Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
He could take down our club if he hired the right people.
Fuck, maybe leaving this fucker alive wasn’t a good thing.
I think we need to go back and pay him a visit, make sure that he never tracks us down. That he never lays his hands on another girl again.
I didn’t want bloodshed, but this news changes things.
I reach into my phone for my pocket, say goodbye to the girls, and walk out.
I dial Cohen.
“We’re goin’ back to his place. Plans have changed. He needs to be taken out.”
Then I hang up.
Well, here goes fucking nothing.
24
BRIELLA
I can't believe she's here.
I thought I had no one left, and now my sister is lying on the bed in front of me, looking as beautiful as I could have imagined. I don't know how to thank Alarick for what he's done here, getting my last family member back is the most incredible thing he could have ever done for me. Saving Merleigh at the same time makes him even better.
I glance over at the gorgeous girl sitting on a sofa chair, looking like she's struggling to know what to do with herself. I can't say I blame her. She's been stuck in that world for god knows how long, and now she's here, free, and I'm sure she doesn't know what to do with that. She's just looking like she wants to curl up and hide. I turn and walk over, sitting on a sofa across from her.
"How are you feeling? Can I get you anything?"
She shakes her head. "Oh, no, thank you. I'm fine."
"Can I ask you something, Merleigh?"
She nods, staring at me with big wide eyes.
"How long were you there?"
She exhales and purses her lips a little. "Three years, I think. I lost count after the first one when I realized that it was my life, and I wasn't going anywhere. Then I just accepted it and got on with it. That's the kind of person I am, I guess."
"I know it's probably hard, but I'd love to ask you questions. You're the only person I've spoken to that has come out the other side of this alive. I have so much in my mind I need clearing up. I lost my mother and sister to Dax."
Merleigh nods. "Of course, ask away."
"How did you get tangled up with Dax?"
She shakes her head and exhales. "It's stupid. I had a hard life, as I'm sure you've probably figured out already. I wouldn't have gone with him if I was smart about things. My mom and sister died in a tragic car accident when I was only two, and I was put into foster homes. I guess you could say I had the same story as everyone, I went from house to house, got abused, finally left when I was about sixteen and moved in with a guy. He was a lot older, and he got me into drugs. It was a messed up time. It was dark, and it was twisted. I was addicted, and that's when Dax found me."
"I'm so sorry," I say, and god, do I mean it. "I know that must be the hardest thing to look back on. What did you think of Dax?"
She exhales. "I thought he was a light in a dark world. He was so damned nice to me. He took care of me and fed me and promised me this amazing life. I believed him, of course I did. There were other girls there, and they were all excited about going on to bigger and better lives. We were promised rich men and families to live with, who would take care of us, send us to college, to anything we wanted. It was like a dream come true."
"He sounds like he's very good at what he does."
She nods. "Oh, he is. So very good. When you're in a dark place like that, it's not hard to believe every single word he's saying. I thought I'd struck gold. When he introduced me to Bryant, I thought I was so lucky. He was handsome and promised me all these incredible things. He said if I worked for him around the house as a maid, he would send me to nursing school, which is what I wanted more than anything. He showed me his incredible home and all these lovely rooms, and I thought, wow, how lucky am I?"
"That's not how it was when you got there, though. Was it?"
"No, it wasn't. We were made to believe we had a choice, but we had no choices. We were sold, we just didn't know it. The moment we arrived in those homes, we were drugged and treated..."
She trails off, and her voice hitches. She looks down at her hands.
"It's okay. You don't have to go on. I know it's painful."