Page 238 of Enigma: The Complete Collection
“No, please.” My voice is weak and scratchy as I fight against his hold.
Ignoring me, he unscrews the lid of a plastic bottle and pours vaporizing liquid onto the cloth, drenching it with so much wetness, liquid flows off the desk and puddles onto the floor.
“I will do as you ask. I’ll do anything,” I beg, knowing my best chance to staying alive is by following the three C’s—being conscious, calm, and cooperative.
My pleas go unanswered when he places the soaking wet cloth over my mouth and nose. My throat sets on fire as the dryness of my eyes intensifies. Because of the potent strength of the ammonium, my vision blurs until he's nothing but a mush of black and white clouds.
“That should settle you down until he returns.”
When he releases me from his grip, my stomach heaves as it fights against the disgusting chemical seeping through it. When the room’s spins become too intense, my knees buckle. Just before I hit the rigid concrete floor, I’m caught by a broad set of arms, and the scent of chemicals is replaced with the smell of bottled cologne.
“What did you do?” Unlike the man who just drugged me, this one doesn’t have a heavy accent.
“She was trying to escape. She hit me with a fucking barbell.”
A groan vibrates through my chest. “You were warned not to touch a strand of hair on her head!” Sprays of the spit flying out of his mouth land on my overheated cheek.
“How was I to know she’d wake earlier than expected? I put a heap of chloroform on the cloth. It should’ve knocked her out for hours. Where have you been anyway? I’m sick of waiting around for you.”
“I was fixing your fucking errors by dumping the car. I said no weapons, so why were you carrying a gun?”
“Protection. Do you know who she's linked to?” I wince in pain when the man holding me like a rag-doll tightens his grip. “She's Isaac Holt’s girl.”
“I'm not worried about him.”
The other man laughs. “Then that makes you a dead man walking. When he finds out you've taken her, he won’t stop until he finds her.”
When a stretch of silence crosses between them, I try to peer at the man carrying me through the fog coating my eyes. His features are distorted like I’m looking at him through a kaleidoscope. With my vision lacking, I try to speak, but my words are logged in my burning throat.
My bones jump out of my skin, even though I don’t physically move, when he screams, “Get out!” at the top of his lungs.
“My—”
“Your payment is on the table,” he interrupts. “Your services are no longer required.”
“Whatever, it’s your funeral, man.”
A door slamming shut booms into my ears as my eyelids grow too heavy for me to fight. No longer having the strength to keep them open, they drift shut just as a calloused hand removes strands of hair that have fallen onto my face.
“It’s okay, Isabelle. Go to sleep. This will all be over soon.”
My last thoughts go to Isaac.
CHAPTER3
ISAAC
For the slightest second, fear hazes my usually impenetrable composure. It’s soon replaced with adrenaline as my need to protect Isabelle surges through my blood. Even though everything I’ve feared the past few months is coming to fruition, now is not the time for my composure to fail.
For years, I’ve been waiting for Col to swing the ax he’s been grinding since the death of Ophelia, but his threat of retribution was never more than callous words fired off a vindictive tongue. That only changed as I now have someone significant in my life he can seek vengeance on, but Isabelle’s presence also means I’ve upped my game, ensuring I’m ready for his strike.
My gaze lifts to Hunter, who’s seated in the chair across from me. His laptop is balanced on his knees as he awaits further instructions. “Hugo said he was last on Tivot. Bring up all the CCTV cameras in the area. We're looking for a white Range Rover. Also, call Tallis back. If Col so much as sneezes, I want to know.”
I know this is Col. I can feel it in my bones.
Hunter nods as his fingers fly over his keyboard at a lightning pace. I hit the speed dial for Henry’s cell, then press my phone to my ear. He answers on the very first ring. “Isaac.”
“The King has decided it’s time to remove the final pawn from the chessboard. He needs to protect his queen.”
