Chapter 29

Reyna walked into the empty penthouse, feeling utterly exhausted. She tore off her boots in the entranceway. Her feet were blistered and sore. Her mind and heart felt even worse.

She moved numbly from the living room to her bedroom and stripped out of what remained of her brothel clothing. Even though she knew it was ridiculous, she pulled Beckham’s suit coat back over her and crawled into bed. It still smelled like him, and she wasn’t quite ready to give it up yet.

So much of her wanted to say fuck this shit, grab her stuff, and go. But she didn’t know if that was a rash decision that she would regret later. She was so tired from the evening, and even if she left, where would she go at this hour?

She didn’t even realize she had drifted off until the sound of the elevator drew her out of her slumber. She glanced at the clock and realized she had slept the entire day away. Reyna tensed, waiting for Beckham to come to her, to explain, to tell her what had happened. She heard him walking around the apartment, and the distant sound of his feet retreating away from her.

He never came to her.

He never even checked to see if she was all right.

Nothing.

She could have already left the apartment, and he wouldn’t even know. He likely wouldn’t even care. And it proved that she should be beyond caring what Beckham Anderson thought. She should have deduced that last night, but it hit her again full force.

Stretching her sore muscles, Reyna rolled out of bed. She grabbed a black bag out of her closet and started throwing her meager possessions into it. The bag was nicer than anything she had ever owned at home, but there were no other options except designer purses. She changed into jeans and a T-shirt. Her feet slipped into her Chuck Taylor’s, and she pulled the baseball hat low over her eyes. By the time she was finished, she really didn’t have much—three changes of clothes, a few toiletries, and her black card. She decided she would empty what was left of her bank account on her way out, and then cut up the card. She left her cellphone on her dresser, and then exited her room.

When she walked into the living room, she expected Beckham to come out, ready for a confrontation. But he never left his wing.

Frustrated, she turned to leave when she caught a glimpse of her name on a leather case on the kitchen counter. She unzipped it and her eyes widened into saucers. Inside was a note. She flipped it open.

FREEDOM.

She scrunched her brows together and pulled out the other item in the bag. It was a check and her mouth dropped open when she saw the amount—ten million dollars—scrawled in Beckham’s hand.

Reyna stared on in utter disbelief. Her chest constricted, and her throat went dry. This amount of money would mean she would never have to work again in her life. It meant she could live comfortably, eat right, get out of the shithole her brothers lived in, go to college, have a life. She could do anything she wanted.

But the money wasn’t freedom like he proposed. He was letting her go without wanting to see her, without even saying goodbye.

She pushed the folder away from herself with shaking hands. She would only take the money that was owed her. The money that she had earned. She never wanted to feel like a whore as if he were buying her out. She never ever wanted to feel like she owed Beckham anything. This would be a clean break.

Reyna glanced down at the check one last time, and then exited the apartment with just her backpack over her shoulder.

Everett wasn’t working the night shift at the valet station. She was glad he wasn’t around to see her go, yet she was also sad that she wouldn’t get to say goodbye to him. But this was necessary even if it was the hardest thing she had ever done…even harder than deciding to work for Visage in the first place.

She took a cab to a bank and transferred the rest of the money to her brothers’ accounts. She didn’t want to have anything to do with the money anymore or the account Visage had set up for her to deposit it into. It would go to better use in their possession than in a Visage account.

Then she was on the road to the Warehouse District. It was surreal to think she was really going back. She had thought about it so often, but had resigned herself to the fact that she would never see her brothers again.

She paid the cab with her black card, swearing it was the last time she would use any of Beckham’s dirty money, and then hopped out of the car. She stared up at her brothers’ place. It was dark and ominous. No one was on the streets, and all the windows were shut up tight.

Home sweet home.

Three flights of stairs later, she was standing in front of their door. It was hanging slightly off the hinges, which she didn’t remember from when she had been living here. She grew suddenly anxious and knocked once on the door.

“Who is it?” Brian asked gruffly. “We don’t have anything. Try another place.”

“Brian?” she whispered. She hugged herself in the dark.

The door swung open. “Reyna?” Brian asked in shock. “Oh my God, is that you?”

Drew jumped up from the beat-up dingy sofa and rushed to her. He barreled into her, scooping her into a fierce hug. “What are you doing here? We thought we’d never see you again.”

