Page 48 of Ruthless Prince
I squirmed uncomfortably. “I just…” I coughed and started again. “Deep down, I know my mother would never do something so terrible. Neither would Jamie. But at the same time, knowing that President Rutherford died that exact night, just a few hours later… it seems like such a huge coincidence. Maybe too much of acoincidence.”
“Goon.”
“Rutherford was perfectly healthy, too, and then he just dropped dead of a heart attack. It’s so strange.” I shook my head again. “I know it’s probably just a horrible coincidence, and it would probably be impossible to cover up something so big, but sometimes when I look at my mom, I can’t help but think: are you actually capable of something so awful? How far would you go to become president? Would you kill forit?”
“Jesus, no wonder she has an anxiety disorder,” one of the members in the front row muttered to the person next toher.
I pretended I didn’thear.
“I’m sorry if that isn’t a proper secret,” I said timidly. “I really can’tthink—”
The interviewer cut me off. “It’s more than enough. If something like that was revealed to the world, the fallout would be catastrophic. Even though it’s unlikely that your mother actually did anything to our previous president, the mere fact that her own daughter thinks she might be capable of such a thing would cause a huge scandal. People would never stop talking about it, and they’d speculate endlessly about Rutherford’s death until the day your mother died. Even after that, they’d still talk about it. You wouldn’t want that for your family, wouldyou?”
Guilt flooded my veins. “No,” I murmured, cheeksblazing.
“You did well, Willow. Thank you for your honesty. As I stated before, you don’t need to worry about anyone here revealing your secret. Not unless you do something to betray theOrder.”
“I won’t,” I said meekly, eyes on thefloor.
He rose to his feet, and the other members followedsuit.
“You’ll hear from us soon in regard to the initiation trials and ceremony. For now, you’re free to go. Someone will escort you out, and your security detail will get you home. You’ll probably want to take a long nap while the scopolamine wearsoff.”
“Okay.”
Two tall members approached me. They removed the polygraph components from my body and helped me off my seat before turning me around to face the door. One of them stepped ahead to guide me. The other remained by my side with a strong hand on my arm, keeping mesteady.
“Thank you for coming in, Willow,” the interviewer called out tome.
At the sound of his voice, I reflexively turned my head over my shoulder. Someone had extinguished most of the candles, and all I could see was a group of pointy-hooded silhouettes. The ominous sight made my heart race, even though the logical side of me knew there was nothing tofear.
“Thank you for having me,” Ireplied.
“Goodbye, Willow.” A dull ache appeared in my chest as someone else from the shadowy group spoke up. Someone all-too familiar.Logan Thorne.“See yousoon...”
10
Logan
Red strobe lightsflashed over the dancers in front of me, making their movements look frenetic and jerky. I looked past them as I surveyed the room from the bar, searching forTeddy.
I finally spotted him in a private booth over by the edge. His head was bowed and his eyes were fixed on the table in front of him. One shoulder was pressed up against the wall as if he were half asleep and looking to crash rightthere.
On his right, a woman hooked a slim leg around a golden pole and curved herself into a backbend. With a solid kick of her foot, she was spinning upside down, breasts threatening to burst out of her bejeweledbra.
Teddy remained completelyoblivious.
With a snort, I stepped away from the bar. Condensation slipped down my fingers from the glasses I held as I pushed my way through the sweaty crowd of patrons, wishing I was anywhere else. I fucking hated thisplace.
Part of my father’s Wonderland entertainment complex, the club advertised itself as a classy striptease lounge with a flair of old-world drama. With its polished hardwood surfaces, red velvet drapes and charcoal wallpaper illuminated with an embossed gold fan design, you could be forgiven for believing in that image upon first glance. However, nothing could be further from thetruth.
No matter how much they tried to dress them up with the promise of class and elegance, all strip clubs were the same mixture of sleazy, sinful and sad in the end. They were filled with gorgeous women weaving their sexuality into their dances, saturating the atmosphere with the deceitful allure of potential pleasure, and every night, desperate punters gathered in droves and paid through the nose to interact with these hot women they had zero chance with out in the real world. When the night ended and the girls vanished with their tips, the illusion of power and desire came to an end, and most of the men left with a dejected sadness in theireyes.
It waspathetic.
On a darker note, these clubs also contained a lot of angry assholes who felt entitled to hurt the dancers in order to take out their real-world frustrations or rejections. On top of that, they were always packed with insecure girls with drug addictions which needed to be fed, willing to trade sexual favors in the private champagne rooms for a measly fifty bucks because they didn’t have the goods to work in the upstairs WonderlandClub.
If I wanted a blowjob or a quick fuck from a hot chick, I didn’t need to pay, and if I wanted to hurt a woman, it wouldn’t be one from a club like this. There was only one girl I had in mind for that sort of shit, and she sure as hell wouldn’t visit a place likeWonderland.
