Page 83 of Corrupted Lies

Staring certain death in the face made being scared of his feelings pretty redundant.

Right or wrong, somewhere along the way these last couple of weeks, he’d fallen in love with his best friend.

“Seems this time you lose and we win,” a voice sneered as a man stepped closer. A faint hint of smoke surrounded him, and Jake deduced this was the man who had been setting the fires.

Arching a brow at the man, Jake merely studied him impassively. “Yeah? You think? Because all the other teams your boss sent after my family are either dead or in custody. What makes you think you're going to be any different?”

Smoke man merely laughed like that was hilarious. “Look around you, my friend. This time we’re in the middle of the ocean, in a boat, and the odds are stacked quite firmly against you.”

“Odds have always been stacked against us since your boss is the one with all the knowledge, and we’re walking around blind. Didn't stop my brothers from taking out every single team sent after us,” Jake reminded him. The odds might be against him, but he was fighting for something more important than the money and ability to hurt others that had led to these men taking the job. To them, this was just a job, but for him, the life of the woman he loved was hanging in the balance.

Failing wasn't an option.

So hehadto figure out a plan.

“Don’t forget we have another beautiful person in the mix,” smoke man said as he took a step closer to Alannah, squatting down beside her and making her shrink closer against his side.“A stunning one. Being lost at sea hasn’t taken from your beauty at all, my dear.”

Gasping, Alannah looked from smoke man to him and back again. “It’s you. He’s the one, Jake. The one who got me out of the fire in the park. I don’t understand. Why did you try to kill me and then save me? If you hadn't stepped in, I would have died that day.”

A brief look of something crossed the man’s face. “You reminded me of someone, your screams …” he trailed off and shook himself as though trying to let go of an unwanted memory. “I left a note in your car. I thought you would see it, give it to them, and they would back off. I believe I was misinformed. I was told you were his girlfriend, and when he went to you I thought it must be true. But given that he and his family wouldn't back off to save your life, I suppose I was wrong, you're not that important to him after all.”

The words made Alannah flinch slightly, not noticeable to the others, but since she was pressed against him, Jake felt it. Smoke man’s declaration had him clenching his teeth together to refute it. Alannah was important, she meant everything to him, but if he said that he was painting an even bigger target on her back. Better if these men believed they were just friends even if that no longer felt true to him.

“Bring them inside,” smoke man said to the other half dozen men standing around watching them.

Well, watching Alannah was a little more accurate. It didn't take any special training to read their expressions. They wanted some time with her, to be given permission to take whatever they wanted from her, and the sick feeling in his stomach told him that it was no doubt what would wind up happening after they tried to extract some information out of him.

“We have a room prepared for you,” smoke man continued. “Probably not the kind you were hoping for. There’s no steamingshower and comfortable bed waiting for you. No hot meal and clean clothes. But at least you’ll be inside, I'm sure that will be nice after your time on the island. That was you, wasn't it? Who had the cute little shelter? Who killed two of my best men and stole their boat?”

There was no real anger in the man’s voice, though, and Jake doubted he cared that two of his men were dead. However, a thread of excitement worried him more than anything else. Smoke man was looking forward to this. He might have spared Alannah’s life once, but it wouldn't happen again.

And as the men grabbed them both, dragging Alannah away from him, Jake was forced to acknowledge there was likely nothing he could do to stop the inevitable from happening.

He hadn't saved his sunshine, hadn't fulfilled his long-ago promise to her.

He’d failed.

October 21st

2:36 A.M.

The wounds on her feet stung as she and Jake were led through the boat.

Well,ledwas being more than generous. They weren't being led, they were being pulled along faster than she could keep up. Which was probably a good thing so that her feet didn't take too much more punishment. None of the wounds were deep, but Alannah wanted to be prepared to make a move whenever Jake gave her an indication that it was time.

They weren't giving up.

They were going to fight until their last breaths if necessary.

Of course, she didn't want to die there, especially not when things were changing between her and Jake, and it felt like a world of possibilities stretched out in front of her so long as she was brave enough to reach out and take them. But if they couldn’t fight their way out of this, at least she wanted to die knowing she’d done every single thing within her power to live.

Down two flights of stairs into what looked like the lowest deck, they were led along the short hall and then into a room.

As they entered, it felt like she slammed into a brick wall even though no such wall blocked the doorway.

It was a mental wall.

Because the room was something out of a horror movie or an episode of Criminal Minds or Dexter.

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