“You’re deluding yourself. None of that will happen.”
Elias heard the back-and-forth between his father and Iona, and knew she would push Eddie’s buttons, but he couldn’t make his mouth work to tell her to back off. An insulting woman never fared well in Eddie’s presence. Iona was everything his father hated in women. Beautiful and strong enough to defy his orders.
“Who is going to stop me? Certainly not you,” Eddie crowed. “This is my day of destiny.”
Iona stopped walking as the darkness circling Elias closed in. She slowly shook her head.
Although his ears rang, he still heard the quiet snick of Iona’s throwing knives sliding into place in her palms.
“Eddie Knight, today is your day of reckoning.” Between one breath and the next, she sent those silver knives flying, the blades sinking deep, one in his throat and the other in his heart.
Eddie’s eyes widened as he looked down. He fell to the ground and lay still.
Thank God was Elias’ last thought before he sank to the ground and fell onto his side. The darkness swallowed him.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
IONA STRAIGHTENED ASsoon as Elias’ breathing changed. Was he finally waking up? She hoped so. Her man had been unconscious since the harrowing ride to the hospital for emergency surgery to repair his internal injuries. Sarge had indeed done his job too well, so well, in fact, that Iona had almost lost Elias before they had a chance at a life together.
Now, though, that was behind them. If Elias would wake, that is. Her man had been out of it for three days, and Iona was desperate to see for herself that he was all right. “Elias?”
He groaned.
“Hey, Elias, it’s time to wake up now. Come on,” she almost crooned. “Open those gorgeous eyes so I know you’re still with me.”
Elias blinked and opened his eyes to slits. He flinched.
Overhead lights. Too bright. She reached over and turned off the lights, leaving only the dim lights behind him burning. “Better?”
He nodded slightly and opened his eyes wider.
“Hey. There you are.” Iona smiled. “How do you feel?”
“Like a mountain is sitting on my chest,” he croaked. “Can I have water?”
“Here.” She opened a bottle of water, dropped a straw into the opening, and held it to his mouth.
His lips closed around the straw and sucked water over and over.
She pulled the straw away and set the bottle on the rolling table.
He growled. “Wasn’t finished.”
“Yeah, you were. If you kept drinking like that, you would have thrown up all the water. Didn’t figure you wanted to do that.”
Elias glanced around the room. “Hospital?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“This is day four.” Seemed like an eternity.
“Four days.” He sank back into the pillow, studying her face.
Did he know? Man, she hoped he didn’t remember her role in his father’s death. Iona should feel bad about killing him. She didn’t. Eddie Knight was evil all the way through to his bones, and he would have kept torturing his son until nothing was left of the man she loved. She couldn’t let that happen, even if Elias ultimately rejected her because of it.
“Where is my father?”
