December 8th
Chapter 8 — A Dangerous Gift
Michael returned the next day. Same time. Same room. He looked tired, as though he hadn’t slept properly since their last meeting.
They sat side-by-side on the bed while Kateryna whispered information and he scribbled it down in a notebook. After, they lay together fully clothed, like before, her arm resting lightly across his chest, fingers moving through his hair.
At the end of their allotted time, he pressed a kiss to her temple. “I brought you something. For emergencies.”
From the inside pocket of his coat, he drew a small object wrapped in tissue. He placed it gently in her hand — a burner phone, no larger than a cigarette lighter. Plain. Black. There was only one entry stored in the phonebook.
“My number,” he whispered. “Untraceable. You can reach me day or night.”
Kateryna’s breath caught in her throat. Her fingers closed around the phone as if it might vanish. “If they find it…”
“They won’t,” he said quickly. “You’re smart. You’ll hide it.”
She nodded but fear prickled her skin. The last girl who was caught with a mobile had been found face down in the canal. They’d called it an overdose, but everyone knew.
After Michael left, she slipped the phone under the mattress, pressed into the thin space where the cover stitching had frayed. But it was too obvious. Too easy to search.
Moving quickly, she knelt, pulled out the drawer under the dresser and reached behind it. Again, too easy to find. She pushed the drawer back in.
She panicked knowing Mace could appear any second. There was only one thing for it.
She tore open a condom wrapper, rolled it over the phone and tied the end. Using lubricant, she inserted it into the one place she knew that Mace was unlikely to look.
When the handler entered, she straightened fast. His thick arms filled the doorway.
“You’re popular,” he said, eyeing her with suspicion. “Cuddler’s been in again.”
She said nothing.
Mace stepped into the room, sniffing the air like a dog. “He tip you?”
Kateryna shook her head.
“No cash?”
“No.”
The back of his hand caught her across the cheek. Sharp and sudden. Her head whipped sideways and she tasted blood.
“You lying bitch.”
He ripped off her satin robe leaving her cowering in her underwear.
Then he began searching the room, stripping off the bedsheets and pillowcases. He tossed the mattress off the frame and upended the dressing table and chair. Kateryna’s heart banged in her chest. She stood very still.
Please, don’t search me.
Mace’s eyes raked over her again, then turned to the bin. He crouched, lifted it, rummaged through the tissues, wrappers and used condoms.
Finally, he stood, grunted. “He’s just soft, that one. Wouldn’t know what to do with a girl if she begged for it.”
He grabbed her chin, inspected her face like bruises were currency. “Clean yourself up, you’ve another customer.”
He left, the door slamming shut behind him.
Kateryna let out a breath so thin it barely counted.
She didn’t dare retrieve the phone, but she knew one thing — if Mace had searched her, she’d be dead.
