Secret Worlds (590 page)

***

Ari spent the next 15 minutes tearing the room apart. Ripping down the false curtains, flinging clothing out of the closet, stripping the bed. There had to be something that could help her get out of here, she thought, while moving the dresser away from the wall. Nick had lost his mind—if he’d ever had control over it in the first place.

Other than the obvious furnishings and a couple pieces of clothing in the closet, there was nothing useful in the room. Nothing, Ari noted, that she could even really use as a weapon. How long had he planned this? Jace said he’d been unable to complete the hardwood flooring because he’d been in jail. She thought back to when he’d been arrested. That was a few weeks ago, way before she broke up with Nick. That meant he’d planned on trapping her here even if they hadn’t broken up.

Ari ran to the bookshelf. She grabbed a handful of books and threw them at the door, each one landing with a loud thud. “Let me out, you sick bastard!” she screamed. “He’ll find me!” she threatened, throwing the final book, a thick hardback. Even with the jarring noise, her words fell empty. Davis had no idea how to find her. She sneaked out of the house on Oliver—dangerously leaving him no clue where she’d gone. No family to look for her. Oliver would never suspect Nick.

The harsh reality struck Ari and she kicked the books scattered across the floor, like a child having a tantrum. Her rage turned to tears and she fell face-first on her stripped mattress, acknowledging, for the first time, that she was completely screwed.

There was no way out of this room and no way anyone would find her.

Ari knew someone else was in the room when she woke up. Terrified Nick, or even worse, Jace, had entered her room while she slept, she carefully opened one eye, preparing herself for the worst.

Hope stood at the bookshelf, shelving the books Ari had thrown during her breakdown. The rest of the room had been cleaned up. The curtains rehung, the clothes back in the closet. Ari noticed the quilt she’d ripped off the bed now covered her legs.

“What are you doing?” Ari asked, her voice raw from screaming.

“My job,” Hope replied without looking back.

Ari got out of the bed and walked over to the bookshelf. “Hope, tell me what’s going on. How did you end up here?” She cut her eyes in Ari’s direction and didn’t say anything. Ari touched the girl’s shoulder. “I can’t help either of us until I have more information. All I know is that I went to a club and woke up here. Oh God, is Shanna here?”

“She’s upstairs, with the other girls.” Hope’s voice came out flat and uninterested.

“How many other girls does Nick have up there?”

She didn’t reply, but continued to shelve the books. Ari spun her around and grabbed her by the arms. “Hope, I don’t know what’s going on and why you’re behaving like this, but I need you to talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”

“I have to clean the room. That’s my job.”

“Who said that? Nick? Jace?” Ari saw a dark bruise on the side of Hope’s neck. That could explain her compliance.

Hope sorted the last book, sliding it into place, and she walked to the bed and pressed the buzzer. She must have been locked in the room with Ari.

“Where are you going? Don’t leave.”

The door opened before Hope could reply, but it didn’t matter. The girl left without a second glance. Ari understood why. She’d lost her trust in the real world when she’d needed it most. Why would Hope help her now?

***

“How long are you going to keep me down here?” Ari asked Nick the next time he came to her room. She’d started thinking of it that way. As her room. She wasn’t sure how long it had been since his first visit but it felt like more than a couple of days.

“Until I’m sure you won’t do something stupid.”

Ari snorted, but her stomach growled at the same time, covering up any insolence. She held her hand over her shrunken belly and looked away from Nick’s probing eyes. She’d been reading a book when he arrived. Now he stood before her, wanting something. She wasn’t sure what.

“You’re hungry. Why aren’t you eating?”

“I don’t trust your food. Or what you may put in it.” Ari knew they drugged her drink at the club to get her to the house. She also suspected drugs made Hope passive and glassy eyed. Ari had started to eat the sandwich they’d given her, but the bread had smelled funny.

“I’m not here to hurt you.”

“What about the other girls? You’re hurting them.”

“You know how these girls can be. Wild. Disobedient. Different methods work on different people.”

His words chilled Ari, making her recoil farther from him. “I saw the bruises on Hope’s neck,” she said. When he didn’t reply she added, “I don’t know what you want from me.”

