AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It’s the last place on earth I would want to go.
“Gulf Shores?” The words sound hollow as I repeat them. “Why would we go there?”
The sparkle in his eyes is unmistakable. “Because it’s the last place anyone will think to look for you, honey.” He smirks. “I don’t plan on making your stay very comfortable. After you made us run all over the world hunting you down, the boss needs to see you on your knees, begging him to take you out of hell.”
My mouth falls open. I want to argue, to fight with him. But how do you reason with anyone that’s so crazy?
The stranger licks his lips and hauls me upward by the elbow. “Get the fuck up. You have two seconds to do it yourself before I grab you by the hair and make you start moving.”
I shoot him a glare over my shoulder as I wipe my face with my bound hands. “Don’t talk to me like that.”
He cuffs me on the back of the head, as casual as if he did it all the time. I’m a little shocked and disoriented; he grabs me by the back of my neck, ripping at my hair, and lifts me off the ground.
It’s so painful that I manage to get my feet beneath me and lunge forward. Anything to get away from that touch.
He grabs the back of my dress and guides me toward the stairs. “Be smart. Don’t struggle. Maybe if you are good, he’ll let you go eventually.”
As I hit the staircase, my tears really begin to fall. “No.” I shake my head, knowing full well the answer to the unspoken question. “Constantine will never let me go. You’re sending me to my death.”
He looks at me, pursing his lips. “Constantine has nothing to do with this. Surely you know that by now. You are being brought back to your family.”
“What?” I blink, astonished. “My mom and dad are behind this?”
My captor rolls his eyes, pushing me forward with a beefy hand. And I ascend those stairs, not knowing what lies ahead, but certain of the dark and dangerous tightrope I walk.
Chapter24
Hades
Itighten my grip on the garrote that encircles the man’s throat. The man gasps and tries to pry the piano wire from around his neck. His stubby fingers are no help; the garrote is pressed too tightly into his skin just below his Adam’s apple.
The man looks at me, his tawny skin gleaming with sweat, the whites of his dark eyes bulging slightly. His cheeks are puffed out, gone past ruddy to a darker shade. I can see the red creep up his face until it reaches the skin around his eyes. Years of experience with getting information from people tells me that he will pass out in a few seconds.
After which I will have to decide if I want to wake him up with a splash of cold water to the face… or whether I would rather just feel him die.
I tighten the piano wire just a little. The man slaps at my hands, which would honestly be pretty funny if he wasn’t withholding precious information from me.
I smile as he tries to speak. He can’t quite get enough breath to form words. When I eventually loosen my garrote, maybe he will be more interested in telling me where Persephone is.
I let him strangle for a few more seconds, pursing my lips.
“Are ye rethinking yer whole life yet?” I ask the man.
The sound of heavy boots on the metal stairs behind me doesn’t faze me.
“Hades…” Eros clears his throat. “Come upstairs. Ye’ve been at this for hours.”
My lips twitch. I loosen the piano wire around my captive’s neck. The man sucks in breaths, his grateful gaze landing on my brother.
Eros rolls his eyes. “Yer friends are dead,” he explains in slow Arabic. “I didn’t save ye. If we leave this room, ye can bet ye won’t be alive.”
“Unless he talks,” I chime in. “Seriously, don’t make me leave here empty handed. I am already not in a very good mood. I think ye would rather help me than to make me angrier.”
I release my hold on the man, stepping back. He nods his head frantically as he staggers back to lean against the wall. His hands rest on his knees, his head droops.
I look at Eros, arching a brow. Switching to English, I interrogate him. “Do ye have news?”
Eros gives a half shrug. “I’d rather not get into it with our friend here. It’s hard to tell which Algerians might speak English.”
