Page 94 of Shadow Redemption

The door to the hallway swung open.

Ruth swung around, expecting Sam. She was wrong.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Ben returned to the ballroom and wound through the milling crowd. When he was near his table, the crowd thinned enough to notice that Ruth was gone. Frowning, he covered the remaining distance in a few strides. “Where’s Ruth?”

“In the bathroom with Sam and Autumn. You missed the excitement,” Joe said, disgust in his voice. “Sapphire had too much to drink and confronted Ruth.”

His eyebrows rose. “What happened?”

“Sapphire threw her drink in your lady’s face,” Tito answered. “Autumn took Ruth to rinse her shirt.”

Joe glanced at his watch and frowned. “They’ve been in the bathroom more than five minutes.”

“Give them a couple more minutes before you hunt them down,” Tito said. “Might have been a line or something.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Joe waved Ben to his seat. “Be comfortable while you wait.”

His gaze drifted toward the hallway where the restrooms were located. Ruth was fine, he told himself. Sam was with her. Why did he feel uneasy?

Nico and Trace came to the table.

Ben’s gaze shifted from one teammate to the other. “Any luck?”

“Nothing.” Nico glanced around. “Where are Sam and Ruth?”

“Bathroom. One of the other models threw a drink in Ruth’s face.”

Trace scowled. “Who?”

“Sapphire.” Joe held up his hand. “She was drunk, Trace. However, from a few things she said in her ranting, I think she and Tom were the ones giving Ruth the unwanted gifts. They blame Ruth for not stepping aside and allowing them to have the top contracts.”

“That’s ridiculous. They have to earn the top spot. If they’re as good as they think they are, Ruth wouldn’t have to step aside.”

“Think they’re responsible for the strawberry-laced water?” If so, Ben would be paying them a visit once they were stateside. Ruth would have died if she didn’t have the epinephrine.

“Wouldn’t surprise me,” Joe admitted. “Tom was pale as a ghost and sweating.”

“I’ll find out once we’re home. Ruth wants to leave tonight. I just talked with the pilot. He’s readying the jet as we speak.”

Trace brightened. “Awesome. I’m more than ready to see my wife.”

“Same here,” Nico agreed. “As soon as Ruth returns, we’ll pack our gear. If Tom and Sapphire are the stalkers, Ruth won’t have to worry about them once Ben has a heart-to-heart talk with the models.”

Trace’s expression darkened. “He won’t be talking to them alone. I have a few choice words to share with them.”

Even if the models were responsible for stalking Ruth, Davidson was a danger to her until Ben found and dealt with him. He dragged a hand down his face, flinching as his stitches pulled.

Was his mother still in Davidson’s harem? She’d be in her late fifties now and the prophet preferred young, beautiful women. If she remained with Davidson, Ben doubted his mother was a favored wife. What woman wanted to be one of many wives of one man?

Joe glanced at his watch. “What’s taking the women so long?” He slid his phone from his pocket and typed in a message. He scowled when his text went unanswered. “Sam didn’t respond. I don’t like this.”

Ben was moving before Joe finished his sentence. He should have followed his instincts. Although his teammates didn’t spot Gorman, Ben believed Ruth. Was Gorman responsible for Sam’s silence?

Praying he was wrong, he dodged several fundraiser guests and hurried toward the women’s bathroom. Before he reached the door, a woman in a white blouse ran into the hallway and straight into Ben’s chest. He caught her as she stumbled back.

Autumn grabbed his upper arms, terror in her eyes. “He took Ruth. You have to find her.”