Page 3 of The Forbidden Secret

Beatrice wouldn’t be safe with me—not if someone was hunting me. Beatrice and I had flights booked. I had expected to have her out of the country within the week—no paper trail left behind. I had our fake passports and the funds I needed to support us for years.

I had a life planned for us, and now I was running for my life and guaranteed to be hunted to the ends of the earth. If not by my father, certainly by the man who had spent half a million dollars to buy me.

Something crashed into my back, and I went down hard. The weight above me shouted in Russian, and three others replied from mere feet away. I struggled, trying and failing to break from his grasp. He pinned both arms behind my back, and I thrashed, screaming as a hand came around my mouth.

“Shut up,” one of the men shouted at me.

But I wouldn’t stop fighting. I couldn’t.

They pulled me to my feet, all four men keeping a close eye on me as they walked toward the van they had moved closer. I kicked and pushed, but the man holding me lifted my body fromthe ground and carried me, only mildly struggling as I put all my effort into fighting.

I could smell the car freshener in the van now, and I kicked the window, hoping to shatter it. It didn’t budge as I used my legs to push myself away.

“Stop fucking fighting,” he shouted again.

His voice was overshadowed by the distant sound of a gun and a gasp from behind me. Then another shot. A third one.

“What the—”

The man holding me fell backward and released me. I slammed hard into the ground again, but I was up and moving in less than two seconds. I didn’t know what had happened, but I wouldn’t stop and find out. I just needed to get to a more populated area and—

Another sleek suburban stormed into the parking lot, headlights beaming on me. It jolted forward, and I froze as it approached quickly. I expected it to slam into my body, but the breaks squealed as it turned. “Get in,” a woman shouted.

I took a step back, but her hoarse, deep voice shouted again.

“Get in the fucking car, or they are going to come out here and kill you for what you did. Now.”

Maybe it was ignorance or the fleeting adrenaline, but something in her voice sounded sincere. Realistically, what other choice did I have? If I tried to run on foot, they would likely find me before I reached the main road. I needed this woman’s help.

I leaped into the SUV, heaving from exertion as it took off, and I hunched over. I gagged, but nothing came out of my mouth as I forced myself to calm down.

Finally, after a long moment, I looked around the dark interior.

The dark-haired woman in black leather sat across from me, examining every inch of my expression. My gaze drifted to the figure beside her and—

No.

This couldn’t be happening. Not after everything I had just gone through.

My eyes locked on the gold chain around his neck—the same gold chain that had brushed my chin as he pounded into me. Large, calloused hands clenched into fists on his lap, veins protruding from the pressure of his grip.

The same hands that had pinned mine above my head.

A pink mouth, now set in a thin line, had traced gentle caresses across my skin. Between my thighs. Across my nipples.

And his eyes—the same life-hardened, crystal blue eyes that had once taken in every inch of my bare body—met mine with an expressionless, stony gaze.

His eyes were exactly as I remembered them, only now, they didn’t show a trace of the passion he had shown a year ago. He showed no sign of even remembering me.

Zeke had been there when I had most needed a release, leaving me consumed by the throws of passion after a night that should have never happened.

Under different circumstances, I may have believed it was all a dream.

When I returned to the mansion where we’d had our night together, I found it abandoned. When I Googled his name, I found no trace of him ever existing. When I called his number, it was no longer in service.

I knew he didn’t want to be found.

As I sat before Zeke, bruised, shaking, and fuming, I cemented my decision.

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