The Deception series boxset: FaCade, Cadence, Beneath Innocence (50 page)

“It’s okay, just wait,” Kenny said. Almost as soon as he’d said it, ‘Access Granted’ popped up and a new screen emerged, another weird encrypted page of coding rolling up.

“Right, I can take it from here,” Kenny said around the noise of keys clicking rapidly.

“You can delete everything?” I asked.

“Faye, babe. Don’t worry. This software will find anything with your name attached, then it will link with any other keyword attached to your name. It will be as though you never existed.” He chuckled, and I shouldn’t have, but I smiled at the contagious sound.

“Okay.” Just as I was about to disconnect, I called out his name.

“I’m here,” he murmured around furious clinking.

“Thank you. And Kenny, please take care. Dante’s losing it. He’s already killed his doctor. He’s crazy.”

“You’re telling me to be careful?” He laughed. “You’re one tough chick. I can see why Cade’s so in love with you.”

My heart warmed, an involuntary grin making my chest stutter.

“Hurry,” he whispered. “I’ve already fried the cameras but I’m not sure how long before they notice the connection is severed.”

“It’s okay, I have the perfect distraction.”

He paused, the click of the keys breaking for a moment. “Faye, be careful. Please.”

I swallowed back the nerves, my skin prickling with worry. There was no other way out. No other way. I would either die under Dante’s hands or die trying to make things right. I had to try. There was no other option. I wouldn’t lie down and die, not when there was the faintest chance I could finish this.

I SHIVERED, MAKING MY WAY quickly down the cold corridors, my nerves frayed as my heart stampeded in my chest.

Pushing the door open, squinting at what I might find, a choked sound rushed up my throat when Alex looked at me through small red slits, his eyes sore with the light streaming into the room from the hall.

“Alex!”

I rushed over to him, twisting the lid off the bottle of water I’d brought for him. “Oh my God.” He was a mess, his skin camouflaged in blood and dirt, horrid blue and purple bruises covering his face.

He gulped at the water as I held it to his mouth and tipped, his greed causing him to cough and splutter, the water dribbling down his chin.

“Slowly,” I urged, angling the bottle lower so he only received small trickles. “Listen, I’m sorry but I can’t get you out yet.” He blinked at me, the disappointment heavy with his sigh. “But I’m coming back soon.”

“Don’t . . .” he rasped, licking at his chapped lips to moisten them with his wet tongue.

“It’s okay.” I nodded, confirming my words. “There’s something I have to do first but then I’ll be back.”

He eyed me warily but nodded slowly. “Just be careful.”

“I will,” I promised as I stroked some blood clogged strands of hair off his face, knowing they must have been annoying him. What a dark, vulgar world Dante became a part of. How many people had been kept down here for torture or sick games? I couldn’t think about that.

He squeezed his eyes closed and nodded.

This was my fault. I should have known Dante would be watching, and as it turned out, listening to everything I did. I had put Alex where he was, and it was up to me to get him out.

Racing back up, I grabbed my phone. Kenny had finished with what he needed to do, and I ran back through the gardens and up to the house. Coming to a stop just before going back in, my phone rang. Bracing myself and smiling at how things were going exactly to plan, I answered immediately, making sure to put on a terrified voice.

“Star?” His voice was high-pitched. He’d obviously not scored yet. I’d been banking on that too and for a change, things were going in my favor.

“Dante!”

He paused, hearing my fear. “Star, are you okay? The feed to the cameras has been severed? What’s going on there? I can’t get hold of Frank or Malik.” Thank God. Kenny was amazing. He’d followed through with his assurance that he could block Frank and Malik’s signal and I owed him a nice long holiday somewhere hot and tranquil.

“Dante. Please come home. Frank . . . he’s. . . .”

“He’s what?” I remained silent, dramatically panting down the phone. “He’s what, Star?”

“He’s . . . oh God, when you found my panties, that’s not all.” I let out a tight whimper. “I think he’s developed an unhealthy attraction to me. I’ve just caught him taking photos of me, Dante, while I was getting undressed.”

“What?” He was quiet, almost calm. Too calm. I shivered at the ice in that single word.

“Well,” I let out a choked sob. “I’ve felt someone watching me for the last couple of days. Nothing specific, just a feeling. I thought it was Malik. Fuck, Dante, I thought it was Malik!”

“Where are you?”

“I’m in my room. He’s scaring me, Dante. I don’t know what to do!”

“Stay there. Do—not—move until I get there. I’m already on my way back.”

He cut the call, leaving me on the porch steps with a continuous beep resounding in my ear. The tone matched the beat of my heart, the hurried rhythm in line with the pounding of my pulse.

This was it. Do or die. And I was determined not to die. I needed to keep my heart beating for Cade.

Things were going to plan and I took it as an omen. So giving myself a fortifying nod, I opened the door and stepped inside.

MY HEART PUMPED ADRENALINE AROUND my body, giving me the courage I needed. Timing was crucial. Dante was nearly home and the game had ended twenty minutes ago. I wasn’t sure where Malik was but I knew Frank had gone for a shower and this was the only chance I would get.

