The Alphabet Game the Complete Alpha Series a to X, Y, Z (33 page)

Mitch rolls his eyes and sighs, ‘You might as well give up now Gabriel.’

I push my shoulders back and move nearer to them, ‘Dead right. So what else?’

A look crosses from one to the other. I fold my arms across my chest, ‘Do not keep anything from me.’

Mitch passes me the newspaper turned to an inner page. ‘Top right hand corner.’

I look at the headline, ‘MISSING PROSTITUTES BODY FOUND. The body of twenty-one year old Jasmine Sullivan has been found. The police say there are no suspicious circumstances.’

‘She wasn’t a prostitute.’

Mitch places a hand on his forehead, ‘Arnie told them she was. Plus the bar staff corroborated her propositioning him on two separate occasions.’

‘We did this.’ I shout at Gabe. ‘We’re becoming responsible for people getting killed. We’ve got blood on our hands.’

‘Stella -’

‘No. Leave me alone.’ I grab my bag and run out of the door.

I don’t know where I want to go, so I run to the one place that provides some normalcy for me. The Riverside. I walk in and see the back of a barista outfit, as someone kneels behind the counter.

I stand and wait for them to get back up and then we both jump.

‘Ronnie?’

‘Hey, Stella. Great minds hey? Couldn’t do another fucking five seconds at the folks house so I’ve come to help Col.’

‘Where’s Suzanne?’

‘Apparently they’ve broken up. Such a shame, cos they made such a lovely couple.’ She mimics my voice.

I narrow my eyes, ‘What did you do?’

‘Moi?’ She points at her chest with a finger.

‘Yep,
moi.
’

She looks upward and shrugs her shoulders,‘I may have just implied that I’m his ex-wife and he pretends I don’t exist.’

‘Ronnie,’ I scold, ‘that’s terrible.’

At that point Col appears, shaking his head and looking flustered.

‘Are you alright Col?’

‘Yeah, just remembering why I don’t date much.’

‘Oh yeah?’

His forehead is creased with confusion. ‘I thought Suzanne was really nice, but she’s just screamed down the phone at how I apparently treat Ronnie like shit and she doesn’t want to see me anymore. Do you know what she’s on about Ronnie?’

Ronnie shakes her head, ‘No, but she was trying to intimate that she thought there was something going on between us, like I was your girlfriend or something.’

Col laughs, ‘Yeah right,’ then walks off.

Ronnie looks at him, then at me and points at him, whispering ‘Yeah right? What does he means by that?’

‘Poor, remember, you keep saying he’s poor. Any recollection of that at all?’

She puffs out her lips and then stalks to the end of the counter where she proceeds to push Col against the Panini press and fastens her mouth on him like she’s trying to perform resuscitation.

‘Mmmwwwmmmmm’ is the only sound I hear from Col. I think about rescuing him but then his own arms snake around Ronnie’s and they’ve forgotten anyone else is in the room.

I head back to Gabe’s house redundant, though it’s starting to feel more like a prison cell than a place of safety.

Gabe is dressed in a grey suit and white shirt when I get back. He pulls his suit sleeves up and fastens silver cufflinks. He doesn’t mention the fact I ran out.

‘Robyn Kewley is insisting on meeting us somewhere neutral, so we’re meeting inside Tattersall’s Tavern at ten o’ clock tomorrow evening. Are you going to be okay a while here, because there’s something I have to go and do?’

‘Like what?’

He puts a navy tie around his neck and loops it over. I go over and tighten it up. He straightens his collar. ‘I’m off to make a press statement. Mitch has arranged public relations for me. I’m going to give my father a run for his money.’

‘Be careful Gabe.’

‘Don’t you worry about me, I’ll be fine.’

Gabe’s statement makes the evening news. I didn’t realise just how newsworthy and powerful Arnie is. Sure I’d seen him around when big celebrity cases were won, but you rarely take much notice of the legal team, just the celebrity themselves.

