Chasing Thunder Read online

  They were ushered through their opulent surroundings toward a deck with a view of the Los Angeles skyline in the distance, and the Pacific beyond that. It was Haley’s first glimpse of the ocean, and a reminder of the world beyond the dirty, gritty streets she’d explored thus far.

  She shivered a bit, exposed to the cooler breezes that the people of the Hollywood Hills obviously paid through their noses to enjoy. She followed Tammy’s lead and sat on a sectional bench arranged around a covered fire pit made of marble. She crossed her feet at the ankle and tried to fade as much into the furniture as possible as they waited. Haley could tell by Tammy’s subtle tremor that they were in a place far more dangerous than some burned-out abandoned building.

  Once she saw their host, she immediately understood why.

  The man wore his forties as elegantly as he wore his designer suit, which he buttoned as he stepped out onto the deck. His shoulder-length hair was as dark as his eyes, and his skin was a flawless olive. A thin line of carefully trimmed stubble framed his strong jawline. He met them with a confident smile that reminded her of all those shark documentaries she’d watched on TV.

  If he was the predator, she knew immediately that she and her companions were the chum. Shark bait, she thought to herself with a shudder.

  “William,” the older man said as he approached. “I didn’t expect to see you back so soon.”

  Billy hopped to his feet. “I had a good week,” he lied. “I need more stuff.”

  But their host was wholly uninterested. Instead he turned his attention to the two young girls sitting quietly on the sectional. “So you brought friends to celebrate,” the man said, leaning toward Tammy with a smile. “Always good to see you again,” he said in a low voice that made Haley’s stomach drop. Her breath strangled in her throat when his eyes drifted to hers. “And who might you be?” he asked.

  No one had bothered to ask her that before now, so she was unprepared to lie, especially under this man’s oppressive black stare. “Haley,” she found herself saying, as if she knew better than to disobey any command.

  His fingers closed around her tiny hand and he brought her fingers to his lips. “So lovely to meet you,” he said in a soft voice that reverberated over her taut nerves like a charge of electricity. Even worse, he didn’t release her hand immediately. He took a seat beside her, his muscled thigh rock solid next to her bare leg.

  Haley met Billy’s eyes, and he seemed just as concerned by the man’s reaction as she was. “We don’t mean to take up much of your time, Mr. Isbecky,” he began, but their host silenced him with a cool stare.

  “Nonsense,” he said, as his fingers trailed over hers. “I always have time to make new friends.” Those cold, dark eyes slid back to hers. He pulled back her curtain of flaxen hair to reveal the ugly green and yellow bruises along her cheek. “Would you like to be my friend, Haley?”

  Tammy piped up at last. Haley could hear the fear in her voice. “You’ll have to forgive her,” she said, moving closer to Haley. “She’s new.”

  Isbecky chuckled low in his throat. His hand felt like a snake against her skin. Suddenly Haley would have done anything to rewind the clock twenty-four hours so she could spend her money on some rat-infested motel room. Billy seemed positively harmless in comparison.

  “We were all new once,” Isbecky declared. “Good thing you brought her to me first.”

  Haley could tell by their shared glance that this was exactly what Billy and Tammy had hoped to avoid, but neither dared to challenge him. In fact, when the man turned to Tammy and instructed her to take Haley upstairs, she was quick to comply.

  “What’s wrong?” Haley wanted to know the minute they got out of earshot.

  “Remember when I was telling you that you have to do whoever and whatever you have to do to survive?” Haley nodded. “Your education starts tonight. Whatever he wants, you give it. Don’t argue. Don’t fight. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll be able to leave of your own free will.”

  Haley grabbed her arm to turn her around. “What are you saying?”

  Tammy glanced back toward the outer deck, where Billy and Mr. Isbecky were now conducting business of their own. “Look around you, baby,” she said, still avoiding Haley’s given name, as if saying it would make her more real, more human. “You think that guy came across this kind of wealth playing by the rules? He’s a dangerous man with equally dangerous friends. Girls come in here and they’re never seen again. You either work for him or you run from him. And those who escape never get too far.”

