Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 73724 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 369(@200wpm)___ 295(@250wpm)___ 246(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73724 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 369(@200wpm)___ 295(@250wpm)___ 246(@300wpm)
Remembering when I leaned in to kiss him, and he pulled away, I’m sure he wasn’t aware that I wanted to kiss him.
His eyes flick to me as he pulls back, and noticing that I’m staring at him, he asks, “What?”
“Nothing,” I whisper while I turn my head away.
“Where are we going?” he asks.
“Shit.”
I turn and climb onto my knees. Leaning through the opening between the front seats, I reach for my bag and dig the piece of paper out of the front pocket. I accidentally bump my butt against Knight as I pull back so I can sit down again.
Handing him the note, I say, “Here you go.”
“That’s the first time I’ve been smacked in the face by an ass,” he mumbles as he checks the address.
“Sorry.”
“I wasn’t complaining.”
My head whips in his direction, and it’s to see a slight grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.
He starts the engine and reverses out of the parking spot before steering the SUV onto the road.
As we drive to the safe house, I wonder how many of my people chose to side with me.
Not many, if they all fit into a house.
The betrayal cuts deep, and I close my eyes as the pain forms another crack in my heart.
Knight drives for fifteen minutes, then says, “It’s the house on the corner. We’re going to do a drive-by before we stop.”
“Okay.” As we pass by the house, I look for any sign of life, but I can’t see any. “It doesn’t look like anyone is there.”
“We’ll find out soon enough,” he says as he makes a U-turn. “If all hell breaks loose, you point that machine gun at anyone but me and just pull the trigger. It packs a punch, so brace for it.”
“Okay.”
I hold the weapon ready, but Knight drives past again. Before I can ask what he’s doing, he stops the SUV two houses away from the safe house.
“Let’s go,” he mutters as he shoves his door open.
I quickly climb out of the car and join Knight. Noticing how he’s holding his gun with the barrel pointing down, I adjust mine into the same position.
“Stay slightly behind me,” he orders.
I fall a step back and move into position, my fingers tightening around the powerful weapon.
If shit goes sideways, just point and shoot. You’ll be fine.
My heart starts beating faster with every step we move closer to the house.
Jesus. I don’t know if I can handle another shootout so soon after the attack.
“There’s someone peeking through the curtains by the window on the left,” Knight murmurs, his tone steady.
My eyes dart to the window, and it’s in time to see Savvas’s surprised face before the curtain falls back into place.
“It’s Savvas,” I tell Knight.
The next minute, the front door swings open, and the large man comes jogging out of the house while crying, “Gamóto, Cassia! I thought you were dead.”
Knight instantly trains his machine gun on Savvas while calling out, “Stop right there.”
Savvas freezes, quickly raising his hands while giving me a confused look.
Knight stealthily moves closer and pats Savvas down, disarming him and dropping the handgun onto the ground.
He moves three steps back, stopping an inch from bumping into me, then asks, “How many people are in the house?”
“There are eleven of us,” Savvas quickly answers.
“How many weapons?” Knight asks in a harsh tone.
“Nine.” Savvas gestures at the gun on the ground. “Including that one.”
“Cassia, pick up the gun,” Knight orders.
I quickly crouch down and grab it.
He nods his head toward the house and tells Savvas, “Move to the front door and tell everyone to come out one at a time. Have everyone slide their guns out onto the porch. You will then kick the weapons to the side and out of reach. If more than one person exits the house at the same time, I open fire. Got it?”
“Yes.” Savvas nods quickly before hurrying to the porch and calling into the house, “Cassia is here. We need to come out of the house one at a time. Slide the guns out onto the porch.”
“Aim at the front door, and the instant more than one person comes out while I’m busy patting them down, you open fire,” he orders me.
“Okay.” I train the barrel of my machine gun on the porch, praying to all that’s holy that I won’t have to shoot one of my people today.
Once all the weapons are lying in the dirt beside the porch, Michail comes out of the house with his arms raised.
That only leaves Arthur as the one who could’ve betrayed my family.
Knight signals for Michail to come closer, then he indicates for him to stop. He pats him down, then says, “Move to the side.”
He repeats the process with every single person, and I watch with bated breath as Cole, Nico, Luke, and Jonas are searched. They’re soldiers who guarded the warehouses.