Locked Away (Living With Lies Book 2) (6 page)

“I’ll go,” I announce before turning and racing out of his office. I run up the stairs to my bedroom where I lock myself in my bathroom. I see guns all the time. I’ve even heard rumors about what’s happened to some of our staff that’s just up and quit, but I’ve never seen Daddy point a gun at someone before.

Tears start falling down my face as I hear a knock at my door. “Belle.” My hand shakes as I wipe my cheek. “Open the door now, Belle.” Daddy’s voice is stern and I know he’s mad at me. I reach out and unlock the door. Daddy pushes it open and steps in front of me. His eyes look furious as his chest rises and falls. I cast my eyes down in fear of the unknown.

I hear him sigh. “Belle, you need to knock before you come into my office. You know that.” I know the rules, but Daddy always keeps the door closed when he’s with someone.

“I thought...I thought ...” I whimper as my eyes fill with more tears.

“Baby, come here.” My eyes dart to his when I hear how gentle his voice suddenly is. He’s holding his arms open, and without hesitation, I melt into his embrace. Daddy runs his fingers through my hair, causing me to relax even more. “My office is off limits until you’ve been told you can come in. Are we clear, Belle?” I nod my head without looking at him.

“Who loves you to the moon and back?”

I smile into his chest. “You do, Daddy.” I know Daddy loves me, but today is the first time I’ve questioned who my father really is.

****

The next two days pass and I barely leave my room. I think I’m upsetting Kate, but I can’t bring myself to give a damn. Kate is a good person. I hardly know her, but I know that much. I only wish I was here to visit her and not because my father forced me on her and her friends.

When Monday night rolls around, I slip downstairs long after everyone else had dinner—a meal I once again skipped—to find something to eat.

I grab a bowl of grapes and I walk out by the pool, wishing like hell I could jump in and do a few laps. Swimming is just another thing Damian has put on hold in my life.

I’m beyond pissed at him, but I’m equally scared. His disappearance from my life is unnerving and not at all like him. I’ve been trying my best not to think about it, but the fact that something has happened to him has finally set in.

“Beautiful night.” I jump when I hear Kiran’s voice behind me. Instead of answering him, I keep my eyes focused on the pool, but as luck would have it, Kiran drops down in the chair next to me.

I want to scurry away and run back up to my room because the embarrassment I felt the other day is back.

“Why haven’t you gone swimming again?” he softly questions.

I sigh in frustration. Under normal circumstances, I think Kiran and I could have been friends. Then again, normal isn’t a word that usually applies to my life.

“Kate and Gavin won’t mind if you use their pool.” I’m confused about what to say, so I remain silent. After several minutes pass without either of us saying anything, I start to get up, which has Kiran reaching out for my hand.

“I’m sorry, okay? I was a dick and you have every right to hate me, but I’m asking you to give me the chance to show you I’m not normally an asshole.”

I look up from our joined hands to his face, and I’m shocked at how sincere he appears. Instead of answering him, I nod my head yes. Getting along with my current roommates will definitely make staying here easier on everyone.

“Good. Now promise me you won’t hole up in your room all the time and continue to skip meals. I can’t stand the idea that you’re starving yourself because I went off half-cocked and was an asshole.” Again, I see concern sketched across his face.

Slowly, I pull my hand back but continue looking at him. “I wasn’t hiding out in my room.” Kiran’s brows scrunch together while he gives me a look that clearly states he doesn’t believe me. “Okay, I was a little, but what I meant was at home, I often spent hours at a time in my room alone. I’m used to it.” I shrug.

I can see the questions in Kiran’s eyes. “Is it not safe for you unless you’re in your room?”

I let a small laugh slip out. “Damian’s home is beyond safe. I’m safer there than anywhere else in the world, but ...”

Not knowing where Damian is or if he’s safe has me apprehensive about what I should or shouldn’t say. I bring my eyes back to Kiran’s to find him studying me.

