scream the truth to the world. Reveal Santiago for the monster she now was convinced he was.
B ut who would believe her?
Caesar ’d perfected his image as the successful ‘legitimate’ businessman and caring fiancé. He was well respected by those in all walks of life. His employees adored him. He’d cultivated connections all the way up to the governor’s office.
Jordan closed the bedroom door and then slipped out of her shoes. She knew he hated her not sleeping in his bed. He’d made it clear that he wouldn’t tolerate separate rooms much longer. She could only hope he wouldn’t push the issue tonight.
She spit the sleeping pill into her palm and flushed it. The woman facing her in the mirror looked pale. Drawn. She’d aged incredibly over the last few days. She barely recognized herself anymore.
Slowly, she undressed and stood beneath the warmth of the shower until some of the numbness inside of her subsided. She rummaged through her drawer until she found the ugliest flannel pajamas she possessed and put them on as an added precaution. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and smiled. She looked dreadful. Nothing about her appearance would be attractive to Caesar.
When she retuned to the bedroom, Jordan cracked the door and peeked out. She searched the crowd and found Caesar. He was speaking quietly with two young men who worked for him. She’d seen them only a handful of times but they both gave her the creeps. Just for a second, Caesar glanced her way. She closed the door before he could spot her. With nothing else left to do, she slipped into bed. But sleep was the last thing she planned to do. Her thoughts swirled in a thousand different directions. She’d started working on her escape the moment she discovered the CDs.
Tomorrow , she would meet Mariah and tell her everything she knew. If anything were to happen to her before she could get away, at least someone else would know the truth. Once she and Mariah had devised a plan for getting her out of Caesar’s clutches and the CDs into the proper hands, someplace where he couldn’t get to them, then and only then would she start to feel safe again.
Outside the silence of the bedroom, the gathering continued into the evening. Jordan lay listening to bits of conversation while praying for sleep that wouldn’t come.
Not that it mattered. She’d gotten good at faking it for Caesar’s benefit.
Hours later, still lying in dark and pretending sleep, she felt him join her in bed.
“Jordan?” he whispered, leaning over her. She prayed he wouldn’t touch her. “Are you sleeping?” She forced her breathing to remain slow and steady.
After a moment , she heard him lie next to her and pull her close. She forced her body to remain limp against his strong arms. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. Her stomach heaved from his touch. And from the smell of him that had nothing to do with the liquor. Bitter bile rose to her throat almost choking her. It was a struggle to keep from being sick.
A fter what felt like hours, she finally heard his steady breathing. Slowly, Jordan untangled herself from his grasp, moved to the far side of the bed and waited for the morning, listening to the sound of the man she now believed responsible for murdering her brother in cold blood sleeping close by.
Chapter Nine
“Thanks for meeting me, Mariah.” Jordan glanced carefully around the seedy coffee shop in the section of Brooklyn she and Mariah had grown up in. This was her old neighborhood. She and Mariah had been two peas in a pod and inseparable back then. Growing up in these streets.
She’d been extremely careful, switching cabs twice and watching for anything out of the ordinary.
She hadn’t been followed. She was positive of that and yet she couldn’t dispel the feeling that time was quickly running out on her luck. It wouldn’t be long before Caesar stopped buying the grieving sister act and demanded answers.
Jordan might have
B ut who would believe her?
Caesar ’d perfected his image as the successful ‘legitimate’ businessman and caring fiancé. He was well respected by those in all walks of life. His employees adored him. He’d cultivated connections all the way up to the governor’s office.
Jordan closed the bedroom door and then slipped out of her shoes. She knew he hated her not sleeping in his bed. He’d made it clear that he wouldn’t tolerate separate rooms much longer. She could only hope he wouldn’t push the issue tonight.
She spit the sleeping pill into her palm and flushed it. The woman facing her in the mirror looked pale. Drawn. She’d aged incredibly over the last few days. She barely recognized herself anymore.
Slowly, she undressed and stood beneath the warmth of the shower until some of the numbness inside of her subsided. She rummaged through her drawer until she found the ugliest flannel pajamas she possessed and put them on as an added precaution. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and smiled. She looked dreadful. Nothing about her appearance would be attractive to Caesar.
When she retuned to the bedroom, Jordan cracked the door and peeked out. She searched the crowd and found Caesar. He was speaking quietly with two young men who worked for him. She’d seen them only a handful of times but they both gave her the creeps. Just for a second, Caesar glanced her way. She closed the door before he could spot her. With nothing else left to do, she slipped into bed. But sleep was the last thing she planned to do. Her thoughts swirled in a thousand different directions. She’d started working on her escape the moment she discovered the CDs.
Tomorrow , she would meet Mariah and tell her everything she knew. If anything were to happen to her before she could get away, at least someone else would know the truth. Once she and Mariah had devised a plan for getting her out of Caesar’s clutches and the CDs into the proper hands, someplace where he couldn’t get to them, then and only then would she start to feel safe again.
Outside the silence of the bedroom, the gathering continued into the evening. Jordan lay listening to bits of conversation while praying for sleep that wouldn’t come.
Not that it mattered. She’d gotten good at faking it for Caesar’s benefit.
Hours later, still lying in dark and pretending sleep, she felt him join her in bed.
“Jordan?” he whispered, leaning over her. She prayed he wouldn’t touch her. “Are you sleeping?” She forced her breathing to remain slow and steady.
After a moment , she heard him lie next to her and pull her close. She forced her body to remain limp against his strong arms. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. Her stomach heaved from his touch. And from the smell of him that had nothing to do with the liquor. Bitter bile rose to her throat almost choking her. It was a struggle to keep from being sick.
A fter what felt like hours, she finally heard his steady breathing. Slowly, Jordan untangled herself from his grasp, moved to the far side of the bed and waited for the morning, listening to the sound of the man she now believed responsible for murdering her brother in cold blood sleeping close by.
Chapter Nine
“Thanks for meeting me, Mariah.” Jordan glanced carefully around the seedy coffee shop in the section of Brooklyn she and Mariah had grown up in. This was her old neighborhood. She and Mariah had been two peas in a pod and inseparable back then. Growing up in these streets.
She’d been extremely careful, switching cabs twice and watching for anything out of the ordinary.
She hadn’t been followed. She was positive of that and yet she couldn’t dispel the feeling that time was quickly running out on her luck. It wouldn’t be long before Caesar stopped buying the grieving sister act and demanded answers.
Jordan might have
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