Chapter １８

The two men stare at me in horror, and for the first time I feel like I'm the one in charge. A few silent moments pass, and then Sterling says, "Fine. Let's go sit down."

We all move to the living room and sit on the sofas. I cross my ankles and place my hands in my lap like a pissed-off school teacher. Sterling pours himself a glass of scotch and makes a screwdriver for Gabriel. He doesn't offer me a drink.

"Go ahead, Gabe," Sterling says, sitting beside the lawyer.

"Why me?"

"Because I pay you to make my life easier."

Gabriel sighed. "Fine. Well, after you spoke with Sterling on the phone, he went to Rose to meet you where you said you'd be. But you weren't there. He tried calling you again, but you were already gone and wouldn't answer your phone, and now we know why. So, he called me and had me track you."

"How?" I asked. "With my phone?"

Sterling shook his head. "The necklace I gave you has a small tracking device inside. I promise I didn't give you a tracking device to pry into your personal life. I did it in case a situation like this would come up."

"Was what happened a likely occurrence?"

He shrugged. "Anything can happen when you're rich enough."

"Whatever." I don't have the energy to argue about the necklace right now. "So that's how you found Heaven?"

"No. Medea found your necklace and destroyed the tracking device before we found you."

"Then how did you find it?" I asked.

Sterling continued, "We have a few friends in the police department. We got one of them to help us learn if there was anything that could be learned at the scene where you were taken, but there was nothing there, which isn't normal. There was no sign of a struggle, so this led us to assume that your kidnappers were experienced and efficient, having done it many times. It had to be an underground operation, planned in advance. We have fewer connections to the underground, but being who we are you end up with connections to everything. It was only a matter of time until we found the right one. His name is Epstein. He managed to get me an invitation to the auction at Heaven, along with a brochure of the night's...um, purchases. Your photo was in it."

Gabriel snapped his fingers. "And bing, bang, boom, just like that. Easy enough, right?"

And the two men clinked glasses and drank a silent toast together. I sat in silence as I let everything sink in.

Sterling and Gabriel stare at me as if they're expecting me to say something. I told them everything I remember, but they still want me to dig for more details.

"There was one moment," I say, remembering something small, "when Medea was talking to the other guy wearing a mask. I think it was her boss. He wanted me to entertain the guests that night, and told her to get me ready."

"Her boss?" Sterling says.

Gabriel says, "As far as I know, Heaven has always been run by Medea. I've never heard of her having a boss."

"She was following his orders," I say. "I even threatened to kill myself when she was forcing me to do things. It was thinking of her boss that made her rethink pushing me around."

Sterling looked at Gabriel. "Who do you think that could be? Could it have something to do with the Bellegardes?"

"Why would it have something to do with this family?" I ask. "Do you think because I met with Paula before they took me that it had something to do with her? Or do you think it has something to do with Laura?"

The men stare at me. Sterling asks, "What on earth would make you think something like that?"

"When I was in Heaven," I say, remembering, "I saw a picture of a girl who looked just like me. I think it was Laura."

Before Sterling can say anything, Vincent enters, and all of us turn to see him. I stand up and charge at him, then slap him hard across the face.

Vincent cries out in pain, almost dropping the bottle of wine he's carrying. He holds a hand to his cheek and says, "Well, I guess I deserve that."

"You asshole!" I shout. "You stood me up, and because I was alone I was kidnapped into a sex ring!"

"I came to apologize." Still holding his face, Vincent sets the bottle down on the coffee table and sits in a chair. "I know a bottle of 1977 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti won't fix what happened to you, but it won't hurt to try."

I sigh and collapse onto the sofa. Vincent fetches four glasses.

"None for me, thanks," says Gabriel. "I've got to be going. Have a nice day, everyone." He leaves with his briefcase.

Vincent shrugs and takes only three glasses, then pours the wine for all of us. He holds his up and looks at me. "To your safe return." He drinks.

"Thanks," I say, not meaning it, and drink.

Hours later, I'm singing at the top of my lungs, totally drunk. The Conti has long been emptied, along with four other bottles of red and white wine, half a bottle of brandy, and a fifth of vodka. I'm fucking plastered.

"Fuck me," Sterling mumbles, rubbing his eyes. "Shouldn't...we sh...iss not good t' drink this much, y'know?"

Vincent laughs as only drunk people do, high-pitched and giddy. "Victoria's a good singer, don'cha think? And vurry cute, too…"

Sterling frowns at Vincent and stands up, then wobbles toward me. He wraps his arms around me from behind and I smile.

"I'm taking muh drunk wife t'bed," Sterling tells Vincent.

"Okee-dokee," Vincent says, holding up a bottle. I can't tell what it is. "I'm gonna…" And his head falls backward as he sits there as he immediately falls asleep.

Sterling carries me to the bedroom as I giggle the whole way. As we get to the bed, I kiss him long and deep, struggling to remove my shirt. He undresses me and kisses my neck and I let out a soft moan. I reach a hand down his pants and feel that he's already hard.

The next thing I know, the two of us are naked and he's inside me. In the middle of a thrust, I put my hand on his chest and he stops.

"Who am I?" I ask him.

He looks at me with a puzzled expression. "You're...Victoria."

I laugh and allow him to continue. Our moans fill the room for the next hour or so.