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“You do, but it’s more fun if you don’t.”
“Fine.”
“I’ll see you later, Lenochka.”
“Go see your fucking comatose wife,” I mutter to the dead line as I release a harsh breath.
I know all this is acting, but it’s getting tedious and I want out of this whole charade. I want to erase the day that I first met Adrian. I want to go back to being the nobody on the streets, thinking about my next meal with Larry.
I wonder if I will find my old friend now.
“Mommy, look!” Jeremy exclaims, pointing at a mini passing circus.
A few clowns walk by with large balloons in their hands. A man on tall stilts throws balls in the air and another man with painted white and black eyes plays the harmonica. The crowd’s attention shifts to them. The children—including Jeremy—are completely captivated by the show.
They stop near us, the clowns dancing and taking children by their hands. One of them perches over to Jeremy and gives him a balloon.
My little angel takes it with a huge grin on his face. Adrian’s guards start to cross the distance between us, probably seeing the clowns as a threat.
My spine jerks upright, but for a different reason entirely. The mini circus is enveloping Jeremy. He dances with them, laughing and calling me over. I try to get to him, but they keep me out while smiling and juggling balls in the air.
I shove through them, my palms turning sweaty. “Jeremy!”
A heavy grip closes around my wrist and I shriek as I’m pulled back, but the sound is drowned by a hand against my mouth.
All I can breathe in is leather as he drags me away from the crowd. I attempt to kick him, but he grabs me by the hair. “Stay fucking still, Duchess. We don’t want to snap your beautiful neck now, do we?”
“Jeremy!” I mumble against his hand, but it barely comes out as a word.
He doesn’t release me until we’re in an alleyway with my back pressed against a wall. I’m breathing harshly as I stare up at him. He’s wearing a black hat and a mask that covers his nose and mouth. Only his eyes are visible, they’re brown, deep, and so familiar.
“I told you I’m taking Jeremy with me,” I say, panting.
He chuckles, the sound condescending. “You think Adrian will let his only son leave his sight? He’ll flip the world upside down for him.”
“Still—”
“Shut the fuck up with your whining, Duchess. You said you have something for me.”
“I won’t tell you until you take me and Jeremy away.”
“Away?Your mission is here. Why the fuck should you go away?”
“But—”
“You don’t remember, do you?” He expels an exaggerated sigh. “You’re a pain in the fucking ass, Duchess. Always were.”
“What?”
He removes his mask and I gasp. His face, the one with the slight stubble and the straight nose. It’s the same from my nightmare. The man who was holding my hand as I grabbed the gun and pulled the trigger. “You!”
“Yes, me. Your one and only—or what-the-fuck-ever.”
“But you’re not real. It was a nightmare.”
He pinches my cheek. Hard.
“Ow. What was that for?”
