Page 73 of The Revenge

Quickly, I shake my head. “I won’t tell anyone.”

“I’m glad we can agree on that.” He uses his gun to point past me. “Now, be a good girl, and go jump in the river.”

When Cole and I were kids, we had swimming lessons. I grasped the basics, but I spent most of my time beside the pool lying on a sun lounger. If I ever went in the water, it was just to cool off.

If it was summer, and I was in a swimsuit—or anything besides a ballgown—maybe, I’d be able to keep my head above water long enough to either get to shallower water, or a section of the riverbank where I could climb out. But from where I stand, all I can see is a cliff of an embankment stretching out into the darkness.

But what’s more concerning to me is the temperature of the water. Right now, in the little light there is, the concrete dock we’re standing on is sparkling from a layer of frost. I can see my breath in the air. For the last several days, the temperature has been below freezing, and the river behind me might not be frozen over, but that doesn’t mean the water’s warm.

“Please, Preston,” I whimper, trying to buy some time. I know there’s something I’m missing—something that can be explained and allow me to reason with him. Something that will stop him from needing revenge…

Preston said he wanted to send a message, but he didn’t say it was for revenge.

He said something about keeping his mouth shut.

The video of JP and the other guy. Syn seemed pretty sure that being gay would stop him from becoming president. Did Preston want to protect his best friend’s memory and stop that secret from being released into the world?

“This is about protecting JP’s legacy, right?” I ask him. “We can do that. We can keep the secret.”

“I know. That’s why we’re here. I’m using your cold, dead body to send a message.” Preston takes another step towards me.

Instinctively, I take a step backwards, matching him. But something is still bugging me about his word choice. “If you need him to keep his mouth shut, you must know what really happened. You were there, weren’t you?”

Preston narrows his eyes. “I told you, I don’t want to talk. If you’re not going to jump by yourself, I’ll give you a fucking push.”

“What if I want you to talk?”

With my eyes locked on the man pointing a gun at me, I’ve not paid any attention to what’s happening behind him.

Neither has Preston.

Taking advantage of the surprise, I run, but Preston grabs me as I try to get past him. He jerks me to him as he whirls around, and then I feel the cold metal of the gun as he presses it against the side of my head. He tightens his arm around my waist, locking me in front of him.

Syn’s attention is fixed on Preston, but mine is on Syn’s hands. Preston has put me between him and the gun Syn’s pointing at us.

Where the hell did Syn get a gun from?

“Take it easy,” Syn says, lightly. “Shooting her will be a pain to clean up, and I didn’t come with any supplies.” He puts the safety back on and then, with slow and obvious movements, lowers the weapon and tucks it into the waistband of his pants.

“What are you doing here?” Preston demands, making no effort to lower his own weapon.

“Making sure the job gets done,” Syn responds in a bored tone. “You sent an amateur last time, and I wanted to make sure there were no mistakes. I didn’t realize you were taking care of things personally.”

“You’re the reason she’s still alive.”

“I had no idea what your plans were. My orders were to make her leave, and I was attempting to do that. Had I knownyou were going to send in Salaway, I would have made sure to stay away, with a very strong alibi.” Syn takes a couple of steps towards us and then stops.

“Then why was it taking you so long?”

Syn’s eyes narrow as he looks at me. “You think I wanted to just let her leave? Her brotherkilledmine. I didn’t want to just let her go without destroying her first.”

There’s not much distance between us, but with the little light there is, Syn’s eyes look black and almost demon-like.

The same hatred that seemed to burn from them as he looked at me when we first met is back.

From the moment I saw Preston at the bottom of the steps back at the museum, there hasn’t been a single moment when I’ve not been scared.

But the way Syn is looking at me has somehow increased that fear far beyond anything I have words for.

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