Page 116 of The Boss

Once inside and safely behind a locked door, I leaned against it. Now it was time to wait.

If I could stand doing so.

I peeked out the front window through the blinds, unable to see anything but vehicles driving back and forth on the street. My nerves were already shot. I guess I wouldn’t make a good double agent.

A nervous laughed erupted from my throat. The ragged sound was a bitter reminder I was in over my head.

Twenty minutes passed and all I could to was pace and wring my hands. I’d turned on a single light, constantly rubbing my fingers on the necklace Dimitrios had given me.

Another ten minutes and I was close to sobbing. I’d never felt so utterly helpless in my life.

When another fifteen came and went, I had to face the possibility Shane was no longer alive.

A quick blipping noise caught my attention. A text.

I yanked the phone from my back pocket, holding my breath as I prayed my brother was alive and still cared about me.

Shane:I’m here.

Me:Come to the front door.

Excitement tore through me and I hesitated before pressing another button on my phone and placing it on the small dining room table.

Oh, fuck. Oh, holy fuck. With fumbling fingers, I opened the door. Shane rushed inside, closing and locking immediately before moving toward the front blinds. He closed the slats and backed away from the window.

I almost didn’t recognize my brother. He was at least twenty pounds heavier, his hair cut extremely short. He was cautious but not nearly as nervous as I was. There was an air of confidence about him. He studied me for a few seconds before taking long strides in my direction, pulling me into a tight hug.

“Oh, baby sister. I’m so sorry. So very sorry.”

“What is going on? Our parents are dead. You were at the villa. I know you were. They think you’re the Stalker, some crazy assassin. Did you kill our parents? Did you kill Leandro Nomikos? Did you?”

“Whoa. Calm down. Take a deep breath. Things aren’t what you’ve heard.”

“Are you the goddamn Stalker?” I pushed myself away, finding a need to search his eyes. My brother could never lie to me. He sucked at it just like…

Dimitrios.

Thinking the handsome Greek’s name only brought another wave of sadness, despair so intense I was faltering with finding the right words.

“No, Willow. I’m not the Stalker. Why would you think that?”

“Your name was mentioned. People are talking.”

“What people?” Shane demanded.

I refused to answer. He didn’t deserve any information from me. It was the other way around.

“Dimitrios Nomikos. Your fiancé.” He huffed. “What the fuck did you do?”

“What did I do? Are you kidding me right now? You disappeared and the single time you took my call, you told me to run. From what? Bad men. Which bad men? There are a hell of a lot of them. Including you.”

“We need to get you out of the country.”

I took a step away. “I’m not going anywhere until I learn the truth. Why were our parents murdered in cold blood?” The sadness in my voice had switched to pure rage.

My brother dared to take two steps in my direction and my instincts kicked in. Reaching behind my back, I yanked the weapon Dimitrios had provided into my hand. The moment I pointed the barrel at my brother, a sob escaped.

“Willow. What are you doing?” He threw out his hands, his face clearly showing the shock he felt.

---