Chapter Four

Fagua

I had never been through a crowd with such haste in all my life. Sure, I had seen people on TV and movies do this, but it was completely different in real life. People didn’t move out of the way or hear me when I said, “excuse me”. Despite my walking up and down the casino, weaving in and out of crowds, and checking everywhere for Keith, I couldn’t find him. Panic swelled beneath my breastbone.

It reminded me of a tale or two I’d heard about one of the dad’s back home, who went to work one day on the fields and never came back. They never knew he had gone, because all his clothes still hung in the closet. But somewhere along the line, Giles’ dad had decided to leave him. He was a coward. He didn’t even bother to tell them goodbye. I remembered one time in sixth grade, Giles told us the story. We had to write a piece on something memorable in our lives, and Giles wrote that.

The day my dad left us.

I still got chills just thinking of his story, and how even now, it haunted me as I couldn’t find Keith.

I could tell Jane, our teacher, wasn’t happy about him wanting to read it out loud, but part of me was jealous. Giles had some experience, some trauma in his life. My piece was about the time dad had forgotten to turn off the stove, and the fire department run by my uncle had to go out to put out an actual fire. Our fire brigade spent most of their time helping cats get down from trees or building a new house. It had been the first time my uncle said in over fifteen years, they’d had to put out an actual fire. Even though Mahad used the fire extinguisher, by the time they got there, it hadn’t been much of a fire.

In front of me appeared Sky. He had dark hair and matching eyes, but if someone had asked me to sketch him, I couldn’t. It was as if he was there in the room with us all, but he wasn’t really. It was weird. It had been Winter was alone in the room with me, apart from the big one, Husk, who seemed to enjoy laughing at my situation.

I hated him just from first impressions.

After asking reception, I even checked with the guy at the roulette wheel if he had seen my husband. Stupid, because Keith did say it was an underground game, but I was desperate, wondering if anything Keith had actually said was true.

No one had seen Keith since earlier this evening. I used the hotel’s desks phone and called Keith’s cell. It went straight to voicemail and my stomach clenched. The hotel clerk gave me a sad look and said hotel security hadn’t seen him either.

My legs felt weak, like they couldn’t support me anymore, and I leaned against the desk for support. My head spun. Oh god, it was true. There was no other explanation. Still a tiny part of me hoped I was wrong. Keith hadn’t gone and left me with three hot weirdos. No, I’d make that two hot weirdos and one good guy.

What if someone had kidnapped him?

I mean he’d said he’d won, and we were going to celebrate? Why even call and tell me if he was just going to disappear?

“Um…” I licked my lips. “Can you check and see if my husband was in a game tonight?”

The hotel clerk nodded, but there was a pinch to the edges of her blue eyes. She typed some stuff on the computer, but then shook her head. “I’m sorry Mr. Keith Strong never checked into a game after...” She squinted back at her computer, “six o’clock tonight.”

“But he won, right?”

“Are you ok?” I felt a hand on my shoulder.

I nodded because I recognized his voice from the moment he’d stepped behind me. Then again, it was that damn scent. It’d been everywhere since I’d left town. I hadn’t noticed before, but it was as if being here had awakened something different inside of me. A power I hadn’t even noticed I possessed. I couldn’t stay here any longer than necessary, and I hate picking up scents. I just looked weird, sniffing like a damn dog all the time.

I shook my head, “What have you done with him?”

Winter laughed and just annoyed me even more. I fought the urge to turn and walk away from this stranger who stirred up so much in me, I was having a hard time making sense of it all.

“Can we go to the room and talk about this?”

I was the one who laughed this time, “Not with your two weird boyfriends. No. I’ll check out and leave. This is the twenty-first century. I have rights. You can’t come to the room and tell me you want to talk. I’m not stupid. I know what you really want…” Despite my bravado, I was breathy and couldn’t stop staring at his full, perfect lips. My whole body felt hot, and my face felt like it was on fire.

This time, he wasn’t laughing as he drew closer to me and said, “You can’t leave. Keith left you here to pay off the debt. You have to stay.”

“What is this 365 days cut to 30 days? I’m a citizen and I have rights. Rights to do whatever I want, and I don’t need to stay and you can’t make me.” Though at the mention of the erotic movie, my flush grew even hotter. I should have said Beauty and the Beast. No, wouldn’t have worked either. Saw…now there was a crazy horror that kept the terror front and center where it needed to be.

“Stay with me,” he growled as he looked me in the eyes.

“Okay,” I replied, but that wasn’t the word I wanted to say.

What in the actual fuck was going on?

Winter smirked, the bastard, and glanced around.

Fuck you.

I was going to make him let go of my arm and scream for the life of me, like a normal woman in distress.

“Don’t make a sound.” His bright, sapphire gaze locked on me again.

But I didn’t scream. I couldn’t. It was as if the desire was stuck inside me, and nothing could make me do what I really wanted to do, which was run out of here as fast as I could and never come back.

“Let’s go.” He placed his hand on my lower back, and I hated him for making me walk side-by-side like one of the Stepford Wives. What the hell was wrong with me?

“Smile,” he cooed.

I felt the corners of my mouth pull upward in a tight smile. The type I put on if I took a photo. The type I would use if I was bored, but didn’t want anyone to know. I was fucking scared. Who was this guy and why couldn’t I control my body?

One of the security guards came up to him and said, “Mr. Crescent, is everything in order here?”

Was this some type of joke?

This hypnotist, or whatever he was, grabbed ahold of my arm. He towered over me by at least six inches, and security was being asked if he was okay. I mean what was I going to do to Mr. Crescent? What could I do? I tried to open my mouth to yell this guy who was controlling me, and I couldn’t even do that.

I couldn’t do anything against this man.

“It’s fine, Henry. Everything is in order here. We’re just going to the suite.”

Henry nodded as his dark eyes scanned me from head-to-toe, and then it was as if the security was happy with Winter’s response and strolled away like he was going to a fucking picnic.

He kept leading me forward, but not in the direction of my room. Was he going to take me wherever he’d taken my husband? My stomach clenched. We were away from the casino and away from prying eyes. At the hotel’s elevator doors, I looked around. We were alone. The lobby was ghostly-quiet with not a soul in sight.

“Stay with me,” he said the words once again.

Helplessly, I climbed into the elevator with him, and the doors shut with a hollow thud. It was then I knew he’d put some kind of spell on me. I felt as if I breathed for the first time since he’d said the word, and I turned my nerves into steel as I tried not to panic. My eyes were wide open like a goldfish. I was too scared to look at him. If he could control me so easily, then what would he do to me? He could say anything like jump off the roof, and I would be powerless to stop. I squeezed my eyes shut. A scream burned on the back of my throat, but I couldn’t utter a single sound.

I didn’t know what else he would say. Then again, I didn’t want to know.