The Sacrificial Lamb (15 page)

“Not really,” he said. “This week was the first time I’ve seen Russell in over four years.”

“Oh,” Alex replied softly. “And your sister?”

“I’d prefer not to talk about it.”

“Okay.”

They lapsed into silence again until they neared the next tollbooth to enter Michigan. Domenic asked Alex to get back under the blanket. He wasn’t sure if the attendant could see into his car and wanted to avoid any unnecessary attention. For all he knew, Alex’s picture could be posted all over the place since she’d been reported as a missing person. The last thing he needed was for some overzealous tollbooth employee to detain them and get him arrested. Alex obliged, and they made it into Michigan with no fanfare.

Alex pulled the blanket off and sat up. “So, why was your brother-in-law looking for me?”

“Because he’s a cop, and he knows that my boss must have been responsible for your disappearance. He thought he might have a way to find out for sure where you were being held.”

“But you
did
know,” she pointed out.

“I know.”

“And you didn’t tell him?”

“Not the first time, no.”

“But you did this time?”

Domenic exhaled, exasperated by the firing off of questions. He wasn’t accustomed to someone being so forthright, nor was he accustomed to answering without pretense or blatant dishonesty. Alex would eventually find out the truth, and he supposed it was better if he told her as much as he was able, since they would be alone together for a little over two weeks until the trial.

“Yes, I told him this time. He’s going to get our family out of harm’s way so they can’t be used as leverage against me to give you up.”

“I’ve put your family in danger,” Alex said.

“No,
I’ve
put my family in danger,” he amended. “You were simply a catalyst.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry? Would you have preferred to die?”

“Well, obviously not. But that doesn’t mean I’d prefer someone else to die in my place.”

“I’m hoping that nobody dies at all.”

That pucker had returned between her eyes, and he realized one other thing about Alexis Montgomery—she would rather be harmed herself, if that meant sparing one she loved. The girl confused him more than ever.

After a few more moments, Alex sighed and watched the scenery as they headed north. “Are you going to tell me where we’re going?”

“To Hamlin Lake. I have a very large tract of land there that no one knows about.”

“And you think we’ll be safe there?” Alex asked dubiously.

“I hope so. My father had this cabin built as a hide out of sorts. No one knew about it except for him and my mother. He wanted a place they could go in case there was an emergency. I found out about it before my mother passed away.” Domenic paused for a moment as he thought of his mother and their last moments together. “She prayed I’d have no use for it, but wanted to make sure my sister and I had a safe house if anything bad happened.”

“Something like this?”

“I don’t think she had this in mind, no,” he said, smiling at Alex tentatively. She returned the smile.

“Is it much farther?”

“About three more hours, give or take.”

The rest of the drive followed in a similar vein, with Alex asking various questions and Domenic answering as well as he could. They didn’t talk about anything important but covered most of the basics. None of the subjects delved too deeply into their personal lives, and that was how he preferred it. He had already told her more than he had planned, and that made him feel uneasy. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust her. It was that he was unsure of how much to reveal.

These next couple of weeks would be a practice in restraint for him. While in a way, he was dreading it—he was also anticipating it greatly.

It was almost midnight when they reached the hidden entrance to the road leading up to the cottage. Anyone driving here would pass right by it unless they were specifically looking for something. Domenic had missed it himself when he tried to find the cabin that first time, driving up and down the road until he’d noticed the break in the brush that seemed just a little different from its surroundings. Even after he had known what he was looking for, it had still been difficult to locate the hidden entrance the next few times as well.

That night he recognized the copse of trees by the road and pulled over to get out of the car. Walking carefully, he saw the entrance. To anyone else, it would look like a couple of trees had fallen and some bushes had grown up between them. In actuality, it was a gate that hid a small break in the trees, wide enough to accommodate one car. Domenic made sure no other cars were coming, but it was dead at this time of night. Unlocking the inner hasp, he pushed against the bulk of wood until it started to move back. Once the entrance was revealed, he ran back to the car and drove through it. Exiting the car again, he closed the gate behind them, and then they headed down the dark pathway carved through the trees.

The road went in at a sharp angle, almost parallel to the road they had come from, and it then turned back on itself so there wasn’t a noticeable gap in the trees. It was an optical illusion of sorts, the thick foliage concealing any telltale signs of a road. It continued to zigzag along for a couple of miles before reaching its final destination. Alex had fallen asleep in the back seat, and he enjoyed the silence for a while. Things had gone according to plan, and if no one discovered their whereabouts, he could get word to Russell to let them know Alexis was safe and John Montgomery should testify.

Domenic parked the car in the wooden shed beside the cabin and turned off the engine. Turning around, he watched Alex as she slept. The moonlight was filtering into the back window, carving her face out of ivory with ebony accents. Domenic still wasn’t sure what it was about her that had made him radically alter his course, but he had no regrets. Not yet, at least. Finally, he reached toward her and shook her shoulder gently.

“Alex?” he said, keeping his voice pitched low. She mumbled and snorted, before burying her head deeper under the blanket. “Alex,” he repeated, shaking her a bit more vigorously, “we’re here.”

Alex gasped, her eyes flew open, and she sat up quickly. “You!” she said, startled and looked around wildly for a moment. “It’s real. It wasn’t all a dream? We escaped?”