“Just being here is enough for now.” He opened the door and Hope came in with another tray of food. She set it on the dresser, never making eye contact with Ari. Nick smiled at Ari, and he and Hope walked out the door, leaving her alone again.

***

Ari flipped the page of her book, thinking about how it would have been nice for Nick to have at least provided her with some new material. All the books on the shelf were identical to the one’s she had at home and had read a dozen times already. Dropping the book on the bed, she took another bite of cookie from the plate on the bedside table.

“Who’s Nick?” Hope asked.

Startled, Ari looked up. She’d forgotten Hope was in the room. Dusting or something. She came and went, still never talking to Ari and she’d gotten to the point where she just ignored the girl.

“What?”

“Nick. You’ve mentioned him.”

“Um...Nick is the guy who’s keeping us here. Tall? Handsome? Creepy as crap?”

“You mean Reggie.”

“Who’s Reggie?” Ari frowned. “I’m confused.”

“Reggie is my sugar daddy, well he was. Until he brought you and all the other girls here.”

“Wait,” Ari tried to figure it out with her addled brain. “Reggie and Nick are the same person?”

“I guess.”

“Nick is a juvenile-court-appointed lawyer. Are you telling me that’s whose been buying you stuff this whole time?” Ari remembered Devon talking about Shanna being with a guy named Reggie as well.

“Yeah, that’s him.”

“Is this his house?” Ari asked.

“Kind of. It’s a house, but he doesn’t sleep here.”

“How many girls are here? Besides you.”

“Six, I think.”

“Shanna?” Ari asked, afraid she’d been hurt the night of Ari’s abduction.

Hope walked over to the dresser and opened each drawer, straightening the clothes inside. “She’s still here.”

“Are they all working?”

“Yeah. A couple on the street, but most of the men just come here.”

“Can they get help? If I give you a phone number, can they call? Can someone flag down the police?” Ari was sure that if one of the girls could contact Davis they could get out of here. He would stop Nick.

“The police don’t listen to us,” Hope said. “No one listens to us. We’re just whores and troublemakers.”

Her words felt like a slap. Ari deserved to be slapped. She hadn’t believed Hope when she’d told her about this place. Why would the police believe her now? Because someone with a better reputation was missing? Ari swallowed the bad taste in her mouth.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t listen. I’m so sorry. But I have someone who will believe you. I promise. He helps kids like you.”

Hope stared at her with dark, narrowed eyes. “So did you and look where it got me.”

“His name is Davis. At the Glory Youth Center,” Ari said. “Please Hope, trust me.”

Hope shook her head and left.

***

Nick sat across from Ari at the small dining table Jace brought in the day before. Apparently, he wanted to start having dinner with her. How romantic. The thought made her gag and took away her last shred of appetite. Plus, she only ate cookies. They seemed like the only thing he couldn’t drug and even then, she wasn’t sure.

Nick showed up alone, carrying a big tray of food, with two empty plates and wine glasses. “To prove the food is safe, we’re eating from the same serving dishes,” he said, arranging it on the table. “You’re too thin.”

The food smelled wonderful, way better than sandwiches and fruit. Beyond starving, Ari served herself a full plate of chicken, rice and vegetables. She didn’t even wait for Nick to serve himself, instead, shoving food in her mouth with her plastic fork.

“I’ve heard the name Reggie before,” Ari told him through a mouthful of rice.

“I’m not surprised. The girls call me Reggie.”

“No, other than that,” Ari said. “Davis called you Reg. I only just now made the connection.”

Nick flinched. Barely.

Ari took another sip of wine, feeling the effects almost immediately. “He never told me you were his brother, not really. It kind of slipped out when he was talking about you. He said the name Reg.”

“I’d rather not talk about that during dinner. Why don’t you tell me about one of the books you’re reading?”

Ari shrugged. “Why can’t we talk about it? Obviously it’s related. You obviously know I had a relationship with Davis. It obviously bothers you very much.”

“If you know it bothers me then why are you bringing it up?” He rested his fork on his plate and sighed.

“Why are you holding me captive against my will?”

