Page 15 of Sly (Dragon Riders MC 5)
I blinked up at him. “Why are you doing this?”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Because you’ve got no idea what the hell these guys are into. And if you knew—”
“Then tell me, Ben.”
“I can’t. It’s confidential.”
“Then, I’m seeing Sly again.”
“You can’t do that, Tara.”
I shrugged. “Then, tell me what they’re into.”
“Something that could get you killed, that’s what.”
“I mean are they smuggling drugs?”
He shook his head. “No.”
I scoffed. “Well, are they aiding and abetting the mob somehow?”
“No.”
“Are they robbing stores? Banks? Hopping from town to town and burning places to the ground?”
His eyes leveled with my own. “They’re involved in a massive human sex trafficking ring. We’re here to bust them and lock them up for good so we can backtrack who started the ring in the first place and get them all off the street.”
It felt like all of the wind had been knocked out of my chest. Sly—the romantic man I had just been with—was involved in a sex trafficking ring? The thought made me sick to my stomach.
“Oh my god,” I whispered.
Ben put his hands on my shoulders. “That’s why you can’t see him any longer. And you can’t say a word. I could get fired for you knowing that information, but I have to protect you. Okay?”
Tears rushed my eyes. “Holy shit.”
“Come here. I got you.”
“Oh, my god, Ben.”
He pulled me into his chest. “Shh-shh-shh-shh, it’s okay. I never should’ve gotten you wrapped up into this in the first place. It won’t happen again. I swear, okay?”
And as I sobbed against my brother’s chest, the only thing I felt was stupid.
Stupid for not seeing through Sly’s lies, and stupid for not keeping my distance when I knew damn good and well my brother was investigating them for a reason.
I thought Sly was such a good guy.
I guess every man’s a snake in my world.7Sly“Hello! You have reached Tara Langley. Leave a message after the—”
“God damn it!” I roared.
I barely resisted the urge to throw my phone against the wall and, instead, threw it against the mattress of my bed. For days, I had tried calling her. For days, I had attempted to get in touch with her after that dumbass picnic gone wrong. But our date had been on Saturday, and it was now in the middle of a Tuesday afternoon.
“Something’s wrong,” I murmured to myself.
I gathered my things and shouldered myself out the front door, ready to take on the world. I didn’t know what the hell had happened to me on that date, but I had to figure it out. That woman had snaked her way into my mind and occupied every free square inch I had up there. And that wasn’t good. I was the backbone of this group right now. I was the only one thinking straight because I was the only one not dick-deep in some chick I claimed to love.
I couldn’t go down like them.
I needed to know what the fuck this woman did to me.
“Tara!” I exclaimed.
I didn’t remember the drive over or even parking downstairs. I didn’t remember charging up all of those flights of steps just to get to that apartment door. But as my fist banged against it, I heard rustling in the background.
Quick rustling.
Before Chains swung the door wide open.
“What?” he asked.
I pinned him with a look. “Where is she?”
“Who’s she?”
“Tara, you asshole! Where is she? I need to speak with her.”
He snickered. “You’re not getting anywhere near her. I know you’ve been trying to call her. Badgering her. Pestering her.”
“And I take it you're the reason why she’s not answering.”
He grinned. “Why? Can’t take the heat of a little rejection.”
I pointed my finger in his face. “I want to know where she is and what you’ve done with her. Now. That’s an order from one of your crew members.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, even as a prospect, I don’t take orders from you. Even I know that, Sly.”
“Where is she!?”
He stepped outside, closing the distance between us. “You aren’t getting anywhere near her ever again. That’s how this is working. Just because this is a life I’m seeking for myself doesn’t mean she’s seeking it with me. Got it?”
My nostrils flared. “Clear as crystal.”
“Good. Now, get the fuck out of here unless you’ve got some official business for me.”
I peered over his shoulder just to take the quickest look in his apartment, and the damn thing looked spotless. It didn’t look like anyone lived there at all, and my gut clenched.
“She’s not here, is she?” I asked.
Chains shook his head slowly. “Even if she wasn’t? I sure as hell wouldn’t admit that to you. You’ve got five seconds to get the hell out of my face or change the topic. Got it?”
I took one last look into his apartment. “Yeah. Got it. Catch you later.”
