Total pages in book: 196
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
It was much worse than I thought; what they did to Elena and me was only the tip of the iceberg, these people are true monsters in every sense of the word, and the scariest thing of all is that I never saw it. Elena did, at least in part, and I won’t ever forget how she tried to warn me, to save me.
I pulled her a little bit closer because I could tell she was tired. The fear I’d felt in the few hours it took to get to her was finally backing off, and I could breathe again. I kissed her hair and breathed her in, finally allowing myself to believe that it was all coming to an end.
I have no idea what happened to Janie, and quite frankly, I don’t care. Part of the reason Lyon wanted me here, away from L.A., was to keep me out of the line of fire when the story broke. I’m still not sure which story he was referring to since there was so much going on, but I was just simply advised to wait for his call.
I get the feeling in a sense that his time with me was so that he could feel me out. The others seemed sure that I had no hand in the trafficking thing, but the big man himself seemed to want to make doubly sure for himself, and all I can say after seeing him in action is I’m glad I never took part in that filthy shit. It seems to bring out the worst in him.
The car finally came to a stop after making about ten twists and turns, sometimes going the wrong way down the now-empty New York streets and coming to a stop on Fifth Avenue in front of an old mansion that I didn’t even know existed.
What I know about this place is that it’s old money, the kind of money most people could only dream of, and the kind of bloodlines that go back generations. “Where are we? Whose place is this?” I asked Travis, another one of Lyon’s men who had been in my home back in L.A. with Cord and a few others who I was never introduced to.
The other guy was someone named Jared, Lyon’s right-hand man, or so it seemed since they went back the longest. The fact that Lyon had sent his cousin and his best friend to watch over her meant a lot to me, and not for the first time; I wondered how I got so lucky as to have the help of this amazing team of men.
The fact that his daughter and his nieces were the ones who pulled it all together is something that will take me a very long time to come to terms with, but that’s just my ego, I guess. I mean, who would believe that a bunch of little girls could plan out something like this and carry it through, and from what I heard before we left, they weren’t even done yet.
“You’re about to meet the great Russo. Don’t let his cold demeanor throw you off.” Jared looked back and smiled at her on my lap. “He’s a good kid, just one of those who could do without human contact.” I didn’t know what that meant, but he seemed to find it funny.
They whisked us out of the car, and the door opened right away as if someone had been watching for our arrival. A butler, yes, a butler, stood there and ushered us in. Behind him was a kid in his late teens or early twenties, I would guess, who looked at me like I was something he stepped in.
Travis and Jared came in behind us, and he gave them what I guess is his idea of a smile. It was gone as quickly as it appeared. “Were you followed?
“No, we made sure of it,” Jared answered him with a smirk and a twinkle in his eye. “We saw your men around the perimeter, though.”
He didn’t answer Travis’ jibe with anything more than a look that said ‘of course’ before turning his attention to us. I got the feeling that had Lyon’s men not been there; we wouldn’t have made it past the front door.
“Ryder, Elena, welcome to our home.” He held out his hand for us to shake, and I have to admit, I felt a little bit intimidated. I had to remind myself that I was a multi-millionaire with at least ten years on this kid. But there’s no mistaking the elitism that came off him in waves, or was that just confidence?
“Lyon said you will be here for a few days until things settle down. Come in, make yourselves at home. My wife is putting the kids to bed; she should be here any minute.” Wife? Kids? He looks like he should be in a classroom somewhere.