Jilted By Nephew, Claimed By King

t her head down, her chin tucked against her chest, letting her shoulders shake in a rhythm that mimicked terror. It was

n the drips of water falling from a rusted pipe somewhere in the darkness. But mostly, she calculated the distance between

ve f

ead in three seconds. But this wasn

rough the cavernous space. Light flooded in, harsh and blinding. Annelise squeeze

nel

th. He sounded like a man who had run a marathon, or p

against the industrial decay. Behind him, clutching the back of his jacket, was Felicia. Her stepsister. Felicia's makeup wa

d, her voice trembling.

tor tucked against his throat, turning his y

Red numbers ticked down. 1:59. 1:58. "The bomb is rigged to the door mechanism.

The ticking of the timer seemed to amplify, bounci

at Preston. She looked at the man who saw her as a rival for his family's power, a piece on a chessboard he desperately wanted off the board. This was the man whose

etched her neck out, reaching for

rt of the dowdy fiancée-to-be for his crippled uncle. He saw her messy hair, the lack of makeup, the way she cower

ilk blouse that caught the light. Felicia, who let out

elicia sobbed. "Preston,

n the pillar

gonize. He didn't even say he was so

h his voice was flat, devoid of any r

aped her throat. She lunged forward, falling onto her side

owed her out. The heavy iron slab slammed shut with a finality that s

cold concrete for ex

e stoppe

iously contorted in fear, smoothed into a mask of bored indifference. With a simple twist of her wrists and a s

i," she said, her vo

aling a face flushed with adrenaline and sweat. He hurried ove

ooking at the closed door. "I mean,

her knees. She looked down at the gray swea

pulled out a tube of lipstick. Using the reflection in the darkened screen of the tablet Benji handed

econd," Benji said, tap

d the exact moment Preston recoiled from her. It captured the way he grabbed Felicia's hand.

to the press?

small, cruel smile played on her lips. "This isn't for the p

ng of the devil. His convoy is t

ssed the tablet bac

e where they had pre-staged the accelerants. He struc

olent, climbing the walls and eating the oxygen in the room

nelise ordered. "Make

side, Boss." Benji van

r hair, pulling strands loose until she looked wild and unhinged. She began to hyperventil

her eyes. The heat was becoming unbeara

me to mee