Now Aaiden turns, his eyes sweeping over me with clinical detachment. I see no flicker of recognition, no indication he remembers paying me fifty thousand dollars to disappear from his cousin’s life. Either he’s an exceptional actor, or I was simply one of many such transactions, too insignificant to recall.
The thought burns. How many lovers has he paid to leave? How many hearts has he calculated the price of breaking?
He gestures to a chair across from his desk. “Explain.”
I remain standing. “I was at Halcyon Hall tonight, setting up for an event. I discovered a hidden room containing a cage. Jade Bustly was inside it.”
Aaiden’s expression doesn’t change, but he sets his glass down with deliberate care. “And how did you come to discover this hidden room?”
“I was exploring areas I shouldn’t have been in,” I admit, crafting truth into the shape of a lie. “I’ve always been fascinated by architecture.”
His eyes narrow. “You trespassed.”
“Yes.”
“Why come to me with this information? Why not the police?”
I offer the prepared explanation. “Jade mentioned the Rockfords when I spoke to him. He said he grew up here.” I pause, watching Aaiden’s face. “And the police would ask too many questions about why I was there.”
Aaiden moves around his desk, his movements controlled. “What else did Jade tell you?”
“He’s been there five days, and they’re selling him at their gallery event tomorrow.” I swallow, choosing my next words with care. “The kind of people who are attending the auctions at Halcyon Hall aren’t there to bid on legal merchandise.”
His fingers skim the polished wood of the desktop. “They’re trafficking humans?”
“I only saw Jade. He’s been beaten. They’re keeping him alive but weak.” I glance back toward the closed doorway, itching to get out of this place. “The auction is tomorrow night.”
Aaiden studies me with cold calculation, and I duck my head, blink quickly, and hunch my shoulders. Nothing but a Beta, intimidated by the billionaire Alpha standing in front of him.
“Why do you care what happens to Jade Bustly?”
The question catches me off guard. Why do I care? Because Jade is young and scared? Because helping him might balance the scales for the hurt I caused Ezra? Because his imprisonment is a crime I can’t ignore, even if my hands aren’t clean?
“No one deserves to be priced and sold like they’re nothing,” I say at last.
Aaiden regards me for a long moment. “I’ll need the exact location of Halcyon Hall.”
I provide the address, watching as he enters it into his phone.
“Wait here.” He strides toward the door. “I need to bring someone else in on this matter. You’ll need to give us directions on how to find Jade.”
My heart stutters, afraid of him bringing in more Rockfords. “I can write it down for you.”
But Aaiden is already gone, the heavy door closing behind him with the finality of a tomb being sealed.
I release the breath I didn’t realize I was holding. The study stretches wide around me, but the weight of its history closes in.
I pace the perimeter of the room, my footsteps muffled by the thick Persian rug. The walls are lined with books I know Aaiden has never read, the first editions and leather-bound classics selected for appearance rather than content. The few I’d pulled down during my month here had pristine, uncracked spines.
Sebastian makes the most sense. As head of security, he’d have the resources to extract Jade from Halcyon Hall. Or Raphael, with his connections to legitimate business channels. Even Nolan, who owns half the real estate in the city, could leverage influence with Halcyon’s owner.
Anyone but Ezra will be fine.
My fingers trail across the edge of Aaiden’s desk, the wood cool and smooth beneath my touch. A silver letter opener catches my eye, its ornate handle belying the sharpness of its blade. I resist the urge to pocket it. Old habits.
What am I doing here? I delivered my message. I’ve done more than most would in my position. Jade’s fate is in the Rockfords’ hands now, where it belongs. My continued presence only increases the risk of running into Ezra who, according to Jade, has been hunting for me. Ezra, who went feral when I disappeared.
The thought sends a complicated shiver down my spine, equal parts fear and a darker, more primal emotion. I shouldn’t care how he reacted to my absence. It was never real between us, just a character I played, a mark I seduced.
