“Is Isaac available?” I ask. “We had such a great time together last time.”
The silence on the other end of the line makes my heart thud in my chest, but if the video about Caleb and me hasn’t been released anywhere, then the chances are that Isaac hasn’t been discovered, or has he? Maybe he never told Raphael how he got the camera. Oh God. I’m so glad Raphael can’t see my hands are sweating.
“He’s indisposed at the moment, I’m afraid.” Raphael drawls.
“Oh.”
“You might be interested in Eric. He loves pain and I don’t mind if you mark him,” he says. “Unless you prefer Caleb. I can send him to you, but no permanent marks on him, please.”
“Um, yeah, Caleb will be fine.” I try to sound cheerful, but I fail miserably. I need to know what happened to Isaac, but I’m afraid it will be suspicious if I ask too many questions, especially if Isaac has been caught. Oh God. I’ll never forgive myself for getting him into this, despite his determination to help me. I should’ve found another way.
“Very well, then. Caleb it is,” Raphael says. When he hangs up, I’m so relieved I crash onto the couch.
Tears of joy cloud my vision when Caleb appears at my door. When he enters my apartment, I can see his eyes are filled with anguish and slightly narrowed at me. His jaw is set, but as we make our way to the living room, he turns to me. “What can I do for you this time?” His tone is cold and edgy.
“Let’s sit down first, shall we?” I say, and he grits his teeth together but obeys. I sit next to him, angling my body toward him.
“Caleb, I...” I start to say. “Is Isaac okay?”
His mouth goes slack, then he lifts his chin, his nostrils flaring. “What do you know about Isaac?”
“I know he’s your friend. I met him... a few weeks ago.”
He’s looking at me like he’s seeing me for the first time. “Isaac’s gone,” he finally whispers.
“Gone? What do you mean, gone?” My voice is filled with panic, and my heart threatens to jump out of my chest. “Please tell me he’s alive.” I take a shuddery breath.
“I don’t know.” He worries on his bottom lip. “I just know he’s gone.”
I bring my hand to my mouth, trying to steady my breathing. “No. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have...”
“What’s your fault?” Caleb’s eyes narrow at me.
I lick my lips, then look up at him. “I bought an hour with Isaac three weeks ago. He told me the truth about you and...”
“What are you talking about?” His face is expressionless, but his whole body is tense and he looks like he’s about to jump out of his seat.
“I know you’re Raphael’s slaves,” I say. “Isaac told me...”
“No.” Caleb shakes his head. “You misunderstood.”
“I know I didn’t,” I insist. “Please. I’m not your enemy. I want to help you. Isaac wanted it too. I gave him a camera... He said he’d record something that could be used as evidence against Raphael so we can give it to the cops and get you all out of there. He said.... that you’d be able to retrieve the footage from Raphael’s room and give it to me if he couldn’t.”
Caleb gets to his feet and turns his back to me, leaning against the wall. “No,” he whispers. “No.”
“Do you know what happened to Isaac? If we act fast, maybe there’s something we can...” I get up too and walk over to him, reaching out to place my hand on his shoulder.
He turns around so fast that I nearly stumble, his eyes full of fury. “What have you done? You can’t... You can’t just barge into people’s lives and mess with things you don’t understand!” he yells, his face reddening.
“You don’t have to pretend around me anymore. Please tell me the truth. I can help you.” I’m not about to back down from this. “Do you know where Isaac is?”
He runs a hand through his hair. “Maybe.” He frowns as if he’s thinking about whether to tell me or not. Finally, his shoulders sag and he closes his eyes. “He’s going to be sold tomorrow.”
“What?” I nearly stumble from relief that Isaac is still alive. “How? Where?”
“I don’t know!”
“Okay, we’ll figure something out.” Maybe there’s someone I can call, or I can ask Alessandra about it indirectly.
