Page 239 of Assassin

“I have to go to him. I have to be the one who stops him. I’m their only chance. They can’t do it. If I face him down, I can stop him. I’m the only way to lure him out of his hidey-hole. Without me, they will fail. With each hour, he gets further from being caught.”

Oh, fuck.

He sat up straight and tried to rationalize with her.

“No, no, you don’t. They’ll figure it out. Facing him…you don’t know if you’ll be able to handle him. He’s not some stranger, Aly. He’s a well-trained killer.”

“And that’s why I have to do it. He’s not some Joe off the street who hasn’t a clue. If he knows that I’m here and alive, it will fill him with rage and make him come out. He won’t be able to not do it. He won’t care if it’s a trap. He’ll want to break me.”

She put her elbows on her knees and stared at him. For the last hour, she was thinking about her life, and this man. She was thinking about having the ability to get Alexsandr, and all it would take was her life.

For the life of the rest of the family.

That seemed worth it.

It was a sacrifice she was willing to make. He was right. She didn’t know if she would freeze and be helpless or not.

But it was a chance.

One this group of people didn’t have. At some point, Alexsandr would get a hold of his other assassins, and the game would start all over again.

That was worse.

After talking to Jinx last night, she did finally feel like family. When they came in after the bank, she almost expected them to tell Maura about her connection to Alexsandr.

Only, they didn’t.

They kept her secret when it would be easy to use her to be safe—to keep innocent children safe.

While she could never have kids, she loved them, and the mere thought of Elizabeth’s children murdered because she was a coward…

It didn’t sit right with her.

“Aly…”

She stopped him.

“I’m the only one with the power to stop him, Jax. I’m the only one who can draw him out. I know the risks.”

Tears filled his eyes because he didn’t believe she’d be able to face him down. She was too broken.

“He’ll hurt you.”

She stared into his eyes and felt so much love.

“I know, but look at the cost. Everyone here has been kind to me, and Dad…”

“He will protect you,” he offered. “I’ll protect you. We can…”

She moved onto the bed and stopped him.

“Jax, he’ll always be the boogeyman. If I don’t do this, he’ll always chase me because he’ll be free here. He’ll find other women to do what was done to me. He’ll train a new Two, Three, Four, Five, and Six. He’ll just replace them because they were nothing to him.”

He touched her cheek.

“Please,” he whispered. He was afraid to lose her. She was his heart.

She mimicked his motion.

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