own eyes to make sure she’s unharmed.”
Even though he’s being a dick, I can tell he’s not lying. He hasn’t hurt her. Yet. With Scout, there’s always the promise of future danger.
“Make it five,” I snap. “We’re talking about this now.”
Scout will hurt her. It’s only a matter of time. We can’t let that happen. Not after everything she’s been through with her father.
Sparrow gets pissed and throws the screwdriver down the hallway. It pierces the sheetrock. He starts kicking the door as though that will work. It doesn’t. Eventually, he gets pissed and storms off. I follow him with a sigh, hoping Scout is honoring his word. But five minutes is all he gets before I let Sparrow start hacking at the wall to get in his room.
Several long minutes later, the sound of a door opening in the hallway has me stiffening. I can hear feet padding our way. First, Landry appears, her bare legs red from most likely a hot bath. She’s wearing one of Scout’s black T-shirts that nearly swallows her whole. Her eyes are bloodshot from crying and her golden-blond hair is wet at the ends. She hugs her middle, shying away from Scout as he approaches from behind in nothing but a pair of low-slung gray sweats.
“Sit,” Scout commands. “Either with me or with one of them. But you will sit.”
Her face burns crimson. I can’t tell if she’s terrified or pissed. Probably both. She glances at Sparrow, curls her lip up as though he disgusts her, and walks over to me.
“I want to see my sister. I need to see Della. Please.” Tears well in her red eyes and her bottom lip wobbles. “I’m so scared.”
My heart sinks. I want to punch Scout in the fucking mouth for this.
“She’s asleep in my bed,” I assure her. “I won’t let anything happen to her.”
Though she didn’t get the answer she wanted, she does find relief in it, giving me a curt nod. Then, she steps closer and shivers. On impulse, I draw her into my arms. She’s stiff but doesn’t resist. I sit down on the sofa, pulling her to my side, and then shoot Scout a questioning look.
Scout’s lips are quirked on one side. “I like her. She’s got a fighting spirit.”
“Fuck off, you monster,” she hisses under her breath.
Sparrow swings at Scout, nailing him across the jaw and sending him sprawling. Scout laughs like the madman he is and gets back to his feet.
“Look,” Scout says with an evil grin. “She has Sparrow going into alpha beast mode.”
I tighten my grip around her and shake my head in exasperation. “Shut the fuck up, man.”
“Isn’t this fun?” Scout asks, ignoring me altogether. “The three of us obsessing over the same woman like old times?”
“Landry—” Sparrow starts.
She cuts him off with a sharp wave of her hand. “Do not speak to me.”
Scout laughs, winking at me. “See? Fun.”
“My dad will come looking for me,” Landry threatens. “You don’t think he’s going to notice his daughter’s tutor is suddenly not showing up for work? He’ll trace Ford back to you three monsters and then here.”
“No,” Sparrow growls. “He won’t. At least, it won’t be easy for him. This apartment isn’t even in our name.”
She shudders in my arms.
“Your threats don’t work. We both know you don’t want Daddy to come save you, prickly princess.” Scout approaches us and sits down on her other side. “He’s the real villain here.”
She curls away from him, her fingers digging into my chest as if she can burrow herself inside me to escape my brother. He gives her thigh a squeeze that has her shuddering. Sparrow glowers at him like he’s going to do something, but everyone knows he won’t. He’s been unable to do anything thus far.
Which means she’s relying on me.
“She’s smart,” Scout says, as though he’s revealing some big secret to us. “She’s going to manipulate us and try to turn each of us against one another. But she has no idea the power of triplets, does she? We’ve been through a helluva lot and we’re still thick as thieves.”