I tiptoed through the house until I came to the door leading me to the room Frank was staying in. Taking a few gulps of air to try and steady myself, I pushed the door ajar and slipped in. The scent of man sweat was pungent in the air, my nose wrinkling as a sweet smell assaulted me as well. What was it about men and smells? He needed to open a window.

I scanned the room briefly before creeping over to the bedside table and opening it, pulling the pictures which were once a fond memory of Cade capturing me in my most natural state, changing, sleeping. He wanted what no one else got to see . . . the real me, and now I was using them in a fucked game Dante had forced me to play. I needed the upper hand to turn them on each other. I pulled the last one from my bra and dropped it with the others inside. I felt so dirty, my whole body shivering with the disgust of what I was about to do. But I needed to do it. I had to.

Lifting my dress, I slipped my panties down my thighs and kicked them towards the base of his bed, just enough so they could be seen.

The shower turned off and I blew out a breath, trying to still my frayed nerves. This was it. It was too late to change my mind, not that I would anyway. I’d had enough. I needed to do this for Cade. And for Jenson and Blue. Their lives would never be the same again and my heart ached for them.

I tore open the top of my dress, the buttons flying in all directions, a small ping echoing in the silence when one hit the mirror and bounced off.

I held my breath, sinking my teeth into my bottom lip so I didn’t cry out as I braced my whole body. From my knees to the junction of my thighs I dug my nails in and tore upwards. I saw some of the wounds on Blue; this bastard liked to claw at his victims, a predator marking his prey, playing with it before devouring it. I knew I could take one hit if he didn’t use his full strength, and hopefully that was all it would be before Dante came in and found the scene.

My senses were hyper alert, everything sounding and feeling so much more intense. A click of the bathroom door unlocking—
Thud!
The handle dropping—
Thud!
The door swinging open—
Thud!
My heart panicking—
Thud, Thud!

“What the fuck happened to you?” He was still wet, water beading over his powerful frame. Fuck, he was huge. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to take a hit. I slowly took a step back, the extra distance, albeit it tiny, giving me that little bit more courage before I answered.

“Dante happened.”

His brow furrowed as he looked to the door then back to me. “He’s back? He did that to you?”

I laugh mechanically, shaking my head and telling him no. Shit, I felt crazy, my frantic heartbeat making me dizzy. “You did this to me.”

He tightened the towel around his waist, his eyes narrowing in confusion. “What the hell, Faye?”

“Don’t you mean Star? Dante’s Star?” Taking another step back, I drew in a breath and went for it. “PLEASE DON’T!” I called out, flinching from the change in Frank’s demeanor, but sheer determination allowed me to do what was needed. “NO!” I screamed again. “DON’T. PLEASE DON’T!”

His body stiffened, his lip curling up into a sneer. “You ungrateful little cunt. I took care of you, killed for you and this is how you repay me?” His slow menacing steps towards me had me backing up quickly against a wall. “I thought that spineless prick Malik was planting shit. Nearly strangled him with his own cock last night.” His palm swiped out down my cheek. “You want your fucked up boyfriend to believe what, Faye? What is this? An affair? An assault?”

I gritted my teeth. “You’d know all about assault Frank!”

His head tilted to the side, his intense blue eyes studying me before a sadistic grin spread across his lips. “Ahh, that’s what he wanted the pictures for. Did he show you all the nasty things I did, Faye? Try to frighten you, because it clearly hasn’t worked. Here you are practically naked, begging for me to hurt you.”

“Fuck you, you animal.” I spat in his face.

“I’ve never let you see that side of me but you came looking for it and if you want to play games, Faye, let’s make them look realistic.” His hand slipped from my cheek to grip my throat, his arm rising up with me attached. My feet tried to keep the ground beneath them but he was a lot stronger than I anticipated. Where the fuck was Dante? He should have been back by now.

My hands gripped his wrist as I choked for breath.

Bringing my face towards his, he kissed the tip of my nose. “Bye, sweetheart.” He palmed my ass with his free hand, raising me higher before throwing me across the room. I lost my breath when my body impacted with the top of a dresser, the ornaments smashing under my weight and some clattering to the floor. My ribs screamed, and before I could do anything, a hand gripped my hair, pushing me down.

“That is a cute ass.” His other palm came down hard to smack my ass cheek. “You have no panties on. Is that an invitation? I’ve never really seen you that way but it would make your scene more believable, right?”

Fuck! No, no, no. I shot my eyes to the door, the first time in my life praying for Dante to walk through it. This wasn’t how it was supposed to play out. Why the hell did nothing ever go right?

He wrenched my head back, whispering in my ear. “I’ll pretend you’re that whimpering little cum bucket, Blue.”

I reared my arm back as hard as I could, ramming my elbow into his ribcage.

He released me with a shove. A sinister belly laugh ripped from him, the sound making me shiver. “Nice effort. I like my toys to be riled up before I fuck every hole they have.”

I would rather die than let another man touch me that way again. “You’re an animal!”