Page 70 of Hunted Vengeance

Rage instantly fills my veins at the sound of him calling Colette his bride, but I tamp that down, my heart racing faster and faster with each passing moment. I want to kill him right now. I want to fucking murder him where he stands.

The only thing keeping me from doing that is the fact that there is a hit on both me and Colette. If it were just me, I would have taken him out instantly. The moment he opened his SUV door.

“She’s in the car,” I say.

I hope to fuck that Grayson is watching and keeping his gun ready. “Stay where you are, Merrick,” Ravet orders. “Unlock it from here.”

He knows I have the key. Reaching into my pocket, I pull out the key fob and touch the button, unlocking it. Colette doesn’t need anyone to direct her. I hear the back car door open then close.

Her sneakers make a crunching noise on the gravel behind me, but I can’t turn around to look at her. I’m focused on Ravet, because not only do I not trust him in general, I know that he is evil in every way a person can be.

This man doesn’t have the devil residing inside of him—he is Satan Himself.

“Cancel the contracts,” I grind out as Colette approaches.

“Give me my bride,” Ravet barks.

Marcello takes a half step forward. “In good faith, we have brought Colette here, but the contracts must be canceled. You see her. You know that she is alive and well. She is going to go to you of her own free will.”

“Yes, she will, but not before she’s completed her contractual obligation.”

The door opens, and I watch as another man unfolds from the SUV. I recognize him immediately. No wonder Adriano not only wanted to please Ravet in any way and be beholden to him but also did whatever the fuck he said.

The goddamn secretary of state emerges from the SUV. There is still a driver sitting in the car, but I don’t know about anyone else because the back is too goddamn dark to see anything.

“Her contractual obligation?” I ask.

I know exactly what the fuck he’s talking about, but I want to hear him say it anyway. I want to watch the way his face twists and contorts, and then I want to watch him being wrangled into Marcello’s car before we take him to Adriano’s by gunpoint.

It’s going to be glorious.

“It’s her duty, and this man is going to get what he paid for. I believe that he deserves it after waiting for as long as he has,” Ravet says.

My jaw clenches, and I gnash my teeth together just thinking about this absolute piece of shit. But instead of telling him that I can’t wait to see him die the way I want to, knowing that I can’t, I think I might actually talk Adriano into letting me watch him die.

I don’t think I can walk away from this whole thing without witnessing this absolute monster’s life come to an end.

“She’ll perform this duty before I cancel any contracts.”

My spine straightens. Absolutely fucking not.

Absolutely.

Fucking.

Not.

“Yeah?” Marcello asks, taking the single question from my mouth.

“Exactly this,” Ravet states.

COLETTE

I will not.

I refuse.

My gaze searches the men around me, flicking from the stranger who paid for me to Malcolm, Marcello, and finally, Merrick. He doesn’t look at me, though. His focus is on Malcolm. I don’t know if anyone else can see it, but even in his profile, I can see not only the rage but also the fear that fills him.

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