Page 243 of Never Fall for an Angel

Nothing.

“Mila?”

I spin, finding Bella behind me, her eyes wide and full of tears. Her lip is busted, and there’s a bruise on her cheek, but otherwise, she looks unharmed.

—Except for the gun pointed at her head.

“Talia . . .”

She rolls her eyes.

“As if you didn’t figure it out by now. Ratting me out with that stupid cell phone.”

I fucking knew it.

“Mila . . .” Bella whimpers.

“Just let Bella go.” Fuck, I don’t like how her finger is hovering over the trigger.

“Or what? You’re going to tell Christian?” Talia giggles—like a real,I will eat your heartgiggle and presses the barrel of the gun tighter against Bella’s forehead.

“Talia,” I say, trying to keep my voice calm when all I really want to do is grab Bella and bolt. “Think about this. That’s his sister. You shoot her, he willneverforgive you.”

“Christian never cared about me. Not the way he cares about you,” she sneers. “But Sebastian does. Sebastian made me feel whole when Christian left me high and dry when we were supposed to get married.”

Because you drugged him, raped him, and lied about a fake pregnancy . . .

“I saw the way he chased after you at the banquet. It was pathetic.”

Bella’s eyes flick to mine, and I nod my head ever so slightly. She stares at me a beat before her eyes widen, then very carefully, she adjusts her footing.

“It’s you he wants, Talia. He married me because he had to. Because he was forced.” Ihatesaying those words, but I can see by the vengeance in her eyes that it’s working. “If you deliver Bella to him, what kind of chance have I got?”

She cocks her head, grinning from ear to ear.

She thinks she’s won.

It’s at that moment the crunch of glass sounds behind me, and I only have a second to react.

“Bella, run!”

Bella stomps on the toe of Talia’s expensive riding boots and bolts right as someone grabs the back of my head and drags me back.

“Hello, Mila,” Sebastian fucking Cross greets, a wicked grin on his face that looks so much like my husband’s, it’s instantlyunnerving. “Miss me?” He rears back, a syringe in hand, and bites the cap off.

“NO!” I screech, ripping at his hand in my hair, but he manages to sink the needle into the side of my neck, and an instant warm sensation washes over me.

Oh, fuck. This is bad.

Sebastian drops me to the ground, and the earth spins around me, the ceiling overhead coming in and out of focus.

“That should shut her up.”

“I was enjoying the screams,” Talia says, stepping closer. A tear slips down my cheek. My tongue feels weightless, and my legs won’t move. Whatever he gave me, it’s a whole lot stronger than what Christian had used. “What about Bella?”

“Let her go. Let her crawl back to her family and tell them I’ve got her.”

“And the money? I thought we were just taking the money?”

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