Page 6 of Hunted
That’s the last thing I remember before I fall into a deep sleep in the arms of one of the men I love.
Chapter three
Darla
“Ijust can’t get over it,” Bower’s voice breaks into my mind as I begin to stir. “What are the chances that we end up stranded on the exact same island as your ex-girlfriend?”
“Not ex,” Reece growls out as I try to figure out where I am. I feel the soft mattress underneath me and realize we must be in the hut. Did Bower carry me up here while I was sleeping? I must have been exhausted.
“Where did those mercenaries come from, anyway? Which of us were they here for?” Weston asks.
“I—” Reece seems to cut himself off before starting again. “I have no idea who they were or what they were doing here. Why would any of you have hired killers after you?”
“Hired killers?” I ask, unable to stay silent at the thought of trained assassins coming after my men. I open my eyes and Kingsley, who’s sitting beside me, helps me move into a seated position as I look around the hut.
It’s getting a bit tight in here. Bower sits in the hammock and Weston is in the chair, while Reece leans against the open doorway. I can see it’s getting dark out, so it must be close to nighttime now.
“I think it’s time we all have a conversation about how we ended up here,” Kingsley says, looking around at each of us, waiting for nods of approval.
“Zee… Uh, Darla, why don’t you go first, since you were the first to arrive? You don’t have to talk about the crash, just what led up to it?”
I nod as I try to recall what I’d told them before and what Reece would have known about me and my dad going to Perth.
“Well, our trip was rather last minute, if you remember?” I ask, looking up at Reece, who nods solemnly.
“I barely had time to say goodbye to you before we left. On the way to the airport, my dad said we were flying to Kenya, where the charity division of The Danver’s Group was located.” I look at Kingsley as I explain, “That’s my family's company.”
I glance around at the others before I continue. “When we got to Kenya, he made me stay at the hotel while he went somewhere. I don’t know where he went or what he saw, but when he came back to get me, he looked like he’d seen a ghost. He dragged me back to the airport, saying we needed to go see my grandfather in Australia.”
Thinking back, there was so much I didn’t know, and I wish my dad had explained it to me. “My dad met with my grandfather, Edward, and the man who oversees the charity division of the Danvers Group for him, Frank Hayes. When the three of them spoke, I wasn’t allowed to be in the room with them, but my dad looked really upset afterwards and said we needed to immediately head back to Kenya again. I remember being confused, and I kept asking what was going on, but he refused to tell me. He said he’d explain it later.”
I try to remember back to that day, the day we left Perth, but after all this time, it’s rather foggy. “Frank helped us get a private plane. I thought he was coming with us, since it was literally his job to oversee the charity, but he and my dad got into an argument, and we left without him. There were only three of us on the plane. The pilot, my dad, and I.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, not wanting to think about the next part, but knowing I need to tell Reece. “Something happened. A few hours into the flight. The plane was shaking and the pilot said nothing was working. The controls were completely silent, like the plane had lost power. After that, I’m not sure if we hit something or if it was an explosion, but the plane went down, and the pilot didn’t survive.”
“Fuck, I’m sorry, Darla,” Reece says, looking pained.He doesn’t even know the half of it.
Averting my gaze, I continue. “Afterwards, my dad told me the crash wasn’t an accident, that someone wanted him dead. Unfortunately, he never got a chance to tell me why, but I have a feeling it has to be something to do with what he saw in Kenya.”
“You think it was Frank?” Bower asks, but when I look at him, I realize he’s asking Reece, not me. I frown in confusion.
“What did you guys find out when you spoke to him?” Reece asks Bower.
“Wait—What are you talking about? You guys know Frank? Frank Hayes?” I ask, sitting up straighter as I try to piece it together.
Reece nods, looking at me with pity as he replies, “Yeah, we all know him. My dad has been running your family’s business, the Danver’s Group, for the past ten years.”
I frown at him in confusion. “I don’t understand. Why would Richard be running it? Why isn’t my grandfather Edward running it anymore?”
Reece sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Darla, I’m sorry to tell you this, but your grandfather passed away almost ten years ago.”
“Oh.” That’s the only response that I can think of. I didn’t know him very well. I’d met him twice and the last time I’d only spent about an hour with him. I hadn’t really thought about him much while I was out here. He hadn’t seemed very well when I last saw him, so I’m not exactly surprised.
“When that happened, the business should have gone to your dad, but since he was missing, it went to mine as he was listed next on his will.” He turns his eyes to Weston as he explains.
“My dad was her dad and grandfather’s attorney. They were really close. Frank continued to run the charity division for us from Australia. When I was old enough, my dad brought me into the business more, but he never really shared much about the charity division. I reviewed the Danver’s Group annual reports every year, but this year, I noticed something strange. Some of the numbers didn’t add up.” He glances at me for a moment before continuing.
“Everything pointed to the charity group and Frank. Although I wasn’t exactly sure what he was doing, I knew it was likely embezzling, but I couldn’t prove it. I couldn’t find any more details and didn’t want my dad to know I was looking into it since he trusted Frank and would probably deny his involvement out of loyalty to him.”
