“Why wouldn’t he stay?”
“I don’t know. I guess I was wrong.” I shrug. “Oh, well. Did you recognize anyone?”
“Yeah.” He rolls his eyes. “I wrote their names down for you.”
“How much time do we have?” I can feel a knot in my belly when I think about Caleb leaving.
Caleb glances at the time on my laptop. “Half an hour or so.”
“That’s not enough.” I pad over to him and place my arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug. As he leans his head on my shoulder, I rub circles on his back.
“I know,” he murmurs. “I could hold you like this forever.”
“Then don’t let go.”
I stroll through the room full of people, ignoring the sounds of sex everywhere around me. When I asked Alessandra about another one of Raphael’s parties, she didn’t even blink before giving me the location, which I managed to secretly pass to Lloyd, who reluctantly agreed that the best thing for me would be to show up at the party so no one suspects anything and so I could alert them if the location changed at the last moment.
I smile at a couple kissing against one of the columns, the girl’s eyes closed as she moans. It’s hard not to keep glancing at my watch, because I know Lloyd must have contacted someone trustworthy and that a team is already on their way.
Hopefully Caleb has managed to identify most of the corrupted cops and no one will be able to warn Raphael. I can see Raphael sitting at one of the couches, his pants unbuttoned as some girl is sucking him off while he’s caressing her hair. I want the bastard to rot in jail forever.
Caleb steps in front of me, a seductive smile on his face. He’s only wearing a pair of black pants and his bare chest is adorned with glitter. “Looking for me?” he asks.
“Yeah.” I’ve been walking around alone for too long. I don’t want to attract too much attention. Not that anyone has noticed me while they are busy enjoying themselves. Caleb leans forward and captures my lips with his, so my mask almost slips off my face. I deepen the kiss, wrapping my arms around his strong muscles, not caring that his glitter is ending up all over my pale pink dress.
He tugs me toward the corner of room, and once we’re hidden behind one of the columns, we break apart, breathless. Caleb takes a quick peek around the column, a concerned look on his face. I follow his gaze to a redhead who is in the embrace of a dark-haired woman. The girl must be Jade.
A couple of moments later, my heart threatens to jump out of my chest, my mouth dry. Is anyone coming? What if something happens? What if Raphael’s men get away?
“Hey,” Caleb says, placing his hand on my cheek. “You’re beautiful tonight.”
“Thanks.” I know he’s only trying to distract me, and I can’t believe he’s the one who has to do that. I should be comforting him, so I push my dark thoughts away.
“What’s with all the glitter?” I run a finger across his chest and come away with another layer of sparkly dust.
“Keeps most people away.” He grins. “They don’t want me to ruin their precious clothes.”
I raise an eyebrow at him. “Nice.”
“Not really.” His smile falters. “Raphael wanted a special performance before you came.”
Before I can say anything, the door across the room burst open, and a dozen armed, masked men dressed in black uniforms rush in. “Nobody move!”
People start to scream and the room erupts in chaos. Caleb tugs me behind the column, and from the corner of my eye, I can see Raphael rushing for the back exit but finds it blocked. Then shots are fired, and Caleb pulls me closer to himself, shielding me with his body.
“Stay here,” he says, and before I can ask anything or stop him, he jogs across the room. A woman hobbles toward me and blocks my view. I try to spot Caleb, but I can’t see him anywhere.
“On your knees! Hands on your head!” a voice behind me yells, so I raise my hands up. The man comes over to me and tugs on my arms, cuffing them behind my back. “You’re under arrest.” He takes me by the arm and leads me toward the others.
But as the group of cuffed people is being led away, I realize Caleb isn’t there. And neither is Raphael. Black spots dance in my vision, my pulse racing. Where are they?
“You’re free to go,” my lawyer says as she enters the small room where I’m being held. “There will be no charges against you. I still think you should go into witness protection. Your parents could say you went to study abroad and...”
“Where is he, Cassandra?” I ask, unable to focus on anything else. “Where’s Caleb?”
Cassandra tucks a strand of her shoulder-length dark brown hair behind her ear, her green eyes cast down. “I don’t know.”
“What does that mean?” My voice cracks a little.
