Page 110 of Curse of the Wicked Scoundrel (The Shadows 3)

“Good luck, lovey,” he whispered, helped her sit up, and opened the door with a flourish.

Eloise sprung out of the carriage without waiting for the step to be lowered. She was used to jumping out of hackney cabs. She wasn’t a noble lady, she was a thief-taker’s sister, after all. She ran toward the mansion with all her might. No guards stood outside the doors, and she briefly thought that they should.

Didn’t Keyon have guards everywhere?

She opened the heavy doors and ran inside, only to hear the loud bang of a pistol. She covered her ears, and her eyes squeezed shut. She raised her head and through the white smoke of powder, she saw Keyon fall to the floor.

“No!” A scream left her, and she jolted toward him, only to be seized violently by a huge, strong man.

The hairpin fell from her slack fingers, and she was left defenseless in the bandit’s hands.

“Do not move!” Sal sneered between his teeth, as the cold steel of a knife pressed to her neck.

“Sal, you traitor! Let me go!” she yelled.

He turned her toward the door and as much as she twisted, she could not see whether Keyon got up or kept lying on the cold marble floor. Was he still alive? Was he gravely injured? Tears sprang to her eyes.

“Let go of me!” she managed.

Sal put a hand to her throat and squeezed, making it hard to breathe.

“You shall come with me, shield me from their pistols, and then I shall let you go.”

“Somehow, you do not inspire confidence,” she croaked.

“No, but I can inspire fear. And that’s enough,” he said and dragged her away.

* * *

Eloise’s scream pierced Hades’ heart.

It was impossible. Eloise wasn’t in his house anymore. Surely, it was a hallucination. Perhaps he’d died and gone to heaven. But why would she scream in heaven? Wasn’t it supposed to be a peaceful place, one to bring him nothing but salvation?

Besides, who would ever let a man, a criminal with the devil’s name, through the pearly gates? Then it must be hell. And he’d have to relive the painful memory of having Eloise in his grasp and then letting her go.

Hades struggled to sit up. He looked at Sal and what he saw made his heart constrict. Sal held Eloise by the nape, his fingers digging into her hair, a knife at her throat. He dragged her away, holding her in a way that made it impossible for anyone to shoot him without the risk of injuring Eloise.

Hades roared, his fingers digging into fists. Eloise was there. But he had failed her again. He put a hand to his injured side and winced from the pain.

A hand appeared before his face, and Hades lifted his eyes. Garric stood in front of him, his hand outstretched, his features screaming fury. Hades took the hand, and Garric helped him up.

Garric had loved Ava. That much was obvious to everyone all along. But being betrayed by his trusted friend must have felt like an enormous blow.

“Do not fret, Garric. We’ll all have our revenge,” Hades said darkly.

Garric’s eyes traveled lower, and Hades followed his gaze. Blood dripped from the wound at his side, and he just noticed that it burned. He put his hand on it and winced. It didn’t seem like a terrible wound, more like a graze. Lucky for him, Sal had turned out to be a mediocre shot.

He would make certain to show him how to properly shoot a man to cause the most amount of pain, and the least amount of mercy.

Hades looked around. Men were just gathering in the hall.

When he’d confronted Sal, he wanted to do it privately, quietly. He didn’t want to involve anyone else. But the man was preparing to run off and the entire thing got out of control. Men dashed out of their rooms now just in time to see Sal’s defection. They were looking confused and lost. Hades did not have time to explain anything though. He had a traitor to catch.

Hades ran out of the house, Garric on his heels. Where did the bastard go? He looked around. A few feet away, William stood, unhitching horses from his carriage. Hades ran toward him, and Garric put a gun to the back of William’s head.

William raised his arms. “No need for threats. I am willing to let you borrow one of my horses if you promise to murder that woman-killing bastard.”

“Why would you help us?” Hades took the reins of one horse and mounted easily.

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