Surrender: Keeping Her in the Dark Vol. 4 (9 page)

“I just don’t know how to do it yet,” I leaned back and lowered my voice. “But getting close to him will certainly help,” I looked back at the rearview mirror and John’s eyes were on me.

“Please take me home,” I said softly. “I’m tired and I miss my husband.”

Chapter Six

Liam

He patted me on the back like I was his friend. He talked about hunting and taking a pottery class with his wife. I chuckled at the pottery class remark. Norah had asked me to go with her to a pottery class and I think I told her I would have rather been hit by a car.

We talked about his vacation home in Prague and about his son winning a spelling bee.

I was amazed at how normal he sounded. He didn’t mention that he made his money from buying and selling women. He talked like he was a regular Joe who went to work at a 9 to 5 job and his wife was on the PTA. Forget the fact that kidnapping, torture and ruining the lives of thousands of women was his specialty.

“Mr. Hastings, I would like to trust you. I believe you are a trustworthy man. You understand the environment we live in and have even taken part in what we have to offer.” Again he put his arm around me and we started walking toward the door. We walked back inside and down another hall.

“Trust and Loyalty are the most important thing, not just in my business, but in everything. If we didn’t think we could trust you, you wouldn’t be here. But don’t think our vetting process is over once we let you in the door. I run background checks, have private investigators and check in on all my friends families every once in a while.” We stopped in front of large wooden doors and he moved his hands to my shoulders.

“Mr. Hastings, what I’m saying is after our preliminary investigation into you, we would like to invite you inside the door.”

I nodded and looked down at me feet. This was exactly what the agents wanted. I was being invited inside.

“There’s just one more thing I need from you,” the doors opened and a very large man stood there. Amir nodded at the man and he grabbed my arm and pulled me in the room.

The room was dark. I could see there was something big in the middle but I didn’t know what it was. I held my hand up to block the light from shining in my face. The room was completely dark except for the spotlight on me.

I felt hands on my body. Not the kind of hands I liked being on my body. Manly hands that were patting me down. One leg, then the other, my waist, around my waist band, one arm, then the other. He instructed me to take off my jacket and he patted the jacket down as well. Then he told me to put the jacket back on and go and stand in what looked like an elevator. I gulped and adjusted my collar and looked over at Amir. He nodded towards the even darker little room.

I walked over and stepped inside just as the green lights scanned my body. They were both at the top and the bottom moving over everything. I figured they were scanning me for something.

“I hope I don’t get cancer from that,” I said as I walked out after it was over. The men laughed but the big man told me to step on a little platform and to hold on to the sides.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Please step up,” he said again. I stepped forward onto the platform. It started to move up so I held on to the sides. My eyes had finally started to adjust to the dark room and the shining light in my face. I could see that the large black thing in the middle of the room was actually a water tank.

The platform I was on stopped just above it.

“Please don’t be alarmed, Mr. Hastings. This is just a precaution,” he nodded his head at the large man. “Proceed,” he said.

The platform started to lower me closer to the water. I loosened my tie with one hand and held on with the other.

I knew what this was for. They were testing me and my body. They had to see if I had a microphone or recording device on me. If I did, I could be electrocuted or least of all the water would short it out and it wouldn’t work anymore.

The water covered my feet and my Italian shoes. My brand new Italian shoes that I paid quite a bit of money for were now getting ruined by being submerged into water.

Little did they know that the agency had already warned me this could happen and prepared for it.

The listening device in my ring was water proof. The agents had made sure of that. The water wasn’t going to short it out or electrocute me.

The water covered my shins, then my knees. I shivered when the water hit my crotch and hips.

“Just a bit more, Mr. Hastings,” Amir said.

Chest, shoulders, neck and then I was under water. I tried not to panic. Being under water wasn’t my favorite thing. And then just like that I was raised again.

“I hope you intend to pay for my dry cleaning,” I joked but I was very serious.

