Page 140 of Monsters Wear Crowns
But suddenly, something changed. The house went quiet. Not justquiet–silent. Unnaturally so.
Rafe went still. Every muscle in his body tensed like a trigger. His hands clenched against my skin for a fraction of a second before he pulled away, rising to his feet in one fluid, lethal motion. His eyes narrowed, scanning nothing and everything at once.
“Get dressed,” he said sharply.
My eyes widened at his sudden shift. “Wha–”
The silence shattered.
A blast, sharp and sudden, rocked the world. The windows rattled in their frames. The wallsshuddered.The floor pitched beneath my feet like the ground itself had flinched.
I stumbled, catching myself against the dresser. Heart pounding.
Rafe was already moving out the door in a flash, barking sharp orders into the hallway.
I shoved myself into the closest pair of jeans and a black long-sleeve shirt.
Gunfire.
Rafe’s face hardened, jaw clenched like steel. But his eyes reflected something else when they snagged on mine.Fear.
Not the kind that came from losing control of the battlefield. The kind that came from the thought of losingme.He turned toward me without a word and crossed the room in three strides, wrenching open the safe hidden behind a panel in the wall. He didn’t hesitate. He grabbed a sleek black gun and pressed it into my palm, his hand closing over mine.
“Stay with me,” he said, his voice low and fierce. “Don’thesitate.”
He didn’t have to tell me twice. I nodded, nausea welling up.
We moved through the house together, the air heavy with the scent of smoke and the crack of gunfire. Rafe’s men were already scrambling, shouting orders, and taking positions. The entire estate had somehow turned into a goddamn war zone.
I stayed at Rafe’s side, my heart pounding so hard it felt like it might bruise my ribs. He kept glancing at me, not out of fear that I couldn’t handle myself, but like he was checking I was still there. Still breathing.Still his.
We rounded a corner just as a hail of bullets tore through the air, forcing us to dive for cover. Rafe swore, firing back, and the chaos splintered around us. In the mess of shouting and gunfire, we got separated.
“Adela!” Rafe’s voice was rough and furious, but I couldn’t see him through the smoke and movement.
“Go!” I shouted back. “I’ll find you!”
I didn’t wait for an answer. I moved, keeping low, my heart in my throat. The estate was a maze, the once-elegant halls filled with the sound of violence. I kept my finger steady on the trigger, my breath tight and controlled, but I stopped short when I rounded a corner.
A man was waiting.
He was tall and broad, dressed in black, with a pistol in one hand and a knife in the other. But he didn’t raise either. He didn’t even move.
“Adela Sinclair,” he said, his voice calm and almost…respectful. “I was looking for you.”
My grip on the gun tightened. “If you know who I am, you know this is abadtime to test me.”
He smiled, and it wasn’t the kind of smile you wanted to see in a place like this. “I’m simply here to deliver a message.”
Every instinct screamed at me not to listen. To shoot first and never ask questions. But I held still. Barely.
“Moreau is becoming impatient,” the man said, his eyes never leaving mine. “And he still wants you on his side and won’t take no for an answer. The only way you will deny him is if you’re dead beside your...beloved. Who you likely want dead anyway, according to what I saw him do to you last night. Right through his office window.”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. The ground was still shaking. The air was still full of gunfire. And somehow, none of that was as loud as the silence that followed his words.
I kept my face neutral, even as my pulse raced. “Tell him he’s wasting his time.”
The man’s smile widened, slow and taunting. “We’ll see about that. You’re beautiful, powerful, and fascinating. My boss wants you.” He paused, laughing. “Andhewouldn’t ever hurt you like that. Neither would I.” His eyes swept over me in a way that oozed lust.
