Finding Eternal Peace (3 page)

Finally, someone in this hellhole didn’t see everything in rainbows and moonbeams. His eyes even appeared clear and alert. He could possibly be the only sane person, besides her, in this joint.

“Not a word out of your mouth. We walk out of here without making eye contact with anyone else.” He lifted her chin. “If anyone stops us, bury your face in my chest or my neck, but do not look at them, understood?”

She nodded. The more long-term residents had free rein to explore their sexuality out in the open. She understood what he wanted her to do. They must act as if they couldn’t keep their hands off each other if they ran into anyone.

He slipped her hand into his and led her down the hallway. She struggled to keep up with his long strides. Out of her peripheral vision, she studied the way he moved.

Confident and determined, he strolled down the hallway, knowing precisely where they were headed. She figured out right away that he was guiding her to the other side of the commune where those that lived in meaningful relationships dwelled.

He stepped in front of her and wrapped her in his arms. She planted her face into the curve of his neck and closed her eyes. If Lord Stephen found her, she didn’t want to see him coming.

His lips found her ear. “Hang tight. Run your hands around me and over my ass.”

She inhaled swiftly.

He chuckled. “You’ve got to act like my woman if we’re going to pull this off, Red.”

The use of her nickname threw her into action. She let her hands roam over his back. Hard, tight muscles constricted underneath his robe. She forgot about not knowing this man for more than five minutes, and explored his backside.

The warmth of his breath on her ear relaxed her nerves. She molded herself to his body and let her hands drop to the top of his ass. Oh. My. God. An actual ass a woman could sink her fingers into and hold on.

“OK. Coast is clear.” He stepped back, gazed down at her, frowning, then shook his head and pulled her down the hallway.

Other people were rushing in the opposite direction. Meg turned and gazed over her shoulder. Where were they all going in such a hurry?

The alarm continued to ring all over the compound. She’d found herself so enthralled with the man who’d come to her rescue, she’d blocked out the sound.

“What’s going on?” She tugged on his hand. “Where’s everyone going?”

“Fire.” He pulled her through the doorway into the couples’ only area, where she’d never been allowed to enter before.

“What?” She stopped and nearly had her shoulder pulled out of its socket. “Wait. We can’t run. My—”

He picked her up, tossed her over his shoulder, and ran. She gasped, trying to find the breath that had escaped the moment her stomach slammed into his shoulder. Unable to cry for help or get him to stop, she could only clutch at his tight, muscled ass.

Chapter Three

No more than twenty seconds later, at the end of the long forbidden hallway, the man kicked the door closed, set her on her feet, and stared at her without saying a word. She swung her arm back, but he caught her fist in his large hand before it connected with his jaw. Furious, she charged into his chest in her attempt to get out the door.

“Let me go!” She struggled in his arms. “You idiot.” She kicked out with her feet, making solid contact with his shins.

“Dammit. Knock it off, Red.” He flipped her around and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Stay still. Stop kicking.”

“My sister!” She threw back her head and clipped his chin. “Let. Go!”

“Fuck.” He picked her feet off the ground, threw her on the bed, and wrestled her in an attempt to control her. “Settle down. I’ll explain what’s going on once you stop trying to kick the shit out of me.”

She writhed against the bed, pulled on the covers, and tried to wiggle her way out from underneath him. Her breath came in little puffs, and her muscles screamed from the struggle. She’d never give up. Her sister might still be inside the compound.

Another person sat down on the bed beside her head. Meg froze and lifted her chin. A woman, dressed in clothes identical to those Meg wore, grinned down at her.

“You’re safe in this room. Why don’t you stop fighting, and my partner will explain what is going on.” The woman nodded to the man lying on top of her, pinning her to the bed. “Jesus, Joe. How do you expect her to react with this professional football style take down?” She rolled her eyes. “Let her up.”

Meg scrambled off the bed the second the man released her, turned to the woman, and grabbed her hand. “Please, you have to let me out of here. I have to find my sister. The fire alarm…I don’t know if she’s safe or needs help getting out. I have to make sure she’s OK. Please. Please…” She turned to the man. “You can go with me. I won’t leave. I promise. I just want to make sure she’s safe.”

“The fire is well contained. Your sister isn’t in any danger.” He rubbed his chin. “Sit down.”

She sat on the edge of the bed. “I don’t understand. The alarm?” She covered her cheeks and glanced around. “Shit. I’m not supposed to be in this area. If he finds me…”

“I’ll protect you.” The guy held out his hand. “I’m private detective Joe Sherrill.” After shaking her hand, he motioned toward the woman. “This is detective Kathy Dafoe.”

“Megan O’Donnell.” Her shoulders sank. “You guys are law enforcement?”

“No.” He curled his top lip. “Private organization.”

The woman nodded. “We’ve noticed that you are not participating in the free drugs that come with being a member of Eternal Peace, and would like to know what your involvement with the commune is and what you plan to do here.”

“Drugs?” She shook her head. “No one has offered me drugs.” She stood up. “I’m not involved with Lord Stephen.” Swinging around, she raised her brows. “At all!”

The man scoffed. “You appeared pretty involved when I pulled the fire alarm and caused a scene to rescue you.”

“No!” She caught her lip between her teeth. “You’ve got this all wrong. I’m pretending to join Eternal Peace. My sister is here, and I want to get her out.” She lifted her chin. “She doesn’t belong here.”

He moved toward her and nodded. “The drugs are slipped into the desserts that are served after every meal. We noticed that you haven’t eaten any of the offerings.”

