Into the Night (32 page)

“I do.”

The young girl stared at her with wide eyes filled with a mixture of hope and skepticism.

Without a doubt, Nicole knew that Angela was ready to embrace the opportunity she was about to hand her, which would make Nathan’s job of getting her out of the estate so much easier. After casting a quick glance at the other girls to make sure she and Angela weren’t being overheard, she leaned even closer and lowered her voice just to be on the safe side.

“Remember Alex from last night?”

“Yeah,” Angela said with a nod. “He was very nice.”

Nicole hesitated a second, then revealed the truth. “Your parents asked him to find you and bring you home. They love and miss you very much and want you back with them.”

Shock transformed Angela’s features, then panic set in. “But I can’t leave,” she whispered frantically. “Sloane won’t let me.”

So he was holding Angela against her will? Sounded like grounds for kidnapping charges to Nicole. “Have you told him you want to go home?”

“He told me that my parents don’t want me,” she said, her voice choked with emotion. “That they don’t love me or else they would have come for me by now.”

Goddamn bastard
. “Believe me, Angela, they’ve tried to reach you. They’re devastated that you ran away and they do want you back. Badly.”

“Why would they?” Angela’s bottom lip quivered. “I was so horrible to them. I said such ugly things that hurt them both.”

“They love you no matter what. A parent’s love is unconditional and isn’t based on your actions or what you say or do,” she said, not sure that someone of Angela’s age could grasp the concept. “They know that being a teenager isn’t easy, but it’s also their job to be tough on you, to make sure you turn out to be a good person.”

“I want to go home.” Angela’s voice was hoarse, but the look of despair in her eyes said it all. She missed her family terribly.

Nicole couldn’t have been more relieved to have Angela’s cooperation. “You need to listen to me,” she said, making sure she had the girl’s full attention before continuing. “As soon as you get to the playroom tonight, go to the women’s lounge. I’ll meet you there.”

“Then what?”

“I’ll let you know when the time comes.” For Angela’s own safety, the less she knew up front, the better. “Just be there, and we’ll get you out. And don’t tell anyone what we talked about.”

“I won’t. I promise,” Angela said, just as the limo pulled into a driveway leading to a small, private resort, then parked near a villa that housed the spa facilities.

The girls piled out of the limousine, with Security Guy watching their progress from the vehicle into the spa. Nicole followed behind with Angela, and once inside the exclusive facility, she looked for Holly so she could talk to the other girl next and get into her head a bit.

She caught up to Holly just as she reached the front desk and asked one of the technicians for a private massage and waxing. She was immediately whisked away, leaving Nicole on her own for the next few hours.

Disappointed that she’d lost the chance to bond with Holly, Nicole chose a manicure and pedicure for her spa treatments. She was assigned two young girls—one to polish her fingernails, and the other to tend to her feet.

Settled into a chair that massaged her back, she closed her eyes and relaxed, absently listening to the conversation between the two girls working on her hands and feet. Between envious comments and snide remarks beneath their breaths that they assumed she couldn’t hear, Nicole came to the conclusion these girls had once been part of Sloane’s harem. She wouldn’t have been surprised to learn that he owned the spa and used it to farm out the girls once they got too old for his tastes.

What those girls didn’t realize was that they were the lucky ones, if there was such a thing under these circumstances. They were the few who might have been cast aside by Sloane once he’d grown bored of them, but they’d been spared from the hellish life of the white slave trade.

Nearly two hours later, her manicure and pedicure were done, complete with massages, sugar scrub, and paraffin wax dips. With her nails freshly painted, she was told to sit for another fifteen minutes before leaving. So she continued to relax, and when she finally opened her eyes it was to see Gwen strolling casually through the spa, checking on the girls.

For the most part, Nicole had managed to avoid up-close-and-personal contact with Gwen, but there was no escaping the woman now, since she was heading her way and Nicole still had foam separators between her toes. She waited for Gwen to pass by, but the other woman stopped in front of her instead.

Gwen studied her face for a long, uncomfortable moment. Then a slight smile touched her lips. “Are you enjoying yourself?”

“Yes, thank you,” Nicole replied, praying that the woman didn’t make the connection between her and the reporter at the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“Good.” Her expression gave nothing away. “I’ll see you at tonight’s party.”

Gwen moved on, and Nicole exhaled a deep breath.

Before long, it was time to return to the house, and Security Guy was standing on duty again to make sure that all the girls got back into the limousine. Nicole tried to get a seat next to Holly, but ended up sitting across from her. She wasn’t able to talk to the other girl, but she could
see
her, and she didn’t look well. After a long full-body massage, she should have been in a great mood. Instead, she seemed sad and depressed.

Nicole knew Holly’s situation was only going to get worse, not better, no matter how much Holly claimed to love Sloane. Fortunately for Holly, tonight Nicole was going to give her the chance to change the direction of her life, and her future.

*   *   *

“How was your meeting with Sloane today?”

“Interesting.” Nathan glanced in the vanity mirror as Nicole joined him in the bathroom and closed the door, then turned on the shower so they could talk while finishing getting ready for the Mardi Gras party starting in less than an hour.

He still had a towel wrapped around his hips as he shaved his face, but she’d changed into a black push-up bra, lacy bikini panties, and fishnet stockings—all part of her costume courtesy of Sloane, who’d sent the items over earlier that afternoon for her to wear to tonight’s party. Too bad the other man wouldn’t get the chance to enjoy the provocative ensemble.

“So, is everything set up according to our plan?” She hung her outfit on the back of the door, then stepped into a black-and-purple lace corset and shimmied it up over her hips so it fit against her breasts.

