Page 36 of The Broken Queen
We began running, while I asked from over my shoulder, “The driver?”
Adrian’s hand came to the small of my back, helping me up the hill. “Ketamine. Markos has ways of ensuring he’s alerted if his men are killed or if the vehicle goes off course.”
“Who are we meeting?” Alex asked, hiking up the loose gravel that began sliding under our feet. We both wore leggings and closed toe shoes because Adrian had made a big production of how we were going to the countryside to walk and explore, and needed the appropriate clothing to do so. Now I knew he was just preparing us.
My legs burned from lack of training and my regular exercise routine. While I’d done walking, swimming, and some combo drills in Adrian’s gym, I wasn’t nearly as toned or as well prepared as I used to be with Scotty in charge of my training.
“We’re meeting your brothers …” He trailed off.
Alex swung her gaze over to me as we locked eyes.
The twins were here.
My stomach flipped for an entirely new reason. Hate, hurt, and anger…it all swirled in my chest like a storm, forcing my lungs to ache and a burn to develop behind the backs of my eyes.
I hadn’t been home in almost a year, and if I knew they wouldn’t be there, then perhaps I’d feel a little bit better about returning, but the fact that I had already texted them sat like a fat elephant between us. I’d unblocked them both when Alex had arrived that first night because I knew if they had to get in touch with me regarding her, I’d need to already have that done. How I didn’t realize that I had opened an old thread, when I started texting Kingston, I had no clue.
Embarrassed wasn’t even the right word, and not because I was worried about Gio’s feelings. I was just ashamed that I had allowed Kingston to get under my skin so effectively.
“There,” Adrian said, nodding toward a small stone house that sat in shambles. Large overgrown trees hung low, providing significant coverage. We continued walking toward the house, allthe while my stomach seemed to drop completely out. Adrian could be walking us to our deaths, or the twins could decide to snatch Alex and leave me to die.
My eyes were on the ground, not even focused, when I felt Alex wrap her fingers around mine. I glanced up, seeing her reassuring smile, and felt a small wave of warmth invade my chest. It would be okay. Whatever was behind that door, it would be okay.
I heard the small kick of a stone and glanced up, seeing someone in a bulletproof vest, standing on the roof…or what was left of it.
“Stop there,” the man shouted.
Adrian paused and tried to reach for me, but I stepped away right as someone opened the door to the house. I froze in place as I locked eyes with a set of cool, gray eyes, followed by a pair of angry golden ones.
Fire trapped behind glass.
I stared, unmoving, while the twins emerged, both carrying high- powered rifles against their chests, covered in bulletproof vests. Kingston inspected me slowly and then moved his gaze to his sister.
“You okay, Alex?”
She nodded. “Just ready to go home.”
I didn’t like the prick of pain that unfurled in my heart at his obvious dismissal, but I should have known this was the game Kingston would play. He knew he was in the wrong, that he’d hurt me, and yet, months later, instead of acting apologetic in any way, he just kept pushing me away, punishing me for something that didn’t require penance.
Gio’s attention was on me, but kept going back to a certain man who took up a protective position behind him. Gio spoke in Spanish to said man, but I caught the name, Henry. Moments later, an entire group of men shuffled around the building and began removing tree branches from concealing a helicopter.
“They’re ten minutes out,” Adrian said, glancing at his phone.
“Got it,” Gio replied, while Henry began speaking into a walkie.
Adrian stepped closer to the twins. “They’ll shoot at you.”
“We’ll get enough altitude before they do,” Kingston replied, leading us to the side of the helicopter. They’d yet to fire up the engine, so I turned to Adrian, suddenly fearful that this would be the last time I saw him. As angry as I was at him, I was disgustingly attached to the idea of being with him. Of him protecting me from the twins and offering me an out where they were concerned. It was artificial, and yet as Alex boarded the aircraft, I hung back.
“Would you…” I started and saw a vulnerability in Adrian’s gaze that made my throat tight. He stepped closer and gently pulled my hands into his.
“Ask me anything, and I’ll give it to you.”
I felt the twins hover nearby, but I didn’t pay them any attention as I stepped closer to my fiancé. “Would you come with me?”
His mouth twitched the smallest amount, so much that it nearly looked like a smile.
“Of course you’d ask that, the one thing I can’t give you.”
