Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 117176 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 586(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117176 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 586(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
For too long, I had been weak. Depending on my father and husband to protect me.
Not anymore.
I spent the next twenty minutes trying to break free from the room, only to realize that there was no escape. The door was locked from the outside.
I had to wait for whoever had kidnapped me. I had to know who it was and then I could decide the probability of me successfully escaping this place.
Dread filled me because I knew how hard it was going to be. To escape when I had no idea where I was.
Where are you, Killian?
I sat on the bed, fidgeting for the next few minutes until I heard the rattling of the lock. My eyes widened as the door slid open.
Thud.
A shadow loomed at the doorway, big and imposing. It was a man.
Thud. Thud.
My hands shook, my palms clammy.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
I blinked when the man finally walked inside, revealing his face.
“Father?” I gasped before letting out a choked sob. “Oh my God! You found me!” I lunged off the bed, as if to hug him, but came to a halt when I saw his twisted expression.
The air felt tight, heavy with tension.
He didn’t look happy to see me. In fact, he looked disgusted at the sight of me. The door closed behind him, locking us back inside.
My stomach churned and I took a shaky step back. “W-what is going on?” I asked, fear slithering through me.
His lips curled, an evil smile spreading across his face. My whole body shook and I took several steps back, until I bumped into the bed. He wasn’t here to rescue me.
No…
This can’t be happening.
When he finally spoke, my world came crashing down on me. “You’re the product of adultery.”
I blinked, confused. “What?”
“Allow me to tell you a little story,” he said, smoothly. As if he was talking about the weather.
I slumped on the bed, numb. My father brought the chair closer to me and took a seat, looking so at ease while I was panicking. “Your mother had an affair with her bodyguard,” he said and my brain stuttered. “The man I paid to keep her safe. She cheated on me throughout our marriage and I was too late to realize that.”
“No,” I breathed, shaking my head. “I don’t believe you.”
He didn’t even bother to acknowledge my words. His expression twisted with disgust. “I wasn’t about to be cuckhold by that bitch anymore. So, I made an easy decision for both of us.”
He clucked his tongue. “Except, I didn’t realize you weren’t mine until way after she passed.”
My head reeled from all the things my father was saying. If I understood him correctly… did he just confess to the murder of my mother?
He leaned forward, bringing his face closer to me, his lips curled up in distaste. “I raised you, knowing you were the child of another man. The product of my wife’s adultery,” he hissed, spitting in my face. “I raised you with one purpose. Your mother got an easy fucking death, but you would pay. I wanted to hurt you, so I could hurt him.”
My mouth was dry, my tongue heavy, as I choked on my own breath.
“You should have died that night. Not Gracelynn.”
His cruel words finally snapped something in me and I found my voice. “You put her in danger,” I whispered. “Just so you could kill me?”
“I needed your death to look like an accident. It was a sacrifice I was willing to make.”
My chest ached; the burning sensation was fierce. It hurt. “The one behind the accident was… you.”
He let out a dark chuckle and my blood ran cold. “Oh, you poor thing. Look at how heartbroken you are. To realize that father dearest has nothing but hate for you.”
I always knew that I wasn’t my father’s priority. I would just classify his lack of care under him not being father material. It was to appease my own self, my own lonely heart that craved my father’s attention. But I never thought that Bishop hated me.
But I could see the utter distaste and loathing for me in his dangerously gleaming eyes.
This man hated me so much that he wanted me dead.
He tried to kill me. Twice. And now, this was his third attempt. The last time Killian took the bullet that was meant for me, but he wasn’t here now. Once again, I found myself unprotected and vulnerable.
My stomach rolled and fear slithered through me once I realized the grave danger I was in.
Oh God, my baby.
My body rattled with a cold shudder. I never even got a chance to check if that pregnancy test was positive, but I knew it as much as I knew my love for Killian was true. I felt it.
I was carrying Killian’s baby.
My chin trembled, but I refused to cry, to allow this man to see me as weak. How long was I out for? Killian was probably aware that I was missing by now.