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Bigger than all…this.
“It’s nothing.” He pulled his chin out of my grasp. “Promise. I just want this over.”
That nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach said there was more to this. More than he was saying.
“That’s not it,” I said. “And I know it. I can’t make you talk if you don’t want to. But don’t you pull away from me, Riven. Not now when I need you the most.”
He flinched at the words as I turned around and headed back to the waiting four-wheel drive.
“Everything okay?” Hunter asked as I neared.
“About as okay as it’s ever going to get, I think,” I answered and hauled myself inside the vehicle’s back seat.
The door closed with a thud behind me. I looked out the window to Riven as he lifted his gaze and a flicker of fear moved through me at the connection as the Explorer’s engine came to life with a growl. He was scared…no, more than scared…he was terrified.
The Explorer pulled out just as Riven and the others headed for the other four-wheel drive. I tore my gaze away as we drove out of the compound and through the towering fence. It felt like a lifetime since Hunter had dragged me kicking and screaming through these gates and into a place closed off from the rest of the world.
It had felt empty, until Riven, Kane and Thomas had come.
Now, it felt like a lie.
Hunter said nothing as he drove, then turned hard onto the asphalt and headed back down the winding mountain road once more. Part of me wanted to stay there, to hide away from the world forever, the world where The Order had consumed my life. But that was just a fantasy. Sooner or later the rot would creep in. It always did.
I looked out the window, not looking at Hunter behind the wheel or his man in the passenger seat in front of me as we headed back toward the city.
My main bag was in the back of the Explorer, but a small pile of clothes sat next to me. Lingerie in fact…bright red, of course. I glanced at the lace on the seat beside me and fought the revulsion that followed. One more time, that’s all, just once, then I never had to wear that fucking thing ever again.
I turned away, focusing on the trees as they turned to the clear landscape. The city rose in the distance. We were early, hours early. A rough sleep alone last night and bitter black coffee did little to help my mood. Actually, it did little for all of us. Long stretches of silence were met with snarls. We avoided each other this morning. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But looking back now, I wished I’d been more present. Riven was holding onto something…something that now wore at me.
I turned my attention back to the unfamiliar city streets as we headed to the more industrial part of the city. Hunter gazed into the rear-view mirror and those dark eyes met mine. There was a sense of familiarity about them. They were like Riven’s.
That’s why he’d looked so familiar. Hunter scowled and looked away, turning the four-wheel drive into the driveway of a massive compound surrounded by a towering ten-foot-high fence. Barely a second passed and the massive steel gate rolled open, leaving me staring at the military compound as we entered.
The Explorer pulled up hard, coming to a stop in a cloud of dust. A man came striding out of an open door in the closest building. He was massive, almost as big as Hunter, with warm brown eyes that swept through the Explorer, stopping on me. He had a scruffy beard, one that made him look even more imposing.
Hunter killed the engine and climbed out. I followed, grabbing the red lace lingerie as I went.
“Kyrell,” Hunter called as he climbed out. He glanced toward the building. “Any problems?”
“Not since that asshole Principal left,” the soldier muttered.
Hunter gave a scowl and shook his head toward the man.
“What?” the mercenary questioned.
“Don’t mind me,” I reassured Hunter. “He is an asshole.”
I closed the door and turned around, coming to a stop in an instant as one of the Daughters stepped out of the doorway after the guard. She was dressed in khakis four sizes too big. The pants were cinched around her small waist, and she was nearly swallowed by a pale t-shirt that hung from her narrow shoulders.
I knew her…she was the one who’d been dragged back by the guard at The Order. The one Kane had made an example of by forcing her to her knees and making her spread herself apart. Her cheeks burned as she met my gaze before she looked away.
“Are all the Daughters here?” I turned to Hunter. “The ones you rescued with me?”
He gave a nod.
I hadn’t expected them…here. Maybe in some safehouse somewhere. But the moment more of Hunter’s men stepped out into the compound, their hard gazes finding me, I realized this was probably as safe a place as any. The deep snarl of an engine had me turning my head to watch the other four-wheel drive nose into the compound behind us.
“Is everything ready for tonight?” Hunter’s voice reached me as I watched Riven in the passenger seat as they pulled up next to us.
