Chapter Thirty-nine: Blackout

Gia

BLACKOUT

Performed by Danielle Bradbery

The extravagance of the decorations inLaredo’s ballroom was like nothing I’d ever seen before. Sitting on each table was an ice sculpture posed on a silver pedestal, each carved to resemble a famous statue. Scattered around the carving were black and white gems I wasn’t entirely sure weren’t real. Secured to the center of the ceiling was another large sculpture of marble and flowers from which ropes of pearls, crystals, and fairy lights trailed in glimmering chains to the far corners of the room. Rivulets of what looked like champagne poured down from the statue like magic rain, pooling in a fountain glistening with lily pads fashioned from gemstones. The heavily waxed, black marble floors acted like mirrors, casting the lights from above in all directions in a dizzying display.

The orchestra members sat on a raised platform dressed all in black, playing instruments made of white and silver. There were no colors in the room except for a handful of gowns and the random colored vest peeking from a tuxedo jacket. Vaguely, I recalled Laredo’s invitation had requested the guests wear white and black evening wear. It was pure chance the champagne dress from Phil’s attic had worked.

As I scanned the crowd, I realized there wasn’t even a redhead in the room, as if Laredo had purposefully only invited those whose hair color would fit in with his vision.

Extreme control.

Extreme decadence.

Wealth and power on display.

It was deadly clear that this was much more to Laredo than a simple charity event.

At the head of the room, on a dais, Laredo stood next to a table with only two settings. Beside him was an actual living and breathing jaguar with fur so light its bold black spots stood out, blending with the man’s tuxedo.

My nerves went up another notch, and I wondered again if my solo-spy routine was going to get me killed. If I was going to wind up looking like Ravyn with slashes down my torso. Worse, if I’d get Ryder and his precious daughter hurt as well. But just the thought of them being harmed steeled my resolve, forcing back the flutter of doubts.

I could do this.

I just had to pick at that control Laredo craved and felt he had a right to. Pick at it enough for it to unravel. To make him act in haste.

Then, Ravyn would do the rest.

As we entered the ballroom, we were stopped for a picture. A woman with a microphone and a cameraman asked us our names and impressions of the estate and the ballroom as if we were celebrities at some red-carpet event.

As soon as we made it past the camera, a woman in a diaphanous dress similar to the one who’d shown us to the ballroom appeared at our side. “Mr. Laredo has requested your presence.”

She led us through the tables to the raised platform, the shimmer of her gauzy dress and the stones that clad the bikini she wore underneath it making her seem like an apparition, as if breathing on her would make her disappear.

She left us at the base of the dais with Laredo looking down upon us. He looped the handle of the jaguar’s leash over the knob of the chair and then moved down the two steps with a smooth confidence. He greeted Ryder with a brief handshake before turning to me. I instantly wanted to cover myself from the hunger and the barely restrained fury that lived in his gaze.

He kissed my cheek, and my entire body revolted. A shiver slithered down my spine.

“You’re late,” Laredo said to Ryder, and the rebuke in his tone was clear. “Your punishment is relinquishing this beautiful woman to sit at my table with me.”

My heart skipped a beat, and I looked over to see Ryder’s jaw clench. I quickly looked away. This was the plan. This was how we wanted the night to go, but it made me nervous that it was happening so fast. That this man had the same plan with a different ending in mind. I managed a flirtatious smile as I asked, “Won’t your date be insulted?”

He raised a brow. “I didn’t invite a date.”

A flash of confusion crossed over Ryder’s face, but I understood immediately. He’d always intended to steal me away—or if it hadn’t been Ryder’s date, it would have been one of the other guest’s companions. It was just another display of power. It said, I can take whomever I want and make them mine.

But he’d never have me.

He’d try. He’d try to take me either by smooth charm or by force, but I’d never be his.

“You’ll sit at the table to my left,” Laredo said, not even looking at Ryder but waving to a table beside the dais. Four other guests were already there. Ryder would be sitting next to a vacant spot because Laredo had claimed his date. Another message—one hand-delivered not only to Ryder but to the rest of the room.

I squeezed Ryder’s hand, trying to convey confidence and calm, reminding him with my eyes that this was the plan.

We just had to go with it. Get through it until Laredo took me away from the gala.

When we’d been guided to the ballroom, I’d spotted several potential locations guarded with retinal scanners and keycode locks. Getting into those places would be critical tonight, and the easiest way to make it happen was on Laredo’s arm.

