Vicious Minds (Children of Vice 4)

He rolled his eyes, let go of me, and gave me a hotel key card. “Change rooms and wait for me. I’ll be back, we have work to go over.”

“Work?” My eyebrow raised as I took the card from him.

“Among other things,” he replied, kissing the side of my head one more time and stepping back. He pointed to the floor. “Do you need help moving her or will that mess up your plans?”

I glanced down at Nari’s husband’s cousin. Her body was still where I left her, drool pouring out of her mouth as she snored, her cheeks bright red.

It would look like she passed out from too much to drink.

“I think she looks she looks pretty comfortable here, no?” I answered and met his gaze.

He shook his head but the look on his face said he knew I was going to say that.

“Twenty minutes. That’s how long before the gap in security and you head to room 2177.”

“Yes, boss,” I nodded, and he walked to the door. “Don’t forget to bring me dinner.”

He paused and looked back at me. “No special request?”

I shrugged. “I want to be surprised.”

“This is a trap for me somehow.” He shook his head before walking out.

He was right.

“Ah…” I placed my hand on my stomach and looked down. “Did you just kick me?”

Daddy’s girl already.

ETHAN – AGE 24

Seoul, South Korea

Tuesday, Jan 1st

The food was a trap because it forced me to think about what the hell I was going to get her while I stood amongst my family. They all spoke and went on, but I was trapped by thoughts of her. She was pregnant and outside of loving fried pastries I wasn’t sure what she actually wanted to eat. So I was forced to think of everything I had her seen her eat when we were together. Forced to figure out how to leave, which also let me set up another reason to send my men away. I sent a few of them to escort the new shipments into the city. It wasn’t necessary that it be done tonight, but I just wanted no more questions. I got spicy beef and fried noodles before returning to the room by myself.

I glanced down at the phone when she didn’t answer. She always answered.

Entering the suite, I placed the takeout on the table.

“Calliope?”

No answer. Either she was playing games with me, which she had no reason to, or…I headed down the hall and pushed the door open and there she was laying diagonally across the bed curled up into a ball.

She was sleeping, the strands of the platinum blonde wig she wore over her face. Walking to the side of the bed, I sat down and brushed the hair from her face.

“Anyone could have walked in on you,” I whispered and she lifted her hand, a cell phone in it, with the words ARRIVED on it.

“Hmm.” She pushed herself off the bed, rubbing her eyes before reaching under my arm and tugging at something on my back of my suit jacket. It was small thin circle. She clicked it and the words on the screen changed to CLEAR.

“You put a tracker on me?”

“No. It’s a motion bounce. The others are in the in hall. So if anyone came that was not you, I would know.” She pressed the sticker on the phone, yawned, and laid back down. “Where is the food?”

I don’t know why I bothered to doubt her anymore. I don’t even think it was doubt, actually. More like curiosity.

“Living room. I’ll get it.”