Enticed:A Dangerous Connection (Secrets) (10 page)

“Yeah, I know.” Does she honestly believe she owes anyone anything? Doesn’t she get that she’s still a juvenile and that no kid should be forced to live like this? Like she’s owned by Jimmy or something?

“Anyway, Jimmy keeps telling me things will get better here. If we just give it time.”

“Yeah …” Again I pretend to understand although I feel like screaming. If I’m going to get anywhere with these people, I’ll have to practice patience. “Sometimes we just need to wait, huh? For life to improve.”

She bravely tells me that we should never give up hope. But I wonder how long she will have to wait for her life to get better. And what if her hope gets extinguished before then? Or what if she doesn’t survive? What if I don’t? And how can I keep up this pretense, faking it by acting like this bizarre lifestyle is acceptable and like I am here by choice?

… [CHAPTER 9]………………

“W
hat are you doing in here, Ruby?” Tatiana pushes the door fully open and steps into my room.

“Just talking to Serena.”

Tatiana frowns at me now. “Who unlocked this door?”

“Jimmy,” I tell her.

“Really?”
Her eyes narrow as if she doubts this.

“Yeah. He let me out and I took a shower and then someone brought me these clothes.” I wave my hand down at my outfit, acting like it’s something much nicer than ugly castoffs I would normally not want to be caught dead in.

“That was me,” Ruby says proudly. “I got them from Kandy since Jimmy said you were bigger than me. Or else I would’ve loaned you some of my clothes. And something cuter than those.” She wrinkles her nose at my outfit.

“Well, at least they’re clean,” I tell her. “I didn’t get a chance to pack anything before I came.” What an understatement.

“I’m going to ask Jimmy,” Tatiana tells me, “to make sure you’re really supposed to be out roaming around the house. I thought we were keeping you locked up until your hot date with Mr. T.” She laughs like this is really humorous and not totally disgusting.

As Tatiana leaves, Ruby tosses me a look that’s a mixture of curiosity and concern. “Is that true? You’re the one they brought here for Mr. T?”

I just nod.

“And now they’re waiting to find out how much he’s going to pay for you?”

I take in a breath. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“I heard it’s going to be a lot of money. It sounds like the price keeps going up.”

“Well, that should make everyone happy.” I say this in my most nonchalant tone. “So, everyone here knows all about Mr. T then?”

Ruby nods, but her expression is slightly suspicious now.

“Have you met him too?”

She shakes her head. “No way. He only goes for a
certain
kind of girl.”

“Yeah.” I conceal my disgust. “I know all about that.”

“And you’re okay with it?”

“Sure,” I lie. “Marcia said it’s like paying my dues.”

Ruby looks surprised. “He does pay a lot of money for, uh, for girls like you. But usually they’re not real pleased about meeting Mr. T.”

I hold up my hands. “Hey, don’t get me wrong. I’m not particularly pleased about it either. The truth is, I’m pretty scared. But it’s not like I have a choice.”

“Yeah, well, who does?” I can tell by her expression that she’s unsure about me now. Somehow I’ve got to win this girl over. For both our sakes.

So I tell her that my mom was about to get laid off and that she couldn’t afford to take care of both of us. And I can tell it’s working because Ruby seems like she’s trusting me again. I do feel guilty for keeping my true feelings and motives a secret from this girl, but at the same time, it’s the only way I can help her and myself. And based on what little I know of her, I become even more determined to do this. Maybe that’s part of the reason I’m here.

“Most of Mr. T’s girls never come back to stay with us,” she informs me with a somber expression.

“Why is that?”

She shrugs. “Don’t know.”

“Do you know where they go to?”

She looks away, and I can tell she doesn’t want to tell me.

“What if I
want
to come back here?”

She turns back to me. “Would you?”

“Why not?”

Just then Tatiana returns. “Jimmy wants to see you now.” Then she waits, watching as I head out of the room.

“Where is he?” I pause in the hallway.

“The basement.” Tatiana says this like I should know.

“Where’s that?”

“I’ll show you,” Ruby offers.

“No,” Tatiana snaps at her. “You’re not needed down there. Go to your room, little girl.”

