Chapter 21
Desire
I watch through the window as Robert drives away, taking my girl with him.
Aurora didn’t just snap back at me—she gave me real resistance, using my own tactic of luring Robert here to make her escape.
For a moment, I was speechless. Fuck, it was beautiful.
My cock hardens just thinking about her behavior.
That stubbornness, that fire in her turns me on more than any submission.
My princess has shown some spirit. I’m not surprised.
Before, I did see Aurora as an expensive toy, and I still intend to kill her father.
She had every right to get furious and bare her claws.
She doesn’t know how right I am and how much of a monster her father is.
And no matter how much I try to explain it to her, right now, it’s just words. Empty sounds.
I’m letting her go because I don’t have a single second to waste dealing with Robert.
He’ll defend her, of course, and I don’t need any more bodies on the lawn right now.
Out of the corner of my eye, I catch the swaying of branches, hear the dry rustle of leaves—the men hiding in the bushes are starting to pull back.
Of course, Robert didn’t come alone, contrary to my demand when I sent him the photos.
Jefferson hedged his bets because he couldn’t protect his daughter from me on his own.
I have to be faster and get ahead of Aurora at all costs. Otherwise, she’ll die. She’ll probably call Arthur and warn him, so I have to kill my idol the moment I see him. One moment’s hesitation, and he’ll do it first.
My fingers fly across the screen of my phone as I buy a ticket for the next flight to Dallas. Arthur Vance is there on a business trip. He’s probably already read Zack’s letter and is boiling at the realization that his entire life has been one big lie.
Jumping into the car with Zack’s and Chloe’s corpses in the trunk, I start the engine; the roar mirrors my state of mind.
I floor it, pushing the car to its limit.
I make it to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport in an hour and a half, barely seeing the road ahead.
Another hour I’m forced to wait for my flight, sitting in the boarding area, running through scenarios of the upcoming showdown with Strangler until my temples throb.
I had to leave the gun in the car—I won’t get through security with it—but that’s not a problem: my family’s people in Dallas will provide me with weapons.
I quickly text my men to pick up the car from the airport parking lot.
I open the spy app. Nothing. Aurora’s phone is off. Either my girl finally figured out the surveillance and ditched the device, or her battery died. Where is she now? This uncertainty pisses me off to the point of grinding my teeth.
I lean back in my seat and go into “point zero”—a meditation technique I learned in Asia.
Years in hell and insane contracts have been preparing me for one thing: to snatch my woman from fate.
I need to be surgically precise. Strangler has been rusting in his retirement for years, while I’m at my peak.
I’ve surpassed him. And nothing is stopping me from preparing for his elimination …
The phone rings, shattering the silence.
“Robert?”
“She got away.” Jefferson’s voice is like a tomb’s chill.
Fuck! My fingers dig into the armrest until my knuckles go white. I knew she’d pull something, but I’d hoped Robert hadn’t lost the last of his marbles in the joy of reuniting with his daughter.
“You let her go,” I growl, regretting not shooting him in the forest cabin.
“My men are searching her apartment. I know Arthur is in Dallas. If she heads there, she’ll need documents—”
“She won’t. Burke Lakefront Airport. Private terminal. She’s probably already called Arthur, and he’s sent a business jet for her.”
“Fuck!”
“How long has she been gone?”
“I don’t know … I left her in the guest room, came back to check ten minutes later, but it’s empty. Window wide open. She climbed down the vines right down the side of the house.”
“She could already be in the air.” My heart stutters.
My girl is walking right into the line of fire, but I won’t let it happen.
“I take off in fifteen minutes. I’ll stay in touch from Dallas.
This is your first screw-up, Robert. I don’t give a shit that you set me up for a hit and had me kidnapped, but if you fail with Aurora again, you’re dead. ”
Heavy silence hangs on the line. “So you knew it was my men who took you.”
“Who else? They were so tearfully begging me to go to London, only a blind man wouldn’t have figured it out.”
“Why didn’t you turn me in to the family?”
“First, I wanted to prevent a war and kill you myself. Then I found out you’re my wife’s father.”
“Keep me posted, Desire. I’m flying to Dallas on the next flight.”
“Whatever you want.” I hang up.
He’ll arrive late. I’m not even sure I’ll make it in time myself, but I have no choice. I’ll tear Aurora out of Arthur’s hands, no matter what it costs me.