Laredo assisted me up the steps to his private table. His touch felt cold, and my body screamed at me to run. I fought back that instinct, easing past the jaguar lying in front of the table. I didn’t glance down at it, but I felt the big cat’s tail swish against my shoes. What would it take for the animal to pounce? What words or actions would set it off? And did Laredo know them, or was the jaguar controlled by some other person in the ballroom?

He held my chair out for me and then pushed it in. As he did, he leaned down, lips resting next to the shell of my ear, hand sliding over my shoulder in an intimate caress, whispering, “Welcome to the adventure, Ms. Kent.”

I shivered again, and he chuckled softly.

“I wonder if my old friend knows what to do with a woman like you.”

He removed his lips and his hand, and my body let out a relieved sigh as he moved around the table to sit. A bell tinkled from somewhere in the room, and men dressed in tuxedos as see-through as the hostess”s dress came out from hidden doors, carrying trays of glittering silver.

Our table was served first, the cut crystal plate layered with black caviar and creamy white brie on white and black crackers. The monotone-colored array was mimicked in every course that came after it. Shades of black and white and gray, with an occasional hint of red. A surprising flash of color that hit with an almost brutal force.

Throughout the meal, Laredo talked to me about nothing and everything—what it had taken to make tonight happen in just this way, the ranch and his plans to expand it. He was charming and confident. If it weren’t for the coldness of his gaze and what I knew about him, I would never have suspected he was anything but an extremely wealthy man showing off for his guests.

My eyes kept catching Ryder’s over Laredo’s shoulder. Neither of us was eating much, and we were drinking less.

“You should eat,” Laredo said when I’d left the majority of my blackened swordfish on my plate. “You’re going to need your strength.”

When I met his gaze, barely controlled annoyance flashed through it, either because I wasn’t eating the food he’d arranged or because I kept looking at Ryder. The flare disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, but the stony look that remained wasn’t much better.

“Why would I need my strength?”

His jaw clenched. Another challenge he didn’t like. “You wanted an interview and a tour of the estate for your little journal, didn’t you? You’ll need some stamina to get what you want tonight.” Each word held innuendo, not just the sexual promise he’d intended, but also a hint of the real threat.

Any remaining shred of doubt I’d had of whether he knew who I was or not disappeared. But it gave me an idea I hadn’t thought of before—a play that would make me sick to my stomach to make but was perhaps the only one a man like Laredo would respect.

“Do you really know what I want?” I said, lowering my tone and adding my own innuendo.

Interest sparked. “Perhaps I want to hear you say it.”

“I have something to offer you. A trade.”

He laughed, and to all the guests around us, it simply looked like he was enjoying himself while wooing his friend’s date. “What makes you think you’re in a position to bargain?”

I hesitated for a mere second. Going with my instincts while in the middle of an operation had always been my strength, but if I did this, there’d be no going back. I would be giving away any chance of retreat. But maybe this would keep Laredo busy enough to forget about Ryder.

Behind Laredo’s back, Ryder’s brows were furrowed, concentrating on me and paying no attention to the others at his table. It made him look like exactly what Laredo wanted—a jealous boyfriend. Ryder couldn’t hear what we were saying. Even if he pulled his phone out and opened the camera app to reveal my vantage from the tiara I’d tucked into my updo, he wouldn’t be able to hear it. I only had cameras without mics in my kit.

As Ryder’s eyes burned into me, I could almost hear his silent plea for me to play it safe.

But safe wasn’t going to cut it.

I pretended to sip at the champagne, running a finger along the rim and hearing the glass sing before setting it down. I leaned in slightly, feeling the neckline of the dress dip even more. Laredo’s eyes skimmed along the exposed skin.

“I have the last piece of Natalia’s code.”

Fury drifted through his eyes at her name, but his face remained frozen in a suave smile, so the rest of the ballroom saw nothing but a charming host.

“You should have kept that to bargain with later—when you needed to beg for your life.”

I forced my hand not to shake as I played with the beaded necklace Ryder had loaned me, finger trailing downward, drawing Laredo’s gaze once again.

Ignoring the threat he’d issued, I continued as if he hadn’t said anything. “I want a place at your side.” I waved to the table and the room. I picked up one of the diamonds glittering on the tablecloth. “I want all of this to be mine.”

He didn’t react to my offer. Didn’t do anything but quirk his finger to the waiter, and our plates were removed only to be replaced with dessert. Perfectly formed dark-chocolate cakes twined with white rose petals. They were beautiful, but I had no interest in it.

