“We should check the ballroom,” Galen suggests, rubbing a spot between his brows. “Make sure the stash is still there.”
“I thought you checked yesterday.” I hand the beer back to Saint.
“We did, but we weren’t here last night. We should double-check to be sure it’s still there,” Galen adds, standing.
“Sit,” Theo says, his fingers tapping over his tablet. “I’ll check the camera feeds for the last twenty-four hours.”
We absently watch the TV reports while Theo works his magic, and I run my hand over the ink on Saint’s hands while snuggled into his side.
“Holy. Fuck.”
We all sit upright at Theo’s outburst, sharing wary looks. “What is it?” I ask, almost afraid to look. “Is it gone?”
Theo lifts his head from his tablet, shock splayed across his face as he shakes his head. “It’s worse. Look.” He turns the screen around, and we watch with mounting horror as at least twenty young girls are frog marched into the ballroom and shoved into the hidden compartment under the floor. The timestamp on the screen shows this happened at four a.m.
The girls are disheveled—their clothes torn, skin dirty, and hair greasy and knotted. Their fear is palpable as they cry out in Spanish, their bodies trembling, lips wobbling, and tears streaming down their faces, as they cling to one another, clearly terrified.
I jump up, and the blanket falls to the floor. “We have to get them out of there.”
Saint tugs on my arm, pulling me back. “Babe.” Strain etches across his handsome face. “We can’t.”
“They could die!” I don’t know if there’s enough oxygen down there, and from the state they are in, it’s obvious they haven’t eaten or drank in some time. “We need to help them.”
“Angel.” Galen cups my face as Saint pulls me on his lap. “The best way to help them is to let the FBI find them tonight. They can identify Sinner and his men as the ones who put them there. It helps solidify the case against him.”
“They can still do that even if we release them now!” I argue, needing to do something.
“Sinner could check before the party, and if they’re gone, it will tip him off,” Caz says, pinning me with a sympathetic look.
“I know this kills you, Lo,” Theo says. “It’s killing all of us, but they will be free in a few hours. We’ve got to let this play out.”
“We should at least give them some water and food.” I plead with my eyes.
“We can’t risk it. They might try to escape if we open it up.” Or they could already be dead, and I don’t want you to see. That’s what I read in Saint’s eyes as he begs me to understand.
I climb off his lap and pace the floor. “This feels wrong.”
Caz stands, wrapping his arms around me from behind. “We know, queenie. But we can’t risk everything at the last minute. We will get those girls out of there as soon as we can, and then we’ll take care of them. The authorities will see they are returned home. This is the best way of handling it.”
_______________
I CAN’T STOP thinking about those girls trapped and scared, in the hidden compartment in the floor of the ballroom, as I get dressed for the party that’s about to kick off in an hour. Caterers and other staff hired by Sinner showed up a couple of hours ago, and we watched as they wheeled furniture, food, and booze into the ballroom, decorating it like it’s a genuine celebration instead of some carefully orchestrated effort at putting us in our place.
I pay extra attention to my hair and makeup, wanting to look and feel the part when we emerge victorious tonight. While I don’t have a crystal ball, I’m confident we will prevail, because no other outcome is acceptable.
I’m building the kind of life I dreamed about, and that psycho bastard is not ruining it for me.
Sinner is going down tonight.
That is the mantra I’m sticking to, and I’ll do whatever is necessary to ensure it happens.
Galen slips into his bedroom as I sit in my black strapless bra and panties on the side of his bed, strapping my knife and one of my daggers to my thighs. He flattens his back against the door after he closes it, breathing deeply as his striking green eyes roam my semi-naked body.
“We don’t even have time for a quickie,” I warn him, continuing my task.
“I know. Doesn’t mean I can’t admire the view.” His lips kick into a smirk, and I grin.
“Any sign of Satan yet?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “Not so far, but I’m sure he won’t be long. He’ll want to be here to greet his guests.”
“Do we know who’s coming?”
“Sainthood members and their women, I’m guessing, although he seems to have been selective with the invitations, because there are only seats for thirty.”
“Is your mom okay?” I inquire, standing as he walks toward me.
He nods. “She’s in her room with takeout, wine, Netflix, and Mrs. Murphy to ensure she stays there.”
I palm his cheek. “We won’t let anything happen to her.”
“I know.” He reels me against him. “But I’m more worried about you.” He softly clamps a hand over my mouth when I open it to speak, careful not to press too hard and ruin my makeup. “I know you can handle yourself. I know you could take out most of that room single handed if you needed to. Still won’t stop me from worrying.” He presses his delectable mouth to my ear. “Husbands worry about their wives. Get over it.”
“I love hearing those words,” I admit, running my finger back and forth across the black band on his ring finger. “And wives worry about their husbands too—even if they are fucking badass.”
His hands slide to my ass, slipping under the lace. “Sure we don’t have time for a quickie?” He slaps my ass, and I shake my finger at him as liquid lust coils in my belly.
“You are such a bad influence, and coming from me that’s saying a lot.” I shimmy my panties down my legs and kneel up on the bed. I glance over my shoulder while he unbuttons his jeans, grinning wickedly as he zooms in on my pussy, licking his lips. “You have five minutes, Romeo. Do your worst.”
_______________
“HE’S UP TO something,” Theo says when we join the others in one of the guest bedrooms ten minutes later.
“What’s happened?” I ask, my sex hangover instantly cured when I meet Theo’s troubled gaze.
“He’s turned the cameras off inside the ballroom.”
“What about outside?” Saint asks as we all huddle around Theo, peering at his laptop, pretending we know what we’re looking at on the screen.
“They are still intact.”
“What the fuck are we going to do?” Caz asks, pulling a black shirt on over his head.
The guys are all dressed in their Sainthood attire. Black shirts, black jeans, and black leather cuts. Their freshly washed hair is styled to perfection, and they all smell divine. I wish we were going to a proper party, where I could get drunk and grope them on the dance floor.
“Such little faith you have.” Theo’s fingers dance across the keys, like a skilled pianist playing a piano. “I planned for this eventuality.” He sets the tablet down with a flourish. “The exterior cameras are off and the interior ones are on, like we agreed, but if Sinner checks, it will look the opposite, because I’ve hidden the feed behind fake images.”