Page 164 of Safe and Sound

My breath hitched. “My nephew’s funeral is in the morning.”

“Once again, my deepest sympathies.”

“Fuck. you,” I gritted out.

Christos only chuckled. “Since I will need to fly in from Greece, I’ll call you with the coordinates of our meeting at two.”

“Fine.”

Without a goodbye, he hung up. “I don’t like this idea,” Dare said.

“What choice do we have?” I countered.

Callum nodded. “Ava’s right. We have to at least get her in front of him to figure a way to take him out.”

Dare’s brows disappeared into his hairline. “Are you suggesting Ava take him out?”

“He won’t be expecting it.”

Ignoring his brother, Dare said, “You had a nervous breakdown at the sight of me and Quinn torturing. Do you really think you can be violent and ruthless when it comes down to it?”

At the thought of Nick’s body in my arms, I nodded. “I’ll do whatever I have to make that fucker pay.”

Chapter Forty-Two: Piper

My feets hurt. I stared down at my new black shoes and gave them my bestest mean face. Mommy says making mean faces wasn’t nice. But my shoes wasn’t being nice. They was pinchin’ my piggies.

My hand hurts too. Mommy was holding it too hard. I keep tryin’ to tug away, but she keeps holdin’ me. “Mommy, yous hurtin’ me,” I say.

But she’s not hearin’

She’s cwing. I don’t likes it when she cwies. It makes me want to cwy.

I wants to cwy cause Nick is gone.

Mommy says Nick is in the big box. That he’s gone to Heaven. I don’t wants him to be gone. I wants him here wif me.I wants him to see how Cheeto and Blackie chases the stwing on the wand that he got me.

But he’s gone.

Someone starts to hug Mommy and she dwops my hand. Phew. Dat feels so much better.

Dis funyal is no fun. I wants to go pway with Julesy. I wish I coulda stayed at her house.

I gets pushed in the people. Since no ones watchin’, I back away fwom the big tent we’s under.

I start walkin’ around the stones. Den I hears a puppy bawkin. I sees it! It’s so cute! It’s runnin’ to the trees past the stones.

“Come here, Puppy!” I shout as I start chasin’ it.

I hears my name called, but I dons listen. I gots to get the puppy. I starts runnin’ to get it.

“Puppy!” I shout.

Just as I get to the woods, a man steps in fwont of where the puppy was.

“Hiya, Piper,” he says with a smile.

“Hows you know my name?”

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