AllFreeNovel
Share Us
There was no sign of the dogs that had been after me. More importantly, I couldn’t hear them. However, the guards could be loading them into vehicles and bringing them here. Maybe staying near the fishing boats was a bad idea. The farther I could get away from the beach, the less chance they’d find me.
I trudged out of the sea, pulling my water-sodden gown up to my knees, and ran until I couldn’t bear how much my feet hurt. I sat down on the sand, realizing then they were bleeding. Surely, the dogs would pick up the scent right away.
I tried to rip the silk of my gown to wrap my feet in order to stop the bleeding. I had no luck tearing it, but I spotted a waste can on the beach a short distance away. Maybe there was something in it I could use instead. I reached in and felt fabric. I pulled one piece out. It was a rag, filthy but big enough to tie around my foot. I dug around until I found another.
Once both feet were wrapped, I resumed running. Only the adrenaline from my fear was giving me the energy to do so. Swimming as far as I had, had sapped what little I could muster after weeks of inactivity and very little sustenance. I couldn’t afford to stop again for even a short break, though. Even staying out in the open was out of the question. If people were looking for me, they’d be in vehicles and with headlights, and I’d be spotted immediately.
So far, I hadn’t seen a single other person. As soon as I got off the beach and tried to navigate the town’s maze of roads, I knew that would change. A running woman with rags tied around her feet and wearing only a silk gown would attract unwanted attention from everyone I came across.
When extreme fatigue swept over me, I dashed into a dark alley, not allowing myself to think of what might be lurking in its shadows. I rested my body against the side of a stone building and tried to catch my breath. Even standing upright, my eyes drifted closed. I fought to keep them open, and when I no longer could, I slid down the wall, curling into a ball and making myself as small as possible. There was a piece of cardboard beside me, and when I lifted it to cover my body, creatures scurried in all directions. I’d cry, but that in itself took more energy than I possessed.
Finally, after being unable to shake myself alert any longer, I allowed my eyes to remain closed. I’d just rest for a few minutes, then I’d keep running.
It could’ve been seconds or minutes later that I heard a loud crash followed by people shouting. My God, had they found me already?
A tear trailed down my cheek, and I thought about the only man who’d ever loved me. Knowing he had—still did—gave me solace. “Cay?” I whispered into the darkness. He’d once promised to protect me. No matter what, no matter who against. Why hadn’t I let him? All he’d ever wanted was to be with me, care for me. Why hadn’t I given in? Trusted when he’d said no matter what happened between us, he’d always remain my friend?
I held my breath and waited for the men to approach, grab me, and drag me back to the hell my life had become. If the last word I ever uttered was his name, maybe somehow, he’d know that. Know I loved him too.
7
CAYMAN
The plane touched down on the tarmac of the Malta airport twelve hours after I saw the first photo of Mithras. Twelve hours since I realized he was Lorenzo Moretti. Twelve hours since I knew Bexli was in danger.
Next, helicopters would transport us to Gozo. We’d be arriving under the cover of night at an area as far from the villa’s location as was possible on the sixty-seven-square-kilometer island.
Ares stood in front of me when we were exiting the aircraft but turned around before going down the stairs leading to the tarmac.
“This goes without saying, but whatever you need, say the word. I’ve got your back, Cayman.”
“Appreciated.”
He put his hand on my shoulder. “Perhaps I’ll know before you do.”
My eyes scrunched. “What do you mean?”
“You shrug your right shoulder when you’re stressed.”
“I do not.”
“Yes, Cayman, you do,” said Nem, walking up behind me.
With her words, I almost repeated the action, but being aware this time, I stopped myself. “Let’s get on with it,” I snapped, pointing to the airstairs.
Ares motioned for me to go ahead of him, no doubt to assist Nemesis. Not that she needed it.
It had become evident almost from the moment the two met that sparks flew between them. It would be accurate to say they detested one another in the first few weeks we worked Operation Purfleet, followed by the Felixstowe op.
The fine line between love and hate, as they say, was quickly wiped away, and by the end of the missions in Bulgaria and Turkey, it was clear the two were in love. In fact, it was Ares who’d gone to Marchand with the suggestion Nem be named coalition leader.
Seeing the two together, though, pained me. I had never been romantically interested in Nemesis. There was no one I’d met who I was more attracted to than Bexli. Instead, it was the love I saw between the two that made me so envious it hurt. Now, even more so.
However, I’d happily settle for Bex’s safety above all else, even if she and I were never together romantically.
When I stepped onto the tarmac, I moved to the side so the rest could deboard, and turned to face the dark horizon.
I closed my eyes and pictured Bexli the way she’d looked the last time she and I were together. She was excited to the point of being giddy. That’s what I chose to remember, not the image on the auction site. Her smile had been infectious. As was the way her Himalayan poppy-blue eyes lit up. She’d been so anxious she couldn’t sit still when she told me about the opportunity to live her dream.