She shook her head and placed her hand on her chest. “N…no. All the dishes have milk in the ingredients. I’m lactose intolerant.” She closed her eyes, inhaled, and reopened them. “Oh, God. I always give my bowl to my roommate. I could have killed her.”

“No. The drug they’re using is a mild sedative. Supplied continually, it creates a calm, happy, and compliant existence.” He raised his gaze to his partner. “You better get out of here. I can take over from here and fill Red in on what is going to happen.”

Kathy nodded and clapped him on the shoulder. “Watch your back.” She squeezed out the door without saying where she was heading.

The click of the door latch closing filled the room. Meg stared at Detective Joe and tried to wrap her brain around all the new information she’d learned in the last ten minutes. Knowing that there was one person within the confines of the cult who suspected Lord Stephen might be shady helped her calm down.

“I better go back to my room. I can’t take the chance of displeasing him so he kicks me out.” She dropped her arms. “Thank you for telling me who you are. It helps to know that I’m not the only one who thinks this place is fucked up.”

Joe stepped up and blocked her path. “Hang on, Red. We’re not finished here.”

“But I’m not involved with these people. I told you, I’m here to rescue my sister.” She sidestepped to go around him. “You’re not going to tell him, are you?”

He laid his hand on her shoulder. “From now on, you will live in this room. You’re taking the place of my partner.” He grimaced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make that sound like an order.”

“I can’t! Do you know what that man will do to me if he finds me shacking up in here with you?”

“Well, you can’t go back. Trust me. I’ve seen what happens to women who turn Lord Stephen down and don’t go through training.” He motioned to the bed. “Sit.” He cleared his throat. “Please. I’ll explain.”

Joe lifted his foot and placed it on the wooden chair beside the curtained window. Glancing down, he groaned at the sight of his robe opening up. He put his foot back down. Appearing uncomfortable, he sat on the chair instead and placed his elbows on his knees.

“We’ve watched all the new arrivals the last few weeks, and you are the only one who hasn’t taken part in the initiation. You piqued our interest. We planned for Kathy to set the fire, and I’d pull the alarm. It was only a matter of time, and I waited for the right time to whisk you away from Lord Stephen before he could put you through the tests.” His eyes narrowed. “The women that do not pass through all his sadistic rituals find themselves on a ship overseas and sold into the sex slavery business.”

“What?” Her legs bounced against the bed, and she pressed down on her thighs to keep them still. “That’s crazy!”

“It gets worse.” The muscle along his jaw twitched. “We haven’t been able to dig up any incriminating evidence against him, because the entire group of women here support and believe in Eternal Peace. The members here believe every word that tumbles from Lord Stephen’s mouth.” He nodded. “Except you, that is.”

“But what can I do?” She snorted. “I’ve failed at even making contact with my sister this whole week.”

“I’d like you to take Kathy’s place.” His gaze lowered, and she gripped the edges of her robe. “If we can pull this off, we can save all these people from this creep. Save all the innocent women looking for acceptance and love who will end up on their backs underneath some abuser who’ll…” He tightened his mouth and looked away.

“But Lord Stephen knows what I look like.” She ran her hands through her hair. “Once he discovers I ran out of his room and finds me with you…I’ll be one of those women lost overseas.”

“I’ve got hair dye. With your body type being similar to Kathy’s, we can pull this off. Turning you from a redhead to a brunette will throw him off. So far, he hasn’t tried to mess around with us, thank God. He wouldn’t know Kathy if he ran into her in the hall.” His gaze lowered again to her chest. “You are much bigger breasted than Kathy, but with these fucking robes, no one else will notice.”

She raised her brows. “What about me? Surely he’ll try to find me. What is he going to think when I show up missing? I know he’d recognize me…he’s been watching me.”

“Kathy’s taking care of that. The police are going to contact him and ask about a woman who has come up missing. That’s you. When there’s no sign of you around Eternal Peace…” He rubbed his hands together. “He’ll think you ran away during the fire.”

“OK.” She stood up. “OK.” Pacing in front of the bed, she ran through everything he’d planned. One thing needed to be cleared up before she agreed to this crazy plan. “What about my sister? I want her out of here.”

He nodded. “Ultimately, we’ll gather enough evidence to close the whole place down and save all of the women, but I can promise you that if you help us, I’ll get your sister out of here personally.” He stood up and held out his hand.

She reached out and shook to seal the deal. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet, Red. I haven’t explained what you’ll have to do.” He frowned.

* * *

The rat-a-tat-tat on the bathroom door the next afternoon startled Meg. She set the hairbrush down. Annoyed at herself for jumping every time Joe paid her any attention, she wrinkled her nose. All night, she’d barely slept, aware of his breathing, his sighs, and each time his arm or leg bumped hers under the covers.

“Hey, Red. You got about ten minutes.”

She ran her hands through her now black hair. “OK. I’ll be out in a sec.”

“Come on, Meg, you can do this. Think of Allison. Stop thinking of the man with a tight ass in the other room waiting to tease you some more with that warm, solid body of his,” she whispered.

Swinging the door open, she stepped out and stood in front of the man who’d consumed her every thought since he’d rushed into Lord Stephen’s room to save her virtue. “Well?”

A corner of his mouth lifted. “It’ll do.” He stroked both of her arms from shoulder to wrist. “Last chance.” He gave her hands a squeeze. “I know we haven’t had very much time alone today. Do you have any questions?”

She inhaled a deep breath. “Just one. You expect me to do whatever it takes to get us deeper into Lord Stephen’s elite group, right?”