Married a Stripper

  We needed to talk. And we should talk.

  The sight of a drugstore sign caught my eye, and I slowed my steps, studying it.

  We should talk, I thought again. And I should know for sure before we do. Kaleb should know. He deserved to know.

  I went inside, but nerves overtook me, and instead of going straight to the section I needed, I swung by the pantry area and picked up a box of crackers. It wasn’t like I wouldn’t need them. Then I forced my feet to walk in the direction of the right aisle, and I stopped.

  Heart pounding, I studied the boxes.

  So many different ones.

  They all blurred in front of me, and I finally grabbed one at random, reading it.

  Digital readout.

  Two weeks sooner.

  Ninety-eight percent accurate.

  Good enough.

  My hands shook as I paid for the purchases, and I wondered if the cashier noticed, but she seemed completely oblivious. Nervous twenty-somethings coming in to buy pregnancy tests were probably run of the mill around here.

  I headed for the door, feeling more settled somehow.

  I was going to stop wondering.

  I was going to get an answer.

  But then I swung left and saw her.

  She was leaning against the light post, arms wrapped around her middle, looking scared and nervous and cold, even in the burning heat.

  As I slowed to a stop, she lifted one hand to her mouth and started to bite at her nails. She swung a look down the block away from me, then pushed off the light post and started to pace. When she turned in my direction, she faltered.

  The tears in her eyes had my heart aching.

  “Camry,” I whispered.

  “Um.” She looked behind me, then behind her, so jumpy, it was like she expected the shadows to come to life and steal her away. “Hi. It’s Piety, right?”

  “Yes. Is…where’s Kaleb?” Compassion welled inside me, and I took a step forward. “Honey, are you okay?”

  “I…shit. Fuck. I can’t talk about this…” She went left, ducking into the narrow alley between two buildings. “I shouldn’t have come here.”

  “Camry, wait. What’s wrong?”

  But she shook her head and continued to walk.

  Feeling helpless, I went after her, my little plastic bag slapping against my leg.

  “Talk to me, Camry. Where is Kaleb?”

  She stopped when I put my hand on her shoulder and turned slowly, facing me.

  Her eyes were still open too wide, and now that I was closer, I could see the oversized ring of her pupil. She was high, but she seemed steady enough. Probably so used to being strung out, it was her normal. Shaking her head, she said, “You shouldn’t be here.”

  “Don’t be silly.”

  Camry just shook her head. Then, slowly, her gaze flicked past me, her tongue snaking out to wet cracked, dry lips.

  I heard it then.

  It was quiet, so quiet, I couldn’t have heard it over the sound of my voice a moment ago.

  But I heard it now and spun around, ready to face whoever it was.

  I had a good idea who it was too.

  I never made the full circle.

  I saw something swinging down at me, and I lifted my arm.

  Then everything went dark.

  Thirteen

  Kaleb

  Night had fallen over the strip.

  The only time Vegas was even remotely appealing was when the sun had set, and the lights were all ablaze.

  Or maybe if I was out past the city, in the desert. I didn’t mind the desert.

  Standing in the elegant suite of the Bellagio, I stared outside and brooded.

  I hadn’t heard from Piety all day. Not so much as a phone call.

  It was past nine now, and I’d been here for a few hours by myself. I’d given in and called down to room service for a pizza, although it sat like a stone in my belly and every passing minute made it worse.

  “Where are you?” I muttered.

  I pulled out my phone to call her again, only to stop and put it away.

  She hadn’t responded when I called five minutes ago. I’d sent any number of texts and messages, so she knew I was waiting to hear from her. Calling every few minutes wasn’t going to help.

  I figured I could hold off for five more minutes.

  I paced and ended up by the bar, pulling out a bottle of whiskey, studying it before putting it away.

  A few more circuits around the room had me back by the window and staring outside.

  “This is getting ridiculous.”

  I didn’t know what I should do.

  Call Samuel?

  The police?

