Glass

The three men stared at her in disbelief. What master plan could they have to keep her in Vegas? Zack couldn't put the pieces together.

"What are you talking about?" Brian asked.

She sighed, crossing her arms over her chest, "Violet began to change. I don't know what got into her. Craig must have knocked something loose in that thick skull of hers," She rolled her eyes and Zack once again felt his body become tense with anger, "She wanted to leave."

"How do you know?" Dan asked quickly.

"Because she told me," She scoffed, "Violet told me and her mom everything. She ran to mommy first, asking for her help. Her mom made a plan to get her out, and she asked me to help. I told Craig about it," She shrugged.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Zack asked, his voice weak.

"Because Violet was the only thing keeping me and Craig together," She glared harshly, "So Craig and I made a plan. He wanted Violet to marry him as soon as possible, so she wouldn't be able to leave. Divorce in Vegas is a pain in the ass," She noted.

"So what did you do?" Brian questioned.

"Craig took some naughty pictures of her. I mean," She shrugged, "He always did. Did it to me too. Some weird kink he had about it. Except this time he gave the pictures to me. Of course Violet showed me the pictures as well. So I did what he told me to do, and put them up on Facebook."

"Craig wanted people to see those pictures?" Zack asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"Well yeah," She nodded, "He told people it wasn't him who took the pictures, making her look like a cheat. He figured the pressure from the family and the press would drive her insane. He told her the only way to fix it, was if they got married and showed everyone what a happy couple they were. He promised the press would leave her alone if she married him."

"That sick son of a bitch," Zack cursed.

"You can't deny the guy's a genius," She shrugged and he felt his fist tighten, "Anyways," She sighed, "Violet had more courage than we thought she did. She ended up high-tailing it out of Vegas anyways. She left, made Craig look like a scumbag, and he nearly lost over half of his fortune because business partners thought he was dirty to work with."

Brian looked down at his hands, "How did she escape?" He asked softly.

"They were at the club. Craig knew she was planning it, so he was keeping an eye on her. So was I," She sighed, "Some fight started upstairs in the VIP lounge. He left to tend to it, and he asked some guy who worked at the club to watch her. He went up, got the fight settled, and when he looked down she was running out of the club."

"Where were you?" Dan asked.

He lips pursed and she looked away from the three men, avoiding contact with any of them. Something told Zack that deep down, Samantha was as cold as they believed. Something in her eyes told him she had a part in getting Violet out.

"You didn't do anything to stop her," Zack stated.

"No," She replied weakly, "I... I don't know why, okay? She just... She made eye contact with me when she was running through the crowd. It was the first time I had really looked at her. I mean really looked at her. She was so desperate for an escape, so unhappy. I don't know what came over me, but I didn't do anything to stop her."

"So she just left?" Brian asked.

She nodded, "She had over a hundred thousand dollars in cash with her, withdrawn from the bank account Craig provided. Apparently she used the money to go to the art school of her dreams, get an apartment, and move on."

"So," Zack leaned forward, "Violet didn't do anything to Craig. It was you two who pinned everything on her," He put everything together.

"Believe me, Violet wasn't innocent," She scoffed, "She's the one who got herself involved with Craig in the first place... But she didn't do anything that the papers said she did."

"Oh my God," Zack put his head in his hands, "She didn't do anything," He whispered and Dan immediately put a hand on his back.

"Zack, this isn't your fault. Any one in the same situation would have seen it that way. It's what Craig wanted," He tried to comfort him.

"But I should have seen through it," Zack protested, "I should have known she would never do such a thing."

"Wait," Stephanie cut in to their conversation, "You thought Violet was trying to get into your pants for the money?" She asked and Zack nodded, "C'mon," She laughed, "Craig is worth almost a billion dollars. She could have easily gone to Beverly Hills to find some rich CEO instead of some rockstar," She scoffed, "No offense, but you're not exactly A-list material."

"You're not helping," Dan glared.

"So now what," Brian looked over at them, "We call Vi's mom, tell her the deal, and work on finding a way to get her out."

"Why would you go to Violet's mom?" Samantha asked, helping herself to a beer from the fridge.

"Because she's been helping us," Zack replied honestly.

She laughed, "That woman? Wow, she actually cares about her daughter now?"

Zack raised an eyebrow at her, "What do you mean?"

