Chapter 6 - The Morning After
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When Lily woke up, she was disoriented. The sheets were incredibly soft, heavy Egyptian cotton. She was lying in a massive king-sized bed in a guest room bathed in the soft, gray light of the Chicago morning.
Someone had left a set of clean, luxurious silk pajamas at the foot of the bed while she was sleeping. She had changed into them, leaving her ruined catering uniform in a pile on the floor.
She slowly sat up, her shoulder throbbing with a dull ache. The events of the previous night rushed back into her mind like a flood—the storage closet, the blood, the terrifying, dark savior who had carried her away.
Lily walked out of the guest room, padding barefoot down the long hallway toward the main living area.
Gabriel was sitting at the massive kitchen island, wearing a simple black t-shirt and dark sweatpants. He looked entirely different without the tailored suit. He looked younger, broader, and infinitely more dangerous. He was drinking black coffee and watching the morning news on a massive flat-screen television mounted on the wall.
"Good morning," Gabriel said, not taking his eyes off the screen.
"Morning," Lily replied, her voice raspy.
He slid a fresh cup of coffee across the marble counter toward an empty stool. "Sit. Watch."
Lily sat down, wrapping her hands around the warm mug. She looked at the television.
The breaking news banner at the bottom of the screen glowed bright red: MYSTERY DISAPPEARANCES ROCK CALDWELL GALA.
The news anchor looked grave. "Authorities are baffled this morning after three prominent figures associated with the Caldwell Group vanished without a trace during last night's charity gala. Marcus Vance, a catering supervisor; David Thorne, Ryan Caldwell's personal security chief; and the General Manager of the Meridian Grand Hotel have all been reported missing. Their vehicles are still in the parking garage, and their cell phones have been deactivated."
Lily stared at the screen, her heart hammering against her ribs. She looked over at Gabriel.
He was calmly sipping his coffee, his face a mask of absolute indifference.
"You really did it," Lily whispered, terrified and awed all at once. "You made them vanish."
"I told you I would," Gabriel replied, turning his dark eyes to her. "That was just the first wave. Ryan Caldwell is waking up right now realizing that his shield is completely gone. He is exposed."
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"He'll go to the police," Lily argued.
"He can't," Gabriel smirked darkly. "Because going to the police means explaining why his security chief and the hotel manager were necessary to cover up what he did to a maid in Suite 1407."
