Exposed
1208 Words
The interior bedroom was smaller, windowless, tucked into the center of the mansion like a vault. Silas had Thomas and two other security men sweep it twice before letting me inside.
"Stay here," Silas said. "Don't open the door for anyone except me or Julian. Not the staff. Not your mother. No one."
"My mother? Silas, where is she?"
"Still at the office. I'm sending a car to bring her home now. With security." He pulled out his phone, started typing. "Dante knowing about the collar means he's been watching for hours. Maybe days. Which means he knows your mother's schedule, your routine, everything."
"So we're prisoners now?"
"You're protected. There's a difference." He finished the message, looked at me. "I need to meet with Thomas. Go through the security footage. Figure out how Dante's people got close enough to take that photo. I'll be back in an hour."
"What am I supposed to do until then?"
"Stay alive. Stay hidden. And take that collar off before your mother gets home." He left, the door locking behind him with a heavy click.
I sat on the bed, my hands shaking as I unfastened the collar. It left a slight mark on my skin where it had pressed all evening. Evidence of what I'd become.
My phone was still in my hand. Against my better judgment, I opened the message from Dante again.
The photo showed everything. Me in Silas's bed, the collar clearly visible, my expression blissed out and unguarded. Whoever took it had a clean line of sight through the window.
Another message came through while I was looking.
Dante: You look good in a collar, Elena. Does Silas make you beg? Does Julian watch?
My stomach turned.
Dante: I have more photos if you're interested. Lots more. From this week. From last night. From your first night in that house. You've been very entertaining.
I dropped the phone like it had burned me.
He'd been watching since the beginning. Since the night I'd discovered Silas's office. Since Julian had caught me. Since everything started.
Every intimate moment. Every punishment. Every time I'd thought I was hidden, safe, private.
Dante had seen it all.
The phone buzzed again.
Dante: Don't tell Silas about these messages. If you do, I'll send the photos to everyone. Your mother. Your classmates. The FBI. Everyone.
Dante: But if you're smart, if you play along, maybe we can make a deal. Just you and me.
I stared at the screen, my mind racing.
This was a trap. Obviously. Dante wanted me to hide this from Silas, to create secrets between us. To drive a wedge.
But if I told Silas, Dante would release everything. The photos would destroy what was left of my reputation. My mother would see exactly what I'd become.
Another buzz.
Dante: Meet me tomorrow. Noon. The address I'm sending. Come alone. Don't tell the Kingstons. If you do, everyone you care about sees exactly what a w***e you've become.
An address appeared. Some warehouse location across town.
Dante: I'll be waiting, Elena. Don't disappoint me.
I sat there, phone in hand, trying to figure out what to do.
Tell Silas and risk everything being exposed.
Or meet Dante and risk whatever game he was playing.
Footsteps in the hallway made me shove the phone under the pillow.
The door opened. Silas stood there, his expression grim.
"Your mother's car was delayed. Traffic accident on Fifth Avenue. She'll be another thirty minutes." He stepped inside, closed the door behind him. "Which gives us time to talk."
"About what?"
"About the fact that you're lying to me right now." He walked over, sat on the bed beside me. "Your body language. The way you jumped when I came in. The phone you just hid. What aren't you telling me?"
"Nothing. I'm just scared. Dante's been watching us."
"Yes. He has. But that's not what has you this rattled." His hand came to my face, tilting it toward him. "Elena. Whatever he sent you, whatever he threatened, I need to know. Now."
"He didn't send me anything."
"You're lying." His thumb traced my bottom lip. "You're good at many things. Lying isn't one of them. Your pulse is racing. You won't meet my eyes. And you're gripping that pillow like it's hiding something."
My heart was pounding.
"If I tell you, he'll release the photos."
Silas's expression didn't change. "So there are photos. More than the one he sent me."
"He's been watching since the beginning. He has everything."
"Show me."
"Silas, if I do, he'll know I told you. He'll send them to everyone."
"He's going to do that anyway. Men like Dante don't make deals. They make threats and then follow through regardless of what you do." Silas held out his hand. "Phone. Now."
I hesitated, then pulled it from under the pillow.
He read through the messages, his face like stone. When he finished, he set the phone down carefully.
"You were actually considering meeting him."
"I don't know. Maybe. I was trying to figure out the best option."
"The best option is not keeping secrets from me." His voice was calm but I heard the anger underneath. "We had a deal, Elena. Complete transparency. You tell me everything. In return, I protect you. But I can't protect you if I don't know what threats you're facing."
"I was going to tell you."
"When? After you met with Dante? After he had you alone in a warehouse where I couldn't reach you?" He stood, started pacing. "Do you have any idea what he would do to you? What he'd use you for?"
"Use me how?"
"The same way he uses every woman who crosses his path. Break you. Film it. Send the footage to me as a message. Try to ruin me with it. Then dispose of you when you're no longer useful." Silas turned to face me. "That's the game, Elena. That's what you were walking into."
"So what do I do?"
"You do nothing. You stay here. You let me handle Dante." He picked up my phone. "I'm keeping this. You'll get a new one tomorrow with security I control. No more private messages. No more secrets."
"You can't just take my phone."
"I can do whatever I need to do to keep you safe. Even if that means protecting you from your own stupidity." He walked to the door. "I'm doubling security. You don't leave this room tonight. Not for any reason. Understand?"
"What about my mother?"
"She'll sleep in her own room. With a guard outside her door. She doesn't need to know about any of this."
"Silas, wait."
He stopped, hand on the doorknob.
"What happens tomorrow? When Dante realizes I'm not coming?"
"He escalates. Releases some of the photos. Tries to force my hand." Silas's jaw clenched. "But by then, I'll have already made my move. Dante thinks he has leverage. What he doesn't realize is that he just showed me exactly where his surveillance team is positioned. And that's a mistake he won't survive."
"You're going to kill him."
"I'm going to eliminate a threat. There's a difference." He opened the door. "Get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be complicated."
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