It so perfectly mirrored her own thoughts earlier that she couldn’t help it, she burst into tears. They were both tears of joy at seeing them and grief over what she had left behind.

“It’s so good to see you guys. I’ve missed you so much. You have no idea,” she said through her sobs.

“I’m so glad you’re home,” Brian said, joining in on the hug. “Stop crying. Come inside.”

He urged them back into their apartment then closed and bolted the door. Another new addition. Her eyes scanned the room. It looked bare in the feeble light. Not just in comparison to Beckham’s immaculate penthouse, but to her memory of their apartment. The place was bare-bones, as if someone had moved, but left all the big furniture.

“Are you on…vacation or leave?” Brian asked curiously.

“No,” Reyna said. She shook her head, drawing herself out of her thoughts. She hiccuped and wiped her eyes. “I left. I couldn’t do it anymore.”

“Were they mistreating you?” Drew asked.

“Are you hurt?” Brian chimed in.

They both went into full-on big brother mode, and it almost made her smile.

“No.” How could she explain what had happened? It was a world they would never understand, and she honestly hoped they never tried. “I was never even bitten.”

Brian’s face darkened. She didn’t blame him for not wanting to hear about that.

“Then what were you doing this whole time?” Drew asked.

“You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.”

Drew urged her to sit down. “Start from the beginning. No one has been…feeding off of you?”

Reyna shook her head and showed him her neck. Up close you could tell it was perfect. No marks at all. Not even the tiniest little ones. Not that that was the only place a person could get bitten, but it was the most common.

“What was I doing?” she repeated, laughing bitterly. “Going to balls in gorgeous dresses, and dance clubs, shopping in designer boutiques, learning photography, surfing the Internet. Absolutely nothing of any practical use.”

Brian and Drew exchanged a hesitant look.

“That sounds like a fairy tale,” Drew said.

“I know.”

“So why did you leave?” Brian asked. He took the other seat next to her. They both looked honestly curious. She could tell they were glad to see her, and she hoped that meant they wanted her to stay.

“It was a fairy tale at first,” she said cautiously, “but the dangers of that world are too much. I can’t describe it. You’ll just have to trust me.”

“We can talk about it when you’re ready,” Drew agreed easily.

Drew was always far more trusting than Brian, who was giving her a look as if he wanted to ask more questions, but he held his tongue for now.

“Thank you for sending the money, by the way.”

“Oh guys, I’m sorry,” she apologized immediately. “I’ll try to get a job to cover me being back.”

“We’ll make due,” Brian said. “We’re just glad you’re home.”

“What happened to this place anyway?” she finally asked, gesturing around the room.

Both guys looked down and away from her. Neither seemed to want to tell the story. Finally, Brian blew out a breath. “After a bunch of the guys found out that you were sending us money, they ransacked the place and took everything. We have nothing, Reyna.”

Reyna’s mouth dropped open. All this time she thought she was helping and she just made it worse for them.

“I’m so sorry!”

“It’s not your fault,” Drew said consolingly.

“It is.”

“It’s not!” Brian insisted. “We’ve been working doubles to make up for it.”

Reyna threw her head into her hands. She had tried so hard to give them what they always deserved and allow them to take fewer shifts at the warehouse. She had wanted them to have their own lives. Everything had backfired.

She stood with a newfound purpose. “I put the rest of my wages into your account, but I’ll start looking for a new job today.”

“We don’t care about the money, Rey, we care about you.” Drew took her hand. When he saw that she wasn’t relenting, he added, “Give it a day or two. We’ll figure it out.”

Reyna wavered, but ultimately decided a few days wouldn’t hurt anything. She needed some time to get used to being back anyway.

“So, what have I missed?” she asked between them.

Brian immediately colored. It was impossible for him not to get embarrassed. It was probably where she had gotten it from.

“Laura and I are getting pretty serious,” he admitted.

Drew laughed. “She’s already hounding you for a ring.”

“Hasn’t she been doing that since you started dating?”

“Yeah, but, well…now that you’re gone…” He cleared his throat and looked away.

“Now that you don’t have someone else to take care of,” she added.

“She doesn’t come right out and say it, but I’m saving up for a ring.”

