Surprisingly, he fired up the computer and brought it back up. She grabbed it away from him, clicked on the home page, and found the index of the girls’ names. Sure enough, Laura Lee. Laura still worked at Rachel’s and probably had no idea she was all over this web site.
She shook her head. She felt for her friend, but right now Laura was the least of her worries.
“I don’t have that kind of money.”
“Like I said, I’m a reasonable man.”
“What is this web site?”
“I told you. It’s a paid site. Patrons of Rachel’s can see the girls in action. Indulge their fantasies.”
“How do you know about it?”
“I know people.”
“Who?”
“Not your concern.”
“I’d say it’s very much my concern. What happens if I do pay you off? Then no one in Bakersville finds out about this. But I’m still plastered all over the net and anyone who pays for the privilege can see me in photos I had no idea I posed for.”
“Again, not my problem.”
She gulped and mustered all her strength. “It just might be, after all. Extortion happens to be a crime, you know.”
“You think anyone will believe you? Look at your background, Amber. You were a stripper. You posed for photos.”
She clenched both fists. “I did not pose for photos!”
“You can say that till the cows come home, but we have the physical evidence right here. Trust me, no one in Bakersville will know where these photos came from. They won’t know they came from me. You can blab it all over town that Blake Buchanan tried to coerce you into paying him to keep the photos secret. Still, the photos speak for themselves. Do you think people will care whether I tried to get money out of you? Do you think they’ll even believe it? Hell, no. They’ll be too busy gossiping and sneaking looks at the goods. You’ll be ruined in this town.”
She shook her drooping head. He’d beaten her. “And every other town I try to escape to, I assume, unless you get your money.”
“Now we’re speaking the same language.”
Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Why are you doing this?”
“Because I can. Because I need the money.”
“I told you, I don’t have it.”
“You have a week.” He turned off the laptop, closed it, stood, and walked to the door. “I’ll be in touch.”
Amber slammed the door, ran to the bathroom, and emptied her stomach.
Chapter Nine
Amber had been crying on her bed for an hour when her cell phone rang.
“Hey, baby, it’s me.”
Harper. She sniffed. “Hi there.”
“Listen, I know this is short notice, but can you come to my place for dinner tonight?”
She was a mess and a half. She had to turn him down. “I’m sorry. I can’t, Harper.”
“Do you have other plans? If so, change them. This is worth your while, I promise.”