Total pages in book: 184
Estimated words: 188108 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 941(@200wpm)___ 752(@250wpm)___ 627(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 188108 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 941(@200wpm)___ 752(@250wpm)___ 627(@300wpm)
Then she saw them. They were running toward her, and she collapsed onto her knees.
Thank God.
There was a low rumble then the ground shook as the hut and building went on fire. The explosives! Oh God, was anyone hurt?
She managed to get to her feet, stumbling toward her men once more. Then she heard people yelling from behind her and she turned to see Pinky running toward the greenery.
Her father.
He disappeared into the bush.
Turning, she saw her guys were all getting up. They were all right.
But there was no way her father was going to get off scot-free.
Tamsyn was aware of others taking off after him, but she was closer. And only she knew where he would be headed.
He always had other escape routes and there was a helicopter hidden deep in the island.
So she took off after him. Despite her injuries, she somehow found the energy to move.
“Tamsyn!”
“Baby, wait!”
“Bunny!”
She couldn’t fall apart and she couldn’t stop. But her body wasn’t going to let her keep going. She fell to her knees in a small clearing. Looking back, she saw them there.
“I . . . need . . . get to . . . him.”
Salem crouched in front of her. “Let him go. The others will find him.”
“No. It has to be me.”
Roman moved closer, his face pale. “You need looking after right now, darling girl.”
“You don’t understand. I know where he’s going. We have to get to him. He could hurt them otherwise.”
Realization filled Salem and Roman’s faces, but it was Alexei who picked her up.
“Tell me where to go.”
They took off at a fast pace with Alexei carrying her the entire way.
When they reached the spot where she knew he’d be, they found him frantically pulling the branches and camouflage off the helicopter.
She tapped Alexei’s shoulder as he gazed back at them. She’d never seen him look anything but calm and in control.
“Put me down,” she commanded.
“No,” he said stubbornly.
“Put me down. I need to do this.”
The three of them shared a look.
“Fine. But you don’t go near him, and you don’t do anything stupid or Alexei will pick you up and take you back to the others,” Salem told her.
“This isn’t over,” her father told her as he turned to her. It was then that she realized he was injured. There was blood dripping down his face and he held his arm against his chest. Was it broken?
He gasped, his face red.
“I won’t be taken down. I am a God!”
“No,” she said quietly. “You’re just a man. You might be a monster, but monsters can die. They can have their power stripped from them. They can become nothing.”
“I will never be nothing!” he cried, stepping toward her. “This is all your mother’s fault.”
She gave him a shocked look. What was he talking about? He never spoke of her mother.
Tamsyn became aware of others joining them, hidden in the shrubbery, but they stayed back.
“How is this my mother’s fault?”
“I told her to get rid of you,” he snarled. “I told her that you would be nothing but trouble. And that’s all you’ve been. A headache for me to deal with. But she insisted on keeping you. She loved you.”
“And you let her?”
He gave a sharp bark of laughter. “My father always said that all women were good for were fucking and having children. My mother couldn’t handle him . . . she threw herself from a balcony. I saw it happen. Found the body. It was good riddance.”
That was awful. Horrific.
“My father sent me away to school. It wasn’t a good place. I was only six. Then when I was ten, he met Mary. Riordan’s mother. And I was brought back to live at home.”
“So he’s my uncle,” she said.
“No. He’s a fucking waste of space. Should have killed him years ago. His mother snuck away with Riordan when he was five, but did she take me? No! She left me with my father.”
God.
She felt ill. What had his father done to him?
“But I learned that if you pretended to be a good guy, people were more likely to do what you wanted. I had charisma and good looks and money. Especially after I got rid of the old man.”
He’d killed his father?
Dear Lord.
“Married a good girl. Someone with lots of political ties and money. She was the perfect wife. Only problem was that I didn’t love her. No, I loved your mother. A nobody. A waitress I met at a hotel I was staying at.”
“You loved her?” she whispered, shocked.
“Only person I’ve ever loved in my life. But I couldn’t have her, she’d have ruined my career. My plans. I wasn’t who I am now back then. No, that happened after she died. After she was taken from me!”
“And you blame me?” she asked.
“Always there. A snivelling little brat. She might have moved closer to me, let me take care of her, but she wanted a normal life for you. And then she was taken from me. She’d told me about her father, how much she hated him. So I decided to have you sent there and I kept tabs on you. Once I learned the bastard was dead, well, then I decided to make good use of you.”