Page 73 of Broken Princess
16
Logan
I could barely seea thing through the white mist swirling thickly around me. I knew Willow was out there, though, somewhere beyond the cold, choppy waves surrounding my boat. I just knew it.
After wiping a spray of saltwater off my face, I squinted through the fog to see the dark outline of Jamie’s island up ahead. I slowed the boat to a crawl and steered it slightly south.
The coastline on the side I was approaching was entirely barren. A rocky, snow-flecked beach led up to a vertical granite cliff face, too tall to see beyond from the water. No vegetation, no sign of life, and no way up the rock face. Anyone passing through the area by boat could be forgiven for thinking the isle was completely desolate and unused.
I knew better. Around the other side, there was a proper coastline, pale brown sands creating a thick band between the waves and the towering pine trees beyond. There was a sizable landing spot for boats and planes on the south side, and a wide path stretched about a quarter-mile to the north before veering off to the center of the island where the house stood.
I could’ve landed directly on the island with a small plane, but I’d chosen to fly to Fire Island instead before taking the motorboat thirty miles east. That way I’d have the element of surprise when I showed up on Jamie’s doorstep. He wouldn’t have time to spirit Willow away again, and he’d also be thrown off his game for the first time in days, giving me the upper hand.
The ideal situation would’ve been to land here while Jamie was back in the city, so I could save Willow unimpeded, but unfortunately, he’d returned to the island a few hours ago, according to Rowan. It made the rescue mission ten times harder, but in the end, it was probably for the best. It would be a lot easier to dispose of him here than anywhere else where he might have protection from his family or Order associates.
I just had to play a game with him first. Act like I wasn’t here to kill him. That way he wouldn’t try to pull some murder-suicide shit with Willow the second he saw me on the threshold. That would be my worst nightmare.
After landing the boat, I tied it to a pole and trudged up the island path. The skies above were blanketed in thick clouds of gray, and little flakes of snow were drifting through the air, carried on a wild breeze blowing through from the east. It was freezing, but the thought of holding Willow warmed me from the inside out.
I slowed down as I drew closer to the house, being careful to mask the sound of my footsteps on the crunchy dead leaves and pebbles. When I reached the front door, I patted my pocket to ensure my gun was still there, and then I knocked three times.
Jamie opened the door a few minutes later, eyes wide and forehead creased in a harried expression. “What the fuck are you doing here?” he asked, right arm snaking behind him toward a dark hardwood cabinet.
I held up a palm. “Before you grab the gun sitting on that sideboard, you should know something,” I said. “I have a notebook with my story, current location, and a USB filled with evidence and recordings stashed in a safety deposit box back in D.C. If I’m not home in twelve hours, an associate of mine is going to release the contents of that box to everyone we know. That includes my mother.” I paused and cocked my head to one side. “Do you want her to know what you’ve done, Jamie? Do you want her to know you betrayed her and put her operation at risk just so you could steal Willow for yourself?”
His eyes widened even more, and the arm behind his back began to tremble, hovering close to his pistol but never touching it. “You know what I did?” he asked in a hollow voice.
“Of course I do,” I said, lips curving up in a small smile. “I know everything. You’re just fucking lucky I decided not to tell Mom about all of this shit. Yet.”
He swallowed hard. “You actually know who she is?”
I scoffed. “Yes. I’ve always known who she is.”
“That’s not possible. She told me—”
I held up my hand again, cutting him off. “I know what she told you. That I’m oblivious to everything, and that I know absolutely nothing about her being Q or what the Order really gets up to. It’s all part of her game, Jamie. I can’t believe you never figured that out.”
“What game?”
“Her game to get people like you to do whatever the fuck she wants,” I said with a smirk. “She’s been grooming me for years to take over from her as the leader when she retires, but I bet you thought it was you, didn’t you? You thought she’d hand the reins to you if you just licked her boots enough and did whatever she said.”
The look of stark shock in his eyes told me I was right. My mother had led him to believe that he might be the Order’s next supreme leader one day. Now that I was making him think that I’d been the successor all along, his whole world was crashing down around him.
“She told me she wanted it to be Chloe,” he muttered. “But when we had to get rid of her, she said…” He trailed off and scrubbed a hand over his face.
“I know. She implied that it might be you instead. But it’s not.”
“Fucking bitch,” he said under his breath, hand still covering half of his face.
“Sorry to wreck your power-tripping fantasies,” I said, smirk growing wider. “Anyway, now that you know you’re just another meaningless pawn to her, what do you think will happen to you if I tell her that you stole Willow from the prince after the auction and covered it up with that missile attack? You risked exposing the Order to the world when you did that, because if the Keshari royals ever figure out the truth, they could tell everyone what Mom does up at Lilith Hall in retaliation.”
“I know,” Jamie said, straightening his shoulders. “But I thought I played it well enough. No one has any idea.”
“Except me,” I said, lifting a brow. “And that could change, depending on how you treat me today.”
His eyes narrowed. “How did you find out?”
“I have my ways.”
