be cavalier. But Henry Thomas didn’t have the eyes of a demon. After eleven years at the Palace, watching men come and go to the other girls’ rooms, Eliza knew the difference.
It was time. She stood, and as she did, her robe opened just enough to show Henry Thomas a flash of leg and her four-inch high heels. Don’t disappoint your father … don’t disappoint— If there was any way out she would take it. Instead she blinked twice and said the only thing she could say. “This… is my first time.”
Henry Thomas didn’t take his eyes off hers. He slipped out of his shoes and shirt, then he slowly crossed the room and put his hands on her shoulders. His fingers were like velvet. “Eliza.” He searched her eyes. “I’m not Henry Thomas.”
“Okay.” She forced a laugh, her robe still tight around her. Underneath it she wore a backless silk gown. But no man had ever seen her in such skimpy clothing. She would put off the inevitable as long as she could. Be kind to him… Eliza dropped her robe and leaned away from him at the same time. What did he mean, he wasn’t Henry Thomas? “You want me to call you something else? Mr. Ellington, maybe?”
“Eliza, no.” His expression changed. “Don’t scream.” He still had his hands on her shoulders. “I’m a special agent with the FBI. We’re about to conduct a raid on the Palace and close it down. We need your help.”
“What?… No!” Eliza shook her head. “Never!” Her heart pounded so hard she thought it would break out of her chest. How could this happen?
She was days from being married, days from leaving the Palace and finding a way to escape. And now this… this man had chosen her to help him take down her father? They would all die. She tried to jerk away from him, but he wouldn’t let her go.
“Stop.” His grip on her tightened. “Let me explain.”
“Get away from me!” She knew how to take care of this stranger. She tilted her head back. “Asia! Hel—”
But before she could scream, the man spun her around and pressed her bare back tight against his chest. He covered her mouth with one hand and contained her with the other. “Eliza… I’m telling you the truth. My name is Luke and I work for the FBI. Your father is a very dangerous man. He killed your friend Alexa and he’ll kill you, too, if you go against him. You have to believe me.”
Fear grabbed at Eliza’s throat and she felt the fight leave her. So her father had arranged for Alexa’s murder. Of course. And this man knew all about it. Which meant… he must be telling the truth.
“You’ve assisted your father in trafficking the younger girls.” The man’s voice was clear, decisive. “You’ll spend years behind bars, Eliza. Or you’ll be killed by him. Once he doesn’t need you for his power play.”
Suddenly Eliza believed him. This Luke person was telling the truth. She nodded and he removed his hand from her mouth. She spit the taste of him from her lips. She faced him. “What if… what if I just run away?”
“Why haven’t you run away before this?”
The man had done his research. Eliza still detested him, the way she detested all men. But she had to know about her friend. “You… you’re sure? About Alexa?”
A hint of compassion shone in the man’s eyes. “Police found her body a week after she left. Your father got his money back and made room for the next victim.” He gritted his teeth. “He covered his tracks. He always does.”
She could still call Asia. Still prevent the raid from happening. “Why do you need me?”
“We need a witness, Eliza. Someone who heard or saw something regarding Alexa.” He hesitated. “And of course you know about all of it. The drugs and trafficking. You’re the best witness we could hope to have.”
She was that. Eliza had heard the conversation with Anders’s men and she’d never told anyone. Deep down hadn’t she known what had happened to Alexa? Wasn’t that why she had a knife hidden in her drawer?
The knife! Eliza could kill this man and be a hero to her father. Anyone claiming to be an FBI agent… anyone lying was an enemy of Anders McMillan. She stepped back. “I… I have information.” She turned to her dresser and looked over her shoulder. “Come look.”
Luke followed her and in a rush of motion Eliza