Page 79 of The Celtic Resolution
“What the!” Despite pulling back, Rocky’s face immediately turns concerned. “What do you mean?”
“I— fuck!” Releasing him, I pace away just to exert some of the pent up energy that’s building up inside me. “I called her! I was so stupid. I called her because I was coming here and I knew she was the only one who could help me. She knows where my sister is, Mary. And my father’s been keeping Mary under lock and key for weeks, using her life as bait to make me do whathe wants and I called Sarah and demanded that she saves her because I was coming here to confront my father.”
“About?” Rocky’s already got his phone in his hand.
“Everything! The human trafficking, the lies, the fact that I’m pretty sure heshotme just so he had a public excuse to villainize the Irish. He’s had Saoirse and Cian in captivity and me by extension, because one toe out of line and Mary would die! Oh, God.” My hands come to my face. “I killed two guards and justlefther there.”
“Who?” Rocky demands with his phone to his ear.
“Saoirse! I thought… I thought I could come here and distract my father while Sarah saved Mary and then Saoirse and then I’d… fuck, I don’t know. But if he heard even a fraction of my call with Sarah then?—”
“She’s not answering. Fuck. Braden, I want everyone on red alert,” Rocky snaps at one of the guards. “Everyone, you hear me? Everyone. Someone get me Cormac on the phone and I want that private security squad on Sarah’s GPSnow. You.” He points at me and jerks his head toward the car.
“I want you to tell me everything, understand? Every detail while you help me save my wife.”
“Sure, yes.” I scramble toward his car but pause with my hand on the door, heart hammering. “But if we save her?—”
“When,” Rocky says tightly.
“When,” I correct. “Then you have to help me save the woman I love.”
Rocky’s gaze meets mine as he pulls open the car door. Then, thankfully, he nods.
34
SAOIRSE
Bruno leaves. And doesn’t come back.
The silence is deafening.
The heat inside me doesn’t fade.
And now there are two dead bodies soaking the wooden floor with their blood. What do I do? What would the old me do?
The old me would leave without hesitation, would kill without discrimination and get Cian and myself out of here. But things are different now. I’m weaker. Tired. I can’t fight like I used to with a baby to protect and Cian was not in any kind of good condition the last time I saw him.
Should I wait here for Bruno? Will he even come back?
My lips still tingle with the pressure of his kiss and the lingering feelings I thought were long buried came exploding back. The way his entire face changed when I told him about the baby was the kind of look I hoped to see on his face when I told him I was pregnant back at Rocky’s wedding. Only this time, it’s tainted by worry and fear.
Another rush of heat crashes over me and I sink back into my seat, holding the gun in my lap as my mind sluggishly races. Bruno has a plan but I can’t rely on it because there’s noguarantee he’ll ever come back. Being up here in his room is the closest I’ve been to freedom in weeks. I can’t waste it.
If only I didn’t feel like I was boiling alive from the inside. The heat builds behind my eyes and within a few seconds, I’m sweating buckets and shrugging off the sweatshirt Bruno gave me. That does nothing to cool me down though. Standing, I pace around the table as the warmth builds south like a hot band squeezing around my stomach, and a strong pull of nausea rushes up my throat.
“Fuck,” I gasp, rushing to the sink and fully expecting Bruno’s nice dinner to spurt out of me. I gag once, twice… then nothing. Just the overwhelming sensation of sickness. Fuck.
I really am ill.
I can’t stay here.
“Sorry, Bruno,” I murmur. “I hope you understand.”
Stepping over the two dead bodies, I head for the door. He’d told me to lock it after him and I had, despite knowing that it would likely do nothing to stop anyone who came here with purpose. Unlocking the door, the dark abyss of the spiral stairs greets me.
Do I make a run for it?
No, I can’t. Not without Cian.
