Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 121310 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121310 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Her words hit me like a freight train. The fear I’ve been battling erupts, white-hot and all-consuming. Mads—my Mads—kidnapped and held in some warehouse. Every protective instinct in my body roars to life, drowning out reason.
I shoot up from my chair, fists slamming on the table.
“WHERE IS SHE?”
Moira sighs again, looking exhausted. “Someone with serious connections is pulling strings, and Mads thinks it’s too big for you to take on. That it’s someone with more money and power than you.”
Anger and helplessness wage war inside me. My throat tightens around the question I have to ask. “You got out. Why the fuck didn’t you get Mads out with you?”
The moment the words leave my mouth, I regret them. The accusation in them. The implication. But I can’t take them back, or stop the fear from making me cruel.
Moira grips her fork tighter. “Because she wouldn’t let me, Domhnall. It wasn’t an option. If I’d tried, neither of us would’ve made it.”
Her eyes flash up at me, defiant but also wounded. “And she thought they’d come and kill you. She wasn’t willing to risk it. The guys who had us were people she said she knew from—” She gestures with her fork. “Before.”
Before. The word sends ice through my veins. The Librarian. The organization. The dark world Mads was part of that I’ve been willfully ignoring because it’s easier to pretend we’d left it all behind for good.
Even thinking of it all makes his face flash in my head, and with it, memories of him shoving me down to the floor—
My hands ball into fists, rage and terror and shame twisting together in my gut. “That’s even more reason to get her the hell out of there! You should’ve—”
“What? Magically turned into a Navy SEAL and busted her out between kidnappers with guns?” she snaps. “I did what I had to do. The only way to fix this is by playing their game.”
I want to scream. And break something. And give myself fifty lashes.
I want to hunt down every single person who dared touch what’s mine. But beneath the fury is another emotion—deeper, harder to face.
Guilt.
Mads was carrying this burden alone. These were her secrets. She’s been trying to protect me all along. And I didn’t notice the signs or press even when I did, too wrapped up in my own stupid happiness. Until now that I’ve lost it all.
“What game?” The question comes out rough, my control hanging by a thread.
Moira takes a deep breath. “They want something from me. Something I have to give them. And when I do, they’ll let Mads go.”
I shake my head, rage bubbling up again. “That’s not a fucking plan.” It’s a surrender. It’s giving these bastards what they want. It’s letting them win.
“It’s survival,” she says, voice flat. “And if I do it right, everyone—including Mads and you—comes out of this alive.”
My jaw clenches so tight it aches. “What do they want?”
She hesitates, and I see genuine fear in her eyes for the first time. “I have to break up with Bane.”
I blink, caught off guard. Of all the things I expected, this wasn’t it. Rage slams back into place almost immediately. “This is about Bane? They’re threatening my fiancée because of your goddamn husband? Who the fuck cares that much about a feckin’ priest? Is he in witness protection or something?”
Even as the words leave my mouth, I hate myself for them. For the venom in them. For being so accusational instead of trying to show my sister I care and I’m listening.
She exhales, slow and controlled, but I can see her hands trembling. “His father is Brad Blackwolf. That’s why Mads got scared for you. I think he hired the guy who still has Mads.”
The name Blackwolf rings faint bells. I vaguely remember Bane mentioning a wealthy father, but nothing that would suggest this level of power or danger.
“He’s not exactly thrilled about me as a partner for his son,” Moira continues. “He tried to pay me off to leave Bane a little while ago, but I didn’t take it. And now, if I don’t walk away from Bane, bodies are gonna start dropping.”
I stare at her, breathing heavily, my mind racing to catch up. Pieces click together, and a cold realization dawns. “Shit,” I mutter. “Mads didn’t tell you to come here, did she? She didn’t want you to tell me anything at all.”
Moira shakes her head. “No. She thinks we should handle it ourselves. She thinks getting you involved will make things worse.”
A bitter laugh threatens to escape me. Of course, Mads wouldn’t want me involved. Of course, she’d try to handle this alone. There she goes again, always trying to protect me, even at her own expense. The thought makes my chest ache with a pain so deep it steals my breath.