Ruby looks hurt but doesn’t say anything. Instead she continues walking, leading the way to a great room with several mismatched couches and a big-screen TV. Off to one side is a large but messy kitchen, and numerous bottles of liquor line the counters. Ruby turns toward a stairway and quietly goes up. I assume her room is up there. But my eyes are searching around this space, taking inventory of the windows and doors. All appear to be barred or else protected by metal exterior doors that look very secure.

“This way.” Tatiana shoves me past the kitchen and into an alcove where she opens a door. “Down there.”

I go down the dimly lit stairs and enter into a space carpeted in brown, giving this room an even gloomier appearance. It smells slightly damp down here, like mold and mildew and something else I don’t want to think about. There are no windows down here. But like upstairs, there is a big-screen TV and a couple of ugly couches as well as a king-sized bed covered in a purple velvet bedspread and pushed into a corner of the back wall. My stomach turns just to look at it.

I feel like hurling.
God, give me composure. Please!
Whatever is about to transpire down here, I know that I have to pass this test.

Jimmy is sitting in a recliner with his eyes fixed on the TV screen. I’m relieved to see that he’s only watching baseball. I don’t know what I expected exactly, but everything about this house is so creepy and nasty and disgusting that I am continually bracing myself for the worst.

“So you got your shower?” he says without taking his eyes off the TV screen.

“Yeah.” I try to sound cheerful. “Thanks. I really feel better.”

“That’s good. We want to take especially good care of you.”

“Thanks,” I say again.

“Sounds like we’ll have you with us for a few more days,” he tells me.

“How long?” Tatiana asks with irritation.

“As long as it takes,” he snaps back at her.

She cusses now with a dark scowl, folding her arms across her front.

“Get over yourself,” he says as he mutes the TV. Now he looks directly at me. “Tatiana is miffed because you’re in her room and she’s having to bunk with Kandy now.”

“Oh?” I give Tatiana a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry to inconvenience you.”

“Shut
up
!” She swears at me. “I’ve had enough of your Miss Congeniality act, Serena. You might be able to fool Ruby, but I’m not that stupid.”

I give her an innocent look. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,
give it up
. We all know you want out of here. Don’t try to act like you don’t. We’re not buying it.” She glares at Jimmy. “At least I’m not. I can’t speak for you.”

“That’s right.” He stands up, coming over to check me out more closely. “You can’t. And as long as we’re getting our cut on this deal, we’ll take good care of her, Tatiana. You get that?”

She scowls again.

“I’m really sorry that I put you out of your room. I’m willing to share a room with someone else if that helps.”

“No,” Jimmy says firmly. “You’ll stay where you are.”

“Until Mr. T,” Tatiana says in a sneering tone. “After that, I’m taking it back.”

“We’ll see,” Jimmy tells her.

“You mean you’ll let me come back here
after
Mr. T?” I try to sound hopeful, like this is a place I want to return to.

“That depends.” Jimmy is studying me closely now.

“On what?”

“On you.”

“How so?” I’m carefully watching both of them, trying to read their expressions. Tatiana looks slightly worried, but Jimmy is more curious.

“Well, we just assumed that you wouldn’t want to come back here. They usually don’t.”

“Why is that?” I ask.

Tatiana laughs. “Are you really that ignorant?”

“They don’t usually want to come back because they never wanted to be here in the first place,” Jimmy explains. “Just like you.”

“How do you know that?” I lock gazes with him.

He shrugs. “We know you were brought here against your will.”

“Really?” I tip my head to one side. “And who told you that?”

His brow creases. “I guess I just assumed it. That’s usually the case.”

“Well, maybe you should ask Marcia and Bryce. I’m sure they can tell you I put up no resistance. I mean, sure, I was surprised. I honestly thought I was going to get a modeling job.” I laugh. “How naive was that?”

Tatiana snickers. “Well, at least you know better now.”

“So after I got over myself,” I continue, “I figured I should just make the best of it. I mean, it’s not like I had anything to go back to anyway.” I repeat the tale that I gave Ruby. I don’t expect to get their pity, but I do hope they’ll think I’m here willingly.

“Are you saying you want to be part of our little family?” Jimmy asks hopefully.

“Don’t fall for her lies.”

“Shut up, Tatiana,” he snaps at her. “In fact, why don’t you make yourself scarce. I’m getting sick of you.”

