I don’t take long, and I’m hyper-aware of Evie moving around in the bedroom. I also don’t trust her to be alone for long.
Once I get out, her pacing stops.
“Will you let them go?” She appears at the bathroom door, but her flustered gaze darts around the space before she turns her back on my naked form.
I pick up a towel and start to dry. “Where would they go?”
Evie half glances at me over her shoulder before turning away again. “To their families.”
Would Evie run back to hers the moment she got the chance? I let that question slip away before it took root and developed into a poisonous thought that had me going down a dark path.
“I’m not making any promises,” I finally say, but I already know what I will do. The only way to free Evie is to free all of them. If she is the only one missing, my story would never stand.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
LUCCA
“Are you sure this is it?” Nicolai asks while pulling up across from a restaurant.
I check the message that Nev sent me. “Yeah.”
Nicolai turns off the ignition. “So, how do you want to do this?”
From here, I can see the place is full of diners.
“Should we wait until it closes?” Nicolai asks while staring at the restaurant. I didn’t have the patience to sit here and wait.
“I’m feeling hungry,” I say and get out of his car.
Nicolai curses. I’m crossing the road when he catches up with me. “Lucca, keep your head.”
“I only want to talk to him.”
Nicolai reaches the front door before me, and I’m waiting for him to open it, but instead, he keeps his hand on the handle.
“There are citizens in here.”
I didn’t give a fuck about citizens, but I did care about witnesses.
“Like I said, Nicolai, I’m hungry.” I slap him on the shoulder. “Stop being so serious.” He drops his hand from the door, and I open it. The heat and smell of food hits me the moment I step in.
A young blonde-haired girl stands behind a podium. “Do you have a reservation?”
I smile at her as I glance around the space. It’s easy to spot The Torpedo, who’s dining with a man who has tattoos on his neck, just like the homeless man described.
I move past the podium. “Excuse me, sir.”
I ignore the blonde’s protests that follow me. The Torpedo looks up and continues to chew his food. “It’s fine.”
The chatter behind me stops as the blonde goes back to her station. I pull a chair from a nearby table and drag it over to the Torpedo’s table. He cuts into his food like this isn’t bothering him. Nicolai joins us.
“Who the fuck are you?” The guy with the tats asks.
The Torpedo continues to chew before looking up. He beckons someone over with two fingers. “Shut it down.”
The Torpedo’s gaze lands on me. “That’s wise,” I say.
“We only want to talk,” Nicolai adds.
“Are you deaf? I asked who you are?” Tat guy yaps on.
“Who I am doesn’t matter,” I tell him.
He glances at the Torpedo before he starts to laugh. “Who’s this fucking clown?” He asks while still laughing.
Everyone is leaving, just not quick enough to my liking.
The Torpedo continues to eat. He chews loud, his mouth half-open as he glances from me to Nicolai and back to his plate.
The blonde waitress arrives at our table and places a napkin in front of me that holds a knife and a fork. She does the same to Nicolai. “Would you like a menu?”
“They aren’t staying.” The Torpedo dismisses her with a wave of his fork. Laughter beside him has me wanting to reach across the table and cut off the laughter, but I keep still.
“Talk.” The Torpedo barks, and the laughter stops as he glares at me. “Don’t get shy on me now, Lucca.”
I grin at him. The restaurant is nearly empty. “I want the girls.”
He grins back at me. The top row of his teeth are encased in gold. “I want three girls to suck my dick at once. That doesn’t mean it will happen.”
I unroll the napkin, and the cutlery rattles to the table. I pick up the knife before setting it back down and address the Torpedo. “I don’t like repeating myself.”
The Torpedo lets his knife clang to his plate, but he still holds his fork. “Then don’t.”
“If you just tell us where they are, we will leave.” Nicolai has decided to take a diplomatic stance on this. I had no intentions of leaving the Torpedo or his friend alive.
The Torpedo shakes his head. “I want you both out of my restaurant now.”
The tattoo guy sits forward. “You heard him.” He repeats and rises. He’s a big guy, but that doesn’t mean much.
Neither Nicolai nor I move. I ignore him.
“Igor isn’t working alone,” I say.
The tattoo guy stands up.
“Sit down, Bykd.” The Torpedo’s fist lands heavily on the table, rattling the glasses.
Bykd does as the Torpedo instructs, but he doesn’t take his beady eyes off me, and I grin at him. “That’s a good boy.”
“What makes you think I have these girls?” He asks.
“Word spreads fast that you were at an auction,” Nicolai says.
“Then I no longer have them.” The Torpedo smiles wide, showing off his golden teeth. I’m already imagining pulling them out one by one.
“Your boy here, Bykd, was seen driving away from a warehouse downtown with the girls.”
The Torpedo glances at Bykd before his gaze trails back to me. “Like I said, I don’t know about any girls.”
I pick up the fork and place it beside the knife on
