All Souls' Night - Renee Rose Page 0,307

uncertain glance and march through the front door.

“Karina?” I shut the door and listen. Silence.

Alex goes to the kitchen while I head to the bedroom. The bed is made, the bathroom clean, but the room is empty. No overnight bag. No laptop case. No toiletries or personal belongings. The drawer Alex cleared out for her in my dresser is empty.

“Theo!”

I blur to the kitchen, where Alex is holding an envelope addressed to me in her decorative handwriting. I tear it open and pull out the page of stationery.

My Dearest Theophilus,

There are no words to describe the joy you and Alex have brought to my life in these last few days. Your protection and your friendship mean the world to me. And although I have known you for just a few months, and Alex only a matter of days, you’ve both impacted me in a way I never imagined.

And it is for that very reason I cannot stay. Just because you have the money to try and fix my problems, doesn’t mean you should. Zoe and I have had to deal with Phil for six years, and we’re coming to understand there’s nothing we can do about him. He’s too rich and powerful, knows too many people in high places.

But there’s something else. I got myself mixed up with a very powerful man in New Orleans, named Marcel Boucher. He’s the owner of the Crimson Dungeon in the French Quarter, and though he introduced me to BDSM, I learned there were a lot of strings attached to our relationship. He got me the job at Hyperion. He bailed me out of a bad situation in New Orleans.

Marcel asked me to spy on Club Toxic. As much as I hate to confess this—and it’s why I couldn’t stay, because I couldn’t bear to see the look on your face when you learned I betrayed your confidence—I have been feeding Marcel information about your club’s management structure, and the comings and goings of Lucius and Selene.

I stop reading, my hands quivering, and take a seat at the breakfast bar. Her words are breaking my heart, but they’re making sense of what’s happened.

“What? Is she okay? Where is she?”

I hold up my hand, unable to speak past the anger and heartbreak clogging my throat. But I press on to finish the letter.

I have been feeding Marcel information about your club’s management structure and the comings and goings of Lucius and Selene. I honestly thought it was harmless information, and Marcel insisted it was just to help him get a leg up on the competition. I guess the reputation of Club Toxic is as far reaching as Louisiana.

But then I met you, and everything changed. I can’t do it for him anymore.

I understand if you hate me and never want to see me again. I would expect nothing less. But please know I never meant to hurt you or Alex. And I hope I protect you both by getting out of your lives and going with Zoe. She’s my family. I have to put her first. And when we leave, we hope we’re taking the trouble with us.

I love you. And I think I love Alex, too. Or at least, I know it would be so easy to fall in love with him as well. I don’t know how I can say that after such a short period of time, but I don’t know any other way of describing how much my heart is breaking as I write these words. I wish a hard spanking over your lap could fix all my problems. I would take one every single night for the rest of my life if it did, and if it restored your trust in me. But we both know it’s not that simple.

Please take care of yourself and Alex. I can tell, he really does love you. I know you two will be happier without all this baggage I’d bring into the relationship, so live in love with him.

All my heart,

Cupcake

I hand the letter to Alex, and wipe the shock from my face.

“She doesn’t say where she’s going.” The panic in Alex’s eyes and voice is enough to snap me out of my stupor.

I thumb my phone to my contacts and slam it to my ear.

“Hello?”

“Slash, can you meet me and Alex at Club Toxic? I need your help.”

“I’m already here. We’ve got problems. It’s Zoe and Karina. They’re in trouble.”

A fireball flares in the pit of my stomach. “We’re on our way.”

Chapter