Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 122206 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122206 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
When I turned, I was greeted by the mechanics of Collins Auto Repair. Every single one of them was watching me like I was a ticking time bomb, and to be honest, I kind of felt like one. I headed straight for the door, and the group of men parted like the River Nile.
“Don’t just stand there lookin’ shellshocked, dumbarse. Go after her!”
I ignored JJ, but Dante didn’t because he followed me into the reception. I tried to sit down at my desk, but he took my arm and all but dragged me down the hallway and into his father’s empty office. I protested the entire way, but he ignored me. He turned to face me when the door was locked, and we were alone.
“I didn’t cheat on ye.”
“Don’t ye lie to me!” I hissed. “I know what I saw.”
“I know what ye saw, but it isn’t what ye think,” he said firmly. “I did not cheat on you, Ina O’Shea.”
Christ, I was going to cry. I could feel my eyes burn as a lump formed in my throat. I wanted desperately for him to have a reason that didn’t involve another woman. I wanted that more than I wanted my next breath.
“Then what caused the scratches, and why were ye shirtless?” I demanded. “Why didn’t ye show up when we had plans? Why didn’t ye phone me to let me know ye were okay?”
Dante ran a hand over his face. “Country—”
My tears fell, and I didn’t wipe them away quick enough because Dante’s face dropped. He took a step towards me but froze when I took a step back, held my hand up, and lifted my chin.
“Either ye tell me or I’m walkin’ out that door.”
He locked eyes with mine. “It’s a long story.”
“I’ve got an hour for me break.” I sat down. “Start talkin’.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Date
* * *
The previous evening …
* * *
The time it took to reach my brother’s apartment felt like hours instead of seconds. Kalin’s screams still echoed in my ears. The raw terror in her voice scared me half to death. The front door was wide open, but it was silent inside. When I entered the apartment, the kitchen was empty, but the sitting room wasn’t.
What I saw when I opened the sitting room door would haunt me forever.
My baby brother was on his knees, beaten badly. He was shirtless, which showed me the gaping hole in his stomach that was gushing with blood. He wasn’t focusing on the life-threatening wound because his head had been pulled back by the man standing behind him. The blade that was pressed against his throat made my blood run cold. Kalin and my nephew were nowhere to be seen. There was just Gavin, the man behind him, and the golden blonde-haired woman who sat on the coffee table in front of my brother. She was so close to him that their faces almost touched.
“What the fuck is goin’ on here?”
When she turned her head and locked eyes with me, she smiled. I had never known a person to look like a raving lunatic before, but this woman just screamed crazy. It was right there in her almost black eyes.
“Turn around and leave,” she said with a heavy Eastern European accent. “Lock the door behind you.”
I rolled my head onto my shoulders as I shook my arms out.
“If you hurt him any further, neither of you will leave this apartment the way ye walked into it.”
The woman laughed, unbothered by my threat.
“I don’t think you’re in any kind of position to give orders.” She stood and waved a small knife around. “Do you?”
“I don’t give a fuck what ye think, bitch,” I snarled. “Hurt me brother again and you’re gonna wish ye were dead.”
Her smile was ice cold. I shifted my gaze to Gavin’s, and he struggled to stay awake. I saw him fight his drooping eyelids. My gut twisted with fear.
“They have Kalin and Indie in the bedroom—”
The blade against Gavin's throat was pressed firmly against his skin. I tensed when blood trickled down his neck and dripped onto his chest. This was bad. His stomach was bleeding profusely, and his skin was paling by the second.
“Look”—I switched my focus back to the woman—“I don’t know why you’re here, but think this through. If ye don’t back away from him right fuckin’ now, you’re not leavin’ this apartment unless it’s in a body bag … Is doin’ this worth dyin’ for?”
The man holding Gavin seemed to frown at my words. He looked at the back of the woman’s head and stared. He was uncertain, but she wasn’t. I saw it in her dark, lifeless eyes. Whatever they were here for, it was worth their lives … or at least she believed it was.
She didn’t waste any more time by speaking to me. She lunged for me with her hand outstretched. The gleam of metal clutched in her grip caught the light as she sailed through the air. I turned my body and missed being stabbed in the chest by inches. I grabbed hold of her hair, lifted my knee, and slammed it into her forearm. I heard a sickening crack, but more importantly, I heard the clang of metal hitting the wooden floor. She had dropped the blade. I heard a shout, then some sounds of struggle. I straightened the woman and punched her in the face without hesitation. She crumpled to the ground instantly.