Gabe is stood at the top of some stairs, outside a court room. He’s surrounded by press with recording equipment. There are a few females up front hanging onto his every word, looking as if his voice rumbles like a vibrator. The stubble on his jaw defines that rugged face and I like the fact he hasn’t gone clean shaven for the press. I listen as he addresses them.

‘As you may be aware, a tape has recently been released into the public eye. In this I am sexually active. It is unfortunate that an error in judgement I made when in my youth is now the subject of tabloid fodder. I would like to publicly apologise to my father for my involvement in this, which happened when I was young. I did not realise the repercussions this would have on his business endeavours.’

A journalist shouts, ‘Nice arse, might get your Dad some female gigs.’

Gabe fixes them with a glare, then turns back to the main cameras. ‘When I say repercussions for my father’s business, on this occasion I do not mean his legal work. I mean the business of pornographic film-making that he was heavily into at the time. I am sorry that the release of this tape will now probably bring this whole sordid situation to the publics attention.’

Flashbulbs go off. The journalists all shout at once.

‘Can you give us more information?’

‘What pornographic business?’

‘Did your father know about this film all along?’

Gabe looks directly into the main camera. ‘I’m so very sorry father for bringing this out into the open.’ Then the camera pans as he walks away.

Arnie will be furious.

I fix Gabe a drink as he walks in.

‘Oh my God Gabe, what will your father do now?’

He throws his suit jacket down and unfastens the front of his shirt. ‘Something stupid no doubt, and when he does I’ll be ready for him. He’s got to get his own legal team involved now and those journalists were hungry for more. Hopefully this will keep him distracted enough that we can see Robyn and try and persuade her to be a witness against him.’ He smiles at me. ‘Do you know what, I thought I’d be embarrassed if the tape came out, but actually that journo was right. I have a mighty fine ass on show on it. I think I might have a whole new career as a male model ahead of me.’

I walk up and smack it. ‘The only person getting to see that
fine ass
is myself Mr Gregory, don’t you forget it. Now get into the bedroom,’ I bite my lip, ‘cos I went shopping earlier for V.’

On my way back from the coffee shop I had stopped off at an adult store for a little present for Gabe. I feel a bit embarrassed bringing it out as I’m not sure how it works or what to do with it.

‘I love it when you boss me into the bedroom Stella.’ He nibbles my ear and whispers in it, ‘But when we get in there, you’re mine.’

He sits on the bed waiting whilst I take it out of the bag.

His mouth drops open and he moves about a metre backwards on the bed, ‘Stella, what the fuck is that? Are you going to shag me or electrocute me?’

In my hand is a case containing a violet wand.

‘I’ve no idea.’ I say, ‘Let’s find out.’

Chapter 6

Opening the box, I remove the wand. It reminds me of a hand held food mixer except I’m not attaching a whisk.

Gabe is wringing his hands, ‘Stella, do you know what these do?’

‘Well the guy in the shop told me, I reckon it’ll be fun.’ I wink.

‘Painful more like.’ A tic pulses in his cheek.

‘Have you used one before?’ I pout.

‘No, but I’ve seen them being used at The Rodeo. I thought one guy was going to be castrated. The woman had his dick trussed up in a leather harness and kept pulling it whilst hitting him with voltage.’

‘Gabe, this is the tame version, I’m sure it’s just like a tickle.’

He puts his hand across his crotch. ‘My dick’s run off. Seriously it’s shrunk in fear.’

I wave the wand around. ‘Stop being such a wuss. I think it sounds fun. There’s only one problem though.’ I suck on my top lip.

‘Oh yeah, just the one?’

‘Yup. I can’t have it done to me cos I’m pregnant. That’s a shame. I quite like the look of it.’

I plug it in and hold my finger about an inch away from it, I figure one time won’t hurt. It goes bzzz as it crackles and makes me jump.

‘Whoa. Play time.’ I smile at Gabe.