Good God, she looked sexy as sin in her getup, with her hair loose and flowing around her shoulders and the lightest amount of makeup enhancing her delicate features. His lower body stirred, a too-common reaction when it came to Nicole, and he had to force himself to keep his mind on business, where it belonged.

“Yeah, everything is set,” he said, and cleared the husky desire from his voice. “But after your encounter with Sloane last night, he claims you’re quite defiant.”

She laughed in amusement, even as she struggled to lace up the back of her corset. “That’s certainly not going to change anytime soon.” Releasing a sound of frustration, she walked over to him, presenting him with the loose ribbons she hadn’t been able to reach. “Can you help me out with this contraption?”

“Sure.” Finished shaving his five o’clock shadow, he rinsed his razor and wiped the residual lather from his jaw and neck. Before he forgot, he showed her a small plastic bag containing two white tablets. “Sloane feels you might not be as amenable as you should be tonight. So he gave me some pills to guarantee you’ll be more accommodating than you were last night.”

She yanked the packet from his fingers, her expression both angry and horrified. “What are these? Roofies?”

“Either that, or Special K,” he said, having seen too much of the drug as an undercover vice cop. “Though Sloane assured me it’s nothing more than a mild relaxant to calm your nerves.”

“Jesus.” She shook her head in disgust. “I won’t be needing them. I don’t even want them near me.” She dropped the tablets into the toilet and flushed. Once they were gone, she turned so her back was to him once again. “You need to do me.”

Despite the seriousness of the situation, her demand made him chuckle. “I’d love to
do you,
sweetheart, but we’re a bit short on time right now.”

She grinned over her shoulder at him. “Get your mind out of the gutter and lace me up.”

“When it comes to you, my mind’s always in the gutter,” he teased as he gave the silk ties a firm pull, so that the corset fit snugly before finishing the crisscross pattern the rest of the way up to the top. “By the way, as far as you’re concerned, there won’t be any contact between you and Sloane tonight. I told him that I’d like for us to enjoy the party, and each other, and that we’d swap our girls at ten for the rest of the night. You for Angela.”

“Except we won’t be here?”

“Exactly.” His big fingers fumbled with the thin silk laces as he attempted to make a secure bow. “The party starts at seven. By seven forty-five, we should have our escape plan executed and be on our way out of this place with Angela and Holly. It’ll probably take a while for Sloane to realize you switched masks and that all of us are gone. But by then there won’t be much he can do about it.”

“Sounds like a solid plan.” When he was done with the corset, she checked his handiwork in the mirror. “Wow, who would have thought you could make such a pretty, dainty bow?”

“Yeah, it’s one of my other many talents, thanks to my older sisters who thought it necessary that I learn the fine art of bow tying,” he said wryly. “Trust me, it’s not the kind of skill I brag about.”

“It’ll be our little secret.” She walked back to the rest of the costume hanging on the back of the door and retrieved the black, ruffled miniskirt. She stepped into the piece of clothing and zipped it up, then added a pair of black lace elbow-length gloves to complete the too-tempting outfit.

She spun around, placed her hands on her hips, and gave him a sultry pose. “What do you think?”

He found it difficult to
think
at all beyond the small, firm breasts nearly spilling from the front of her corset. “You look like a young courtesan,” he said, which most likely had been Sloane’s intent when he’d chosen her costume. And she hadn’t even donned the exotic, black-and-purple sequined feathered mask yet.

“Hmmm. I guess that’s what tonight’s party is all about, huh?”

“Yeah, pretty much.” He still needed to get dressed, but there were a few more things he wanted to discuss with Nicole before they left the bathroom. “Back to tonight and getting the girls out of here. Holly is the wild card in all this,” he said, expressing his one big concern about tonight’s extraction. “You do realize that, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do.” She sighed and dragged her fingers through her loose hair. “I think we’ll be okay. Holly started drinking on the drive to the spa this morning. I’m certain she’ll be sufficiently wasted by tonight in order to cope with having to entertain one of Sloane’s friends, which will work to my advantage in getting her out of the house because she won’t be thinking straight.”

Nathan still had his doubts about the girl. “We know we have Angela’s full cooperation, but you’re going to have to make this a game for Holly. Make her think that leaving the house is going to lead to her being with Sloane.”

She nodded her agreement. “Good idea. The only way she’ll go willingly with me is if she believes she’ll be able to have Sloane again.”

“Once we’re out those front gates, it won’t matter what Holly does or how she reacts. She’ll be safe.” And that’s all that mattered to him. “Oh, and I need you to get her real last name as quickly as possible so I can have Caleb run a background check on her and track down her parents.”

“Sure, I can do that.” She exhaled a deep breath. “It’s almost time and you need to get dressed.”

He gently caught her arm before she could leave, his gaze scanning her face. “Are you nervous?”

“No. Just determined.” The conviction in her voice gave him all the reassurance he needed. “I want this done and over with.”

“It will be. Very soon,” he promised.

Chapter Eighteen

Wearing her elaborate feathered mask, and with Nathan dressed all in black with a matching black-and-gold mask covering his entire face, the two of them headed downstairs to the playroom at seven o’clock sharp to give them both time to mingle before separating to put their individual plans into action.

First things first. Nicole made sure that Sloane saw her. As he took in the seductive costume he’d specifically chosen for her to wear tonight, his eyes glazed over with lust and a lascivious smile curved his lips. She gave him a demure,
accommodating
nod of acknowledgment that seemed to please him, then turned her attention back to Nathan.

The main lounge area was filled with costumed men and girls in sexy, revealing outfits that ranged from lady pirates to maidens and jesters. Their face masks were decorated elaborately, making it difficult to recognize anyone at first glance. While the guests seemed to find that element of obscurity exciting, Nicole was just grateful that the disguises worked to her and Nathan’s favor.