Page 73 of Wildest Dreams

“Well, well, well...” I hear his voice before I see him and my skin prickles with goosebumps. Slowly lifting my head, my eyes meet his.

Lucian.

“Pretty good aim for a useless little girl.”

I crinkle my nose, arms wrapped around my knees that are bent up.

I wish I could ignore him.

“Not that useless when I shot one of your guys dead with a bullet to the temple,” I shake my head from side to side.

He laughs.

I drop my head again, not wanting to give into the fear that is currently crippling me as the seconds pass.

His boots scuffle across the dirt that sits just in front of me, and my eyes are pinned to them, dirty and scuffed.

“We're leaving in four weeks, I suggest you get yourself packed up.”

Snapping my head up to look at him, my eyes widen.

“Who said I am leaving?”

He rolls his eyes. “We have a show...”

“There is nowe. I am not leaving. I don't want to leave with you.”

He lowers himself in front of me, black eyes on me.

“Who said you had a choice?” he reaches out and grabs the top of my arm, squeezing tightly as he drags me to my feet. “Remember why you came back here, Dixie? This was always the plan.” His finger runs across my bottom lip, “We already eradicated one problem; the focus is the gold mines. We said we would split it three ways… Unlike somegreedyassholes.”

“I didn’t want to be part of the plan, I left you, I gave you all I had and told you it was over,” I try and pull my arm from his grip, but he just tightens it. “I came back here for Clay, and to get what is rightfully mine—his money—I need it for Lainey. I don’t care about anything else; I have no interest in being your mole.”

The sound of the back of Lucian’s hand marking my cheek fills the emptiness, my head spinning from the force and tears sting behind my eyes. “If you do not do as I say, I will take the Rivera Family out one by fucking one and make you watch as I sink a bullet between their eyes.” His tone is cold, heartless, “Then I’ll kill Lainey.”

Swallowing the bile that coats my throat, my eyes fill with unshed tears.

“And I mean it Dixie, I want to know everything those bastard boys are up to in regard to the gold mines, that's my golden ticket, and if you play along, it'll be yours too,”

he shoves me back and I fall onto the steps of my childhood home with a crash, pain radiating up my back.

“Do you understand me?” he asks, his eyes steady on mine and all I do is nod.

“Good,” he stands tall, brushing his hands off of invisible dust. “Wallen is meeting up with the big suits that Clay was in dealings with next week, so hopefully he gets a move on with taking over the land too. We're sitting on a damn goldmine…literally.”

I stay mute.

“I'll see you in four weeks,” Lucian says and I bury my head back in my hands, and when I finally look up, he is gone.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

RIGGS

Galloping along the creek, I am starting to panic when I can't find her. She wasn't back home at the ranch, mom said she hadn't seen her since dad run her back to the hospital.

I'm not one to panic normally. But after what happened today, I am on high alert.

I approach the edge of the town, just at the foot of the mountains, when I see a little beaten up house and I realise it's Dixie's childhood home. Kicking Travis on, I gallop across the dirt track that leads me to where I see Dixie sitting, head tucked onto her knees, arms wrapped around them. She looks so small sitting there.

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