Almost as dead as her husband lying on the ground at my fucking feet.
I launch for her, but as she calls out, guards come swarming into the room, landing a punch to my gut as I double over.
One of them yanks a fistful of hair on my bloodied scalp, yanking me backwards and throwing me against the wall as I palm it to stay upwards, him aiming his gun on me. Barrel right against my forehead.
Louisa remains frozen in place behind him. Her lips twinge like she’s fighting for the words, but I don’t give her a chance. I don’t need to hear anything else from her; her performance today has sealed her fate.
She might not have said it directly, but her underlying meaning was as clear as day.
Until her knowledge of who she should have really been looking for, if I continued to protect Regina, I’d willingly become collateral damage.
Guess now she has exactly who she needs to deliver.
And if they think I’ll ever give them up, they’re wasting their time.
No matter what horrors they put me through. “Let this be the last time I see you alive, Louisa. Now get the fuck out of my cell. Take your dead bitch with you.”
She doesn’t move. The longer she looks at me, the more I can feel my walls threatening to collapse.
I watch as her throat bobs on a swallow, eyes wide and bulged as Barry’s dead body is removed from my cell.
I hope her heart is torn in two.
I hope she’s destroyed by witnessing his death.
I hope she does me the biggest favour of all, and takes care of herself for me, so that I don’t have to.
Someone outside calls her name, and she eventually turns her back on me, guards following and dragging a dead Barry, slamming my cell door.
When the sounds of her heels clacking fade as voices rise above one another, I let it all come crumbling down amongst the chaotic aftermath.
My knees buckle, sending me crashing onto the cold ground, silent tears dripping from my cheeks. My hand reaches into my back pocket, pulling out the tracker and fisting it in my hand, my only source of freedom clenched within my palm.
My only connection to him is tethered through the signal in this device.
But when I stare at it, familiarity doesn’t register with what’s nestled in my trembling hand.
Ice rushes through my veins. The snap of the thread holding me to him screams louder than I ever could.
My whispered ‘no’ is followed by sheer terror when I read the words carved into the back of the silver pocket watch.
Nice try.
22
Saint
too bad - nickelback
Idon’tevenwaitfor the SUV to stop; my boots slam onto the snow-covered ground before Rex can even get the car to slow, the door laying open behind me as I slam through the entrance to the Pit.
The front grounds feel like a graveyard, having to send my people all the way back to Indie’s mom’s house to repair the vehicle tyres and get the rest of them back here as soon as possible.
Everything’s going fucking wrong.
They’re planting land mines at every step we take.
My heart is beating so fast I might have a fucking heart attack, and it hasn’t let up since the moment Dawson muttered her name.
