Page 40 of Unbreakable Connection (Connections Duet)

After our moment of truce, Valentin stepped up and addressed the room. “Okay, you all know what to do; bring Ellen home safely and put down the dog. You’ll get her back, Edric; I know you will.”

“Thank you, Valentin,” I gathered my gear with Patch following behind me, and then Gio asked us to wait.

He said, “I know my word is probably not worth much right now, but I’d like to help if I can,” offered Gio. I wanted to hate and hold him responsible for Paolo's actions, but I knew I couldn’t. It might have taken me longer to find Ellen’s location if it wasn't for Gio.

“Come, we are wasting time,” we quickly loaded our weapons and got the helicopter in the air. We reached the field in under thirty minutes and immediately found the vehicles. “Are they gassed up?” I asked as Patch and Gio checked them over.

“Yeah, all good to go,” said Patch.

We doubled up on the vehicles and made our way to the cabin. Once we convened at the road, we began the hike. “I’m coming,baby, hold on,” I whispered as we continued climbing through the rough terrain and woods. “Okay, there’s the house, Gio. Does the property have any ground alarms that will tip him off?”

“None that I know of, so let’s tread carefully.”

Patch pulled up the specs using the infrared thermal readings and said, “There, we have movement on the west side, two figures.”

I breathed, knowing she was alive and feeling her presence. “Don’t be scared, Ellen,” I whispered silently, giving the go sign to the teams.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Ellen

I’m bound to a chair as I wake up from Paolo drugging me. What the hell did he give me? My head is pounding, and my limbs are numb. Every move I make causes the abrasive rope to bite into my skin. It’s hard to breathe as I try to take shallow breaths while surveying my surroundings. Where am I? It’s cold and damp, with several pungent smells sucking up whatever oxygen I have left. Oh, my god! I began to panic. Is Kyle here, too? I looked around, and then I heard his voice.

“Hello, sweet Cara, you’re awake,” he says as he strides over to me. Has Paolo been here watching and waiting for me to wake up?Creepy bastard.

“Why am I here, Paolo? And where is Kyle? Did you hurt him?” I struggled against my restraints, feeling my skin tear.

“Dr. Kyle is alive; just a bump on his head is all.”

“Where is he?”

“He is where my men left him. Do you think I would kill him? Dr. Kyle has been good to me, and I didn’t see the need to hurt him.”

“He is hurt; I saw him go down,”

“Tsk, it’s just a bump on the head, don’t be so dramatic. So, back to your question. I care about you, Cara; all I’ve ever done was protect you. You are here because you have made poor choices in men, and I can’t have that.” My parents were strong and taught me to be the same way. I know I should be afraid of Paolo and what he might do to me, but I’m not, which troubles me more than I can understand.

I’m not scared to die, but I don’t think today will be the day my number is up, not if Edric has anything to say about it. He will find me; I know he will. I will be strong and keep my wits about me until he arrives.

“So, you are like what? My hero? My savior? You have self-appointed yourself to act in those roles? The one who rides in and saves me from the bad guys? How can you do that when you are one of them?” he stepped closer and grabbed my chin roughly.

“You are wrong, Cara; your lover is bad for you, not me. The war hero will be here soon, and once he arrives, I will kill him and free you.” He released me and stroked his fingers along my jawline, with regret in his eyes. I trembled a little as he continued to touch me, but then he must have sensed it and pulled away. I let out a breath and tried to reason with him.

“Paolo, please listen to me; you can still turn this around by letting me go.”

“No!” he shouted.

“Why not? Don’t you see that I’m trying to help you? Paolo, it would be best to let me go before it’s too late. This is your last chance. Edric will come for me and probably will bring an army of mercenaries trained to take out their target, and thatwill be you. These men, including Edric, will not hesitate to put you down and leave no trace of what was once your body. Do you honestly believe you will survive this? I can tell you that you won’t because you have no chance in hell against Edric. He will walk through fire for me.”

“You’re so beautiful and kind, but there’s deception behind your eyes. No, Cara, I will not fall for your charms. One of us will die tonight, and it won’t be me.”

He’s totally out of his mind if he believes he will get away with this. Edric will kill him.

“Paolo,” I rasped, struggling to talk from the after-effects of whatever he injected me with. “May I have some water?”

“Of course; where are my manners?” he mocked as he retrieved a bottle of water from a small cooler in the corner. He walked over, slowly twisted the cap, and brought the bottle to my lips. I took what I could without choking. My chest was burning since I was due for the next round of antibiotics.

“Thank you,” I whispered, now able to speak with the help from the water.

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