  They entered the master bedroom, where a king-size bed faced a wall of windows with an eye-popping view of L.A. “There have been stories about people who get on this guy’s bad side. Some even managed to make it all the way back home. Within months their family homes were burned to the ground, with the family still inside. He likes fire,” she added, her mouth in a grim line. “Like the devil.”

  Haley glanced around the bedroom, which was decorated with statues and masks and ornate candelabras. An ominous goat’s head rose from the wall above the large platform bed, the last fitting piece to make it every inch a dark, foreboding lair. Tammy navigated it with ease. She went right to a tall chest of drawers and pulled out a wispy pink dress. “I think this will fit you,” she said as she walked back over to her. “It fit me last time I was here . . .” There was a tremor in her voice as her sentence trailed off.

  Haley shuddered. “Tammy,” she began, but before she could protest Tammy was tugging her to the adjoining bathroom. It featured a sunken tub and a 180-degree view.

  “He likes cleanliness,” she told her. “So bathe thoroughly. Don’t miss an inch, because he sure won’t. You don’t have tattoos, do you?” she asked abruptly, almost panicked. “He hates tattoos. He likes his girls pristine.”

  Terror rose in her throat. “I can’t do this!”

  “I already told you, you have no choice.” Tammy leaned over to turn on the faucet. “Fair warning, he likes it rough. If you can take it, it’s over quicker. If you cry out, he’ll take his time.” Tammy stood and faced her. “Oh. And he doesn’t pay. But if you’re good, he can introduce you to other people who will pay a lot for the right girl.”

  “I won’t be any good. I don’t do this.”

  “It’s not rocket science, baby. Just do what he wants you to do. That’s all any of these assholes want. A living doll.” Haley couldn’t have stopped the tears if she’d tried. Tammy had enough decency left to look remorseful, but she couldn’t bring herself to apologize. This was the world they were forced to survive. Haley had to learn, just like everyone who had come before her. “Don’t bother with underwear,” was her final piece of advice. “It’ll only piss him off.”

  She left Haley to bathe in private. The minute the door closed behind her, Haley ran to the windows to find any means of escape. Below the master suite was a serene pool with a rock fountain at one end. If she could just get one of those windows open, maybe she could plunge the fifteen feet into that water. Even if she missed, cracking her head on the pavement seemed preferable to having that man’s hands on her body. The thought made her skin crawl.

  But the windows opened just enough to let in a breeze. She was quickly running out of options.

  She glanced at the bathwater. With shaking hands, she took off her borrowed clothes and slipped into the water. She cried as she bathed herself, wondering how the hell she had come full circle. She briefly considered sinking all the way down into the water and just ending it altogether, but she quickly rejected the idea. If that were an option, she’d have never left North Carolina.

  When she emerged from the room, her body was clean, her hair was dried and combed, and she wore just a wisp of a pink dress. Tammy was on the bed waiting for her, holding a drink.

  “Good girl,” she praised as Haley approached. “Here,” she said, handing her the drink along with a tiny pill. “This will help.”

  Though she had never done any drug stronger than aspirin, Haley accepted
the gift without complaint. She swallowed it with the bubbly liquid in the glass, making a face at the tart, fizzy taste.

  “The best champagne money can buy,” Tammy quipped as she drained the rest of the glass. For all her posturing, this girl wasn’t yet numb to this life. It still stole something from her to give herself over to a john, to allow him to take from her that which should only be given willingly through mutual attraction and respect. But there were no fairy-tale endings for kids on the street. There was no valiant and charming prince riding up on a noble steed to whisk them away with promises of true love and happily ever after. All they could hope for, all they had been conditioned to expect, was just one more minute of survival, by any means necessary.

  Tammy left her alone on the bed, and Haley began mentally preparing herself to separate her mind from her body for the task ahead. She shook like a leaf as she waited for her initiation into the life she had unintentionally chosen when she had boarded the bus. She was officially out of options. She had no money, no means of identification, and even the clothes she wore were not her own. She was a completely new person about to be born in fire. She willed herself to be strong, to be fearless.

