Because if the fear in her eyes was any indication, Dante was out for blood and wouldn’t stop until he got what he wanted.
Chapter 38
Dani
“Didyougetaccessto the laptop?” Bash asked quietly in my ear.
“Change of plans,” I replied as I sat on his lap.
Kane had come through for me and gotten Bash to Ethereal. He had a thousand other things he’d rather be doing, but he showed up for me.
“What do you mean? We need that, Killer.” Bash’s big hands stroked my back in the dim light of the club.
I wasn’t totally hating this arrangement. Dad thought I was following his orders, so I didn’t have to dance on stage, and I had the protection of a burly, secret biker for the evening.
“Talk to me. Tell me why you’re so shook up. Why did I need to come here? I knew it was serious when your boy called.”
I looked around to make sure Dad wasn’t watching. He said he wouldn’t be in the main area of the club, instead helping set up in the basement, but I didn’t trust anything he told me. I didn’t see him, but my heart stuttered as my eyes landed on Kane sitting at the bar, staring at me and Bash, probably murdering him in his head.
I was still mad at him for the way he treated me, but I would be eternally grateful for what he did for me Friday night. If he hadn’t been watching me, paying attention enough to notice a guy taking me down that dark hallway, I would be in a much different head space right now.
I shifted back to Bash and tried to ignore the grumpy guy at the bar. “Dad’s got two girls he’s going to try and sell tonight. You can’t let him.”
“Fuck. I’ve heard the rumors but I didn’t know he was actually doing it. I’m not sure there’s anything we can do.”
“You could buy them,” I suggested. “Please, Bash. I’ll pay you back, whatever it costs. I’ll make payments.”
“What am I going to do with them once I buy them?” He asked with furrowed brows.
Good question.But anything was better than their fate if they were purchased by someone else.
“They could stay at your clubhouse until I can get them bus tickets to wherever they want to go. I just can’t let them be sold, Bash. Ican’t. You didn’t see what he did to them…”
“I don’t know, babe. I get that you want to help them but–”
“Please, Bash,” I pleaded as I put my hands on his scruffy cheeks. “I’m putting my fucking life on the line for your club. This is the least you can do for me.”
It wasn’t theleast, but I was doing their dirty work to help them clear their name. I was the one putting myself at risk to plant bugs around my house and I would be the one who had to sneak into Dad’s office and gain access to his computer.
He sighed and slouched back on the leather couch. His grip tightened on my hips as he shut his eyes, no doubt trying to come up with an excuse for spending so much cash and delving into the world of human trafficking. I didn’t know how much the twins would cost, but I bet it would be six figures. Minimum.
“If I do this,” he began as he opened his deep green eyes. “You better get that laptop. As soon as fucking possible. I want the software loaded within a day.”
I rolled my lips between my teeth. I didn’t need the laptop because I had every intention of killing Dad myself. I didn’t need proof he was a monster–I knew that firsthand. But if getting the laptop meant Bash would buy the twins and save them from a life of misery, I would do it.
“Whatareyoutwodoing down here?” Dad asked as he sized up Bash, taking in his black button-up shirt and dark jeans. You wouldn’t know he was a member of the Savage Sinners MC unless he was wearing his cut. He looked like a mobster–he played the part well.
I smiled internally as Bash put his arm around my shoulders and narrowed his eyes. “I want to check out the merchandise. I’m a little offended you haven’t offered me anything, Dante. You know we’re looking to expand into different markets down in Fremont.”
“Oh, uh, this is just a real small sampling,” Dad sputtered, his eyes darting around the lowest level of Ethereal, looking hella nervous. “But you’re welcome to meet them. They’re a package deal–twins.”
“Lovely,” Bash said, forcing a smile that turned into a grimace as Dad led the way down the hall.
We passed the torture rooms until we made it to the end of the hallway. He pushed open the door, letting us into the room they used for poker. In fact, I thought it was used for storage when they weren’t hosting games.
It wasn’t.
Instead of game tables, there was a round platform in the center of the room surrounded by chairs. The girls would probably be brought up on the platform and auctioned off like cattle. I stilled for a moment as I observed the other men in the room. Most of them I’d seen before at poker games or on the second level of the club.