“Jerod has some clothes for you, Mr. Hastings and yes we will take care of your suit. Get dressed and I will be waiting in the next room.

I dressed in khaki pants and a white button up shirt, then I slipped on a pair of brown penny loafers. I ran my hands through my hair and walked into the next room.

Again the room was dark, but this time I could see. There was a round table in the center where Amir was sitting along with another man and eight other men standing at various points around the room.

“Please sit, Mr. Hastings,” Amir stood up and gestured to the chair in front of him. I walked across the room and pulled the chair out to sit down. “Mr. Hastings, I would like for you to meet, Rashad Salam,” he gestured to the man next to him.

He was older than I expected and his age showed around his eyes. His skin was dark brown and his eyes were evil. His hair was long and black, slicked back into a ponytail. He wore what looked like a very cheap gray suit. I was sure the suit wasn’t cheap. I knew this man made a lot of money and probably had his suits hand made. But it looked cheap. It was almost shining in the light.

“Mr. Hastings,” he stood up and buttoned his suit jacket. “I have been told a lot about you. It is a pleasure to meet you.” He held out his hand. In the 10 seconds it took my hand to reach his, I saw what looked like a burn scar. It was all over the back of his hand and seemed to go down his wrist. I noticed another scar on his neck that he tried to cover with a scarf.

I walked forward and held out my hand.

“Please excuse my attire. I just took a bath in the next room,” I smiled and he smiled too.

“I apologize for our methods, Mr. Hastings. But security is very important.”

“I understand,” I said and I sat in the chair he gestured too.

“You’re very popular, Mr. Hastings. I remember seeing your picture in the paper when you were dating that Swedish model and again when you were dating the actress from the United States. The people love to read about gossip and you provided quite a bit for them.” He had a smile on his face but I wasn’t sure if he was actually being friendly or just being a smartass.

“Yes, that’s true. There was a point in my life when I couldn’t leave my home without having my picture taken.” I chuckled although my recollection of the time was not fun. “May I have a glass of water please,” I could feel sweat beading up on my forehead. I wasn’t nervous, the room we were sitting in was very warm.

Another man I didn’t even see, came out of what I thought was a black wall with a tray of glasses and a pitcher of water. He poured each of us a glass of water and silently offered lemon. I agreed to the lemon and happily took the water.

“I can get you something stronger,” Salam said.

“No thank you. It’s warm in here. Very warm,” I wiped my forehead.

“Mr. Hastings,” Salam said in his very smooth yet creepy voice. “Most people don’t understand why successful men need or even want to buy women. They understand even less in your case because you are very handsome. With your history of ex-girlfriends, it is very easy to see the confusion.” He paused like he expected me to say something. Like I was supposed to defend the practice of buying women.

I honestly didn’t know what to say. My first experience with purchasing a woman, I did because I thought I was getting a girl who had volunteered for a life of slavery.

My second experience with purchasing women, I was simply doing it to save the girls from a life of slavery.

I wasn’t really the spokesman for human trafficking.

“It isn’t an easy thing to explain. I wanted more. More than just a regular companion. I wanted dominance, I wanted control and to be honest, I didn’t care how I got it,” I gave him a shitty smile and ran my finger over my upper lip against the stubble growing there.

What I had said was actually true. I did want control. I did want dominance. I wanted more than anything to have something more than just a regular relationship. And I wanted Norah, and I didn’t care how I got her or kept her.

“This is one of the ways we are alike, Mr. Hastings. I too, like control. Control in all things. Trust, loyalty and control are very important to me.”

It seemed with every room I went in a new word was added to the list of things that were important in this line of business. This was a very big apartment. I hoped he didn’t have a word for every room.

“Mr. Hastings, Abdul tells me that you are interested in purchasing another girl?” he asked. I nodded. “Well I can make that happen. Actually since you have been such a good customer in the past, I can let you have your pick before the other men,” he paused again and again I thought I was supposed to say something.