‘You owe me big time for this one.’

Clothes off, Gabe reluctantly lays back on the bed. I attach a mushroom cap to the end of the wand. Apparently this spreads out the flow and makes it more gentle.

‘I’m just going to massage you with it. Turn onto your front.’

He does as I ask, but I can see how tense he is, by how pronounced his tendons are.

I run it slowly just down his back, keeping it from touching his skin. He tenses and arches his back in the air, making a sound akin to an erotic whimper.

‘Well?’ I ask.

He turns his head around, ‘Don’t stop it’s fucking awesome. Like the best back scratch of all time.’

I keep doing little trails with it over his body, watching him tense, arch and shout ‘Oh yes.’ He turns over and I run it above his happy trail, stopping before I get anywhere intimate. His cock is hard and erect.

‘Gabe?’

He looks at me. He knows what I’m asking.

‘I’ll try.’

I nod. I take off the mushroom cap and quickly hover it above his penis. It crackles and he arches up off the bed. ‘Oh holy fuck.’

‘Good? Or horrendous?’ I ask.

‘Good, it’s so fucking good,’ he says.

‘You horny, dirty bastard.’ I laugh and I do it again.

I keep giving him little shocks, his cock is deep purple and throbbing, the veins standing out. I put the wand at the side of me on the bed and I straddle him, taking him all the way in.

‘Fuck, I’m so sensitive. Oh my God.’

I lift myself up and down on him, stroking the light smattering of hair on his chest and teasing his nipples. His hands come around to hold me down onto his cock and he starts bucking furiously.

‘Fuck, fuck, I’m, aaaahhhhhhhhh.’

As he starts to come I lift the wand and give him an extra shock on his happy trail. He comes so hard he almost knocks me off the bed.

‘Jeeeesssssssuuuuuuss.’

I put the wand down carefully, so we can’t accidentally lay on it and I lie myself across his chest, his breathing ragged and his heart thudding.

‘You buy me the best fucking presents,’ is all he says.

Gabe brings me breakfast in bed the next morning. ‘You can get plenty of rest today babe, ready for tonight.’

I raise an eyebrow.

‘For meeting Robyn.’

‘So you’re not being all Alpha on my ass and I’m allowed to go now?’

‘Quite the opposite. Regardless of the fact I don’t want you anywhere near the meet up, she’s insisting that she’ll only talk to you. She’s made it quite clear that she doesn’t trust Mitch as he works alongside Arnie and I’m his son, so that leaves you.’

‘I just hope she has something worth hearing.’

‘She refused to tell Mitch anything, but the fact she’s willing to meet you makes me confident she has something. Why would Arnie have gone to the trouble of setting her up with Harry, if she was no threat?’

‘You’re calling him Arnie?’

‘He’s not my father Stella as far as I’m concerned. In fact I’m beginning to think he’s the Devil.’

There’s a soft knock at the door, followed by the doorbell buzzing. Gabe goes to answer it. I hear my mother’s voice and so quickly put a robe on and hurry downstairs. My mother’s eyes are red and puffy and Gabe puts an arm around her and escorts her into the lounge.

‘Mum. Mum. What’s wrong?’

She pats the seat next to her for me to sit down and she indicates for Gabe to take a seat.

‘I came as soon as I could but Mitch -’ she trails off as another flood of tears come.

‘Mum, has something happened to Mitch?’ my voice rises as I speak.

She shakes her head, bites her lip, closes her eyes and inhales.

‘He got a phone call this morning. I’m sorry, but Isabel was found dead in her office.’

I hear a scream and realise it’s my own.

‘She can’t be dead, she can’t be. He killed her, he fucking killed her.’ Gabe comes up and grabs my arms as I’m hitting the walls.

‘Stella, stop it.’

My mother wipes across her nose with a tissue. ‘There’s no proof. She was found with drug paraphernalia. As an ex-addict, they are assuming she’d started using again.’

‘No. He killed her.’ I shout.