Chapter 34

ASHER

The journey back home feels heavy.

The stress of having two underage girls, still tied up and scared into silence, is overwhelming.

I can’t help but glance at them often.

Every time I check my rearview mirror, at every red light, and each time they make the slightest noise.

~Why are they so quiet?~

~Why is the blonde crying as if she’s terrified of coming home with me?~

~Why is the brunette just blankly staring at the passing scenery as if she hasn’t seen the world in ages?~

The questions keep coming, the answers begging to be revealed, but I have a hunch that neither of them will open up to me.

Not tonight, not in their current state.

They won’t share anything that could implicate anyone in Sanctum.

They seem emotionally damaged, and that’s an understatement.

As I said, the drive is uncomfortable, and when I finally park, I need a moment to gather myself.

Deep breaths, counting to ten, grounding myself and finding my inner peace before I turn to the girls in the backseat.

“Give me your legs,” I order.

They both hurry to comply, not wasting a second between my command and their response.

Their bare feet touch my center console.

I untie them, giving them the chance to run if they wish. Then I untie their wrists, and finally, I gently remove the gags from their mouths.

“Let’s go,” I say, getting out of the car and opening the back door for them.

They rush out, quickly standing side by side, holding hands at an awkward angle as if they need each other’s support to walk with me.

Maybe they do.

And it’s then, looking at these girls, that I realize they came with nothing—no clothes, no essentials.

They have nothing here.

But I won’t go back, and I won’t breathe a sigh of relief until they’re safe in my apartment.

So I guide them to the elevator, and luckily, it’s already on our floor.

I usher them inside, guiding them to one side of the elevator while I take the other. Then I press the button for my floor.

The doors close painfully slowly, but as they finally meet, I exhale.

~Almost there, almost home, Asher!~

~They’re safe; they’re with you~, I reassure myself.

And they are, and as I guide them down the hallway to my apartment, I let out a sigh.

No one else lives on this floor, and the other apartment is empty.

They’re fucking safe…safe.

Joy—that’s what hits me as I use the key fob to open my apartment—pushing the girls a bit harder than I intended as I usher them inside.

Then I close the door behind us, locking it and using the chain for the first time in a while.

And that’s where we stand, in complete silence, looking at each other.

The brunette stands protectively in front of the blonde, which makes me uneasy.

It suggests that the blonde is the virgin, the innocent one.

I can just tell—not that it matters because it doesn’t.

“Make yourselves at home,” I say, realizing I’ve been staring at them for too long.

I move away from the door and walk around them into the apartment.

“It’s all open plan; everything’s in this one room. Feel free to help yourselves to anything,” I tell them.

But when I look back, the girls haven’t moved. They’re still clutching each other and facing the door.

I can tell they’re considering it, the brunette thinking they might have a chance to escape, to find someone to rescue them.

And then it hits me—they genuinely believe I brought them here…to fuck.

Jesus, of course.

What a fucking idiot I am.

“I’m not who you think I am. I won’t touch you,” I say, moving back toward them. “I’m actually trying to save you.”

Neither of them responds.

They say nothing, just stare with a bewildered look that makes me think they already know.

They can’t possibly understand.

All they’ve seen is my performance back there, and then there’s the other day.

The day I shelled out a hefty sum of money for them to sleep with me.

How could I be so foolish?

I leave them for a moment to retrieve the discarded envelope from the kitchen counter.

It’s the one with the missing girls’ profiles.

I return to them, flipping open the book to Maddison’s page.

“I was hoping you were one of these missing kids. But your profile isn’t here… Maddison’s is, though. Hope’s.”

Their eyes dart to the paperwork in my hands.

They both gasp, and the brunette reaches out to touch Maddison’s picture.

She swallows hard, the sound of her saliva being swallowed echoing in the room.

“I won’t hurt you. I just want to get you home—to your family—to the people who love you,” I assure them.

“We don’t have a family,” the brunette confesses.

Her eyes well up with tears.

“Did they take you?” I ask, desperate for an answer.

“Not exactly.” She shakes her head.

That’s when the blonde grabs the brunette, stopping her from saying more.

Clearly, she’s said too much.

I sigh and step back, trying to give them some space.

“Will you follow me?” I ask, leading them past the kitchen toward the bedrooms.

Thankfully, they both comply, trailing behind me.

I can’t help but think they’re doing so out of fear.

“This is my room. Please…don’t go in,” I request.

They both nod, silently agreeing to my request.

I lead them to their room, opening the door wide so they can see inside.

“I only have a two-bedroom apartment, so you’ll have to share. But this is your room. It has its own bathroom.”

The girls glance at each other before peering into the room.

The brunette takes the lead, pulling the blonde along with her.

I stay outside the room, showing them the same respect for their space that I expect for mine.

“I know you don’t have any belongings. I guess Fennick left that for me to handle. What size clothes do you wear?” I ask.

“We don’t have any belongings,” the brunette repeats, distracted.

“I know. I’ll buy you some. Just tell me your sizes.”

“Size two and four…but we aren’t allowed to have our own clothes. Only what you want us to wear…” she protests.

“I want you to have clothes. I don’t want to see you like this again. I’ll go out tonight and get you some things.”

“As you wish…master,” the brunette replies, her eyes downcast.

“I’m not your master,” I correct her, even though something about her using that term stirs something within me.