Jamie Begley - Tainted

“Fuck.”

They stared at each other, trying to figure out their next move.

“If we call the cops then Mouth2Mouth will be all over the news by morning. Redman is supposed to be back in the morning to bring the car and pick the girls up, but we can offer them an escort home if they don’t want to go with him. When she wakes up, she should be able to tell us where to take her. The best case scenario here is that they’ll all keep their mouths closed.”

“I hope this works. Redman is going to be furious when he shows up in the morning, Kaden.”

“Order extra security. I don’t know where he gets these women, but I want to be prepared for anything.”

Alec moved away from the bed, pulling out his cell phone.

Kaden didn’t wake the woman to get her to eat the food Alec had brought back, hoping the sleep would clear her mind so they would know where to take her. He wanted her out of his hair before the press got hold of this story. He could practically see the headlines. They wouldn’t care that she was already drugged before coming to the hotel room. It would be disastrous enough that the group had bought prostitutes for the night.

It was going to be dicey, dealing with Redman, but he couldn’t hand over the women in good conscience, knowing something was wrong with the set up. He was going to do what he could for the women while still protecting Mouth2Mouth.

Sawyer woke carefully, turning her head slowly on the pillow. The cloudiness that had affected her brain was gone, but her thought process still felt slow. She looked around the same hotel room she had found herself in last night. Sunlight was trying to filter through the dark curtains.

“She’s awake.” Her head turned toward the men, who she felt move to the side of the bed. She hadn’t been able to see them clearly last night, though she could remember the dark haired one had been called Kaden and the blond one Alec.

“W—where am I?” Her dry throat barely let the words pass through her cracked lips.

“You’re in my hotel room. Rick Redman brought you and several other women to our suite last night. Do you remember?” The one named Kaden spoke first.

Sawyer nodded her head, putting a hand to her head when it set off a pounding pain in her temple. She licked her lips, trying to get the pain back under control. “I—I—need to get out of here before he gets back.” She tried to rise up, but her pounding temple was the least of her problems when her stomach began heaving.

“She’s going to vomit.” Kaden’s voice was grim as he lifted her and carried her to the bathroom.

Setting her bare feet on the cool floor, she fell to her knees beside the toilet that thankfully seemed clean, before emptying her already empty stomach. Dry heaves racked her body as both men silently watched. When she finally finished, Kaden handed her a glass of cool liquid, which tasted like ginger ale and calmed her churning stomach. A wet cloth was then put in her hand to wash her face. She sucked in a calming breath as she handed the cloth back.

Sawyer tried to get to her feet and found a hand gently lifting her as she caught a glance at herself in the mirror. Her naturally pale skin was parchment white, and her eyes were huge, staring back in fright, when she saw both men were watching her reaction. Turning back to the men, she knew she needed their help. She could only pray they would listen.

“I—I n—n—need to get out of here before Rick comes back for us,” she repeated her earlier request, trying to get the words passed her lips, though she was too upset to be frustrated by her usual stutter.

“Don’t worry about Redman,” Kaden said.

Sawyer threw him a disbelieving look. The stranger didn’t have a clue who he was dealing with.

“The rest of the women are in the other room, and we’re going to see they get home safely.”

Sawyer trembled as she stared at the two men. The taller one was lean with hair that was short but full. He was wearing jeans and a thin t-shirt. His looks were such that they would make any woman pause and take a second glance. He had an air of sensuality that she had only seen a few times in her life.

The blond, while not as tall, was more muscular with unruly hair. He was wearing dark jeans with a dark t-shirt and a leather jacket. Neither of these men were aware of the quicksand they were stepping into, and she couldn’t stop them if she wanted to save herself.

A cold chill struck her, raising goose bumps on her barely-covered flesh. Gazing down at herself, she saw that she was wearing a revealing black dress that came to the tops of her thighs with tiny straps and a revealing slit between her breasts. A thin, golden chain barely held the material together.

“Let me see if I can find you something warmer.” Kaden went in search for something, while Alec helped her out of the bathroom to sit in a chair in the bedroom. Sawyer gratefully sank down on the elegant chair, while she watched Kaden pull a zippered hoodie from a large, black bag.

