Page 80 of Rebellious Reign

I don’t. I find myself driving toward Viktor’s estate without a second thought.

“If you don’t do this, Viktor will kill Wryn—I’m sure of it. He’s angry she escaped, and he’s angry you are still alive. He wants both of you finished.”

“Why hasn’t he killed her yet?”

“We think he’s going to try and use her to flush you out.”

“Which is exactly what’s happening.”

“No, he would never do it at his house. He wouldn’t expect you to have the courage to show up here.”

“I—how do I know you aren’t trying to trick me?”

There’s silence on the phone as Francesca is no doubt mulling her words over.

“You don’t. But what other choice do you have?”

None. I know it, and she does too. I’m fucked, and there’re no other options.

“Okay, rest of the plan. While I draw away the guards outside, Lilliana is going to create a diversion inside to get Viktor’s attention. Our hope is that he will leave Wryn to check on her, and then you can sneak into the sitting room. She has two guards on her right now—Frank and Jerry. Both are idiots, and you should be able to take them down with a little effort, although they are big.”

“No, that will put Lilliana at risk of being found helping me. I won’t put her in danger.”

“This is the only choice you have, Connor. Lilliana will be fine. Viktor loves her, dotes on her. He would never harm her.”

I take her words in, letting them cut me. I usually don’t let it affect me—the fact that Viktor never accepted me as his actual grandson. The way he treats Lilliana is such a stark difference from the way he treats me. And although it’s always been evident, I’ve always been good at not letting it get to me, not being bothered by it.

It’s sick that the man wants me dead, and I’m sitting here, lamenting how he never loved me as a child.

“Are you laughing?” Francesca asks.

I stop. I was, and I didn’t even realize it. I had forgotten that we were talking.

“No.”

“Okay, so directions. Listen closely,” she says, then proceeds to give me directions from the side entrance to the sitting room and the fastest way to get Wryn out.

I listen intently, all while dodging vehicles on the streets and driving like a madman. I suppose I am. This entire plan is mad. The chance of going into Viktor’s and hoping to get out alive is slim to none, and here I am, doing it without a second thought.

I’m almost to the gate, so I get off the phone and pull over to wait ten minutes until the guard shift change. My palms are sweaty, and my heart is thumping inside my chest. This is the hardest part—the time that passes while Wryn could be inside, bleeding out. There’s a myriad of things that could go wrong, and waiting lets me think about it. I would much rather be moving.

As soon as the ten minutes are up, I’m in motion, approaching the gate. I come to a stop and pray that Francesca was being honest, that she isn’t trying to fuck me over again. I’m an idiot for trusting her, but what choice do I have right now?

I’m all out of choices. My entire life, I’ve had no choices, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to change anytime soon.

I roll my window down, eyeing the guy in the guard booth. He stares at me, his eyes narrowed.

Fuck, what was the password? Some stupid phrase.

I look at him.

“Birds of a feather,” I say.

He continues to stare at me. He turns to speak into his radio, and I’m one second away from reversing this car and getting the hell out of here when he finally turns back to me.

“Flock together,” he says, and then the gate screeches as it starts to roll open.

Phase one: check.

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