Page 36 of Goodnight, Sinners

Madison gasped, but her father shook his head. “Enough dramatics.” His gaze shifted to the men. “You can take her downstairs. The drug will take effect in the next few minutes, which should help quiet her.”

Each man took an arm and started to haul Saskia away. Madison stepped into their path and reached out to touch Saskia.

“I’m so sorry – “ she tried to say.

“Get away from her!” Madison’s father shouted.

It was too late. Saskia slammed her forehead into Madison’s nose, producing a satisfying crack and sending her former friend flying backwards into the arms of her father, blood spurting from her nose.

Saskia’s head hurt like a bitch and she felt blood drip onto her cheek. Her lips stretched into a feral grin.

“Have fun in New York, Maddy.”

“Get her out of here!” Lord Grayson snarled as he reached for his sobbing daughter’s face.

Saskia’s day might end in a bullet to the brain, but at least she had the satisfaction of knowing she’d fucked up Madison’s beautiful face. Bitch had always had more looks than sense.

Chapter Seventeen

Shaun woke slowly to the constant shaking of her shoulder. She mumbled and tried to roll away from the annoying thing that was touching her. The sound of a soft chuckle annoyed her further so she pushed herself up in the bed and glared around the room, trying find the source of her ire.

Of course, no one except Jozef was allowed in their bedroom unless there was an emergency, so it was his face she saw, lit by the soft glow of a lamp. She tried to blink away the heaviness of her sleep as she focused on him, the annoyance at being woken up falling away. Jozef didn’t wake her unless he had a good reason.

“What’s wrong?” she asked groggily.

He began signing and it took a moment for her sleepy brain to catch up and follow his signals.

“Saskia?” she asked, finally picking up on what he was trying to tell her. “Saskia is here?”

He nodded, his expression serious.

Shaun fought with the bedding until she could slide off the bed and stand, wobbling on her feet. As soon as she was steady, she rushed to the closet and pulled her bathrobe off the hook on the back of the door.

She tied the sash and looked expectantly at Jozef.

He escorted her through their suite with a hand at her back.

Shaun was anxious to see Saskia; to lay eyes on the younger woman and make damn sure she was okay. Two weeks earlier, when Shaun had asked after Saskia, Jozef had bluntly told her the truth. Saskia believed her life was in danger and had gone on the run.

Shaun had been shocked, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized it was a natural response. Jozef’s clear path to the Koba organization was through wiping out anyone with a claim on it. When Shaun had this realization, she’d demanded to know what Jozef’s plans for his cousin were, fearing the worst.

He’d assured her that he only wanted to find Saskia safe and sound and bring her home. He’d been so earnest in his worry over his young cousin that Shaun realized he had no intention of harming Saskia. Her relief had been short-lived though, the longer it took to track her. Saskia was intelligent and resourceful. Part of Shaun thought maybe Saskia’s best shot at a happy and normal life would be to disappear for good and have nothing more to do with the Koba family. But pain shot through Shaun as she imagined never seeing Saskia again. The two women had bonded while Shaun had been a captive and again when Shaun was brought back to Prague. If there was one truly innocent member of the Koba family, it was Saskia. She deserved the best of everything but kept getting the short end of the stick.

Shaun and Jozef walked swiftly down the wide, ornately decorated hallway to Saskia’s suite. It had been left untouched, waiting for its owner to reclaim it.

When a quick glance failed to produce Saskia, Shaun continued through to the bedroom. Sure enough, Saskia was laid out on her bed, one arm flung over her head and the other resting against her chest. It looked like she’d been dropped on the bed and left. Havel was standing on one side of the bed while Terek, another member of Jozef’s team, stood on the other. Both men looked relieved to see Shaun, who rushed to the bed.

Jozef stood watching from the doorway as Shaun checked Saskia’s pulse, which was strong and steady. Shaun sighed her relief and sat gingerly on the bed beside her.

“What happened to her?” she demanded, looking around accusingly at the men.

It was Havel who answered.

“She was picked up in London by a contact, but apparently fought the people hosting her so they drugged her.” Disapproval coloured his tone, which made Shaun feel more lenient toward him. “Idiots couldn’t handle one small girl with zero fighting experience.”

“Do you know what they gave her?” Shaun rested her hand on Saskia’s forehead. It was warm, but not unusually so.

“GHB,” Havel told her. “Two strong doses of it.”

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