***
From Dallas airport, I push the rental car to its limit, flying past identical interchanges toward the suburbs.
The family’s informants quickly tracked down Arthur’s lair—he’s rented a house at the very end of a cottage community on the outskirts of Dallas.
Beyond that, only empty lots and Texas wilderness.
I’m driving in empty. No time to detour to the family’s weapon caches—I might not make it.
No preparation, no gun, I’m flying straight into Strangler’s jaws, relying only on my hands and instincts.
I don’t give a shit about the risk; the main thing is to intercept Aurora before she does something stupid.
All around are scorched, empty lots. Circling the community, I turn toward the isolated house, slam on the brakes, and jump out of the car before the dust settles. Aurora and Arthur are already coming out onto the porch.
My girl is pale and fierce. She stands slightly in front, shielding him with her body like living armor.
And Arthur is smiling. His friendliness chills me to the bone.
In front of me is a two-hundred-pound mountain of muscle in light trousers and a thin sweater.
From this distance, his power feels almost tangible.
“Here comes the owner of the other half of the set.” Arthur nods almost imperceptibly at my right hand. So he’s already seen the ring on Aurora’s finger. In the same instant, his face hardens. “Young Sterling, I presume?”
We crossed paths once at a charity gala.
“Yes, sir,” I say, trying not to show my internal tension.
I scan his figure in a fraction of a second: no holster detectable under the thin sweater, waistband clean.
Arthur is unarmed. But with his size, that doesn’t make him any less dangerous—for a giant like him, it only takes one squeeze of his fingers around your neck.
Aurora bores into me with a furious glare.
“You married my twenty-year-old daughter without bothering to inform me first.” Arthur’s deep voice rumbles with stern notes. “Do you consider that a wise decision?”
Aurora flinches, and I step up to them, placing my hand on my wife’s waist, and look him straight in the eye. “I believe it was the only right decision, sir.”
“Hmm, you will argue that with me later.” Arthur snorts. “Let’s go inside and talk.”
I shift my gaze to Aurora. She’s still wearing that same white dress, her hair disheveled, her cheeks flushed. The fury in her eyes hits my nerves harder than any drug. The sight of my enraged girl triggers an instant, painful response, and my groin tightens.
“How long have you been here, sweetheart?”
“Just got here,” she snaps, jerking away. Her eyes say it clearly: Try to touch my dad, and I’ll scratch your eyes out. Nearby, I notice another rental car. Looks like she arrived only minutes before me.
“Inside.” Arthur’s bass voice brooks no argument.
I step toward the door, but Aurora shoves me by my chest and darts inside first. She hasn’t told her father I came to kill him yet. Either she didn’t have time or she couldn’t bring herself to. That doesn’t change the fact that Strangler might have suspected something was off himself.
I follow her in, ready to shove her aside and shield her at any second. Arthur is in the kitchen, clattering with the kettle and cups. His massive figure is visible in the doorway. My gaze snags on the knife block by the sink.
“You’re without staff, Arthur?” I feign surprise.
“I gave them the day off,” he tosses over his shoulder, and in that phrase, I hear: We’re alone here. No witnesses.
“Sit down for now,” Arthur orders, pouring tea.
Aurora moves to the far side of the living room and drops into the farthest armchair. I follow and brazenly settle onto the wide armrest, looming over her.
“Don’t drink that fucking tea.”
“Get out of this house,” she hisses.
I slowly run my hand through her disheveled hair. She jerks, trying to pull away, but I grab her face, digging my fingers into her cheekbones. I feel her ragged, hot breath.
“You know that’s not going to happen,” I whisper, leaning close to her ear. “Now that we’re both here, do as I say. Obey me.”
“Obey you? So you can kill him?!” Rage surges in her eyes.
I move my hand lower, covering the pulsing vein in her neck. My fingers feel the frantic rhythm of her heart. “So we both stay alive.”
“If I mean anything to you, you won’t touch him!” she hisses.
I sigh. Oh, babe, it’s just the opposite.
“I didn’t turn you into him because I believe you won’t do it,” Aurora continues, and the rage in her gaze shifts to desperate pleading.
“I’ve already told you: I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you alive.”
My whisper hits her like an electric shock. She jerks, trying to break free from my grip. “Don’t you dare, you son of a bitch!” she spits in my face.