Page 11 of Blazing Embers

“Maybe it was your heart and soul,” I say slowly, “calling you home.”

She doesn’t answer me. Just stares out the window for a while as if seeking answers.

Then she finally turns, her expression shifting to a calculating one, reminding me of a super villain about to drop a verbal bombshell, and it’s bringing a slight frown to my brow.

“How did you find me after all these months?” Tara asks, her eyes searching mine.

The sudden switch throws me.

“Does it matter?”

“Yes.” She nods, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. “Well, at least for you it should.”

“I don’t follow,” I admit, watching her warily.

“For eight months, you had nothing. Not a single lead. I was gone and hidden by the best. Off-grid. You chased shadows from the breadcrumb trail you were following. And then—suddenly—you found me. Just like that. Poof!” She snaps her fingers.

My frown is deepening by the second, wondering where this is going, but I’m starting to get a feeling I’m not going to like the destination.

A cold knot begins to form in my chest. “What’s your point?”

She leans in slightly. Her voice drops to a whisper. Deadly. Seductive.

“On the plane, you told me your sinister plans to torment me, bend me to your will, and break the truth out of me…” Tara reminds me.

“I don’t think those were my exact words,” I point out.

“That’s what I heard.” Taras' eyes hold mine with a cool gaze. “Is that still your directive? Your plans for me?”

Is she trying to seduce her way out of paying for what she’s done?I look at her in disbelief before I bite back. “Just because we had a few minutes of banter does not change my mind or sway me from any of my plans, especially where you’re concerned.”

She purses her lips, still holding my gaze, and nods.

“Fair enough.” Tara shrugs. “But… when you’re in your evil lair thinking up ways to punish me…” Her lips twitch, eyes darken with malice. “Here is something you need to think about.”

“Trust me,ptichka, all I’ll be thinking about is what you did and how much I’m enjoying your torment,” I goad her. “Not the lucky break I caught that led me right to you.”

“And you never once stopped to question that lucky break?” Her lips twitch. “What was the lucky break that finally put you on the correct path of breadcrumbs that led you to me?”

I frown, narrowing my eyes. “A clue finally panned out.”

She laughs. Her gaze sharpens, and the chill in her smile slices straight through me. “Did it though?”

“What are you getting at, Tara?” I ask her impatiently.

“Here is some food for thought.” Tara leans close. Her scent engulfs me and immediately sets my senses on fire as her breath feathers against my cheek. “Did it ever once occur to you in your rush to capture me that maybe I was the one controlling the bag of bread crumbs all along?”

My jaw locks. Tara leans back, and a soft chuckle accompanies her smug, satisfied smile. Her point is made.

I go cold. My face drops, and the first time since I dragged Tara onto that plane, the doubt creeps in, and everything she just said clicks into place. Fuck! I watch her as she continues to look out the window at the sights and scenery passing us by en route to my apartment in the city. As a cold foreboding sweeps over me, I see the house in Boston—no guards, not even Clyde—just her.

Now I have to ask myself:Did I find her?

Or did she let herself be found?

5

TARA

---