Page 85 of Devil's Dilemma

Red catches my eye and winks.

Clare, though, her eyes go impossibly wide as she views everything around her.

“What the hell is this place?” she cries out. “It looks like a torture chamber.”

Red glances around as if he hadn’t seen it before, then chuckles. “It does, doesn’t it, doll?”

My face stays straight. I nod at Twister who’s followed us down.

Red steps in front of her. “It’s Clare, isn’t it?” When she nods, he points to Twister. “You know what an enforcer is, Clare?”

She swallows rapidly and shakes her head.

“Well, he’s the man who gets information by whatever means. I happen to know Twister is very good at his job, no one leaves here alive without telling him what he wants to know. You know how he got his handle?”

Another shake.

“I’ll give you a clue. People who don’t talk, quickly find out how twisted he is.”

“I don’t know what you want to know,” she cries out. “I don’t know who you are or why I’m here. I’m a part-time librarian, a housewife, and a mother. I don’t know anything.”

“To be honest Clare, you look like a nice lady,” Red tells her. “And we have no beef with you. But we’d like to have a talk with your husband. Now, you can start by giving us his phone number.”

Her head moves side to side. She sounded scared for herself previously, now she’s gone white, and when she speaks, her voice has gone hoarse. “If I tell you, you'll trick him to come here. You’ll hurt him.”

I motion to Red, he nods. “Clare,” I start, “we want to talk to Skull,Donor whatever his name is. We want to ask him some questions, that’s all. Have we hurt you?”

“You kidnapped me,” she accuses, sulkily.

“Were we rough?”

She eyes her hands still tied. I step up and though she flinches when she sees me produce my knife, she relaxes when she sees all I intend to do is to cut the zip tie off.

“Give us Don’s phone number, sweetheart.” I soften my voice.

“What will you do if I don’t?” Her voice hardens. “You’ll hurt me then?” Her eyes flick nervously toward the implements on the wall.

Red puts his hand on my arm, and gently moves me back, standing in front of her himself. “You see Clare, Skull’s got some answering to do. To us, and maybe to you, and definitely to a woman upstairs who’s five months pregnant.”

Her brow creases, her eyes widen, and her cheeks flush.

Red nods. “The father is Skull. Donavan Jordan, as you know him.”

She gasps, and her hand covers her mouth. Her head is shaking violently now. “No. You’ve got the wrong man. Don would never cheat on me. He’d never do that. That’s something he’d never do…” Her head bows, then she raises it again. Her voice now cunning. “That woman, she’s lying.”

I bristle, but Red shoots me a warning look, before turning back to Clare. “Is she? Perhaps your husband should have the chance to defend himself.”

“You’re wrong,” she says strongly.

“Then let’s give him a call so he can tell us the truth himself.”

Now her eyes become slits as what she’s been told starts to sink in.

No longer so certain in her initial denial?Perhaps.

What’s she going to do?Some women, if they find their husband’s been cheating on them will turn a blind eye, telling themselves he’s a man after all. Finding it within themselves to forgive them. Others? Well, they’re out for blood. Hard to tell which camp Clare falls into.

I get the impression she might veer toward the latter one when she suddenly rattles off a number, so fast I have to ask her to repeat it, then key it into my phone. Then, as she’d done an hour or so before, put it on speaker.

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