“If you’re going to be like this, then I guess we can’t have dinner together right now.” He stood and began clearing the table. Ari chugged the remainder of her wine before he took the glass away. “I’d hoped this would be the beginning of a more civilized period between us, eventually resulting in you coming upstairs with the rest of the family. Obviously, that’s impossible right now.”

Ari jumped up and followed him to the door. “You keep saying this is about me, but I don’t think so. I think this is about him. You’re trying to hurt him through me.”

Nick spun, losing a wine glass in the process. It hit the ground, shattering into a million pieces. He set the tray back on the table and took a step toward her. “I know it may be impossible for you, but you need to learn to shut your mouth. One more outburst and you’ll find out how this isn’t a game you’re going to win.”

“He’s better than you,” Ari whispered, separated by a sea of glass.

Nick stepped forward, the glass crunching under his shoe. He pressed his fingers to his temples. “You don’t know anything about him.”

Ari laughed. “Okay, sure.”

“You’re right, though. This is about him. Believe it or not, you’re the only person he’s cared about since our father died.”

“Died? You killed him!”

He shook his head. “I’m sure that’s what he told you to make himself feel better. To make you love him. This vigilante crap is just his way of trying to be better than everyone else, without actually doing anything worthy. He’s a thug.”

“How can you say that? He helps those kids! He—” She remembered what Davis told her about Nick’s manipulative nature and stopped arguing. Ari backed up a little. “What do you mean I’m the only person he cares about?”

“Just that. He’s spent the last several years alone, building his little fortress and soldiers. Somehow you broke down the wall.”

“And you’re using that against him.”

“After our last altercation, I decided the best way to get back at him was to become more successful than him. More powerful. I’ve managed to do this both in the professional world and the criminal. I had been waiting for the right time to reveal myself.”

“With Alvarez? By gunning down an innocent?”

“All’s fair in love and war, Ari. You know that.”

Unfortunately, Ari did.

Ari and Hope swept and cleaned the floors. The glass seemed to cover every inch of the room.

“Help me move the bed,” Ari said. The two of them pushed the bed to a clean patch of floor. Ari got on her hands and knees with a small broom and dust pan, searching for the tiny pieces.

“What’s that?” Hope asked.

In the tight space between the wall and the bedside table, Ari saw a black box. Her black box.

“I don’t know,” she lied. She didn’t exactly trust Hope. There was a reason Nick sent her down here every day, and it wasn’t just to unnerve her. Hope had gained his confidence. “Probably trash. Okay, I think I got it all. Can you push that side?”

Once they had the bed back in place, Hope took the dust pan from Ari. She casually said, “Shanna’s working tonight.”

“Where?” Ari’s heart leaped into her throat.

“On the street.”

Ari picked up the trash can and held it while Hope dumped in the rest of the glass, trying to control her shaking hands. “Did you get a chance to talk to her?”

“I did.”

“And?”

“And we’ll see.”

***

Hope didn’t return the next day. Or the next. Jace bought food in twice a day, and when she asked about Hope he ignored her, only depositing the tray and leaving right after. Fearful that Shanna had been caught, Ari started to think of her only other alternatives. Suicide or murder. To survive, she might have to kill Nick or Jace to free herself and the girls.

The problem was finding a weapon. She should have kept a shard from the broken wine glass, but they were too small anyway. Nothing in the room seemed sharp or heavy enough to really be used to hurt anyone. She thought back to her juvies and what they used in detention. They seemed to be able to make weapons out of the most benign objects. All she needed was a piece of plastic or metal. She thought for a moment and then realized her bed must have had metal pieces that could be removed. She pushed off the mattress, leaning it to the side and studied the frame. Her eye was drawn to something different though. The black box.

Ari had forgotten about it in her excitement of Shanna going for help. She picked it up and wondered why Nick would bring it from her house. Surely he knew it had been a gift from his brother.

Other trinkets in her cell were from Ari’s room at home. The journal from her desk. A hairbrush. Hair clips from her bathroom. Small things that she wouldn’t have noticed were missing right away. They weren’t replicas, but her real possessions.

The box looked the same, no damage from the fall. She opened it, finding the paper inside. The symbols from his tattoo. Vigilant.