Chapter 14
1308 Words
Dexter
Pulling my body slightly back away from Aurora, I lean over her and run
my hand slowly through her re-tangled mass of hair while I formulate
my plan. I need her to tell me what happened, and I now have a tactical
advantage—her defenses are down. Aurora trusts me, and I need to capitalize on
that while I have the chance.
“What were you doing when they grabbed you?” I ask, gentling my voice but
keeping it firm. I will have my answers.
“We were at a club in Paris, and I went out a side door,” she says slowly, her
breath stuttering slightly while her gaze is fixed unseeingly on my chest. I run
my hand along her back. Her body loosens as she relaxes. “She told me to meet
her there.”
“Who’s she?”
“Janice. A friend from school.”
“She told you to go out that door?” I ask, wanting to confirm the details.
Even the smallest bit of information could help in discovering what really
happened to Aurora the night the kidnappers took her and will be useful in piecing
together the events that led her here to this f*****g nightmare.
“Yes.”
“Where were you?”
“Some club, I don’t remember which one, She wanted to go there,” Aurora
says, before surprising me and starting to giggle softly. “They sprayed foam.”
“I didn’t realize that was still a thing,” I chuckle.
“It’s not,” she says, finally looking up at me with an amused expression.
“How’d you two become friends?” I move my hand up her back and
massage her neck lightly, feeling the warm, soft skin beneath my fingers.
“We met at the library,” she answers, suppressing a moan as I gently work
the knot at the base of her skull.
“Did you have classes together?”
“No.”
The hairs on the back of my neck rise wondering whom this Janice really is,
if that’s even her real name. It seems very suspicious that a new friend would
suddenly appear in Aurora’s life just in time to have her kidnapped.
“I hope she’s okay,” she whispers.
“I bet she is,” I mutter darkly.
Whoever masterminded the kidnapping knew to wait until the traditional
two-week Easter holiday when they could ensure she was traveling abroad. This
gave them ample time before anyone would raise the alarm at her disappearance.
Once Aurora falls back to sleep, I’ll call my assistant Trevor again and give him
the information I’ve been able to gather. This should help speed the investigation
along. The sooner I discover who the fucker is, the sooner I can make them pay
for what they’ve done to my Aurora. They’ve traumatized her, and that won’t go
unpunished.
“Close your eyes,” I tell her, pulling the covers up higher over our shoulders
and tucking her in more tightly. “Go back to sleep.”
Gliding my hand along her back, I pull her in closer. Reaching her shoulders,
I gently massage them, and it’s not long before I feel the tension release from her
body as she quickly falls back asleep, snuggled against my chest—right where
she belongs.
Instead of getting up to call Trevor right away, I simply watch Aurora sleep.
Why anyone would want to hurt this sweet, intelligent, gorgeous woman is
unfathomable. I don’t care who they are; they will f*****g pay for what they’ve
put her through. I’m seriously considering wringing Peter’s neck and severing all
ties with him after this. It may not be good business, but for once I don’t f*****g care. He better have a good excuse for not rescuing Aurora the moment he
discovered she’d been taken. Although, there is no excuse he could give that
could possibly be good enough.
Taking a deep breath, I slowly extract myself from the bed, careful not to
disturb Aurora. I make sure to pull the blankets up over her, so she doesn’t catch a
chill in my absence. Pressing a kiss to her forehead, I close my eyes and breathe
in her sweet, clean scent. There’s something f*****g intoxicating about my
princess.
Turning around, I reach for the phone and call Trevor again at the hotel. Last
time I called, while Aurora was in the bathroom, he had no news for me. This time
he better f*****g have some information.
“Peter has been texting me again, sir, demanding to know why you aren’t
answering him and what is going on,” he tells me.
“Have you responded?”
“Only to ensure him you are handling the situation.”
“Good,” I growl. Peter doesn’t deserve to know what is going on. “Do you
have any information for me?”
“Some,” he says hesitantly. “With the time difference, it’s been difficult to
reach people.”
“I don’t want excuses,” I clip. “I want results.”
“I went on a hunch and checked Miss Stones’s social media accounts,” he
tells me. “And they all show she has been having a wonderful Easter Holiday in
Paris, and then again back in London.”
“So no one suspects anything?”
“I doubt it, sir. There aren’t just photographs of places she’s reported to have
been, but more than one selfie all geo-tagged at those locations.”
“f**k,” I mutter.
“Yes, it would appear someone has gone through a lot of trouble to keep
Miss Stones ’s disappearance a secret.”
“Yes.” I then have a sudden thought. “Text Peter and get her mobile number
from him, Daniels will need it to do a trace. I want to see if she’s been
supposedly sending any messages. Someone must be posing as her to her parents and university.”
“Yes, of course,” he says, and I can tell he’s reaching for his phone as he
mutters, “Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Well, I have some information for you.”
“You do?” he asks excitedly.
“They kidnapped Aurora from outside of a club, I don’t know which one. But it
did foam during that evening.”
“That’s still a thing?” he scoffs.
“Apparently,” I answer amused. “She was there with a new friend of hers
who goes by the name Janice. They met in the library on campus, but they don’t
have any courses together.”
“So are you thinking this Janice might be in on the kidnapping?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll be sure to pass the information along to Daniels.”
“Good.”
“Your sister texted me and was wondering what your itinerary is.”
“Text Riley back, and tell her I’ll call tomorrow.”
I hear Aurora whimpering again in her sleep.
“Be ready to leave when we get back, and Aurora will need some clothes,” I tell
him. Not waiting for a reply I hang up and quickly make my way back to the
bed. Gently, I pull Aurora back into my arms, tucking her under my body once
again.
“I’ve got you, Princess,” I tell her, running my hand along her side. “I’m not
going anywhere.”
Her breathing relaxes, and I kiss her forehead gently. Pulling back, I stare
into her now open eyes.
“Sir?”
“I’m right here,” I tell her, giving her a small smile.
Her tiny hand reaches up and gently touches my cheek. I turn my head and
kiss her palm. Her lips twitch into a small smile.
- Writer
