Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 85228 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85228 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
The driver's side door opens, the man behind the wheel shoving his hands above the doorframe. Relief washes over me. This is going to be easier than I imagined it would be. Before I can get the thought out of my head, pain spreads across my chest, the sound of gunfire hitting my senses half a second later.
I fall to the ground, finding it impossible to breathe as Hemlock, Zeus, and Nyx light the vehicle in front of us up in a fury of bullets.
I taste gunpowder, the smoke surrounding us taking its sweet time to clear as silence fills the air.
I guess I should count my lucky stars I have any senses at all as I sprawl out on the ground, trying my best to lift my arm to the Velcro holding my bulletproof vest in place.
I've been shot multiple times, and I swear each subsequent time sucks harder than the time before it.
I consider a vacation, someplace where every person is screened and turned away if they so much as have a parking ticket on their criminal record. I just need a fucking break from the danger and threat to my personal safety.
"You gonna live?" Hemlock grunts as he looks down at me.
"Would you be upset if I didn't?" I jab back, my face contorted with the pain of getting struck several times with bullets. I'm going to be bruised like a motherfucker.
Hemlock makes a noncommittal grunt, and I know the man still hasn't gotten over me flirting with Zara at the fucking bar all those months ago. He may be my president, but the man can hold a fucking grudge like no other.
"Status?" I manage on another wheeze, wondering just how long it's going to take for me to recover this time. The older I get, the more time it takes. It's like hangovers. I don't hardly see the point of getting drunk if it takes days to get over it.
"Adair dead. Driver dead. Three guys back at the house dead," Hemlock says as he types something into his phone. "Calling you an ambulance."
I'd refuse, but I know it's protocol. The last thing I need is a report to Kincaid back in New Mexico that I'm shirking my Cerberus responsibilities.
"Three women rescued from the house. One woman found dead," Hemlock continues. "Preliminary reports are showing that she has been dead for a couple of days."
I swallow the lump that was threatening to wedge in my throat. He's giving the information because he knows how it would make both Zeus and me feel if that woman had died while we were sitting outside and waiting for the command to take Adair down.
Knowing we were days late still doesn't keep the guilt from taking hold of something dark inside me.
Chapter 25
Caitlyn
"Excuse me," I tell him, making a hasty retreat from the kitchen.
Once I get around the edge of the hallway, I sprint to the bathroom, not wasting another second to lock myself inside.
The reasonable side of my mind knows that none of the men at the cabin would ever hurt me, including Lark, if only for the pain it would cause Eli with my absence, but that part of my brain doesn't seem to be the one in control right now.
My heart is racing, and I know it's a combination of someone being outside my house and the man who is currently inside.
I stare at my reflection in the mirror, noticing my red cheeks and blotchy skin. My eyes are wide, and I can't determine if I'm better off here alone or if it's a good thing that Lark is here to help me.
I swallow as I let my eyes flutter closed, before taking several measured breaths in an attempt to regulate my system. I'm on feeling anxious about the person being outside my house. This comes on the edge of a creepy guy following me home the other night. It's all been too much to deal with all at once, and with each slow breath in through my nose and every whoosh of breath past my lips, I begin to feel better.
I know I'm safe with Lark here. That man is no more of a threat to me than any of the other men at the cabin. I'm lucky to have them on my side, although it is a little strange that he had to have been waiting outside my house.
A sinister thought strikes me. Maybe Roman was in my backyard, and the two of them are working together to terrorize me.
I whip my eyes open, refusing to look around the room as I glare at my reflection.
"You know better," I tell the woman looking back at me. "These men aren't going to play tricks on you."
I pull in another deep breath, refusing to let more of that sinister fear settle inside of me. Accepting that the Cerberus men wouldn't act that way means I also have to accept that there was an unknown person outside my house.