  Would they even do anything? It hadn’t even been ten hours, and they wouldn’t do shit the first twenty-four hours.

  Although maybe if they knew who she was…

  I eyed the phone again and wondered if I should have Samuel get in touch with Piety's father.

  That would suck for me, but if it would get people moving…

  “Fine,” I muttered. I’d do it. I could deal with the devil for Piety.

  But just as I went to punch the number, the phone lit up, signaling a message. Relief punched through me.

  It faded fast though, followed on the heels by confusion, fear, then anger.

  Hello, Kaleb! Sorry I wasn’t at the house to meet you, brother. I ran into a friend of yours…Piety! Wow. You really did get married, huh? I’m truly happy for you. Now…if you’ll just do me a favor, you can have your wife and be on your way. You know the money I needed before? I now need ten times that. In cash. Be a good brother and get it for me – today.

  I read it through once, twice, three more times, trying to make it make sense.

  There was a date and time at the bottom. Hours away – just hours. What the fuck was my sister thinking? If she really had Piety...I couldn't...I swore, and my hands started to shake.

  Then, another text came through, and I dropped my phone, the screen going blank.

  But not before I'd registered what I was staring at.

  A picture of Piety. But not just a picture of Piety.

  There was a pregnancy test in it too.

  And the test was…positive.

  Another message came through.

  Looks like you’re gonna be a daddy! Let’s get all this tediousness out of the way so you can get started with your new little family, hmm?

  I grabbed the phone, spun, ready to hurl it into the wall.

  But I stopped myself.

  Think, I said silently. Going to my knees, I braced my hands on the floor and flexed them.

  Think...

  Fourteen

  Piety

  I’d feigned sleep for as long as I could, trying to get a grasp on what was going on, and now that I’d opened my eyes, I’d managed to get a decent handle on the situation – I hoped.

  Camry was too strung out and nervous to be quiet or subtle. Stefano was too arrogant.

  They’d sat around talking about their plans with no regard to me, so I’d taken it all in. Now that I was awake, my biggest challenge was trying not to let on that I’d heard them talking.

  “Come on, Piety,” Stefano said, waving the pregnancy test in front of my face. “It’s been almost an hour since you woke up. It’s time to go and take a tinkle.”

  The hair stood up on my arms, and I wracked my brain for an excuse to delay doing what he wanted.

  “You’re going to be suffering from blood loss – extreme blood loss – if you don’t take this test.” Stefano tossed the box from one hand to the other. “Camry, why don’t you get her a soda or something? It might make things a little easier.”

  “I’m not thirsty.” Shit, if they made me drink something, I’d pee my pants. And if the test was positive they would have something else to threaten Kaleb with. I couldn't let that happen. But if I was pregnant, I couldn't risk not knowing.

  Fuck.

  “Sure you are. You took a nice long nap.
Gotta be feeling a little dry.” Stefano sat straddling a chair, facing me. I was in a twin of the same chair, but I wasn’t quite so casual – hard to be when I was tied to the damn thing.

  “No, I’m not feeling dry. I’m feeling nauseated. If I drink anything, I’ll throw it up.” There.

  “Oh…maybe she is pregnant.” Stefano laughed and edged closer. “Come on. Let’s just get the test done so we can get in touch with your hubby and get this whole mess behind us.”

  “I’ve got a better idea…let me go, and I’ll get a hold of Kaleb.” I smiled sweetly at him. “He can come pick me up, and we’ll just forget this whole thing ever happened.”

  “Not going to happen that way. See, Kaleb gave me a lot of trouble. I figure he owes me something extra for it.” Stefano winked at me. “This way, I don’t have to worry about him trying to jerk me around again.”

  “He doesn’t owe you shit.” Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.

  Stefano just laughed at me and shoved off the chair. “You wouldn’t understand, angel. Come on. You’re getting out of that chair and going with Camry here into the bathroom. You’re going to be a good little girl and piss on that damn test.”

