Sitting and waiting, I felt like a time bomb that was ready to go off any second. Two hours had passed and there was still no sign of Holland or Lanie. My patience was wearing thin and I couldn’t waste any more time doing nothing. Rising to my feet, I left the sitting room to look around Holland’s house. The maid had gone up the stairs after she left me to wait, so it was best to start snooping around on the main floor.
Walking past the steps down the long hallway, I kept my eye on the staircase, making sure that the maid didn’t come down them. Ducking into one of the rooms, I closed the door. When I turned around to see where I was, I was glad to find I had entered the study. “Okay, Martin, let’s see who you really are,” I said to myself.
The best place to start was the wooden desk that sat in front of a large window. The lighting in the room was perfect and allowed me to search the desk without turning on any lights. Taking a seat, I pulled the top drawer to my left open. As I looked through the contents, there was nothing that showed who Holland was. Opening the drawer below it, I was disappointed to find only a few reams of paper and some empty file folders. Reaching over to the other side of the desk, the top drawer was locked. Coming upon a locked drawer only meant one thing. Holland was hiding something he wanted to keep away from wandering eyes.
Sliding the middle drawer open, I searched for something I could use to pry open the top drawer. In the back of the drawer was a letter opener that was thin enough to fit between the top of the desk and drawer. As I closed the middle drawer, I noticed a small manila envelope secured to the bottom with tape.
Holland was full of surprises. As I opened the envelope, item by item his secrets were revealed. There were so many girls, all of them bound, being used in some sadistic way. Holland was a sick motherfucker and it made my stomach turn just thinking about what he would do to Lanie. Still, something made little sense. Why didn’t he bid more for her?
Thumbing through the rest of the pictures, one had caught my eye. The girl being tortured in that picture was the maid. Why on God’s earth would she remain with a man that condoned this kind of treatment? Gathering the pictures and placing them back in the envelope, I reached behind me and tucked it in my pants beneath my suit jacket. I needed to get the hell out of here. Slowly opening the door, I listened for any movement before leaving the room.
Making my escape without being seen, I headed to my car and drove away from the house. I no longer wanted to be near Holland’s morbid, sadistic mind, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t continue waiting for him. Finding a spot down the street where I could still get a good view of his house, I put the car in park and turned off the engine. I knew that eventually Holland would return to the house, and when he did, I would be ready to get Lanie away from him.
~Seven~
ROMAN
The maid was correct about not knowing when Martin would be returning. Every day I waited for him to return was another day I wasted when I could have been finding Lanie. When I was just about ready to give up hope, a black SUV drove through the entrance. This was my chance, but I needed to play this out and not get impatient. As I kept my eyes on the SUV, the driver stepped out of the vehicle. No one else got out, which told me he was the only passenger. More than anything I wanted Martin to be inside. If he was, then Lanie would be too.
When the driver finally exited the home and got into his car, I knew that my best and only option was to follow him. There had to be a reason he came back to the house without Martin. My gut feeling was that whatever he carried in his bag had to do with Martin or Lanie.
Sinking low in my seat, I waited for the SUV to pass, hoping he would see only an empty car when he drove by. Putting my car into drive, I resumed a seated position and drove a safe distance behind him. Looking at my fuel gauge, concern settled in since I had only a quarter tank. As long as he didn’t drive over sixty miles, I was safe.
When he headed up a county highway, I wasn’t sure where he was going, but hoped that he would arrive at his destination soon. When he turned right off the main road and onto a dirt road, I breathed was a sigh of relief. I knew his destination wasn’t much further. Gazing down at the gauge, an eighth of a tank was remaining.
Slowing down, I waited for the driver to get out of his car. The last thing I wanted was to have a conversation with this man before seeing Lanie. As soon as he headed inside, I increased my speed. Taking in the country-style house, I decided it seemed to be uncharacteristic of Martin. He wasn’t a country kind of guy based on the suit he was wearing when we first met. Getting out of my car, I headed up the steps and knocked hard on the wooden door. After waiting as long as I could for someone to answer. I tried to push the door open, but it was locked. Pounding harder on the door, still no one answered.
There had to be another way inside the house, so I decided to investigate the property. Walking away from the front door, I headed to the back of the house. As I walked along the exterior, I looked inside each window to see if I could see any movement inside. Reaching the back of the house, I spotted another entrance. Walking up the sandstone steps, I heard a voice I would know anywhere. “Roman.”
As I turned around, I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. Martin and Lanie were standing in front of me. I wanted to run to her, but Martin stopped me. “Stay where you are, Mr. Michaels.”
His voice sickened me. Refusing to honor his wish, I balled my hands into a fist. “Move away from him, Lanie.”
There was something about the way she looked at me that told me she would not move. She looked over to Martin and he released the leather strap he had held in his hand. Stepping toward me, I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She was beautiful in every sense and the leather corset she wore enhanced her beauty even more. The collar, on the other hand, was disturbing. I knew what this meant, and knowing he had collared her sickened me more than his voice.
Standing before me, Lanie looked down and took hold of my hands. All I wanted to do was lift her and carry her away from Martin and this place. “Let’s get out of here.”
When she resisted me, I knew he had gotten to her. Lifting her head, her eyes met mine. Her eyes said everything as a tear fell. “I can’t go with you, Roman. My place is here with Master Martin.”
“Do you hear yourself, Lanie? Do you even know what kind of man Martin is?”
“He is a good man, Roman. I know that he will never hurt me.”
Placing my hand on her cheek, I looked deeper inside and all I could see was a woman torn between what she wanted and what she needed. Just as I was about to say how I felt, Martin chimed in, pulling my attention from Lanie. “Let’s go inside. I think I may have a solution that will make everyone happy.”
I wasn’t sure what he had up his sleeve, but I knew he couldn’t be trusted. Against my better judgement, I waited for him to pass and lead the way inside the house. Watching the way he handled Lanie made me wonder if he was playing me or if he was a good man like Lanie stated.