Ari frowned and reached her hand into the slot, touching her fingers to Hope’s. “I’d never do that. I’ll be back.”
Hope let out a sob, something she’d never heard from the hardened kick-ass inner-city girl before. Ari fought back her own tears and took a deep breath of resolve. “I’m coming back, Hope. I promise.”
Ari walked away, clenching the knife in her hand so hard it hurt. In the quiet, dark hallway she heard Hope’s voice. “I believe you.”
* * *
Bright sunlight streamed through the window at the top of the stairs. Ari winced, having not seen the sun in days and the glare hurt her eyes.
The other thing was how quiet the house seemed. Daytime probably wasn’t the busiest time of day for these girls, so maybe they were asleep. Plus, Nick had to work to keep up his appearances.
She entered th
e living room, running her hand along the leather couch. All the furnishings were high quality and the room was spotless. She tried to figure out her next move. How to get the keys. The odds were not in her favor.
The main level appeared to be empty, so Ari took the chance and tried the doors, frantically pulling and pushing to get them to budge. Both had a bolted lock that could only unlock with a key. A long, glass patio door went out to the backyard. She managed to slide it open, and inhaled a deep gulp of air, but a long row of bars and another lock kept her firmly inside. Each window was the same. Even if Ari could open the door, she was met with locked bars on the other side.
The neighborhood looked plain and suburban. Quiet, identical ranch-style homes lined the streets. She opened her mouth to call for help but paused. What if Jace or Nick found her? They would kill her before anyone got the bars off the doors.
The best thing to do would be to find one of them and steal the key.
She followed the blood until she found a long smear down the back hallway wall. Maybe Desmond got out of the house. Maybe he’s lying in a pool of blood in the back. Ari didn’t care. Determined, she found the stairs to the upper floor. At the top, she gripped her knife and walked toward a series of closed doors. Several had a gold, thick slide lock on the outside.
Ari stopped at the first locked door and took a breath. The house was so quiet, the idea of opening the door terrified her. What if they were all dead? All gone? What if the plan really was to let Ari and Hope rot away in this house?
With her free hand, Ari slid the lock open. Startled, she gripped the knife so she wouldn’t drop it.
“Oh my god,” she said. Three mattresses covered the floor and eight girls lay across them, in various states of sleep. Only one sat with her back against the wall reading a fashion magazine. She had ratty blonde hair, and old, heavy makeup lined her eyes. She looked exhausted. The girl tensed when she saw Ari.
“Who are you?” the girl asked.
“I’m Ari,” she said. “Are you okay?”
She shrugged. “You one of Reggie’s girls, too?”
“No.” Ari said, but wasn’t she?
The girl nodded. Her eyes held that same glazed-over look Hope’s had when she would come to Ari’s room. “Yeah, you’re too old.”
“I’m here to help you get out of here. What’s your name?”
“Sydney,” she replied. “How are you going to get us out of here? There’s no way.” She nudged one of the sleeping girls with her foot. The pale girl lay on her stomach in shorts and a tight T-shirt. Dark red blood stained the mattress under her head, and her hands and feet were bound with duct tape. Painful-looking bruises covered her arms and legs. “That’s the last girl that tried to escape.”
“Oh god, is she dead?” Ari asked, stepping into the room. She pressed her fingers into the girl’s neck. She was warm and had a pulse. Tilting the injured girl’s head to the side she gasped. “Oh, no. No.”
“What?” Sydney asked, for the first time sounding alert.
“I, um. I know her and I need to get her help. And you. And all these girls.” Ari stood up, trying not to step on anyone. “Okay, do you know if Nic—Reggie or Jace is here? I need a key to get us out of here.”
The girl snorted. “Jace keeps that key around his neck, on a chain. You’re only getting it off of him in one of two ways.”
“How?”
“Killing him,” she said, eyeing the knife. She had an amused expression on her face. “Or screwing him.”
Ari took a step backwards and clenched her jaw. There was no way in hell she was getting into bed with that dirt bag. She’d stabbed Desmond. Maybe even killed him. She could do the same to Jace. She opened her mouth to tell Sydney as much but a rough hand grabbed her by the neck. She squeaked, dropping the knife to the ground in surprise.
Jace’s hard, entitled voice, whispered low in her ear. “I pick choice number two.”