“I’m afraid this is all I have,” he apologized.

Sawyer took it from his hand, putting the warm material on her chilled body. His scent clung to the fleece material, somehow reassuring her that she was finally out of her nightmare.

“Y—you have to call the police,” Sawyer urged. “Now. Before Rick gets back.”

Both men stared at her in surprise before both of their expressions turned grim.

“What’s going on?” Alec asked, bending down before her.

Sawyer ran a hand through her tangled hair, wincing as she unintentionally pulled at the tangled mess. “He kidnapped me.” She saw both men staring at each other.

“We’ll call the police of course, but do you know how you ended up here?” Alec asked, sympathy in his eyes.

Sawyer nodded, finally becoming warm. “They sent me here because the other women were too badly hurt.” She paused before continuing, “I’ve never seen the women who are in the other room before, but I’m sure they’re like the others and have no choice. They drugged me before Rick showed up to bring me here.”

Sawyer’s fuzzy mind finally began to connect the dots; her eyes darkened in fear as she carefully studied the two men. She leaped off the chair, knocking Alec down, trying to reach the door, however, an arm around her waist caught her, bringing her back against his hard body. Her back pressed against his chest as she struggled against his firm hold.

“Settle down. We’re not going to hurt you. We’re trying to help you,” Kaden said, placing her back in the chair.

“Then call the police!” Sawyer yelled at them.

“All right.” Alec pulled out his phone, preparing to make the call, when the bedroom door slammed open and a man with wild eyes came rushing into the room.

“There she is. She needs to go. Redman started freaking out when he didn’t see her. He’s here to pick her and the other women up. He’s pulled a gun on Ax.” Alec ran from the room, leaving the others behind.

“Lock the door,” Kaden ordered as he followed closely behind Alec.

Sawyer jumped up, frantically looking for a phone. Seeing one on the nightstand by the bed, she ran to it and lifted the receiver. The man who had come in warning Kaden and Alec, jerked it away, ripping the cord out of the wall.

“You’re not calling the press. The whole reason I hired you sluts was so that they wouldn’t become involved.”

“Are you crazy?” Sawyer screamed at him. “I was calling the police.” She saw the man pale as he pushed her toward the doorway.

“You’re not calling anyone until I find out what’s going on here. If anyone is going to call the cops, it’s going to be me.” He dragged her struggling body down the hallway toward the large room everyone was gathered in, facing Redman. He came to an abrupt stop when he saw what was going on in the tension-filled room.

Sawyer didn’t have to tell the man he had fucked up. It was obvious when they entered to find Rick standing with a gun to a man’s head and two other men standing in the doorway with guns pointed at the group of people standing there.

“It’s about fucking time, Sawyer. We were waiting on you.” Rick gave her his smarmy smile, which made Sawyer’s weak stomach want to throw up the small amount of ginger ale she had drunk. “Let’s go.” He motioned for the women, who all moved toward Rick.

“These women aren’t going anywhere with you, Redman. I’ve already told you that.”

“You don’t have a choice, Kaden. These are my bitches to do with as I want. Now move before I lose what patience I have left, and you have to audition for a new guitarist.”

Sawyer weakly braced her hand on the wall beside her, afraid she was going to pass out.

“Put the guns away. You’re not going to shoot. We both know that there are cameras all over the hotel.” Kaden kept talking to Rick as if he wasn’t frightened for his friend, while Sawyer just wanted to run screaming from the evil man.

“I’ll be long gone, and you and all your buddies will be dead.” Rick shrugged. “It’s not the first time I’ll have to disappear, and it sure as shit won’t be the last.” Rick gave a grin that had her blood turning cold. He was telling them this wouldn’t be the first time he had killed, and his casual shrug left no doubt he was telling the truth.

“There is no need to go to these extremes. We can come to an agreement that will make us both happy,” Kaden countered, immediately getting Rick’s attention.

“Like what?”

“You want to make money off these women? Then sell them to me,” Kaden said.

Sawyer couldn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth. Was he just trying to pacify Rick so that the guns would be put away or was he serious?