Total pages in book: 266
Estimated words: 250787 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1254(@200wpm)___ 1003(@250wpm)___ 836(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 250787 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1254(@200wpm)___ 1003(@250wpm)___ 836(@300wpm)
That’s a little extreme, but that’s what the Lords would expect. They put you in situations where it’s either you or someone else. We’re like rats—claw or eat your way out for survival.
I highly doubt standing in his front yard and saying, “Oh Haidyn, how are you feeling today?” with a smile on my face wouldn’t make him suspicious while his house burned behind him. He’d know that I was the one to set it. Then he’d most likely throw me into the flames, so I’d burn with it.
I’m driving down the curvy road when I see a car in my rearview mirror speeding up on me. The flashing lights turn on.
My eyes drop to the speedometer, and I hit the steering wheel. “Dammit!” Haidyn had all my focus, and I wasn’t paying attention. The main road doesn’t offer a shoulder, so I slow until I come up to a gravel road on my right. I pull off onto it and bring the SUV to a stop.
He gets out and walks up to my driver’s side door as I lower my window, taking in a calming breath. “Good morning—”
“License and registration.” The officer interrupts me.
I go for my purse in the passenger seat but stop myself. Don’t give him the wrong one. I open my glove box and grab what he requests. “Is there a problem?” I ask, pretending I wasn’t going fifteen miles over.
He looks over my information, and then his dark eyes meet mine. “Get out of the car.”
“What?” I ask, sitting up straighter. My heart picks up speed.
He pulls on the door handle and opens the door.
“Hey—”
“I said get the fuck out of the car.” He reaches in, grabs my arm, and yanks me out, making me stumble into him.
“Don’t touch me,” I snap, and he drags me to the front of the SUV, spins me around, and slams the side of my face into the warm hood, momentarily taking away my vision and fight. It gives him the opportunity to place my wrists in handcuffs behind my back. He tightens them down on my bony wrists, and I cry out, finally able to suck in a deep breath.
He grabs the back of my shirt, yanks me from the SUV, and pushes me to his car, putting me in the uncomfortable back seat and buckling me in. Tears run down my face as I try to adjust my body, but it doesn’t do any good. They’re too tight.
I watch him return to my car and sit in the driver’s seat, but I can’t see what he’s doing. Moments later, he steps out and walks back to his car. Getting in, he drives off with no explanation.
EIGHTEEN
HAIDYN
Ienter the garage at my house and jump on my R1. It’s a nice day for a ride. I turn my baseball hat on backward, not bothering with a helmet or leather jacket. I don’t wear either often. If it’s my time, then it’s my time. I’m not one of those who try to prepare for the worst. It’s going to happen regardless. I’ve been shot, stabbed, and drowned. I’ve lost count at this point how many times I’ve died, yet here I am.
Placing my sunglasses on, I start the bike and rev the engine, then drive out of the garage, leaving my gated property. I take a right, and before I know it, I’m hitting eighty miles per hour. You can’t go much faster than that on the straightaways because the road has too many tight curves you have to slow down for.
I didn’t get much sleep last night, but that’s normal. I worked out until the early hours this morning and then showered. The sun was already rising when I finally crawled into bed, but I was up within a couple of hours and needed to clear my head or at least try to.
It’s been repeating the same events over and over to the point I want to fucking knock myself out. From what I can remember anyway…
I can hear voices, but their words aren’t registering, and I have no clue where I am. All I know is that I can’t move. My heavy eyes open, and I look around, not able to really focus on what I’m seeing, but I feel cold…and wet.
It’s hard to breathe, as if someone is sitting on my chest. The voices start to penetrate the fog.
I recognize Devin’s voice immediately. “I just need to sedate him.”
“No!” a guy barks out, his voice echoing off the concrete walls that I see. Am I back at Carnage? If so, how did I get here, and where is Ashtyn? We were on our way to dinner…had a wreck…I was shot. Where is she?
Devin speaks. “I can’t help him unless he’s sedated. I have to cut him open—”
“You have two choices.” The man interrupts him, pressing the tip of his gun into the side of my head. “You either cut him as is, or you give him a shot of adrenaline.”