Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 81887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 409(@200wpm)___ 328(@250wpm)___ 273(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 409(@200wpm)___ 328(@250wpm)___ 273(@300wpm)
I make my way toward him, acutely aware of every step. A couple moves past me, the woman’s hand tucked into the back pocket of her partner’s leather pants. On a nearby couch, two women kiss deeply while a man watches, his hand resting possessively on one woman’s thigh.
By the time I reach the bar, my heart is racing. This was a terrible idea.
Flint sees me before I can speak, his easy smile vanishing into shock, then anger. He finishes serving his customer, then moves down the bar to where I stand.
“What the hell are you doing here?” His question is low but intense.
“I need to talk to you.”
“This isn’t a coffee shop, Briar. You can’t just drop by.”
“It seemed important enough to risk it.” I glance around at the club. “Besides, my last name got me in the door easily enough.”
His jaw tightens. “Wait here. Don’t move.”
He speaks to a woman with blue hair working further down the bar, who nods and takes over his section. Then he’s beside me, his hand firm on my elbow as he guides me away from the main area.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Somewhere we can talk without you getting propositioned every five seconds. You’re practically wearing a sign that says ‘fresh meat.’”
He leads me through a door marked “Staff Only” into a small office that features a desk with a computer, filing cabinets, and a worn couch against one wall. He closes the door behind us, muffling the music from the main room.
“What the hell were you thinking?” he demands, crossing his arms. “Coming here, tonight of all nights, when Viktor’s men are watching everything.”
“I was careful. No one followed me.”
“You can’t know that.”
“I needed information about The Hunt. Mrs. Fletcher told me people use the maze during it, and that there may be one for the summer equinox.”
“Okay… So because of that you decided to waltz into the island’s most exclusive sex club wearing a grandma cardigan?” He runs a hand through his hair, dislodging some strands from the tie. “You could have called.”
“You don’t exactly seem like a phone conversation kind of guy.” I move further into the room, needing space from his intensity. “And I’m not a child. I can go where I want.”
“No, you’re just the woman who killed someone two days ago.” His voice drops even lower. “The woman whose property is being searched by the victim’s brother. The woman who should be home establishing her innocence by lying low, not wandering into a den of gossips who’d sell their mothers for the right price.”
“I’m also the woman whose property is going to be overrun by people during The Hunt,” I snap back. “People who might find what we buried. I need to know exactly what to expect and when.”
He sighs, some of the anger draining from him. “Fine. What do you want to know?”
“Everything. When it will happen. How many people. How to keep them out of certain areas.”
“You can’t keep them out. That’s the point of The Hunt. No boundaries, no rules once it starts.”
“There have to be some rules.”
“Sure.” He leans against the desk. “The woman consents by putting out the red bulb. She wears white, goes barefoot. The man wears the mask, does the whistle. After that?” He shrugs. “It’s primal. That’s why people do it.”
“And they use the maze?”
“It’s one of the favorite spots. Hidden, complex. The thrill of the chase.”
I try to imagine it—people running through the hedges at night, the masked hunters pursuing. All of them potentially stumbling over a fresh grave.
“We need to move him,” I say.
“Not an option. Too risky.”
“More risky than someone literally tripping over his body?”
“We buried him deep, with plants that mask the scent. The dogs couldn’t find him today. Hunters won’t either.”
“You can’t know that for sure.” I step closer to him, frustration building. “This isn’t just your problem. It’s my property. My party. My hands that—” I’m unable to finish.
His expression shifts, anger giving way to something more complex. “I know, but moving him now, with Viktor watching everything? That’s suicide.”
“So we just hope for the best? Hope no one notices the freshly turned earth or the new plants?”
“The maze has been there for decades. Tourists and locals have been screwing in it for just as long. No one’s going to question one more patch of dirt.”
“That’s not good enough.” I move even closer, challenging him. “I need a better plan than ‘hope no one notices.’”
“Well, that’s all we’ve got right now, princess.” The nickname comes out sharp-edged. “Unless you’ve got some brilliant idea you’re not sharing.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“What? Princess?” He smirks. “Isn’t that what you are? Daddy’s little girl, used to getting her way, thinks she can just walk into anywhere—”
“You don’t know me at all.”
“No?” He narrows his eyes. “I know you well enough. Rich girl looking for a thrill, slumming it with the hired help. First Damiano, now showing up here.” He steps closer. “Was that your plan? Work your way through the island’s bad boys for a little vacation excitement?”