“My father loves me, I’ve never doubted that, but at times, his love can be suffocating. I live in a house where twenty or thirty people come and go daily, but I go weeks without talking to more than two or three people.”

This time, when I look at Kiran, I see pity in his eyes, and I have to restrain myself from getting mad because his pity is the last thing I want.

“I’m sorry. That’s pretty shitty,” he says.

“Yeah, but that’s life. You win some, you lose some, or do you Americans say ‘
That’s how the cookie crumbles
?’
” Kiran chuckles, a real honest to goodness laugh that brings a smile to my face.

“I don’t know about crumbling cookies, but I get what you’re trying to say.” I take a step toward the house but stop when I notice how Kiran is staring at me. If I was more experienced, I might say he’s looking at me the way a guy does when he’s interested in a woman, but after the last few days, I can’t be positive.

“I better get to bed. I’ll see you later,” I breathily say.

I take another step closer to the house as Kiran reaches out and grabs my hand again. “I’ll see you tomorrow because you aren’t going to spend the whole day trapped in your room,” he challenges with a gorgeous smile.

My heart starts thumping hard in my chest. I can’t help my excitement over the idea that he wants to see me, even if he’s only being friendly. I can only hope his sudden change in attitude isn’t because he feels sorry for me.

“See you tomorrow.”

Kiran finally drops my hand, allowing me to walk away. Once I’m back in my room, I break out in a huge smile. Kiran might not look at me the way I would want a man to, but he appears willing to be my friend, and that’s more than I had yesterday.

Belle

I awoke from a nightmare I had about Damian. In my dream, he never returned for me...because he was dead. I grab my phone and search his name. Again, I don’t find anything online that would make me believe he’s not alive.

Manuel’s father, Miguel, stayed in Poza Rica when we left for our trip to ensure Damian’s business continued to run like normal in his absence. Even though Miguel wasn’t with us, he has to have an idea of what’s going on—meaning Manuel probably does as well. Tracing calls and locations is one of the easiest things to do, which means calling Manuel isn’t a good idea—but my need to know that Damian is okay overrides my reason.

As a kid, Manuel was allowed to grow up like any normal child, but as his teenage years passed, my father started grooming him for his next generation of soldiers. They might not keep Manuel in the loop, but he’d still know if something has happened to Damian.

I grab my phone and dial the only number besides Damian’s I know by heart. After several long moments, he finally answers. “Hello?” Manuel barks in an angry voice.

“It’s me,” I whisper at the same time I hear a female’s voice holler. “Where are you going?” I giggle knowing I’ve interrupted him and one of his many conquests. I swear I can hear him growl in my ear.

“Izzy, why are you calling me? You know that’s not a smart idea.” I can hear him breathing hard into my ear as his anger becomes obvious.

“I have to know if Damian is okay,” I state.

“Damian? Since when did you start calling him by his name?”

I huff out a breath. “Now isn’t the time, Manuel. Tell me, is he okay?”

Manuel sighs. “I don’t know. The rumor is Damian and Richardo were shot. My father went to check on them but he hasn’t returned home yet. No one, at least, not to my knowledge, has seen or spoken to your father, Alejandro, or Sergio since the night you left.”

“Wait!” I shout louder than I meant to. “Sergio was with me. Somebody called him and he ended up taking me to the States where I boarded a plane.”

“I know. He reported afterward but my father sent him to check on Damian and Richardo. He’s been off the grid since.”

I groan in frustration.

“Babe, you shouldn’t be calling. That’s the whole reason you weren’t given a phone in the first place. You’re safe where you’re at, but not if the wrong people figure out where you’re hiding,” he adds in a softer voice.

“Why would he send me here? He cares about Kate; I know he does, so tell me why he would put the two of us together? It doesn’t make any sense.”

“Because the people who care about your whereabouts think you’re here. You weren’t listed as a passenger on the flight to Tijuana. When you did board a plane, it was in the States and Damian made sure you weren’t traveling under your real name. Go open your suitcase.”