Samantha locked her eyes with is, wondering if she should tell them the entire story or not. Was it really her business? Then again, when did she ever care if it was her business or not?

"Wow, you managed to fall in love with someone you barely knew," She laughed, "Did Violet never explain to you how she grew up?"

"What happened?" Brian asked.

She sat down with the beer, taking a swig before setting it down on the table, "Violet grew up wealthy," She started, "Her father was some rich business man. He was always working when Violet was younger, so to keep her busy he always sent her out shopping. He'd buy her anything in the world, because he was never around.

"Having money meant that her mom was never around either. I mean, the woman practically lived at the casinos. She spent money wherever she could. So when Violet's dad left them suddenly, things changed," She stated.

"When was this exactly?" Zack questioned.

She shrugged, "Nearing middle school, I suppose. When her dad left, he took everything. He left them with nothing. Vi's mom kind of jumped off the deep end. She got a job at a few casinos singing and dancing. When she wasn't working, she was trying to find a new husband. A rich one, preferably. She'd disappear for days. Vi would stay at my house for days at a time because no one knew where her mom was. It was like she forgot she even had a daughter."

"But..." Zack shook his head.

"What?" Samantha asked, "She seemed so nice and caring, right?" Zack nodded at her, "I don't blame you. Her mother came around more often when Vi got into high school. She was the one to tell Violet she was better off finding a rich husband than getting into college. She didn't have the money to put Violet through school."

"So that's why Violet wanted someone like Craig?" Zack asked.

She nodded, "I guess. Eventually, Vi's mom saw her mistake. I mean, she was ecstatic about Craig at first. When she started to see how painful that relationship really was, she tried to pull Violet out. Vi ignored her and moved in with Craig. They didn't speak again until Violet called her for help, when she was planning to make her escape."

The three of them took the information in. They couldn't blame Violet. How could they? It was like she was supposed to become a gold-digger. It was like it wasn't even a choice. Having insight into Violet's true past made them realize why Violet was so different, and why she was so secretive. Why would she want to tell them everything about her past, just to make them understand why did such horrible things.

It was Zack who took it the hardest. How could he have not realized it sooner? He had asked Violet countless amounts of times about her past, and he never noticed how gracefully she tiptoed around the subject. She never even mentioned her mother until she showed up at their hotel room in Vegas. Hell, he didn't even know she was from Vegas until that day.

"Okay," Brian turned to Dan, "When you saw Violet, what did she look like? Was she okay?"

Dan shrugged, "I didn't see her face, just the hair. She was facing away from me. From what I could tell, I couldn't see any marks or bruises on her arms."

"Then for now we know Craig isn't beating her too bad. It doesn't help much, but it's a little comforting," Brian shrugged.

"If I could have had more time, I could have tried to get in there," Dan muttered, "I could have gotten her to come with me."

Samantha watched the two converse, one eyebrow raised as she listened intently. She finally shook her head and leaned forward towards them, "What are you talking about?" She asked.

Dan turned to her, "Violet," He stated, "At the club tonight. I saw her when I ran into you."

Samantha shook her head, "But, Violet wasn't at the club tonight," She replied.

The three of them turned to face her completely, all with questioning eyes, "I saw her with my own two eyes. She was there," Dan assured.

She shook her head, "That's impossible. Violet hates me, so Craig keeps us separated. When I work at the club, Violet stays home. When she's at the club for a promotion, I get the night off," She explained.

Dan shook his head furiously, taking a step forward, "I know what I saw. I saw her hair and she was sitting with Craig's sister in that VIP room."

Samantha's eyes widened in realization, "You didn't see Violet," She assured him, "You saw Violet's decoy."

"Decoy?" Zack questioned, "You got to be fucking kidding me," He looked at her in disbelief.

"No," She stated, "Celebrities do it all the time. When the press starts wondering where she is, Craig sends out this girl who kind of looks like her. Of course, they never get pictures of her face because she's always looking away. It's just to make it seem like everything is normal. Violet only goes out when she has to."

"So not only does Craig like to beat her, he just keeps her locked up like some kind of prisoner?" Zack asked, raising his voice.

"No," Samantha stated softly, her eyes no longer cold and harsh, "It's not Craig at all."

"Then who keeps her in there?"

"It's Violet," She confessed, "Violet refuses to leave that penthouse."

Zack was even more confused than ever.