When Love Went to Market

She gave me a reassuring look. "I know this 'The Butcher' guy. He's all bark, no bite. Probably just a big misunderstanding."

A misunderstanding?

An icy dread settled over me as I met Caroline's gaze.

At that moment, my phone buzzed once more.

With shaking hands, I clicked on the cursed link to the second-hand site.

Adrian, known as 'The Butcher,' had left another furious comment.

[Damn it! The house is empty. What is this? A bait-and-switch?]

Jeffrey's reply was right below that comment.

[Easy, man! The merchandise is just next door with the landlord, a little holdover. Consider it a special bonus to up the thrill.]

[My landlord, whom I’ve come to think of as a sister, is a real knockout. She hinted that, for the right price, she’d join in on the fun.]

Suddenly, my world spun.

I felt my blood run cold, and my phone nearly slipped from my grasp, tumbling into the couch cushions.

I looked up sharply at Caroline.

She was casually leaning against the bedroom doorway, a half-smile playing on her lips as she eyed my waist, fixated on the red mole there.

"Babe, that mole of yours is quite the eye-catcher. No wonder Jeffrey thinks you're a real catch."

Caroline's voice took on a teasing, oily quality.

"Since you're here, why not stay? Adrian will be here any minute now.

"Relax, Adrian's a big spender: two grand a pop."

She gave me a once-over. "What's your dance teaching gig pay you in a month? You bust your butt and can't even afford a decent purse."

I recoiled in fear, desperate to bolt for the door.

However, Caroline's place was locked up tight, the security chain firmly in place.

She advanced, her heels clicking ominously on the hardwood floor.

"Jeffrey has racked up a 30 grand debt to Adrian playing cards here.

"Settling his tab with you is just the way things are done.

"Make Adrian happy tonight, and you're square.

"But if you don't play ball..."

Caroline let out an icy laugh. "Jeffrey's hand? It's still in Adrian's grip. Want him to end up crippled?"

Right then, a knock echoed from the other side of the door.

Thump, thump, thump.

It was not loud, but it was enough to suffocate the air in the room.

Then, Adrian's sleazy voice seeped through. "Caroline, open up. I'm catching a whiff of something sweet!"

The knocking felt like a blow to my very soul.

I could not just sit there and wait for the end!

The second Caroline spun around to unlock the door, I bolted for her bedroom like I was possessed.

A king-sized bed dominated the room, its underside a jumble of boxes that left just a sliver of space.

I did not give a second thought to the grime as I wriggled into that narrow hideaway.

The hanging bedsheet obscured my view, but it could not muffle the sounds from outside.

The deadbolt clicked open.

Adrian's labored breaths and the click-clack of his dress shoes echoed into the room.

"Where's this person? Jeffrey said she's being kept in here, right?" Adrian's voice was tinged with a thrill that sent my stomach into flips.

"Yeah, she was just in here, bawling her eyes out." Caroline's voice dripped with a sweetness that made my stomach turn. "Probably got shy and tucked herself away. How about a little game of hide and seek?"

Another voice chimed in, one I recognized all too well.

"Take your time, Adrian. I'll keep watch at the door.

"Just holler if you need me; I'll be right outside."

Jeffrey's tone was all grovel and no grit, nothing like a husband should sound, more like a servant begging for scraps.