I sipped at the champagne, yearning for water instead. As beautiful as everything was tonight, it would never be anything I’d want. What I loved were jeans and T-shirts, unraveling clues, and—more recently—the smell of grass and hay. The scent of a man who spent his days outdoors and his nights loving his family. I wouldn’t want anything Laredo had to offer, even if he wasn’t the head of an evil cartel.

“You’re beautiful, Ms. Kent, and the pure Americanness of your lineage is tempting. It would be like making Captain America’s daughter mine. But I’m not convinced of your honesty, nor am I sure you could be loyal. After all, you came with Hatley and are here offering yourself to me. Perhaps I would do better to bequeath the permanent spot at my side to one of the socialites who have actual blue blood running through their veins and knowledge of what it takes to follow their husband’s commands.”

“None of those boring little socialites have Natalia’s code, and they’d be a cardboard cutout standing next to you. While I”—I flicked a look toward the jaguar at our feet and back to him—“would always require a bit of taming.”

His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, and his mouth parted. I was confident I’d set that icy heartbeat pulsing just a bit. If I could keep him off-kilter, it might just save us.

“You will dance with me,” he commanded. “Then, we will go somewhere quiet, and you can convince me of just how deeply you want this bargain to work.”

He rose from his seat, and the jaguar sat up. Laredo grabbed the leash and held out his other hand for me. I took it, forcing myself to not jerk out of his hold the minute our skin touched, barely holding back the shudder of revulsion that threatened to spin through me. I’d never felt such extreme dislike for someone in my life.

We made our way down the back of the dais and out onto the marble dance floor gleaming with a nearly blinding ferocity. Once we’d made our way to the middle and the room turned hushed, he drew me close. Our hips collided, and he wrapped the leash of the jaguar around me at my lower back. The big cat’s fur brushed along the thin satin of the dress, but I was less afraid of the animal than the man whose eyes were glittering at me.

I was scared Laredo knew everything. Not just the truth of my job and what I intended to do with Natalia’s code, but the love I felt for Ryder that escaped with every breath and heartbeat. What would it take to convince this coldhearted villain that I was willing to give up everything for him? How could I prove I wanted a place in his evil empire?

The music started, and we were moving. The music was violent and yet sensual. What should have been an elegant glide, an opening dance befitting the image Laredo had created in the ballroom, instead showed an ugly underbelly. The song was almost lewd, adding to the statement he’d already made. He’d taken Ryder’s woman, and he’d do whatever the hell he wanted with her. With all of them.

We weren’t alone for more than a minute before a tall body showed up beside us—a cowboy with a glower on his face, anger radiating from every pore. Instead of having a guest accompany him, Ryder had dragged one of the women in the diaphanous dresses.

“Jaime, I think it’s time we switched partners.”

Laredo laughed. He didn’t even respond. He just whirled so he had his back to Ryder. My eyes met tortured, brilliant blue ones over Laredo’s shoulder. I silently begged Ryder to continue to trust me, to stop what he was doing before he got himself hauled away.

More people slowly joined us, and the dance floor quickly became crowded. I risked looking at some of the people’s faces. Shock was the predominate one followed by an attempt not to watch as Laredo pressed himself to me, hands lingering in places that weren’t appropriate for an audience.

When the song ended, relief flew through me because it allowed me to take a minuscule step back, only to collide with the jaguar. I froze. Laredo laughed. It was cruel—a predator having caught his prey.

Without a word, he led me away from the dance floor toward a door at the back of the room. There, he handed off the jaguar to a man standing in a suit that didn’t quite fit while I felt Ryder’s eyes burning into my shoulders.

He’d known this would happen. It was what we needed.

And yet, I could almost feel Ryder’s panic join mine, crawling through my veins as Laredo used his eyes and a ten-digit code to open the locked door. When he pulled me through and the door shut with a formidable click, I almost lost the little bit of food I’d put in my stomach.

I thought of all the things I hadn’t said to Ryder. The I love you I hadn’t given him. The tomorrow I’d offered but not figured out.

I thought of Addy and my parents and Holden. All the people I loved and might not see again. Was it worth the risk? Was the trauma and grief I’d add to their life if I died tonight doing a job I thought I’d loved really worth it?

It was too late. I’d already offered up not only myself but all of them.

I squeezed my clutch with the flash drive tucked inside it and rubbed my knees together, allowing the cold metal of my gun to reassure me. I inhaled slowly, holding my breath for several seconds before letting it out.

I had to keep the panic at bay.

I had to believe it was worth it, because it wasn’t just my fate or my loved ones’ fate on the line, but the entire world we lived in.