I look around the room until I spot my luggage. I pick it up and sit it on the bed. “Okay, now what?”

“Feel around the inside edges until your finger snags the fabric.”

I run my finger around one side and find nothing. I move to the other and I hit a lump. “Now what?”

“Rip it open.” I tug hard and the tight fabric lining pulls away from the suitcase. “Holy shit,” I breathe out.

“If something happens and you need to leave her house, use that.” I look down at the fake ID I used for my school along with a passport I’ve never seen before in Gabriela Bello’s name, only with my picture and thousands of American dollars.

“How?”

“It doesn’t matter,” he says, cutting me off. “Damian has pissed the wrong people off. He’s either dead or hiding, and neither of those options leaves you in a good place once the dust settles.”

“If I’m a sitting duck, then—”

“You’re not. Damian has men on his payroll in Denver. The Reynolds girl doesn’t know it, but her house was rigged with top of the line shit before she moved in. Outside of actually being here, Kate’s house is probably the safest place you can be right now,” he adds.

I sniffle. I’m not exactly homesick, but I’m nervous. Not knowing what’s happened to Damian or if someone is after me is about to drive me crazy. “So the big plan is I just wait. What if nothing happens? What about school? Not to mention Kate has a life that doesn’t include a distant relative permanently living with her.”

Manuel groans. “Damn it, Isabelle. Just sit tight and like always I’ll make sure you’re taken care of.”

His comment puts a smile on my face, but I also know since he used my full name that I’m pushing his limits. Manuel has spent most of his life taking care of me. Other than Damian, he’s the last person I want to anger.

“I’m sorry. I’m frustrated but not with you.”

“I know,” he says, softer. “I have a way I can reach you if I need to. Don’t call this number again unless it’s a matter of life and death. And you need to get rid of the phone you’re using. Now that you’ve called here, someone could trace it back to your location. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”

“Yes,” I whisper. “Go back to your lady friend. Sorry I interrupted.” I wait as the line goes dead silent.

“It’s...it’s not like that,” he finally says.

I laugh. “Not like what?” I question.

“Me and that girl. It’s not like that,” he says again, confusing me until a light goes off.

“Oh, wow. You actually like this one. Holy shit.” I giggle. “When I get home, I’ll alert all the females in Poza Rica that Manuel Ramos is finally off the market.” I bust out laughing again as he groans in my ear.

“Belle?” I hear Kate at my door.

“No, that’s not what I meant,” Manuel repeats.

“I’ll do as you asked and I won’t call again. But if you find out something has happened to him, you better contact me.”

Kate knocks on my door. “Bye, Manuel,” I say before ending our call. I hop up and open my door. “Hey,” I say with a smile.

“I thought I heard you talking,” she says, looking over my shoulder and into the room. “Oh, I called someone on my cell phone.” I pull my phone out from behind my back.

“I didn’t know you had a phone with you.”

I shrug but I don’t tell her where the phone came from. “I came to tell you that breakfast is ready. I’d really like for you to eat with us.”

“Sure. I’ll be right down.” Kate watches me closely until she finally smiles and walks toward the stairs. I know she wasn’t expecting me to agree to eat with them so easily, but I have a feeling I’ll be in Denver for a while, which means I need to put forth an effort where Kate is concerned. It also means I need to go out again because if I’m going to be stuck here, I need a few more things to get me by.

****

By the time I make it down to the kitchen, the four of them are already sitting at the table eating. “Belle, you made it,” Callie cheerfully greets me. Since Callie moved past my name, she’s been nothing but sweet to me.

“Yep,” I add with probably the first smile they’ve seen on my face since I’ve arrived. I take a slice of French toast and sit down at the end of the table across from Gavin, leaving an open spot between Kiran and me.

“You seem to be in a better mood today,” Kate carefully says. I should be in a horrible mood knowing there’s a good chance my father is dead, but after my call with Manuel, I’ve decided I’m no longer putting my life on hold. I might be stuck in Denver, but I’m not going to live in this house like a prisoner of war.