do?”
He tried for a reassuring smile. It failed.“I'm going to take you to a secure place where we can get to know one another better. I want you to think of me as a friend. I can help you, Zora.”
“If you want to help me, let me go,” she insisted.
“And what? You'll go back to that little town and drink yourself into an early grave?”
“Probably. So what?”
“Don't you want more for yourself?”
“Not really.”
“You need such a spanking,” Tex said, shaking his head at her. “You're obviously a bright, strong woman. Wasting your life away is just that, a waste.”
Zora sat silently. She couldn't refute what he was saying without giving herself away. Besides, wasn't this precisely what she wanted? She wanted him to think of her as a complete waster. If he thought she was nothing more than a lovelorn lush she might get free. But it still stung, hearing him say those things.
“I will tell you something I do know about Savage,” she said, looking at Tex directly. “There's no way he'd ever give himself up for me. He fucked me and he abandoned me. I doubt I know anything about him you don't.” She picked up the tea, which was going cold, and drank deeply whilst he watched her. “Hell,” she said, putting the cup down on the tablecloth. “If I did know something that would help you get him, I'd probably tell you. But I don't know anything. Nothing.”
“He never talked to you about his work?”
“He hardly ever talked to me at all,” she said with just the right note of bitterness.
“So,” Tex said softly. “He was nothing more than a fuck buddy who broke your heart, you've not heard from him in years and I should let you go because he wouldn't lift a finger to save you even if you were being tortured?”
“Excactly,” Zora said, looking at him with wide doe eyes. “He doesn't care about me and he never did.”
Tex nodded and reached into his pocket. He pulled out his smart phone and thumbed through it for a few seconds before setting it down on the table and pushing it towards her. She squinted and frowned at the screen, then her heart almost stopped when she saw what was there. There were lines of figures. Well, one figure, repeated over and over and over. 500. 500. 500. 500. They were bank records. Records of the payments Savage had been making to her for months. Her mouth went dry as her pulse raced in her ears.
This was bad.
Very, very bad.
Chapter Five
She stared at the little screen with the oh so incriminating numbers displayed, her mouth going dry as Tex's rumble drifted to her. “If he's just an ex who broke your heart, mind telling me why he has a shielded account set up to pay you every month?”
“He feels guilty for dumping me probably. Thinks tossing me a bone every now and then will make it all okay,” she lied as smoothly and quickly as she could. “Maybe he just likes helping me drink myself dead, who knows.” She sat back and looked at Tex defiantly.
Her interrogator chuckled dryly. “That lie was better, but still not quite good enough, little girl.”
She shrugged and remained silent. Saying more would just give him more ammunition. It was now clear that he knew more than he was letting on. Maybe he knew precisely why she'd been in Iron Horse. Maybe he knew about everything, her recruitment, her service, her escape. It was impossible to tell what Tex knew and didn't know, he was such a smooth operator, always controlling the flow of conversation, always keeping her off-balance.
“This is why I'm taking you in,” he said with definite finality. “Your story doesn't add up, which means you're hiding something from me. If you want to avoid going into custody you have to come clean here and now.”
She fiddled with the edge of her towel and looked up at him under her eyelashes. “So you'll let me go if I tell you what you want to hear?”
“Tell me the truth and you'll avoid that cell you're so keen to avoid.”
Not believing
He tried for a reassuring smile. It failed.“I'm going to take you to a secure place where we can get to know one another better. I want you to think of me as a friend. I can help you, Zora.”
“If you want to help me, let me go,” she insisted.
“And what? You'll go back to that little town and drink yourself into an early grave?”
“Probably. So what?”
“Don't you want more for yourself?”
“Not really.”
“You need such a spanking,” Tex said, shaking his head at her. “You're obviously a bright, strong woman. Wasting your life away is just that, a waste.”
Zora sat silently. She couldn't refute what he was saying without giving herself away. Besides, wasn't this precisely what she wanted? She wanted him to think of her as a complete waster. If he thought she was nothing more than a lovelorn lush she might get free. But it still stung, hearing him say those things.
“I will tell you something I do know about Savage,” she said, looking at Tex directly. “There's no way he'd ever give himself up for me. He fucked me and he abandoned me. I doubt I know anything about him you don't.” She picked up the tea, which was going cold, and drank deeply whilst he watched her. “Hell,” she said, putting the cup down on the tablecloth. “If I did know something that would help you get him, I'd probably tell you. But I don't know anything. Nothing.”
“He never talked to you about his work?”
“He hardly ever talked to me at all,” she said with just the right note of bitterness.
“So,” Tex said softly. “He was nothing more than a fuck buddy who broke your heart, you've not heard from him in years and I should let you go because he wouldn't lift a finger to save you even if you were being tortured?”
“Excactly,” Zora said, looking at him with wide doe eyes. “He doesn't care about me and he never did.”
Tex nodded and reached into his pocket. He pulled out his smart phone and thumbed through it for a few seconds before setting it down on the table and pushing it towards her. She squinted and frowned at the screen, then her heart almost stopped when she saw what was there. There were lines of figures. Well, one figure, repeated over and over and over. 500. 500. 500. 500. They were bank records. Records of the payments Savage had been making to her for months. Her mouth went dry as her pulse raced in her ears.
This was bad.
Very, very bad.
Chapter Five
She stared at the little screen with the oh so incriminating numbers displayed, her mouth going dry as Tex's rumble drifted to her. “If he's just an ex who broke your heart, mind telling me why he has a shielded account set up to pay you every month?”
“He feels guilty for dumping me probably. Thinks tossing me a bone every now and then will make it all okay,” she lied as smoothly and quickly as she could. “Maybe he just likes helping me drink myself dead, who knows.” She sat back and looked at Tex defiantly.
Her interrogator chuckled dryly. “That lie was better, but still not quite good enough, little girl.”
She shrugged and remained silent. Saying more would just give him more ammunition. It was now clear that he knew more than he was letting on. Maybe he knew precisely why she'd been in Iron Horse. Maybe he knew about everything, her recruitment, her service, her escape. It was impossible to tell what Tex knew and didn't know, he was such a smooth operator, always controlling the flow of conversation, always keeping her off-balance.
“This is why I'm taking you in,” he said with definite finality. “Your story doesn't add up, which means you're hiding something from me. If you want to avoid going into custody you have to come clean here and now.”
She fiddled with the edge of her towel and looked up at him under her eyelashes. “So you'll let me go if I tell you what you want to hear?”
“Tell me the truth and you'll avoid that cell you're so keen to avoid.”
Not believing
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