Page 85 of Disavowed

The muscles in his arms and shoulders screamed with pain at the pressure he’d been inflicting, but he kept at it, rubbing his blood into the rope with his thumb, hoping to make the strands more pliable.

When Jack raised the gun to Dom’s forehead, his mind spun with final thoughts. Dying no longer scared him. He’d been touched by death so many times he’d lost count. But Daisy didn’t deserve this. She deserved to get married, have children, and grow old with her husband. And that husband wouldn’t be him. He was too late.

He looked at her tear-streaked face for the last time. “I love you,” he said. “Don’t ever forget that.”

“No,” she whispered, shaking her head. “It can’t end like this.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

“Jack, wait!” Daisy yelled. Her heart pounded violently with fear. He turned, but the muzzle of the gun was still aimed at Dom’s head. She had to do something. “Please don’t do this. I’ll do anything. Just don’t kill him.”

She looked at Dom—the man she loved more than anything in the world. His blue eyes were locked with hers, his jaw clenched. Beneath the sleeves of his tight black shirt his muscles bulged as he strained to get free.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t?” Jack’s voice was laced with venom, but at least she’d distracted him. For the moment.

Dom’s lips moved, and at first she thought he was grimacing. But then she realized he was trying to communicate with her silently, mouthing words to her.

Keep him talking.

She leaned as far forward as she could in the chair. “I never meant to hurt you, I swear it. I really did want to have a relationship with you.” But she’d fallen in love so deeply there could never be another man for her. And Jack was crazy. She should have realized it sooner.

Dom nodded in a subtle gesture, then strained so hard the veins in his neck stood out. Keep him talking, he mouthed again.

“You got a funny way of showing it.” Jack lowered the gun and walked to stand directly in front of her. “Baby, I could have given you everything. Diamonds. A mansion. We could have traveled anywhere in style. I’ve got money stashed in bank accounts all over the world.”

Yeah, from killing people.

She swallowed hard, resisting the urge to peer around Jack’s body. She had to keep him from turning around. “If you promise not to kill him, I’ll go with you. We can leave the country. Tonight.” When he gave her a suspicious look, she kept going. “We can fly to a country that won’t extradite. You’ll be safe there, and we can get married.”

For a moment, his eyes softened and his brows drew together, as if he were actually considering her offer. Then her heart stilled as his eyes went cold again, and she realized he wasn’t buying into her lies. It was too late.

“How fucking stupid do you think I am?” His voice was deadly now, and he raised the gun, pointing it at her face. “Your biggest mistake was making a fool of me.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, trembling so hard her teeth chattered. This was it. She was going to die. They were both going to die. “Dom, I love you,” she said loudly enough for him to hear her. “I’m sorry for what I said about Anika. I never meant to hurt you.”

“I know,” he said, staring directly at her, his eyes blazing with intensity.

Then she took a deep breath and held it, waiting for the shot that would end her life.

Suddenly, the air shifted. Jack grunted and something plowed into her shoulder, nearly toppling the chair she was sitting in.

She snapped open her eyes as the chair righted. Dom and Jack grappled on the floor beside the bed, grunting as they rolled back and forth, struggling for control of the gun.

Jack still had the gun in his hand, but both of Dom’s hands were around Jack’s, preventing him from aiming it. Jack used his other hand to land punch after punch on Dom’s ribs. A pop sounded and a small hole appeared on the nearby wall.

She screamed, knowing no one would hear her over the music blaring through the walls. Tears blurred her vision as she twisted and pulled her arms apart, struggling to free herself of the ties around her wrists.

The two men rolled, crashing in to the nightstand. The bedside lamp teetered, then fell off the table, striking Dom in the head.

The distraction was enough that Jack managed to maneuver on top of Dom, straddling his chest. Jack still had the gun, but Dom’s hands clamped around Jack’s kept the muzzle from pointing at his chest. Veins bulged in both men’s forearms as they grappled for control of the gun. Slowly, the muzzle moved closer and closer to Dom’s chest.

“No!” Daisy lashed out with her leg, trying to kick Jack, but she was too far away and the chair was too heavy to move. Her heart pounded as she watched the muzzle of the gun inch to where Jack could almost get off a round into the side of Dom’s chest.

Dom let go of Jack’s hand and plowed his fist into Jack’s face. The first blow took him by surprise, and the gun pointed away. Dom punched him again full in the face, and Daisy heard a crack. Blood spurted from Jack’s nose, but he held fast to the gun.

Reaching out, Dom again grabbed Jack’s wrist. Both men strained and grunted from their efforts. Dom managed to pivot them with Jack now on his back, pulling Dom down with him. Daisy couldn’t see the gun anymore. It was somewhere between their two bodies, and she couldn’t tell who had control of it.

Two more muffled pops sounded, although she barely heard the noise above the men’s heavy breathing. Dom’s head lowered to Jack’s chest.