  He knelt in front of me and started untying the ropes. I glared at him.

  “And if I don’t?”

  Something ugly lit his eyes. “You don’t want to know the answer to that, Piety. See, I’ve been nice so far. Don’t make me change that. Or maybe you’d rather have me follow you in there. I always get a kick out of watching a pretty girl like you take a piss.”

  His entire persona changed, and it sent a shiver down my spine.

  He reached up and stroked a hand down my hair. “Now…are you ready to go with Camry and use the fucking toilet?”

  “Sure.” I bared my teeth at him, refusing to show how afraid I was. “But only if you say please.”

  “Oh…I like you. You’ve got balls.” He leaned in, pressed his lips to my ear. I didn’t let myself cringe away as he murmured, “Pretty please, Piety. Go piss on that damn stick. I want to get the show on the road.”

  A few hours ago, I’d been giddy, almost eagerly awaiting this moment, but now, I was hoping and praying the test would be negative.

  If it was negative, that was one less thing they could use against him.

  One less thing I had to worry about.

  They hadn’t tied me back up, but I wasn’t fooled into believing it meant anything. After Camry watched me pee on the damn stick, she’d grabbed it from my hand. Now, Stefano was pacing back and forth, holding onto the test as he watched it reveal my future.

  I wanted to vomit. That he was here, watching something so personal taking place, made me sick – and furious. I wanted to hurl the chair at him, but he had something else in his other hand.

  A gun.

  I didn’t doubt his ability to use it either.

  “Well, well, well…”

  I had no doubt what the smile on his face meant.

  I’d been counting down the seconds in my head, and when he looked up at me, I already knew.

  “Yes?” I said, feigning boredom.

  “Congratulations. You’re going to have a bouncing bundle of joy in a few more months, precious.” Stefano came closer and showed me the test before gesturing to the chair with his gun hand. “Sit back down. Camry, tie her up.”

  Numb inside, I sat down.

  I didn’t even move as she strapped my wrists down, jerking the rope tight. Her mouth was pressed, eyes jumping all around. I recognized the signs. She was coming off whatever drugs she’d been on.

  It wasn’t until Stefano came forward and tucked the pregnancy test in the vee of my shirt that the numbness cracked, then disappeared entirely. “Get off me,” I shouted.

  But he continued to fuss with it, twisting it around until he was satisfied.

  Then he took the box and placed it in my lap, facing out. “That way, he knows what we’re telling him. He’s pretty enough to look at, but he’s kind of…well…dumb.” Stefano tsked under his breath.

  “That’s funny, coming from an asshole like yourself,” I snarled.

  His smile faded. “Be nice, Piety. You be nice, and I’ll be nice.”

  “This doesn’t feel very nice,” I said, jerking against the ropes.

  But he turned away, moving a few feet before he turned back to me.

  I sat stiffly as he took a few pictures with my phone, then started texting. “And here we go.”

  “You asshole,” I said, shaking my head.

  I couldn’t believe this was happening. All because I – we – tried to help Camry.

  Stefano was texting away on my phone, and I shifted my attention to Camry. “He gave up everything to help you, and this is how you repay him?”

  She flicked a look at me. “You don’t know anything about it, princess. So shut up.”

  “I know this baby is his – that means you’ll be an aunt.”

  Her mouth dropped open for a second, then she shook her head. “Shut up.”

  This was really happening.

  Distantly, I heard the little whoosh indicating the text had been sent.

  And…silence.

  Seconds passed, then a minute.

  I counted a full two minutes off in my head before there was any response, and I closed my eyes.

  “Fuck yeah!” Stefano said. “The ball’s rolling now.”

  “He won’t be able to get you any more money. I gave it to him last time. And I’m stuck right here. I can’t exactly go to the bank when I’m tied to a chair.”

  My belly heaved, and I hoped I wouldn’t throw up. Somehow, I didn't think Stefano would let me get cleaned up if that happened.

