“Dad called.”
Zandrie rushed in the instant Cassie opened the door, urgency etched across his face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, brows drawing together as she followed his frantic movement.
“Jameson and Jeff are in serious trouble,” he said quickly.
“Those two idiots brought women back with them.”
Cassie gave a quiet, humorless chuckle and shrugged.
“And that’s new? You’ve done the same often enough.”
“This isn’t that,” Zandrie snapped, pacing the room as he dragged a hand through his hair. His agitation filled the space.
“The women called security. They’re claiming they were forced–beaten.”
He stopped abruptly, jaw clenched.
“If this leaks, Father is finished. The Holt name will be dragged straight through hell.”
The trace of amusement vanished from Cassie’s face. Her eyes narrowed, sharp and calculating, as she weighed the implications.
“What hotel?” she asked evenly.
“C&M Hotel.”
She reached for her coat without hesitation.
“Tell Mom, Kai will be staying with her a little longer.”
She was already heading for the door.
Zandrie followed immediately, phone pressed to his ear as he barked orders. Cassie lifted her own phone, issuing curt instructions in a low voice. By the time the calls ended, their car was pulling beneath the blinding lights of the C&M Hotel.
They didn’t waste a second.
Moments later, the suite door was shoved open.
“Drie-” Jeff exhaled in visible relief the moment he saw them. But relief was the last thing the room offered.
“CEO Wallace… please, help…” a woman whimpered from the floor.
She was slumped against the couch, her body trembling. Blood streaked the corner of her mouth, bruises blooming dark and ugly across her cheekbone.
Chapter 33
“Mr. Russ and Mr. Corell forced us,” she sobbed.
“They beat us.”
+25 BONUS
The accusation crashed into the room, thickening the air until it felt impossible to breathe.
“Madame Cassidy,” the second woman cried, crawling toward Cassie on shaking hands. She looked just as battered arms bruised, hair tangled, her lip split and swollen.
“Please… help us get justice.”
“We only wanted to have fun, to celebrate our new jobs” she continued through broken breaths.
“We never expected them to force themselves on us. We never expected this.”
She clutched Cassie’s pant leg, eyes wide with desperation.
“You’re a woman too,” the first woman added weakly, lifting her bloodied face.
“You understand how people like us–weak, powerless–are forced by men like them.” Her voice cracked.
“We didn’t stand a chance.”
Cassie remained silent. Her gaze stayed fixed on the women–steady, unreadable, unsettlingly calm.
“Drie, please,” Jeff burst out, panic creeping into his voice as he stepped forward.
“Believe me. We don’t know how this happened.” He rubbed a trembling hand through his hair.
“I remember drinking at the bar. That’s it. I don’t remember coming up here. I don’t remember anything after that.”
“You don’t remember forcing yourself on me?!” the second woman screamed, grief snapping violently into rage.
She pointed at him with a shaking finger, tears streaming down her face.
“You’re a brute! Savage!”
Her voice gave out as she collapsed into horrible sobs, the accusation slicing through the room like a blade.
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