Jacob.
“He is,” Maddie spat. “And you’re going to tell me where the hell Jack is, or so help me God, Jacob, you’ll wish you’d killed me too.”
There was a slight pause before Jacob’s smooth voice replied, “Well, hello, Freckles.”
“Don’t you dare call me that, you son of a bitch!” she hissed. “You never cared about any of us. Don’t pretend you do now.”
“That’s not true, Maddie,” Jacob told her. “I loved you. I still do. You have to know that. I wish things could’ve been different . . .”
Maddie closed her eyes. His voice sounded sincere. But as badly as she wanted to believe that the man she’d once considered a brother still cared about her, she didn’t trust him. He’d fooled them all too well for too long for her toevertrust him again. But as hard as it was to make her peace with his betrayal, she needed him now or the man whose love had withstood all they’d been through would die.
“If you ever cared about me, Jacob,” she said softly, playing the odds, “then please help me.”
There was silence on the other end, for what seemed like just short of eternity, when Jacob finally spoke again. “Maddie—”
“Please, Jacob,” she pleaded. “It’sJack. You called him your friend once upon a time.”
Another long pause. A sigh. “What do you need?”
“Kozlov,” she said. “I want that son of a bitch taken down. Tell me where he is.”
* * *
“You bastard.”
Jacob heaved a sigh and turned away from the window overlooking the ocean to meet the furious gaze of his wife. “I beg your pardon?”
She stood in the doorway, a perfect picture of righteous indignation, hands on her hips, shaking with rage. “You said you didn’t care about Maddie Blake. You lying son of a bitch! What happened to not being responsible for the outcome if she insisted upon playing a role in this ‘little drama’?”
“Allison, you’re being ridiculous,” he chastised, strolling toward her to take her hands. “You have no idea—”
“Don’t lie to me!” She snatched her hands away from his and took several quick steps in the opposite direction. “Iheardyou say you loved her, Jacob.”
His own anger began to rise at her accusations. As if she had room to talk, when she’d been fantasizing about fucking that psycho Stefan. “I do love Maddie. I have never made a secret of that.”
Allison shook her head slowly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “And you would choose her overme?” she ranted, advancing on him, her hands balled into fists at her sides. “Yourwife? After all I’ve done for you! Do you have any idea what I’vesacrificedfor you, Jacob?”
“Yoursacrifice?” he scoffed. “You want to talk about sacrifice? I might’ve just sent Maddie Blake to her death!” When she frowned at him, confused, he nodded. “Oh, yes. You heard me. She’s willing to put her life on the line for the man she loves.That’ssacrifice.”
“I would do the same for you,” she whispered. “You must know that! I would give everything for you, Jacob! All I ask is that you not keep anything from me.”
“I have never kept anything from you, Allison,” he said, his tone aloof. “I have been honest from the very beginning of our relationship. You have been my confidant, my partner. And I wanted you for my wife as well. Do you think I would’ve married you had I not recognized your devotion to me?” He took hold of her chin, squeezing hard enough to make her wince. Through clenched teeth, he added, “But, let me make something very clear to you. If you insist upon acting like a spoiled, jealous littlebitchwhen I have given youeverythingyou could ask for and more, I will find someone else worthy to be at my side when I ascend to power.”
Tears spilled onto her cheeks and her voice shook when she said, “Jacob, I love you. I won’t allow you to throw away everything you’ve worked for because of some sentimental attachment. You deserve better. You deservemore.”
“You’re right, I do,” he agreed. “But do noteverquestion me again, Allison. Especially after your little encounter with Stefan. Do I make myself perfectlyfuckingclear?”
She swallowed hard and nodded. “Yes. Forgive me, Jacob. Let me make it up to you.”
He sighed. “And how exactly do you plan to do that?”
She gave him a tremulous smile. “I have a surprise for you—I wasn’t going to give it to you yet, but I think it’s time.”
He released her chin and let his hand fall away, not sure he should trust the pleading look in her eyes as she grasped the front of his shirt and pressed her body close to his. “All right,” he finally said. “What’s this surprise?”
Her face lit up. “I’ll show you tomorrow.”
She turned to go, but he caught her hand, keeping her where she was. He was taken aback by the maniacal look in her eyes as she turned back to face him. He caught a glimpse of something there that he’d never seen before—not inhereyes. But hehadseen that look once before in others—and it scared the hell out of him. “Are you all right?”
Her sorrow had now been replaced by a fanatical mania that made her practically buzz with energy as if she was barely able to restrain her elation.
“I’m just excited,” she told him. “I can’t wait until you see what I have planned for you, Jacob. I can’twaitto see the look on your face. I’ve been planning this for so long . . . It’s finally time.”
But before he could spare more than a passing thought to Allison’s strange behavior, she closed the gap between them and threw her arms around his neck, kissing him with savage need. When the kiss ended, her smile was grotesque, distorted by her fervor.
Jesus Christ. What the hell is she planning . . . ?
