After rewriting the same damn code ten times from my lack of concentration, I decide to get in a quick workout while she sleeps. So I go to my room and change into a pair of charcoal-gray, fleece workout pants and a navy blue, long-sleeve compression shirt. Then I head down to the gym and hit the treadmill first, trying to chase away my worry and tension.
With Nothing More'sGo to Warpumping through the surround sound speakers, my legs move vigorously as I run. I can't shake this terrible feeling that something bad happened or is going to happen. And the more I think about it, the faster and harder I run.
It reminds me of a time when I was younger. Whenever my mother was sweet or made me something to eat…something horrible always followed.
Maybe I'm just stuck in that mindset and nothing will actually happen…but why isn't Jackson checking his fucking phone?
I've just grown so accustomed to him being around that the thought of him suddenly not being here never really crossed my mind. He's the only family I have left. But if I'm being truly honest with myself, he's more than just family. He's my best friend, my confidant…and I love him like a brother.
It's hard to admit my feelings for anyone, especially when it comes to Adeline, but I need to realize that life is too short to live with regrets. And I would definitely regret if the two most important people in my life didn't know that I cherished them and loved them.
I definitely need to pull my head out of my fucking ass and confess my feelings for Adeline.
She's told me several times that she loves me…and I haven't even uttered some semblance of a comparable response to her declarations. She has no idea that I'd do anything for her, slay any demon to get to her…even die for her.
Once Jackson returns with the ring, I'm going to take Adeline on a trip far from here and propose to her. I will finally make hermine. For eternity.
Panting, I hit the stop button and jump off the treadmill. I grab my phone with the intent to check to see if Jackson called or sent me a text during my workout, but stop dead in my tracks and almost drop the phone from my hands.
Several notifications are on my screen and continue to pop up by the second.
My blood runs cold as I scan the automatic alarm messages. They all lead to one thing and one thing only — the island has been breached.
The sensors and cameras around the island picked up suspicious activity, and I was too fucking stuck in my head that I didn't even hear the first alarm. The first alarm would have called for a protocol to be put in place to eliminate the threat…but, fuck, I'm not in my office or even near my laptop.
In a panic, I sent out an SOS text to Jax and Wraith. Jax is definitely not home yet, and Wraith…fuck, he could be anywhere on the island or not. I have no fucking clue on his whereabouts, and now I regret not keeping better track of him.
I pull up an outside security camera feed and inhale sharply when I see gunned men dressed all in black storming the mansion.
Adeline.
My only thought right now is that I need to get to her. I'll protect her with my last dying breath. They'll have to get through me first to get to her.
I take two steps before the tinted windows of the gym explode. I'm knocked to the ground from the sheer force of it as glass scatters down around me.
A loud crack sounds in the room, and I watch as the glass wall leading to the pool room shatters and comes crashing to the floor.
Scrambling to my feet, I turn just in time to see the devil himself walking through the empty steel frames of the gym with a smirk on his face.
Giovanni.
He's decked out in black and armed with a Glock at his side. Several men follow behind him, and I stand my ground, not even a bit interested in surrendering. My only focus right now is to get to Adeline, and my mind is on a one-track mission.
I retreat a few steps with the intent to get to the library, but Giovanni raises his gun and shakes his head slowly, tutting. "You're not going anywhere,Big Bad Wolf," he sneers. "Where is she?"
I remain silent. I can only pray that Adeline heard the noise, woke up and hid somewhere in the library. Maybe they'll never find her…
But my optimism turns to complete shit when I hear her screams from somewhere in the mansion.
Giovanni's smirk morphs into a huge grin on his face. "Never mind," he says, tucking his gun into his waistband. Speaking into a walkie-talkie, he tells whoever's on the other end, "Bring her to the gym."
The fact that his men would know the layout of my house so well surprises me. Did someone from the inside betray me?
My hands curl into fists when I think back to the gardener's wife. She's the most likely suspect in all of this. She would know this place practically inside and out…and she would have been seeking revenge on me for killing her husband.
Fuck. I should have killed that bitch when I had the chance.
I should have done a lot of things differently. If I wasn't so caught up in trying to be happy andnormal, Giovanni would be dead right now…and all of his men. They would have never gotten within a hundred yards of this fucking place.
