Blindsided. Katy Lee

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СКАЧАТЬ man cleared his throat. “I’ve arranged a room for you upstairs. You’ll find it comfortable...and what you’re accustomed to, I’m sure.”

      So the guy knew who he had. Maybe that would help Ethan keep her alive.

      “I don’t plan to be here long,” she said flippantly.

      Ethan fisted his hands and pressed his lips. Oh, why couldn’t this woman be the docile type?

      A scar at the corner of the man’s eye ticked. Ethan willed Roni to pick up on the fine line she pushed against. The guy leaned in closer and so did Ethan, ready to remove Roni from his reach.

      “Is that right? Was I wrong to show you hospitality, then?” he asked with eyebrows raised to the high wood-paneled ceilings.

      “No, you will be compensated accordingly, sir,” Roni replied. “I can promise you that.”

      The man’s brown eyes darkened; his jaw clicked. He looked to Franco Guerra with a snarl. “Guerra, I will see you in my office. Now.”

      Guerra dropped his gaze with his nod. The response from the car thief spiked Ethan’s curiosity. Never had Ethan seen Franco drop his gaze to anyone.

      Ethan’s heart picked up its pace, even as he set his face to be void of emotion. It wasn’t fear he checked. It was pure joy. He was in, and he’d found the mark. Or “the Boss” as Guerra called him, the head of the whole organization.

      The heavy door slammed behind Ethan, echoing through the gaudy monstrosity funded by crime and jolting him back to his role here.

      A young maid stepped out from behind a closed door, her head bent so low only the top of her silky black hair showed. Guerra cowered off like a leashed dog to the rear of the hall, and Ethan took a step to follow the men. Then two guards who were obviously packing heat followed the maid out into the hall and nodded to Roni to move up the stairs with them.

      Ethan took a last look at the backs of Guerra and the Boss. He had a decision to make: find the evidence to take this crime ring down, or stay by Roni’s side and protect her with his life.

      He took the stairs. Mutters beneath his breath denied he was going soft.

      Pace’s voice in his head protested otherwise.

      * * *

      Roni’s jail cell gleamed with expensive golden decor likely imported from around the world. The white sateen feather blanket on the canopied bed looked luxurious and comfortable.

      She avoided finding out.

      The beauty of the room juxtaposed with the ugliness of her captivity made her blind to her surroundings’ appeal. No matter the extravagance, the room was still a jail cell.

      Roni scanned the space for possible exits and cameras. She figured at least one guard stood out in the hall, if not more. Big Brother was watching. She cringed at the feeling.

      So far her compliancy kept her from whatever nightmare was below the first floor. Could it really be a dungeon in the accurate sense of the word? Who built dungeons these days? Then again, who built castles?

      Her own town of Norcastle had an old castle situated on top of the mountain, but it had been built by an eccentric relative of an English duke who moved to America nearly two hundred years ago. The building was now a historic landmark for tourists and hikers to climb to during the summer months.

      But this place was different. A newly built replica of a medieval fortress designed for the sole purpose of flaunting wealth.

      But wealth from what? she wondered. What exactly did the owner, “the Boss” as she overheard Guerra call him in the van, do to earn all this?

      More importantly, how much money would appease him for her ransom if he had such extravagance already?

      Roni approached the vanity. A three-way mirror caught her multiple reflections at different angles. Her gaze went to her scarf. From one side, her scars hid beneath the fabric. But not on her right. The right side had a way of peeking out. Jared reminded her of this whenever they were together. She made the adjustment to rectify it just as he would have. In this case, she would have let him. Something told her she had to make the Boss believe she was worth every penny he demanded from her family.

      She wondered if they’d been notified yet and absently rubbed her fingers over the fabric of the chair.

      “Mulberry silk,” she mumbled when the unique texture stole her attention. The finest and softest silk in the world. She would know after testing them all around her neck. She also knew it to be the most expensive and, at its exorbitant price, she’d passed on it for something less pretentious.

      But this guy had furniture made with the stuff.

      Again, her captor did not need her family’s money. He had his own. And a lot more than she’d ever seen.

      So then, what did he want? Why was she here?

      A soft knock came, and Roni heard the lock click over. She straightened up to receive whoever was about to enter.

      “Come in,” she said, as if she had the authority to say otherwise.

      Roni expected her captor, but when the door opened, the young woman who had led her upstairs returned with satin-tied bundles of linens, her head of black hair bowed as she entered without a sound. The girl hadn’t said a word to Roni before and didn’t appear to want to talk now as she walked to the bathroom. With the main door wide, Roni stepped up to look down the hall, ready to make a run for it.

      But just as she noticed the hall clear on one side, Gunn filled the doorway with his massive build and stopped her. The man was a boulder, sharp contours and all, and she would be going nowhere with him as her guard.

      “Just checking the accommodations,” he said, looking beyond her into her room. “I see you even have your own maid.”

      “There’s also no windows, so you don’t have to worry about me making a break for it,” she spouted back. “Has my family been notified about my ransom?”

      “Not yet. Is there another exit from the room? Through the bathroom, maybe?”

      “I already told you there’s no way out.” She crossed her arms at her front.

      “I was thinking more along the lines of someone getting in. But just in case, I’ll be right outside your door. Count on it.” Then he leaned in, his clean-shaven jaw brushing her cheek, and she nearly jumped back from the shock he gave. “I’m going to get you out of here,” he whispered against her ear, but she barely registered his words. Frustrated with the light-headed response his closeness caused, she shoved him away from her.

      “So you can take the ransom for yourself? I wouldn’t go anywhere with you.” Roni slammed the door closed on his face and took delight in having the last word. Then the lock clicked back over, taking even that away from her.

      On a huff, she checked herself before she turned to face the young girl. The maid stood by the bed, her head still bowed, but the bedcovers had been pulled back.

      “Hello,” Roni said, hoping the girl would engage.

      She СКАЧАТЬ