Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 79814 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79814 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Angel closed the briefcase and handed it to Z. The senator’s guard tightened his grip on my arm.
“I hope you don’t mind,” the senator spoke, “but I took the liberty of eliminating a few entries.”
Angel stilled, and everyone seemed to be holding their breath except Aaron and the senator. “Is that right?” The malevolence in Angel’s voice was scarier than the guns pointed at us.
“Did you think I’d let you continue to keep this kind of evidence on me? Fortunately, there are those who can do what you do while maintaining discretion. You understand.”
“You mean Victor? I’m not sure how well he can maintain anything while chopped up into tiny pieces.”
The senator’s chuckle made me uneasy while Angel visibly bristled. “Victor was a pawn, and long outlived his usefulness, so I thank you for proactively taking care of the problem. I really don’t like getting my hands dirty.”
If Victor wasn’t the mastermind behind stealing the book, then who was?
“Who?” Angel’s growl made everyone tense.
“You should know. Blood is thickest when filled with deceit.”
Augustine cursed, ripped me from the guard’s grip, and pushed me behind him. The senator’s bodyguard moved to grab me, but Augustine used his gun against his temple to shove him back.
The scuffle didn’t escape the senator’s notice. “If you’re not going to honor your end of the trade and deliver Miss Ross, I’m afraid this will end ugly.”
“The deal wasn’t that you’d tamper with the book, Staten. You know the rules, and you know what happens when you break them.”
“If anyone’s death is deserved, it’s yours, Knight.” The senator seemed to be waiting for something to happen as he looked to the shadows. After a long and tense moment, nothing happened, and when he spoke again, he sounded less in control. “Give me the girl and the child or you and your men die.”
“Senator…” Angel’s voice was final. “It was very foolish for you to come here tonight.”
“And why is that, son?”
“Because you were never leaving alive.”
The next moments were loud and fast just as Angel had warned. Lucas, Z, and Augustine were there shielding Caylen and me with their bodies as gunfire rained around us. I could hear the sound of men dying and bodies hitting the ground and running footsteps. Orders were shouted, and then I was being pulled until I was running on my own. Caylen fought and screamed in my arms. My heart was pounding, my lungs were burning, and my ears were ringing.
The gunshots faded the further we ran, and I fought to keep up with Augustine’s long legs. We eventually came near the edge of the cemetery where he stopped, gun at the ready, and checked the shadows for any of the senator’s men. I thoroughly checked over Caylen who still fussed and fought me.
“Is he okay?”
I nodded and bit my lip. “Do you think they’re okay?” Angel, Lucas, and Z had stayed behind while I fled with Augustine. I didn’t know if I was truly worried for them or afraid the final barrier between the senator and me were dead in the dirt.
“They can handle themselves,” he answered. “Come on.”
I could see the beginning of concrete steps. The trees lining the edge of the cemetery were blocking my view of where the steps led. As we cleared the trees, my footsteps slowed, and I forgot to breathe. The towering mausoleum was a concrete building with an impenetrable-looking entrance. Fixed on both sides of the black painted door were seven-foot statues of Knights with swords drawn and their heads, covered with helmets, turned menacingly toward whoever dared visit. It wasn’t until we ascended the steps that I realized the swords were real and held up by a hook attached to the inside of the fists.
“What is this place?”
“The Knight crypt. It’s the final resting place for each Knight who served as the Bandit.”
“Why are we here?”
“There’s a tunnel inside that leads back to the estate.”
“You mean we’re going in there?” I couldn’t help my girlish squeal. His smile, the first since this all started, was faint.
“Yeah, we’re going in here.”
“Isn’t it sacred?” I mocked.
He snorted as he pulled a black iron key from his pocket and stuck it in the door. “I don’t know, and I don’t give a shit.” The sound of the lock turning made my heart skip.
“What?” he questioned after he looked back and found me staring.
“You aren’t as dutiful as Angel.”
He shrugged, but the muscle working in his jaw told me my statement had a greater effect than he let on. “Maybe I don’t care to spend my life following another man’s rules.” His grunt as he pushed open the door punctuated his words.
“So you are an heir.”
“Somewhere down a long line,” he confirmed. He swiveled his head to face me. “Unless I kill Angel.”
He held the door open, waiting for me to enter. There was nothing but darkness waiting and the unsettling implication that he might be the traitor the senator spoke of. “Are you the one who stole the book?”