Reyna looked down at her hands. Her brother was going to get engaged soon. Wow. She’d known that stuff would change while she had been gone, but she hadn’t realized how fast their lives would move in her absence.

“Well, I’m happy for you. Perhaps it’s time for that ring after all.”

Drew nudged him in the ribs. “That’s what I’ve been saying.”

“And you?” Reyna asked him. “Any woman in your life? Or do you insist on getting old all alone?”

He just shrugged. “No women in my life, Rey. Just you. And I’m glad you’re back. Everything else can wait.”

She slung her arm around Drew’s waist and leaned into him. It was nice to feel loved again and to have the easy comfortable companionship of her family. But it didn’t dull the ache of her missing Beckham and she wondered if he had realized yet that she’d left the house and the check behind. What would he think when he saw it? Would he cut his losses? Would he care at all?

She tried not to think about it any further. There was nothing she could do. The past was the past, and she doubted she would have changed any of her decisions.

They stayed up talking half the night until the guys swore they had to get to bed to stay on schedule for work. The next day was their one day off that week, and they spent it messing around like old times.

In the morning, Reyna cooked breakfast and was pleased that someone else was there to enjoy it. They walked around their seedy neighborhood, and though it felt like home it made her miss the clean park where she had taken a picture of Beckham. It made her miss her camera.

She splurged on lunch at a nearby restaurant that had been there forever, not that it was anything fancy. Then they spent the night playing board games and reading to one another from Drew’s favorite fantasy novel. It was warm and comfortable being with them, but her heart was missing Beckham. Even if she hated herself for thinking so, she still went to bed that night wishing he was nearby.

The next morning, she got up extra early to walk her brothers to the warehouse for work. She couldn’t count the number of times she had done so in the past. Reyna took a sorrowful look around the apartment, and then followed her brothers down the stairs. It was a nice day despite the fact that she had a heavy heart.

When they reached the warehouses, her brothers each gave her a hug and promised to see her when they got off work. She watched them walk away with dueling thoughts battling in her mind. On one hand she was so happy to be here with them, and on the other hand she had never felt more alone watching them disappear and having absolutely no options.

At least before she had always had Visage as a last resort. She knew that after she exhausted her last option on getting a job, she could always become a blood escort. She had hated the idea not because she had anything against vampires, but out of fear of the unknown, her fear of needles, and the thought of becoming a food source wasn’t exactly appealing. Now that unknown had been her reality, and she couldn’t turn back to it. Not now. Not ever.

With a sigh, she left the warehouse and started toward the road for home. She only made it a few feet before she heard her name called. It was strange being in a place where again everyone knew her. She could have walked anywhere in the city and never had a single person recognize her. She only knew a handful of people in total anyway.

And in the warehouses this was the last person she wanted to see.

Steven.

“Hey,” she said, trying to act casual. After the last time she had seen him, she just wanted to punch his face into the ground and walk away. But he was much bigger than her, and she couldn’t rely on her brothers getting her out of the situation this time.

“Little Reyna Carpenter!” he said in greeting. “Back from her blood whore days.”

Reyna rolled her eyes. “What do you want?”

He smiled at her, and she wondered why she had ever found him attractive. He was nothing compared to Beckham.

“Vampires get tired of your blood? Or something else?” He eyed her up and down suggestively.

“I’ve had a really long weekend. I don’t want to deal with you right now,” she told him. None of what he said was true, but it didn’t hurt the sting that Beckham had let her go.

“Let’s have fun like old times, Reyna.”

“No thanks. I don’t want any of your fun.”

She tried to walk away, but he grabbed her arm. “You can’t tell me you’d rather have vampire cock than mine.”

“And if I did?” she spat.

He was staring at her menacingly, but then his eyes widened and he didn’t respond.

“What?” she asked, turning to see what he was staring at.

“Your chariot awaits.”

Her mouth dropped open as she took in the familiar black Town Car slowing to a stop in front of the warehouse. The car was still rolling when the back door popped open. Beckham jumped out and ran toward Reyna.

She was pretty sure she was hallucinating. She blinked twice and even contemplated pinching herself. This had to be a dream. Except Steven hadn’t let go of her arm, and her dreams never really got it right how utterly gorgeous Beckham was.