Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 78886 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78886 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Wait. Hold up. Please tell me I did not call this terror of a man “baby.”
He stopped abruptly, going still. My breath caught.
“Hear me well, drágá.” With a huff, he hefted me off his shoulder and onto my feet. He glared down at me. “I am no one’s baby.”
I teetered, knees shockingly weak. The jerk let me fall, never even attempting to catch me. Impact proved jarring, rattling my brain. Probably the reason I couldn’t get over his use of ‘dear’ or ‘precious’. I couldn’t recall which it was.
A scowl dominated my features as I sat there, glaring at him. “You’re no one’s baby, but you’re someone’s worst nightmare, guaranteed.”
“Walk,” he commanded, stepping over me and continuing on.
Argh! I popped up, dusted the dirt from my rump, and chased after him. My irritation was too sharp to fit into a mental bottle. “We need lessons in common courtesy, I see.”
“Yes, you do, but I don’t have time to tutor you.”
“That’s not–” Ow! Eek! Ow! Jagged rocks and razored briars lined the path, tormenting my poor, injured feet. Too bad Malachi had kidnapped me right after my shower while I was without socks and shoes. “I changed my mind. You can carry me,” I encouraged, lagging behind.
He kept walking. “You also need lessons in actions and consequences as well.”
“Hey!” I called. “I’m bleeding.”
For some reason, that did the trick. Despite his taunt, Viktor backtracked to clasp my waist and heft me off my feet. This time, he dangled me in the crook of his arm. “You are bothersome, that’s what you are.”
“Why don’t you get kidnapped, and we’ll see if you’re all sunshine and roses.” A branch scraped my arm, but I didn’t dare complain.
“Talk,” he repeated.
Guess I was done doling out the story in small measures. Considering I owed him, I had better share. “So, the guy who broke into my home claimed to be a king of griffins or something.” I didn’t have the mental capacity to weave an elaborate lie I might not remember. Besides, even if Malachi’s claims sprang from a well of truth, which they didn’t, I still needed Viktor’s aid. He wasn’t the one who’d abducted and relocated me. Therefore, he was the lesser of two evils. Perhaps he could even help me understand what was going on. “His name is Malachi Cromwell. He’s a former professional athlete and current movie star.”
“I know who he is. Continue,” Viktor added without evincing a single clue to his thoughts.
“Well, he must hate you, because he asked me to convince you to switch to Team Evil in exchange for paying off my debts. And just so you know, I’ve already refused to cash in.” I didn’t mention the other payouts. Viktor would hear the longing in my voice. How I desperately yearned to meet my sister and learn the identity of my birth parents. A question that had plagued me since discovering my adoption as a teen. But. I would never, under any circumstances, conspire with my kidnapper. I had standards.
“And? What happened when you refused?” Tension pulsed from Viktor as he tightened his arm around me. “Because the Malachi I know has killed countless others for far less.”
An exaggeration, surely. Or maybe he’d confused the actor’s onscreen actions with real life. “He knocked me out.” Although, I hadn’t actually gotten a chance to voice my refusal, had I? “Do you know anything about the prophecy he mentioned?”
Agonizing minutes passed in terse silence, the only sounds coming from Viktor’s footsteps as he stalked over brambles.
Fine. “Any comments, elaborations, or feedback about my revelation?”
Viktor began muttering under his breath again. Conversation over. Not the greatest start, but not the worst either. He wasn’t as feral as advertised, but he was definitely unhinged.
As soon as the gurgle of rushing water reached my ears, he dropped me and walked off, as if he’d forgotten he carried me. Or that I existed. I crashed into the ground, eating dirt, losing air.
Eyes narrowing, I spit out grains and scrambled to my feet. What the—
Oh. I spun and took in my new surroundings. A rough-hewn shelter crafted from gnarled branches and leaves, blending seamlessly with the dense forest backdrop. A soot-blackened fire pit possessed a single flat rock seat, hinting at nights spent in raw, primal solitude. The atmosphere hung thick with pine and smoke from old fires. Whispers of the wind danced through the canopy of trees above our heads.
“How very…rustic chic,” I muttered, trying not to let my inner cringe make it to the outside. “Is this where you live? I bet the rent is fantastic. Kudos to your decorator. Brings open-concept to a whole new level. Who needs walls, amiright?”
Viktor prowled about, his volume increasing as he spoke to himself or to a voice in his head. “Is Malachi working with Deco? Why would he? But maybe. Why don’t I kill the first and imprison the latter, and then it won’t matter?”