82. Kade

82

Kade

T he Pussycat Lounge is heaving this evening. Cin and I head up to the VIP floor. Groups of men sit around drinking, chatting, watching the dancers perform. The goons standing beside the red door look up when we approach.

One of them recognizes me and nods. I give him the password and the door opens. The blond behind the desk smiles.

"Welcome back, gentlemen. Are you here for the auction?"

Knowing she's complicit in what goes on here means it takes a lot of effort to return her smile. "We are."

"Your QR code, please." She scans the code on my phone, which Chan sent me an hour ago. He reckons he's paid his debt now, but the casino is still out by $2.5 million, so he can get fucked.

"Please step through the scanner and remove your weapons." Unfortunately, that isn't happening this evening. Before the blond can react, Madden has her in a chokehold. She struggles, her eyes wide with panic, but he applies pressure to her carotid and she soon passes out.

We leave her tied up and gagged in the small adjacent bathroom. If anyone goes looking, they'll find her, but once the chaos starts, I doubt they will.

The trip down in the elevator takes less than a minute. Two women are waiting for us when we arrive. One of them gives us the same spiel as before, we listen politely, and then walk into the bar area.

After grabbing an iPad from a table, I scroll through the lots for tonight's auction, which is due to start in thirty minutes. There are not as many listings as last time, but when I reach the end of the catalog, I see her.

For a moment, I can't breathe. She's wearing some kind of white corset, which does wonders for her figure. Under different circumstances, I'd be drooling. But not tonight. Not when she's in so much danger.

"Is she there?" Madden asks in a low voice, although we're well away from any other patrons.

"Yes," I reply, handing him the iPad. He hisses when he sees the screen.

"I will kill him."

"Join the queue."

"Chloe?" he asks, knowing as well as I do it isn't only adults they sell here.

"No, thank fuck."

We don't know where Mashkov has taken Chloe, but from the lovely nursery I saw back at his mansion, she must matter to him. I'm not sure why, but there's a reason he stole her.

"Are you in?" Quinn's voice in my ear is a reminder he's still listening.

"Yes. She's here."

"Your men are entering through the warehouse now. I've disabled the security system and looped the cameras. There are people standing by to take the prisoners and remove them to a safe location."

Quinn has connections to people who deal with victims of trafficking. He called them earlier, and they agreed to help. Everyone rescued tonight will be taken to a safe location and provided with whatever they need to rebuild their lives.

We walk through the main areas, ignoring the hedonistic activities unfolding in various dark corners. We're not here to ruin the fun, but once the shooting starts, these people better have the good sense to get the fuck out of here.

The iPad in my hand vibrates, letting me know the auction is about to begin. Madden looks at me and nods. It's time to end this insanity.