CHAPTER SIX
Luke
I waited outside until Addie had finished talking with her brother. I wanted her to have some privacy to talk with him. But judging from her body language as she got out of the car, the call didn’t go well.
“What did he say?” I asked.
“My parents apparently staged a kidnapping with actors,” she said. “For political gain.”
I shook my head. “That’s impossible.” That man who threatened her had a Demon tattoo. His gun was real. I had felt the ammo in the gun by holding it. There was no way he was an actor.
“Yeah, that’s what I told him,” she said. “He’s going to talk to them, but he thinks you kidnapped me for real.” She rolled her eyes. “I tried to tell him differently, I really did. But he wouldn’t listen to me.”
I believed her. The frustration was practically radiating off of her. “I’m sorry,” I said. “Somehow we’ll find out the truth.”
She nodded. “I think I want to go inside and sit down.”
I nodded. “Of course.”
I led her inside the cabin. Inside was a cozy, rustic feeling with a stone fireplace and a dark red carpet on the living room floor. Next to it was a fully stocked kitchen with handmade stoneware mugs. And there was one bedroom with a queen-sized bed. Addie would get it, of course, if we were sleeping here. I would stay out in the living room.
“Have a seat,” I said. “Do you want something to eat and drink?”
She took off her shoes and curled up on the couch. “This is going to sound crazy, but could I actually have a pillow?”
I looked at her, one eyebrow raised. “A pillow? If you’re tired, you can lay down in the bedroom. The bed is made up. I’ll stay out here so you can rest.”
Addie bit her lip. “It’s not that. It’s stupid. But I like hugging pillows sometimes. It comforts me.”
Of course. Why hadn’t I thought about that? “I’ll do you one better,” I said.
I went into the bedroom and opened the closet. Inside was a lot of supplies for Littles, including stuffies. All of the Hell’s Renegades members had a type when it came to significant others. We were all Daddies and we liked Littles. So all of our safe houses were stocked with plenty of supplies for them in case we ever needed to hide here.
I grabbed the fluffiest teddy bear I could find and I took it back out into the living room. Addie’s eyes widened when I held the bear up for her.
“It’s so cute,” she said. The excitement was clear in her eyes.
“It’s all yours right now,” I said, handing it to her.
She hugged it tight to her chest and smiled. “It’s been years since I’ve had a teddy bear,” she admitted. “Not since I was ten.”
“Oh really?”
She nodded and hugged the bear tighter to her. “I was being a brat one day and my parents wanted to teach me gratitude. So they made me give all of my toys away.”
“All of them?” I couldn’t believe it. It must have been heartbreaking for her to lose toys she loved and played with.
But Addie nodded. “The video is on YouTube. The cameras were there, of course.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “You never should have gone through that. You never should have dealt with any of this.”
She shrugged. “It’s not like I have any right to complain. I never wanted anything in my entire life. I live in a mansion. I went to a private school and got a great education. And I’m set to go to an Ivy League college in the fall. I can’t complain.”
“Your parents arranged for you to be kidnapped,” I said. “Not by actors. By very bad people.”
“I know,” she said, her voice small. “It’s still so hard to believe.”
I itched to go over and hug her. But I didn’t want to scare her. I was painfully aware of the fact we were alone in a cabin in the middle of the woods. She barely knew me and we came from two different worlds. Not to mention she had someone pull a gun on her only a few hours ago. I wouldn’t blame her for being scared of me.