Page 92 of Torched

I frown, following his gaze until my chin dips to the black-haired serpent next to me. Her bruised cheek is up to her ear, an arrogant smile cutting her lips. “I’m a little beaten up, but I see you settled the score.”

I huff, suddenly understanding what’s going on, and Kane rolls his eyes next to me.

“What, this?” Dax pets the bruise on Gen’s cheek, and she jerks her head away. “This is nothing compared to what happened to your pretty face. I think maybe we need to even it out.”

“Hurt her again, and whatever you want, the deal is off. I will burn this entire island down if I have to,” I bark.

“Calm down, Liam,” he taunts. “Everything is fine. We will all be fine.” Then he puts his attention on Cristina again. “You were right, he really loves this one.”

“Fucking hell, you’re fucking him, aren’t you?” Kane chuckles, but it’s diabolical as fuck. “Of course you are.” He rapidly pulls his gun from his waistband, then yanks Cristina out of my grasp and puts his gun to the back of her head. “I’m done playing games. You can have the bitch and the diamond. I just want my sister-in-law back and breathing before my wife will have my ass. And she’s way scarier than you are.” He pushes the barrel of the gun deeper into her head to support his threat.

Dax’s teasing expression grows stern. “Fine. Untie her, and we’ll let them walk toward the middle at the same time.”

“Untie Imogen,” I counter.

He pulls out a knife from his back pocket and Kane moves his finger deeper on the trigger while taking a step forward. Dax ignores him, putting the knife between Gen’s wrists and cutting her loose with one swift move. “Untie her!” Dax commands, nudging his head to Cris.

I untie her, then shove her forward. “Go. Your owner is calling.”

She gives me a final glare over her shoulder before she moves forward with a swing in every pop of her hip, and I follow closely behind her. Gen does the same, followed by Dax, rubbing her wrists from the tightness of the rope. Both Cristina and Gen don’t take their eyes off each other the whole way.

“He’sit, isn’t he?” Imogen taunts Cristina when we get closer. “The one who makes you feel?”

I notice a stiff jerk in Cristina’s shoulders before she relaxes them. “Shut up,Genny.”

“Really?Damn, I must be right, then.” Gen chuckles. “Are you two seeing this?” She gives Kane and me an amused expression. “Crissyfell in love with the big, bearded man, isn’t that cute?”

“Shut up.” Dax shoves her forward until Cristina and Imogen are standing only three feet apart. The move makes Gen stumble, but as soon as she straightens her back, she gives Cristina a wide smile.

“I guess he loves you too. Too bad it’s only a matter of time before either one of you screws the other over. After all”—Gen lowers her voice with an ominous tone—“no one can truly love a bastard child, right?”

“You bitch!” Cristina howls before hell erupts inside the chapel.

32

IMOGEN

PRESENT DAY

Iwanttohurther. I want to poke her and make her lose control. My little chat with Dax only confirmed to me what I already knew: Cristina Reyes is nothing more than a burned child. A little girl longing for the recognition of her father. Her attention and affection are conditional, completely corrupted to the core. She made her lifelong mission to grow the power she lacked as a child, seeing love as nothing more than a weakness. But life played her just like she played everyone else.

“You bitch!” Cristina’s screech puts me on high alert, but not fast enough. She lowers herself and sweeps my feet from under my body with one solid kick, and before I know it, the air is knocked from my lungs when I land my back on the cold concrete. I gasp for air as she jumps on top of me, the sting of her right hook going through my scalp before I can catch it. From the corner of my eye, I see Liam attacking Dax, punches going back and forth in one big daze, and a lot of screaming. For a heartbeat that feels like a minute, I recall everything Liam taught me while I try to ward off any more attacks she throws my way.

When she raises her fist again, I register the raging look on her face, her eyes more crazed than ever. The realization that she won’t hesitate to kill hits me harder than her right hook ever could, and all my training comes rushing back like a freight train. Quickly, I snap up, wrapping my arms around her waist and pulling her upper body toward mine. With my leg, I lock hers, making it so she’s unable to move it, then hook my arm around her shoulder. She’s trying to squirm out of my grasp, but I hold her tight against my chest.

I focus all my energy on my other side, like Liam taught me, then grumble in her ear, “Meet the new Genny, Cris.”

With all the strength I can gather, I swing my body up and over hers, rolling on top of her. My instinct is to strangle her until her eyes pop out, but an arm circles my body and lifts me into the air before I can wrap my palms around her neck. A salvo of gunshots bangs through the roof, clouds of dust drifting over us, catching everyone’s attention. Automatically, I try to wiggle myself to freedom, until I notice Kane’s tattooed arm pointing a gun at Cristina before he lets me go. She freezes in terror, suddenly looking fragile and insecure when she peers up at Kane’s scowl. He gives off the energy he’s known for. The one that has no mercy. The one that will never hesitate to kill. The one that would scare me to death if it was aimed at me, but now it only feeds my confidence, knowing that these men are part ofmyteam. My family.

“Stop or she fucking dies now.” His voice echoes through the empty and hollow chapel, loud enough to make Dax and Liam look up. Dax lowers himself in the little distraction Liam got, then pulls another gun from a side pocket of his camo pants before he takes a step back, straightens his body, and points the firearm on Liam with his chin held high. But in the blink of an eye, Liam anticipates his move and does the same. Nostrils flare. Complexions flush. Breaths heave. They both glare and look into the barrel of the other’s gun while giving Kane a side glance every few seconds.

Nobody says a word, stuck at a standstill, until Jeremy opens the door with a loud thud. Both teams trot inside with a precision that almost looks rehearsed, incited by the commotion inside the chapel, I assume. Dax’s team comes to stand behind him and Jeremy and our men line up, covering our backs. I’m surprised the men didn’t start shooting each other outside.

The tension is as sharp as a machete while we wait for anyone to make a move.

Dax glances at Cristina with a crooked smile, almost as if there’s a silent conversation going on between the two of them before she parts her lips. I keep moving my gaze back and forth to figure out what’s going on, seeing shock take over her face. The little hope that was left inside of the wench that made it her mission to terrorize us is vanishing before our eyes when the time ticks further and Dax keeps his mouth shut. Whatever she expected him to be, he’s quietly making it clear there is a change of plans.

The look in Cristina’s eyes becomes frantic, as if suddenly she knows she’s out of hand. There is no more wild card, no more secret play. This is it.

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