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Richard blanched and he gazed wildly between me and Connor. “Abducted?”
“Answer the fucking question!” I roared at him.
He didn’t speak for a few moments, and when he did his voice was trembling. “No. I stepped away for a little while.”
Connor narrowed his eyes. “Why?”
Richard rubbed his nape and averted his gaze to the ground. “I was in the strip club. Out the back.”
My brain needed a few moments to catch up. At the back of the strip club is where all our rooms for private lap dances were. “What the fuck did you just say?”
His eyes widened as he saw the fury in mine. “I’m so sorry, Mr. Bennett. Harlow arranged it all for me and assured me it was fine.”
Connor stared at the young man, his surprise obvious. “Are you telling us you were having a lap dance while you were on duty and supposed to be watching the cameras?”
He nodded, his shame evident.
I closed my eyes and breathed in and out, trying desperately to hang on to my rage and not let it loose on the guy who’d been too busy enjoying having his dick rubbed by a woman’s ass to see Emilia being taken.
“I hope it was worth it,” I spat out viciously. “My fiancée was kidnapped because you failed to do your job.”
Richard finally met my gaze and I could see the regret in his expression. “Harlow told me it would be fine. That’s not an excuse, I know. I let you down and I’m so very sorry. What can I do to help?”
Nothing. There was not a fucking thing this man could do.
Connor took over the conversation. “You mentioned Harlow arranged it for you. When did this happen?”
We listened in disbelief as Richard explained Harlow had set up a lap dance for him once a week and it had been going on for months. It had always been in the early afternoon, after the lunch rush but before night fell, when we had the fewest patrons and all the daily deliveries had been made, thereby meaning his absence was unlikely to be noticed.
Once Richard had finished explaining, Connor dismissed him from the room but told him to stay on site until he was advised he could leave. He nodded and rushed out of the room without looking at me again.
“I have an idea. Can you get hold of Victoria Nolan?”
Connor had met Victoria a handful of times in the past. “Sure. Why do you want me to call Victoria?”
“Her ex-husband works for a private security firm, doesn’t he? They might be able to help.”
As soon as Connor said it, I realized it was an excellent idea and kicked myself for not thinking of it first. I took out my phone and once again placed it on speaker as I dialed Victoria’s number. I wasn’t actually expecting her to answer, but she did on the fourth ring.
“Jason! What a lovely surprise to hear from you.”
“Hi, Victoria.” I tried to keep my tone calm and neutral, but she obviously heard the panic.
“Oh, no. What’s wrong?”
“I need your help, Vic. It’s Emilia. She’s been taken.”