  The minute the door opened, however, she was ready to bolt right through it. Mr. Isbecky loomed even larger than he had appeared downstairs, and she knew from the look on his face that it would be foolish to try. He smiled that same, toothy smile as he closed the door behind him, securing the lock. “Much better.” He shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it over a chair in the corner. “A girl of your breeding deserves more than hippie beachwear.”

  Her breath caught. “What do you mean?” she stammered.

  He chortled deep in his throat. “You think I don’t know a hothouse orchid when I see one?” He poured himself a glass of champagne. “It’s not my first rodeo, Haley.”

  He remembered my name, she thought with a sinking feeling in her gut. That couldn’t be good.

  “And I detect an accent as well. You’ve run far, far away, haven’t you? From the South. Old money.” He looked her over, taking note of her fair skin and its golden glow. “A beach city. East coast, I’d say.” She gulped, which made him chuckle more. “Don’t worry, fair Haley. I’m not going to send you back. You’re a lot more valuable to me here.”

  He unbuttoned the cuffs on his sleeve and approached the bed. “In fact, I have clients who would pay quite a bit for a little time with someone like you. Not that twenty-dollar blowjob bullshit those swindlers can promise you, that’s for certain.”

  Those ominous dark eyes swallowed her whole as his shirt fell open, revealing the solid muscles of his chest and his abdomen. Her eyes widened in fear, which pleased him, and his mouth curved into an absent smile. “You look like a smart girl. I’m sure you’ve figured out your survival now depends on the people you choose to trust. You’d do well to make a friend like me.” He crawled up the bed, inching over her body, hovering over her. “Are you my friend, Haley?” he asked, his eyes engulfing her vision.

  Tammy’s advice lingered in her ear. Whatever he wants, you give it. Don’t argue. Don’t fight. She offered an imperceptible nod. “Yes, Mr. Isbecky.”

  Apparently it was the wrong thing to say. With a snarl, he grabbed her wrists in his hands and shoved her arms over her head. “You haven’t earned the right to call me by my name,” he told her coldly. “For all I know, you’re some informant trying to get close to me.” He fit his body against hers. “What are you willing to do to prove where your loyalties now lie?”

  There was menace in those dark eyes. He likes fire, Tammy’s voice echoed. Like the devil. Haley willed herself to say, “Whatever you want,” but the moment she opened her mouth her stomach lurched. She turned her face just in time to avoid his kiss and vomit all over his bedcovers.

  “You filthy little pig!” he roared as he tossed her away. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  She shook her head and scooted off the bed, holding back acidic bile as she sprinted toward the toilet. She didn’t quite make it, which only infuriated him further. He swung his belt free from its loops.

  “Looks like we have to train you how to behave after all,” he growled between gritted teeth. He swung the belt and she barely missed it. She scooted away and curled into a tight little ball on the floor.

  “I’m sorry!” she cried.

  “Not yet,” he promised. “But you will be.”

  He lifted the belt high in the air again, but before he could land it against her vulnerable bare skin the door to his bedroom crashed open. It was Billy, and was Haley ever happy to see him.

  “What the fuck do you want?” Isbecky thundered.

  Tammy rushed in and threw herself between the angry man and the girl she had befriended. “I told you she wasn’t ready,” she said, using her body as a shield. “Take me. I know what you like. I’ll do it all. Just leave her alone.”

  The man grabbed Tammy and wound his belt around her wrists. “As you wish. Let’s go to the Magic Room.” He pulled her to her feet and shoved past Billy. “Clean up this mess.”

  Billy nodded and watched Isbecky lead Tammy away. Isbecky’s silhouette demonstrated how the violent encounter had aroused him, which only made Haley sicker. She leaned over the toilet and retched.

  “Pull it together,” Billy told her through clenched teeth. “Tammy will keep him preoccupied so you can get the hell out of here.”