“That is very generous of you,” I said. But I wasn’t sure this was what the agency wanted. They made it clear they wanted me to get invited and find out the location of the main auction.

“How do you know Mr. Bendi?” Salam asked. I thought it was a weird question. I thought he had covered this when he told them he was bringing me along for dinner.

“I thought he told you,” I hesitated. Neither man said a word but waited for me to continue.

“I really don’t know him all that well. He is a friend of an acquaintance of mine. This mutual friend knew how I acquired my wife and made an introduction.”

“Why do you think Mr. Bendi is so interested in our business when he himself has never made a purchase from us or any other colleague?” I didn’t answer. I didn’t know how to answer. You would think the UNDC would have thought of this and created a slavery buying past for Nasun.

“Did you know that he lives alone, in a small apartment, no women, no family, with nothing as far as we can tell,” he shrugged his shoulders.

“No, I didn’t. Like I said, I don’t know him that well. We have met for dinner a few times and he picked me up from my hotel before we came here.” I didn’t like this line of questioning. I felt as though they were on to us. They had separated us for a reason. They probably had him in another room asking him questions about me.

“I have always wondered about him. He appeared really out of nowhere and made friends with one of our smaller investors.”

He talked about his men like they had all bought stock in his company. But I guess in a way they had.

“He kept making connections over the last year and a half and I just met him myself in the last few months,” Amir said. “I didn’t trust him at all,” he paused, “and then he mentioned you.”

Amir smiled his creepy smile and then took a puff from his cigar.

“When we did our research on him, we found nothing. When we did our research on you….well we have already discussed what we found on you.”

I wondered if in all their research it had escaped their attention that I was just arrested for purchasing women. But I had been told that my arrest record would be altered to show nothing but support for these men.

“I understand you were arrested after a party I supplied a few girls for was interrupted.” Rashad Salam was a smug son of a bitch and there was no getting around that.

“If by interrupted you mean I was forced to lay on the ground with a police officer foot against my head pushing it into the cement, then yes, it was interrupted.” I nodded and crossed my legs.

“Yes, well we can help out with that. We keep a few lawyers on retainer to deal with this problem specifically.”

“I have a lawyer, but thank you.” I didn’t need this asshole’s lawyer. He wasn’t my savior. But at the same time I didn’t want to offend him.

Although,” I rubbed my chin, “I haven’t had to deal with this particular problem before, so I may need help.” We all had a little laugh.

Then Salam and Amir stood suddenly and buttoned their jackets. It was almost like they had some sort of signal between them. I uncrossed my legs and stood up slowly.

“Mr. Hastings, I would like to show you what happens when my trust is violated. Please come with me.” They both turned and walked to a side door and it opened before he touched it.

It was another dark room with a spotlight in the middle. I was beginning to think Salam had something against good lighting. There were men, the men from dinner and more I hadn’t seen standing around. The floor was cement and the room smelt of sweat. When the men moved I could see someone on his knees in the middle.

His back was to me and his hands were stretched to his sides being held out by chains that were anchored to the wall. There was fresh blood on the back of his shirt.

I moved to the front of the man and looked at his face, or what was left of it. It was bloody and swollen. His eyes were badly bruised and swollen shut and he had blood dripping from his mouth.

His shirt was open and I could see what looked like whip marks and what could have been burn marks on his chest.

I tried to remain calm but I could feel my heart beating out of my chest. I wasn’t sure if he was trying to impress me or scare me. Probably both.

I wasn’t impressed, but I was scared. Up until this moment I hadn’t been scared but just nervous. This whole situation was very nerve wracking but I was a very secure man. Until this moment. At this moment, the moment I stood in front of this man that had obviously been beaten very badly, and was probably going to be killed, I was scared.

I was scared for my life. I was scared I was never leaving this horrible place. I was scared that these men and this room would be the last thing I ever saw. But most of all, I was scared I would never see my wife again.