Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22676 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 113(@200wpm)___ 91(@250wpm)___ 76(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22676 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 113(@200wpm)___ 91(@250wpm)___ 76(@300wpm)
This is a nightmare. I haven’t woken up yet. As I pull away from Liam, his shouted protests an echo of distortion in my ears, I pretend I’m still asleep, safe and warm in his arms. I’m not sliding from bed on trembling limbs, letting the blanket fall from my body as I step out of Liam’s reach.
It’s not until Pax’s unforgiving fingers clutch my nape that I snap out of my ridiculous fantasyland of denial.
As Liam jumps to his feet, Pax tightens his grip until I release a painful cry. “Stay the fuck where you are, or she’ll pay the price.”
Liam clenches his jaw. “How did you find us?” Arms crossed, he manages an aura of authority despite standing in the nude, halted by the command of a psychopath.
The monster takes a small step back, dragging me with him. “Here’s the thing about buying people off. They aren’t loyal. It’s amazing what you can get out of someone when you dangle more cash in front of their greedy little hands.”
“You got to Santos.”
“Your friend in the smuggling business?” Pax shoots Liam a smug smile. “Yeah. He wasn’t hard to smoke out.”
“So how do you expect this to go down?” Liam inches forward. “Do you really think I’m going to let you take her from me?”
Pax tilts his head. “You’re right. You could probably stop me—if you’re lucky enough.” He pauses, the thin quirk of his mouth becoming cockier by the second. “Lucky for me, I brought backup.”
Liam’s face pales. “They’re here?”
“All twelve of us, reunited. Isn’t this a wonderful occasion for celebration?”
All twelve of them…
Sebastian is here…and Pax is herding me toward him.
Naked.
“Put a pair of pants on,” Pax snaps at the Liam. “I’m sure no one but your partner in crime here wants to see your junk.”
“She’s not to blame for this.” Liam’s deep voice seems to vibrate the walls, but underneath his bluster, I sense fear rising in him. “I drugged and kidnapped her. I forced her cooperation under duress. She’s the victim here.”
Pax laughs. “She looks thoroughly fucked and too satisfied to be under duress.” He shoves me through the doorway. “The Brotherhood will decide the level of her victimhood for themselves based on her questionable appearance.”
It happens in slow motion.
It happens in the blink of an eye.
The entire Brotherhood greets me in the living room, masculine bodies crowding the modest space. Off to the side, lurking on the outskirts in moody fashion, stands the man a huge part of me fell for at the innocent age of twelve.
But there’s nothing reassuring about the glower on Sebastian’s face, the wrath in his icy blue eyes, the fury in the bunch of his fists. He drags his gaze over my naked body, expression contemptuous and accusatory. The whole time we take each other in, trading pleas and foregone conclusions, mere seconds pass.
It’s all the time he needs to pass judgement. To see beyond the exposed evidence of my betrayal.
He sees straight to the conflicted halves of my heart.
A magnetism of love and devastation come together in his expression. He wants to say something—I feel the burden of his anger heavy in the air.
Instead, Sebastian makes his escape through the front door, slamming it upon his furious exit.
“W-wait.” I finally find my voice, but it’s too late. The moment feels like an omen.
Landon clears his throat. “He’ll cool down,” he says, keeping his attention on my bare feet.
Because he’s my brother, and I’m on display in a circle of men, unclothed and disgraced. If I needed a reminder of just how sick and wrong this situation is, it’s staring at me in the form of a man who shares my blood and has no business setting eyes on my naked body.
It’s evident in the defeat on Liam’s face when he emerges from the hall.
Mostly, it’s the sordid dynamics present in this room, and every one of us holds the blame.
My fault for not standing up for myself sooner, and their fault…for remaining ignorant of common decency and honor.
Letting go of my neck, Pax jerks his head toward the bedroom. “Get dressed. It’s time to go home, my queen.”
10
Going home is a long process of boat rides, an arduous commute in a SUV motorcade, and a final flight on a jet. As we land on the Brotherhood’s private airstrip twenty-four hours later, the jolting change of circumstances finally sinks in, becoming real.
Liam and I weathered the storm two nights ago just to face a bigger one now that we’re back on the island.
We return to the tower, and Pax has a firm grip on my arm as we descend into the dungeon. He ushers me down the hall in the back, toward that secret room where horrible decisions are made, the members of the Brotherhood following on our heels. It’s surreal to be back here—almost as if time reversed and the thirteen of us landed in the month of Virgo all over again.