“No, it wasn’t a dream. We escaped.” She looked at him in disbelief, as if this were still part of her dream. “Come on. Let’s go inside.”

She rubbed her eyes and nodded. Domenic opened the door, moved his seat forward, and helped her out of the car. Alex stumbled, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly to keep her from falling. Glancing up at him, she had a strange expression on her face and backed away from him when he let her go.

Domenic walked out of the shed with Alex following, heading to the front of the cabin. Once inside Domenic flipped on the light switch, relieved he’d had made arrangements to have the electricity turned on last week. There was a large generator in the back, but he didn’t want it running and making a lot of noise. They didn’t have close neighbors, but taking risks wasn’t on the agenda.

The cabin wasn’t very large. There was a living area, small kitchenette, one bathroom, and two bedrooms. What wasn’t visible was the panic room down in the basement.

“This one is your bedroom,” he said, opening the door and turning on the light.

“Okay,” she answered shyly. “Um, where’s the bathroom? I’d like to take a shower.”

“Oh! Right. It’s that door there. Just help yourself to whatever’s in there.” Domenic mentally smacked himself in the head. The girl had been locked up in a warehouse for over a week. Of course she’d be dying to get clean before going to bed.

As Alex walked into the bathroom, it reminded him of the provisions still in the car. Domenic went back outside and started to bring in the bags of food. There was also the duffle bag full of clothes, including shirts and pairs of drawstring shorts that Alex could wear. They would be huge on her, but her clothes were filthy from her fight with Marco, and it wasn’t like she could simply walk around nude.

He paused to consider that thought for a moment before shaking his head and bringing in the last of the bags.

The shower was still going, so Domenic slipped into Alex’s room and placed some clothing on the bed for her. He went back out to the kitchen and put away the food as well. There was enough for about a week or ten days, and then he would have to go to the general store in the area for more. This would have to do for now. When that was done, he went to sit on the couch to let Alex know about the clothes.

Alex walked out of the bathroom, engulfed in his bathrobe. Domenic thought about how the garment was caressing her bare skin, and he’d never felt as jealous of a piece of clothing as he was at that moment. Her wet hair was coiled over her shoulders and streaming down her back, and her face was pink from the heat of the shower. Unbidden thoughts of her standing under the spray as the water ran in rivulets over her body, coursed through his mind.

A hint of some sweet fragrance wafted toward him, carried on the air as she came closer. The dampness of her body amplified her scent as it wrapped around him, permeating all his senses. Domenic inhaled deeply, taking it all in.
Jesus fucking Christ
, he groaned internally. Her actions were innocent, but she was driving him mad with lust. And the fact that she had no clue of the power she exerted over him made her all the more intoxicating.

All he wanted to do was walk up to her and rip that robe right off her body. He wanted to toss her on the floor and sheathe himself in her soft, yielding flesh. To make things worse, Alex bent at the waist and flipped her hair forward so she could dry it with a towel she had brought out with her. The robe parted, and he could see the swell of one breast.

He must have made a strangled noise because Alex stood upright once again and gave him a quizzical glance. The crotch of his pants was steadily getting tighter, and he had a decision to make. He could either make an excuse to take a shower himself and take care of his little problem, or he could take a chance and see if she felt this unmistakable pull between them.

When he had kissed her in the warehouse, she hadn’t responded, but she hadn’t pulled away either. And then, after he had killed Marco and found her again, she had thrown herself into his arms. Surely, she must be a little bit attracted to him if she had done those things? This feeling of uncertainty was new for Domenic. He was accustomed to women making their feelings for him known quite clearly—almost forcefully—yet with Alex he had no idea where he stood. Even as a gawky, teenage boy, he’d had more confidence in his appeal than he did at this precise moment.

“Are you okay?” Alex asked him, concern coloring her voice.

That same sweet fragrance engulfed him once more, and he closed his eyes momentarily. Instead of answering right away, he stood up and walked closer to her. She stayed still and allowed him to approach. Domenic tried to gauge her reaction, but her face was clear and open.

“I’m fine,” he said softly, closing the space between them.

Domenic reached out and brushed her hair over her shoulder. Alex followed his hand with her eyes and then looked back up at him. Their chests were almost touching, and hers was moving a bit more rapidly than a moment ago. This was a pivotal moment, and he hoped that she didn’t feel like he was trying to take advantage of her.

Moving so as not to startle her, he drew his thumb over her cheek like he had done before. She didn’t pull away from his touch, which he took as a good sign. Alex’s eyes strayed from his, and she looked at his mouth. Her small pink tongue darted out between her lips, moistening them. Domenic traced down the side of her face and then ran his thumb across the slick surface of her mouth. Alex closed her eyes and parted her lips. He felt her tongue brush against the pad of his thumb before she sucked it into her mouth. He groaned as the wet warmth surrounded it. If that wasn’t assent, then he didn’t know what was.

Domenic removed his thumb from between her lips and replaced it with his mouth. Alex whimpered when their lips touched, and he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against him. Grasping a handful of her hair, he kissed her hard. She had been ever present in his mind, and he couldn’t control his excitement. Her hands dug into his chest as she met his fervor with her own. Their lips and tongues slid effortlessly as they learned each other’s rhythm.