She slid the drawer shut and sat just as the door opened.
The two men who’d locked her in here stepped inside with a man in a bright blue tailored business suit. He was young and well-dressed, an expensive watch on his wrist, a thick gold chain around his neck, designer sunglasses concealing his eyes.
Kristi glared up at him, her fear becoming rage. “You must be one of those fucking Sky Kings.”
He jerked as if he’d been struck.
One of Kuti’s minions stepped forward, hand raised as if to strike her. “You should kneel to him!”
“Kneel?” She laughed. “Never.”
The man in the blue suit stopped him with a wave of his hand. He drew off his sunglasses. “Miss Chang.”
“That’s Mrs. Jones to you.”
He gave her a tight smile. “Mrs. Jones, then. I am Captain Jonathan Bello.”
“Captain of what—sex traffickers?”
He laughed, his gaze moving over her. “I heard that you are spirited and beautiful.”
He spoke English well.
“I amangry—and married.”
“I understand you made an agreement with Jidda—your nursing care in exchange for his protection.”
“I agreed to help him in exchange for my safety andfreedom.”
“Yes, I understand. Unfortunately, Jidda would never have been able to release you. I’m sorry he did not make that clear. But he did his best in offering you his protection. We are prepared to honor that agreement. We will offer you our protection in exchange for your medical skills and your company.”
“You want me to be your nurse whore?”
“There is no reason to put it into such crude language. You would live in comfort, caring for me, my elderly father, and our fellow Sky Kings, and we would visit your bed as we choose.”
Her answer came straight from her gut. “I would rather die. I will not live my life as a glorified sex slave.”
He screwed up his face as if she’d just said something ridiculous. “Come now, Mrs. Jones. You would want for nothing. You would have children—”
“Have children—with you?” She laughed, grateful once more for her IUD. “Not a chance. Do you think it’s a small thing to force a woman to have sex with men she doesn’t desire and doesn’t love? It’srape.”
“You would get used to it, even learn to enjoy it.”
She shook her head. “No, I would hate you even more than I do now. I would bide my time and try to escape—or kill you in your sleep.”
The shock on the minions’ faces made her laugh.
“Does no one talk to him like this? Do you all bow and scrape and kiss his ass? These so-called Sky Kings make millions, while you live off the crumbs that fall from their tables and die fighting their battles. They’re not kings. They’re not royalty. They’re nothing but a cartel, a crime ring, crooks who profit off the misery—”
One of the minions struck her—hard. “Shut your mouth!”
“I will leave you here to think about my offer, Mrs. Jones. You must decide what matters more to you—your life or your pride.” He turned to the minions, and they walked out the door together. “Leave her here. She could be useful later. Mr. Kuti tells me that her husband hasn’t yet given him the name of his accomplice or told him what he did with Jidda’s boy.”
They were torturing Malik to get him to betray David and Obi.
Hearing them speak of Malik like this… knowing they would torture him until he shattered… knowing they would kill him…
To hell with them.