  Stefano shrugged. “He’ll figure something out. I’ve done some digging on you. You’re a rich little bitch, aren’t you? He can call Mommy and Daddy, talk to them.”

  “Oh, man. And you have the balls to call him stupid?” I laughed, but the sound held a hysterical note. “If you think my parents will give him a dime, you really are an idiot. They despise him.”

  “He’ll figure out something.” Stefano shrugged and slid the gun away. He yawned and glanced at Camry. “I’m going to lay down. Watch her.”

  Once he was gone, Camry came over and took the pregnancy test out from between my breasts, then put it in the box. “It will all be over soon.”

  Her voice was soft, hesitant now. Maybe it was because Stefano wasn’t there. She didn’t look as certain as before.

  “You don’t really think my parents will give him money, do you? They think he used me all this time. They won’t believe anything he says.”

  “Kaleb doesn’t use people. He’ll get them to understand.” She shrugged.

  “My parents don’t get people like Kaleb. They won’t believe him, I tell you.” I jerked at the ropes on my wrists, panic getting louder and louder in my brain. “You're risking the baby’s life, Camry. Your brother's child. How can you do this?”

  “Stop.” She turned away, moving to the couch. After she dropped down onto it, she shot me a dark glare. “You wouldn’t understand, okay? You’re beautiful, you’re rich, you’ve got your parents – and you’ve got Kaleb now too. Your life has been so fucking easy.”

  “You’ve always had Kaleb,” I fired back, my temper giving me the strength I needed to push her. “And you never appreciated him. And for the record? You’re not the pregnant woman tied to a fucking chair all because you were trying to help some drug-addicted drama queen.”

  She jerked as if I’d slapped her, and I could have kicked myself. I'd gone too far. Pissing her off wasn’t exactly helping my situation here.

  “Just…” Camry looked away, pushing her hair back with shaking hands. “Be quiet, okay? And stop trying to piss Stefano off. You won’t like how it goes. You won’t.”

  The phone went off, signaling another text from Kaleb.

  Camry smirked at me. “He’s working on it, honey. Thought you said he couldn’t get the money.”

&
nbsp; I narrowed my eyes at her. “Thought your boyfriend said Kaleb wasn’t all that smart.”

  She twitched, but it wasn’t from anything I said. She needed another hit, and it showed.

  I tried a different tactic. “What are you going to do if something happens to your niece or nephew?”

  “Nothing’s going to happen!” she shouted, getting off the couch to pace. “Shit, will you shut up? All he has to do is pay and everything will be fine!”

  “And when this is over…?” I laughed, feeling more and more desperate. “I just go about my merry way? You think Stefano is just going to let me and this baby go?”

  “He gets the money, that’s all that matters.”

  “Bullshit. He’s in so much trouble with the cops, he won’t take the chance of something coming along that might actually stick. And this could fuck him over. Kidnapping. That’s a lot of hard time.” I shot a look at the door, hoping I wasn’t saying too much. “Do you know who my father is? A senator. Do you know what a jury will do to a guy who kidnapped a senator's pregnant daughter?”

  “He’s…stop it, okay?” Her hands were shaking now. “You ain’t going to say anything because you’re smart. So it’s all good.”

  “It’s not!” I struggled against the ropes, moaning a little as the fear threatened to swell out of control. “How can you do this? What in the hell would your parents think if they could see you? If they knew you were threatening your brother’s baby?”

  She went pale, the blood draining out of her face. “That’s not…I’m not…”

  “They hell you’re not!” I glared at her. “Fool yourself all you want but don’t expect me to buy it. If Kaleb doesn’t pay, I’m the one who’s fucked – me and his baby, and you know it. And you’re helping!”

  “Shut up.”

  The cold, flat order came from the door, and I whipped my head around just in time to see Stefano come out of the bedroom. His eyes were heavy, hair mussed. He’d been sleeping, I could tell. But he was wide awake now and was focused on Camry.