Besotted by Rebecca Sharp

Eve

Icouldn’t stop the tears that leaked from the corners of my eyes, but I did manage to stop myself from making a sound even as my head thumped with pain and my body thrummed with fear.

Not that much sound was possible with the duct tape that I’d woken up with over my mouth.

I remembered being up against the hot black car, but I remembered nothing of the ride to where I was or how long it had taken me to get here. Nothing until I woke up with my arms bound behind me to the metal bedframe and my mouth taped shut.

“Sleeping Beauty finally decides to wake.” His words clicked like each one loaded an invisible gun.

Trent stepped in front of me, but I refused to look up at him, instead scanning my surroundings hoping for any clue to where I was, but there was none. The room was decorated with a modern, sterile feel. Almost like it was an expensively dressed cell—the furnishings pricey but sheer enough to reveal everything this room was used for.

He crouched in front of me and I was forced to meet his gaze with rough fingers on my chin. “Should’ve just walked away with your mousey little friend when you had the chance,” he singsonged with a cold smile, the melody ominous and off-key. “She would’ve been perfect though,” he tsked. “I have so many buyers wanting the shy ones.”

My stomach rolled, and I thought I might vomit into the tape.

I knew as soon as I saw the license what he was involved in. He was the one luring the girls out here where they were taken and sold for sex—or worse.

I shuddered, and he just chuckled.

“Someone will take you though.” He trailed a finger down my cheek before ripping my glasses roughly from my face and whipping them across the room. I winced when I heard their thud and crack somewhere off to my left.

My pulse fractured as the room turned into a fog in a single blink. An ominous wash of white and shadow marred by the dark figure in front of me.

True fear is having danger sitting right in front of you and not being able to see it.

My heart was running, but it was running in circles, desperate to escape my chest but with nowhere to go.

“Much better without four eyes staring,” he sneered and a cry lodged in my throat as his finger moved lower. “But they won’t take you until later.” I could hear his smile grow, like ivy tightening and suffocating around me. “And that means we have some time together now.”

I refused to move. Refused to flinch. Even though I couldn’t exactly see his eyes, I stared at them, facing the monster that was in front of me. I stayed still as his fingers drifted lower down my neck and over my collarbone. I wanted him to know I was made of stone. That no matter what he did, he wouldn’t—couldn’t—break me.

My only fear now was for the baby—just barely a few weeks old. Small. Fragile. I would do anything—withstand any assault to keep my baby safe.

“Time to make up for how your boyfriend treated me,” he snarled.

I heard the tearing of fabric before I felt how my tank loosened and fell away from my chest. Goose bumps rose like an army over my skin, ready to fight whatever came next.

His groan of twisted approval revolted me, and I was glad he took my glasses because I knew if I could see him looking at my breasts, I would’ve choked on my own vomit.

“Let’s see if these tits were worth having my face slammed into the bar, shall we?”

I held my breath and steeled my senses. I would survive this. I let my eyes drift shut, and my mind take me to the cove. The one where there was no one but Miles and me. The one where I would always be safe.

The cruel touch I was waiting for never came. Instead, I heard the faint hum of a phone buzzing just before the muttered curse as Trent’s giant black blob rose and stepped away from me.

“Sir.” I heard him answer. “I ran into a little problem, but I’m handling it.”

His voice got farther and farther away and when I chanced to look, I saw his blob-like form slip from the room, locking the door behind him.

He answered whoever was on the phone—and whoever it was, wasn’t happy I was here.

Closing my eyes, a small tear of relief slipped down my cheek. I hoped Cammie got help. I hoped they were looking for me.

And I hoped someone had called Miles.

Miles

I didn’t wait for him to leave or my brother to say a word before stepping into the coastal weeded stretch that lay between the two pristinely kept properties. There was a good breeze picking up but the ocean stilled underneath a sky that had quickly turned gray—a sure sign that we were in for a storm tonight.

“You should leave Kona in the Jeep,” Mick spoke from behind me, his heavy footfalls crunching loudly over the dried foliage.

I looked down at the dog who was jogging next to me to keep up with my pace. “He won’t stay. Too damn stubborn.”

“Wonder where he gets that from,” I heard him mutter.

Several more feet put the mansion to our left in view. Modern and rectangular, it jutted out into the sand like a giant battleship. The outside was covered in flat gray stones lined with harsh precision and broke up by sharp lines and crystal-clear windows.

“We should cut over,” Mick said, drifting toward the house.

We should.

Still, my feet carried me straight like there was an invisible line that was pulling me to where I needed to go—to where Eve was.

“Miles—”

“I heard you,” I growled at him as I looked along the coast one last time, but there was nothing except for an expanse of pure white sand and a small wooden dock that had nothing tethered to it.

Veering toward the house, my path curved through the brush as I tried to find an angle where the sun wasn’t glaring off the windows so I could try to see inside.

The wind picked up as we got closer, like the house was creating tides in the air to try to drive us away.

When the structure loomed over us, Miles nodded toward the back deck as where we should start. But two steps later, a low voice had us both freezing. My hand shot down to stay Kona but my stubborn dog was also smart and immediately sat down like a perfect statue.

“I had to. She saw the fucking license.” I recognized the voice. Mother-fucking-Trent. “They’re coming for her tonight.”

Inching closer, I peered around the corner of the house and locked on that slick sonofabitch, pacing on the plateau of a deck that could easily have been the foundation for a whole separate house.

Every molecule in my body wanted to charge him, to take him to the ground and beat him until he was as close to dying as I felt like I was.

But there was no sign of Eve.

“We found Trent,” I heard my brother whisper and figured he’d called Ace.