  She shook her head. “He’s going to hurt her.”

  “No shit, Sherlock,” he snapped. He was instantly remorseful. “It’s my fault. I never should have brought you here. I never should have taken you from the bus station. You’re too fucking green. You’re going to get yourself killed. If you’re lucky, you won’t take anyone else with you.” He straightened her up and put a cold washcloth to her mouth. “I’ll get you out of here and we’re square. Go back home, baby. No matter what Mommy and Daddy did, it’s not as bad as what is going to happen to you here. Especially now that he knows your name. That was the stupidest fucking thing you ever could have done.”

  Billy pulled her from the bathroom and the master bedroom. Guards stood at the front of the house, so he redirected her toward the back door. There was a pathway through some foliage that concealed a steep drop-off covered with cactus and rocks. “It’s your best option,” he said when she hesitated. “Get out of here as fast as you can. Get to a road, follow it. If someone offers a ride, accept it. Do whatever you need to do, but get out of Hollywood before dawn breaks. You understand?”

  She nodded. She heard screams coming from the house. “Tammy—” she started, but he shut her down.

  “You can’t help her now. And if you stay, you’re next. You really want what is happening to her to happen to you?” She gulped and shook her head. “Get the hell out of here, baby.”

  There were tears in her eyes as she stepped through the door. With one backward glance, she said, “Tell her thanks. And I’m sorry.”

  He nodded.

  And she was gone.

  2. THUNDERSTRUCK

  When Haley finally made it back to civilization, her bare feet were sliced open like a Thanksgiving turkey, torn up by cactus and dry brush from scooting down that hill as fast as her legs would take her. The remnants of the drug left in her system made this process a lot more complicated than it had to be. Each of her senses was heightened to the point of discomfort. Sounds were amplified until they roared in her ears. Every smell made her stomach lurch and the lights from oncoming cars nearly blinded her as she slunk down the hill. It seemed as though her brain was morphing and melting under the chemical influence, nearly crippling her with panic unlike anything she’d ever known.

  She couldn’t for the life of her figure out why people did drugs for fun.

  She was coated in dirt and dried blood by the time she reached the bottom of the hill. She followed the winding road toward the city. She accepted no rides. She was fearful that Isbecky would send his goons to bring her back. Surely it wouldn’t take very
long to realize his newest conquest was missing.

  Then she remembered Tammy telling her that he took his time if his victim dared to scream. Had she started screaming to stall him?

  Had her only friend thus far made that kind of sacrifice for her?

  The thought would have sickened her with remorse had she taken the time to stop and think. But she followed Billy’s advice to the letter as she headed for the bright lights of the town below. She had to find a way to fade in with the crowds. Surely he wouldn’t scoop her up from the crowded Hollywood Boulevard.

  It wasn’t like she had a whole lot of choices. She had no money to go back home, even if that had been a viable option. Maybe she should have drowned herself in the tub back at Isbecky’s mansion. She was just as screwed now as she was then. But somehow she couldn’t find it in herself to stop fighting. That had to mean something, right?

  She reached the bottom of the hill. As dirty and ragged as she looked, most people paid her no mind at all. Dirty, homeless street kids in Hollywood were hardly newsworthy. Folks passed her by, looking through her as if she wasn’t there at all. Maybe they were afraid that if they made eye contact she’d ask them for money, but Haley wouldn’t have thought to ask for anything. She wasn’t that desperate. Yet.

  She welcomed the invisibility from most of the strangers. As it turned out, only the ones who could help her saw through her. The ones who wanted something from her pinpointed her exactly, like a radar. These were the ones who hollered at her from the street, or honked at her as they drove by. Some, the older ones, the serious ones, sidled up to the curb, rolling down their windows, anxious to engage.

  She kept her head down and moved closer in the crowd around her. Her head was still fuzzy, her mouth was dry, and her heart was heavy. She felt alone on that crowded street, more alone than she had ever been. She now embodied the very definition of lost. She wrapped her arms around her torso, cast her head downward, and pressed herself into the crowd.