Page 56 of Red

I don’t even feel like responding to her. Isthatwhat concerns her at this moment? Yes, I’m wearing her damn red wool Dior coat, so what?

She gives me a phony smile. “I understand this might be a little upsetting. Please, allow meto explain.”

“Thanks, I’m not interested.”

Her demeanor changes, and as she waves, a soldier steps out of the car with Greg, holding a gun to his head. My heart shatters, seeing him bound and gagged, scared to death.

“Release him!” I yell and Alex has to hold me from launching.

“We can do this the easy way, or the hard one, if that’s how you want it. But you will come with us.”

“Can I kill her?” Alex growls next to my ear.

“Not yet,” I whisper.

“Hard way it is then,” she says.

The other military man, who sits in the front passenger side and seems to be in charge, issues a command. A few more squad vehicles pop up on the horizon, and I can also hear a chopper arriving nearby.

I feel the need to vomit, knowing damn well what’s coming. “How could you do this to me!” I accuse, glaring atSenator Nancy Carter—I will no longer call her my grandmother.

“Oh, honey, don’t be dramatic! I gave you Dean. Trust me, I was convinced you couldn’t do better than him.” Her eyes move up on Alex. “Clearly, how wrong was I! You got yourself aking.”

A king?

Nancy must notice the shocked look on my face because she ridicules, “He didn’t tell you, did he? Well, I suppose if I were the antichrist, I wouldn’t introduce myself that way either.”

The antichrist?

My mind races, trying to process. He snarls behind me and I realize she’s one wrong word away from him snapping.

“It’s time to go.” She pulls out her hand.

I flinch. “You won’t keep me imprisoned!”

“Imprisoned? No, you’re family! I wouldn’t do that to you! Michelle could walk freely after you were born. Of course, I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. I need aboyfrom you.”

“You disgust me.”

“I’ll even let you keep your partner.” Once again, she looks at Alex. “I’dloveyour firstborn son, Alexander Marduk.”

Marduk… Why does this sound familiar?

Faster than anyone can react, Alex’s hand reaches over me and sinks inside her chest. All the blood vessels burst in the whites of her eyes as she stares right at me, a haze slowly covering her irises.

He rips her heart out, crushing it inside hisfist, and the blood spills from her mouth before she collapses.

Short of even a moment to register what has just happened, Alex sweeps me up and tosses onto his back. Sprinting toward the woods, he keeps dodging away from the machine gun.

I can hear the whirring of helicopter blades slicing through the air right above us. Together with some vicious fight sounds in the distance. It becomes clear that, despite being unprepared and outnumbered, Alex’s family attacked the military on the ground. But my face is buried in his fur as I’m too terrified to look behind.

Before we reach the shelter under the trees, Alex gets hit and tumbles down. Careful not to lose me, he turns to check on me, his eyes soften with concern. "Are you hurt?"

“No, but you are.” I promptly examine his body to find a couple of gunshot wounds. “Is it silver?”

He nods in response, confirming he’s not at a hundred percent anymore. He doesn’t seem to care much as he assumes the position, shielding me. “Stay close to me.”

He doesn’t need to tell me twice. I cowardly hide behind him, shadowing his moves.

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