Page 153 of Ruin Me With Lies
He shoves me off and storms out.
“Stupid,” Cora mutters behind me.“Stupid, stupid little men.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Raya
A LOUD CLANG ECHOESthrough the room as the lock on the heavy metal door slides open.Seconds later, it swings wide, fluorescent light spilling into the windowless space.
My appetite perks up in eager anticipation as I sit up on the cot.Cora’s been sending me meals and sweet treats every day for the past week, usually delivered around this time by a Soldati.
But the one standing in the doorway now isn’t holding the usual cactus-patterned lunch bag.Nor does he come in.
“Come on,” he orders from the threshold.“Let’s go.”
“Nothing from Cora today?”
He shrugs.“Come on, RayRay.”
I get up and follow him out into the hall.“Is it death day?”
“Doubt it,” he says.“The Uppers have been riding hard for you, from what I hear.”
In the eight days I’ve been stuck in this underground confinement wing beneath Black Gold, I’ve made fast friends with the six Soldati rotating shifts on guard duty.It’s dark, dreary, and mind-numbingly boring down here, so sometimes they sneak me into the hall and we play cards, Monopoly, or have rap battles to pass the time.
It hasn’t exactly been lonely or unbearable—I’ve endured far worse.But a decent shower would’ve been nice.
Another Soldati waits by the elevator.Both of them usher me in.
While we ride up to the fifth floor, I stealthily lift a pocketknife from one’s back pocket and slide it into my cleavage, right next to the one I snagged from another Soldati a few days ago.
On the fifth floor, they escort me down the hall to room 508.One scans a keycard and nods toward the open door.
“Orders are to bring you here,” he says.“Go on in.We’ll be right outside.”
A suite’s better than a dank, windowless den, so I don’t ask questions.I just nod and walk in.
No one’s waiting for me inside the deluxe suite, but my belongings are here.The backpack I arrived with, my devices, and a new suitcase, which I’m guessing holds all the clothes and accouterments I’ve acquired since.
Evicted from the villa.
Oh well.It is what it is.
I head straight for the bathroom, take a long, cold, much-needed shower, then damn near brush the white off my teeth.
Ahhh, nice and clean again.
When I return, swaddled in one of the plush robes from the cabinet, Lorenzo is standing by the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the Strip.Black shoulder holster over a crisp white shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, hands in his pockets.
Towel-drying my hair, I move to sit on the bed.“What now?”
“The Uppers have gotten insufferable in your defense,” he replies without turning.“You’re being relocated here to appease them...for the time being.”
“Eh.I was fine down below,” I say.“But it would’ve been nice to have a proper shower once in a while.The water pressure down there is unforgivable.”
Slowly, he turns from the window, midnight eyes narrowed on me.“Over a week of investigating, and no matter how meticulously I search or what angle I take, everything points to youhelping, not harming.And I want to believe you weren’t involved, I really do.But I still don’t know where you were that weekend.Or why you lied.”He cocks his head, studying me like I’m some riddle he should’ve solved by now.“Why won’t you tell me where you were, Raya?”
With a disappointed sigh, I wrap the towel around my damp hair and sit on the bed.“I feel like I’ve failed as a teacher.All that time I spent showing you the ropes, best-kept secrets of the pros...and you still can’t figure out where I’ve been?I know whereyouwere.Every step you took, every stop you made.Everything you ate and drank…” I raise a brow.“That should be child’s play for you at this point, boss.Or is it ex-boss now?Should I call you master, since I’m your prisoner?”