My eyes narrowed on Trent as he paused and ran a hand through his gelled hair before planting it on his hip. He was being yelled at.

“I know.” He nodded again. “I understand, sir. I’ll make sure it’s taken care of.” This fucker looked afraid, because Ace was right. He was just a pawn. And Eve had just linked him and potentially whoever he worked for to multiple disappearances. “This won’t be a problem, sir.”

“You see her?” Mick murmured in my ear.

I shook my head.

“I promise, I’ll take care of the girl.” And then I caught it. Barely a flicker. Unnoticeable unless your gaze was trained on his face like mine was—like a sniper waiting for the perfect shot. For a split second, I saw Trent’s gaze glance up to the second floor on this side of the house as he mentioned ‘taking care of’ Eve.

I heard Mick’s muffled curse as I stepped back from the corner of the building and looked up the monstrous stone facade that led up to the second floor where a glass deck protruded out from what I would guess was a bedroom.

“What are you doing?”

“Where’s Ace?” I volleyed with.

“On his way. He said to wait for him to get here, or the cavalry. Anyone really,” Mick warned. “He’ll be here in another minute. Trent’s still on the phone. We just need to watch him, Miles.”

I shook my head. I wasn’t waiting.

I didn’t know what his plans for Eve were—I didn’t know who he meant when he said they were coming to get her tonight. But I did know that motherfucker had a personal hatred for me—for what I’d done to him—that he’d take out against Eve. If he hadn’t already.

Spurred by the thought, I reached out and touched the stone, assessing the depth and texture of the rock. Thank fuck rich assholes always insisted on using real stone to decorate their houses, otherwise this would’ve been a lot harder.

“Miles!” My brother’s grunt carried along the breeze as I gripped the stone. “What the hell do you think you’re doin’?”

I didn’t know if there was anyone else in the house besides Trent, but I’d guess if there was any security, they’d all be on the ground floor to detain anyone who tried to come inside. And I’d guess they wouldn’t leave someone in the room with her.

“I’m going to get my girl,” I growled underneath my breath.

“You can’t fuckin’ climb the goddamn house.”

My head whipped to him, and I stepped right in his face. Even though he was larger than me, we were the same height. I met mirrored eyes, although they contained very different emotions than I was sure my gaze did.

“For my woman, I can do anything.” And then I reached for the stone siding and began to climb.

His growl faded into the wind but he didn’t try to stop me. Glancing down, I saw his mouth tighten before he turned and took my previous post at the corner of the house, keeping an eye on Trent as I scaled the building.

My arms and fingers burned at about halfway. This wasn’t like anything I’d climbed before. The grips were incredibly narrow and the pitch was straight vertical. My feet could barely catch on the edges of the slim decorative ledges of the stone in order to push myself higher. A few times, I even slipped, biting back a curse as I only had my arms and shoulders to hoist me higher while my feet fumbled for another stable stop.

With the adrenaline pumping through my veins, I wasn’t afraid of falling and breaking my neck; I was afraid of not making it to the top in time.

I didn’t think I’d ever scaled a face in such a short amount of time but still, fast didn’t feel fast enough as I was finally level with the second-floor deck. My knuckles white with the strength of my grip, my foot slid out to rest on the metal side of the floor of the deck, the railing made of thin metal slats along the sides but glass across the front. I wanted to move quickly, but with the glass facing out over the lower deck where Trent still was, I didn’t want to draw his attention.

Carefully and quietly, I slid out along the outside of the railing before climbing over it.

Sinking back along the side wall, I saw immediately that the curtains were drawn across all the windows, and I knew Eve had to be inside. Locating the deck door that was in the center of the space, I slipped slowly toward it, my ears picking up only Trent still on the phone even though I tried to hear any sound coming from inside.

As I moved, I examined the glass and realized I wouldn’t hear anything from inside; the glass was far too thick. I couldn’t say for certain it was bulletproof, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was.

Reaching the door, I tested the handle and realized it was locked.

Fuck.

Digging into my back pocket, I pulled out my utility knife. The way the lock had been installed on this door was backward. It wasn’t put on to keep outsiders from coming in, it was installed to prevent whoever was inside the room from getting out.

I quickly loosened the screws on the faceplate and pulled it off to reveal the interior of the lock. Just as I turned the bolt to unlock the door I heard my brother whistle from down below.

Trent was off the phone.

I didn’t know who or what was waiting for me inside, so I stood to the side and slowly slid the door open just an inch at first, listening for any movement inside.

And that was when I heard it. The small, muffled whimper.

Eve.

Flipping open the larger knife on my utility blade, I slid the door open farther and threw back the curtain, prepared for an attack.

What remained of my heart dropped into my stomach, cracking and breaking into a thousand pieces when I saw her.

Tied to one of the bedposts, her beautiful face was scarred with tears and that mouth I’d called a liar was blocked over with duct tape. Rage that burned hotter than the sun burst inside when I saw how her shirt was ripped down the front, her chest heaving with her unsteady and frightened breaths. My eyes lingered on her stomach. Still flat and unassuming, but filled with my child. My future.

As I dragged my gaze back to her face, I realized it was her eyes that killed me. Wide and frightened. She looked at me like she didn’t recognize me—and she probably couldn’t without her glasses. But what killed me was it was the same look she’d given me when I’d accused her of lying to me about being on birth control and of trying to trap me into forever.

Shaking my head, I’d have to deal with hating myself later. Right now, I just had to get her out of here. I had to make sure she was safe.

I stepped toward her and she flinched, pushing back against the bed.

“Evie,” I rasped with a low voice. “It’s me, baby. I’m here. I’m goin’ to get you out of here.”