She swears at him now, but then she leaves. And I have made a serious enemy. After the door slams, Jimmy sits back down in the recliner and invites me to sit on the couch. I’m surprised at how nice it feels to sit on something besides the floor and the bed.

“So tell me, Serena, how do you think you can fit in here?” Jimmy begins this conversation almost as if it’s a job interview. I’m caught off guard by how he seems too intelligent to be involved in a place like this. “What can you contribute to this household after your date with Mr. T?”

I let out a long sigh. “To be honest, it’s all new to me, Jimmy. And I’m not really looking forward to Mr. T.”

He laughs. “Yeah, well, I can understand that.”

“But I realize that I need to cooperate. I know that a lot of money is involved. That Marcia and Bryce are invested in me. And it sounds like you are too.”

“You got that right. There’s a lot riding on this deal.” He smiles. “I’m glad you understand that. Most of the girls we get here for Mr. T aren’t that smart.”

I nod. “Yeah, I’ve heard that most of them don’t come back here.”

“But you really think you want to?”

“I guess I’m curious what the alternative is. For some reason I’ve gotten the impression it’s not that great.”

He shakes his head in a sad way. “You got that right. Most of Mr. T’s girls don’t last too long. They’re just not tough enough. I’m sorry to say a lot of them end up at the morgue.”

I try to conceal my shock. “Because of Mr. T? Does he kill them?”

“No, no, nothing like that. It’s because they didn’t choose to be here in the first place, Serena. Because they resist and they fight back. And sometimes that causes them to get injured, you know?”

I nod, remembering the screaming from last night. “Yeah, I can understand that.”

“And sometimes they take their own lives.”

“Oh …” My stomach twists at the thought.

“And there’s other risks.” He shrugs. “But what can you do?”

I look directly at him, trying to appear calm. “I really appreciate your honesty, Jimmy. I mean, this is all pretty new to me.”

“So now let me tell you about the brighter side.” He grins. “Maybe I can entice you to consider becoming part of our family.” He describes what could be considered a glamorous lifestyle of fancy clothes, expensive cars, good food, and a lot of male attention. “It’s the world’s oldest profession,” he tells me finally. “And in some places it’s legal.”

I’m so over my head and sickened by all this, but somehow I need to make him believe I’m seriously considering this lifestyle. “Can I ask a question?”

“That’s why I invited you down here. Ask away.”

“I’m not saying I don’t want to stay here — I mean, after Mr. T — but what would my alternatives be? Well, besides the morgue, which I find pretty unappealing.”

He laughs. “Marcia and Bryce still own you, and they have the right to continue selling your time to the highest bidders. Except that the price will drop down the longer you’re working for them.”

“Right.”

“The downside of remaining with them is that they will shuffle you around and you will never be treated like a human.”

“So how would it be possible for me to stay here?” I ask hopefully. “I mean, if Marcia and Bryce still own me?”

He narrows his eyes. “First of all, we have to decide if you can be trusted.”

“Trusted?”

“The girls here are dependable. They understand the rules … and respect them. I’m not convinced you’re ready for that yet. Your first taste of freedom and you’d probably run home to Mommy.”

I know I need to think fast. “But you just told me all the benefits of working here. A girl like me — well, I come from poverty. My mom could barely afford to support both of us and now she’s losing her job. I guess you could say I’m pretty desperate.” I wave my hand. “And this house is way nicer than where I used to live.”

He nods smugly. “It’s not a bad setup.”

“So you’d consider letting me stay here?” I keep my voice even, trying to conceal the disgust churning inside of me. “That’s possible?”

“It’s possible. First we’d have to pay off your debts to Marcia and Bryce. And after that you’d work for us.”

I control my expression and just nod. The idea of me owing anything to any of these people is so ridiculous I can hardly stand it.

“Tom, that’s my boss, will negotiate a price for you. And I’m sure you won’t come cheap. But it’s an investment.”

“Uh … right.” I remember reading about the slave trade in history books, but I never really imagined it was still flourishing.

“Tom has big plans for this house. He wants only the best of the best living and working here.” He flashes a smarmy smile. “And you are an exceptionally pretty girl, with just the kind of look a lot of our more-sophisticated clientele are looking for.”