Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 77841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
“I took her. I'm sure you’ve seen the surveillance video from the hotel.”
“She doesn't seem very forced to me,” Angel says and I fight a smile that his words threaten to bring to my lips.
“It's been an intense month,” I say. “We're not the same people we both were a month ago when it all began.”
He blinks at me as if he doesn't understand my explanation. “You've had her for an entire month?” I nod. “And she hasn't been found? Every federal agent and several third-party organizations have been looking for her. Either you're one lucky motherfucker, or you live even further off grid than I do.”
“We managed to stay off the radar until yesterday,” I explain, before going into full detail about what happened with the feds’ raid yesterday evening.
“It's only a matter of time before they catch up with you again,” he says and I know it as truth. “I don't know what your exact feelings are for this girl. I don't know how she feels about you, but it doesn't matter how things are now. It only matters how it started and that was with felony kidnapping. Because of that and the airtime this case has gotten, there's no happily ever after for the two of you. Running now means running forever.”
I knew this was the case, but hearing it from someone else makes it hit just a little bit harder.
Angel continues as if the things he’s already said isn’t enough. “Her father is fixing to become the leader of the free world. He's not going to allow his only child to stay with a man who abducted her. The public won't understand even if he does and because of that, she will become her father's prisoner. She will be deemed mentally unfit to make her own decisions and you will end up in prison then or dead.”
It's my turn to scrape my hands over the top of my head. My heart pounds in my chest because I know everything he's saying is true.
“It doesn't matter if she's with you willingly,” Angel says. “They would never let that information see the light of day. She will always be the victim. You will always be the perpetrator. The truth would affect her father too much, so she has to be the victim. Being the victim of an abduction will help his career once she's returned to safety. And that means all the blame will be placed on you.”
“I know all of this,” I growl, my frustration increasing. “I came for help and suggestions. I don't need all the mistakes I've made pointed out to me in bullet points.”
“You need to let her go and run. And once you find the end of the earth, keep running. That's the only way. If you want to protect her and keep her safe, it's impossible to do that with the two of you together. There's no fucking happily ever after for you, Liam.”
I drop my ass into a chair in the waiting area. This isn't exactly the kind of help I was hoping to get but everything he's saying is the truth. She can't deny being with me, not with her DNA on the sheets they pulled from my house.
I look up at him, pleading and desperation in my eyes. “You can't think of any other way for us to survive this?”
He immediately shakes his head. “You have to let her go.”
Chapter 32
Raya
A sense of unease clings to the layer of sweat already coating my skin as she follows closely behind me.
“It’s just right there,” she says, pointing to a door at the end of the narrow hallway.
The need to escape her has me shuffling quickly and locking myself inside. The restroom is small and intimate. It doesn't have an industrial or businesslike feel to it at all. I use the toilet before standing at the sink to wash my hands. I've avoided looking in the mirror as much as possible during my time with Liam and I think that's what helps me notice the difference in my appearance.
A month ago, the reflection looking back at me would have her hair pulled into a tight, severe bun instead of the unruly wisps all over my head. My eyes would be clouded with despair and hopelessness. She would be unhappy biding her time until she could get a moment alone. That woman is nowhere to be found in the reflection. She's been gone for a while now.
Although we're in a better place mentally now, I know the real fight has just begun. The fight to get away from him has transitioned into a battle of staying together at all costs. With renewed determination, I pull open the restroom door and startle to find the woman waiting for me in the hallway. Is she afraid I'll run and somehow cause her trouble? What is she willing to do to me to prevent that from happening?