Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 127201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
His pulse accelerated, going into overdrive as they dashed to the edge, but just as he’d feared Miguel might end up stopping and causing them to fall to their deaths, he conquered his fear and leapt forward, as instructed.
Nero was so shocked he almost forgot to pull the parachute release, and they faced the deep shadows of the valley. Miguel shrieked, making Nero’s ears ring, but then the white canopy spread and caught air, causing them to come to a rapid stop.
Chapter 13
Nero
The risky jump reminded Nero why he’d fallen in love with parachuting. It was this addictive feeling that he might die at any moment yet survived every time.
He loved straddling the thin line between life and death. It made him focus on the moment, forget his grim reality, his father, and focus on the sense of absolute freedom only the open sky could offer.
But Miguel did not enjoy the flight in the slightest, and as the straps connecting their bodies tugged at Nero, he was impressed with how well the poor bastard followed directions, considering the circumstances. Then again, who wouldn’t, when the vast green landscape so far below them meant they were one mistake away from certain death?
Nero tried to guide them as far from the viewpoint as possible, but finding a good landing spot wouldn’t be easy, because their combined weight made for a faster descent and glide. He could only hope that the DIY straps would hold together for long enough.
Despite enjoying Miguel’s warmth against his chest, Nero spent the precious time on thoughts he couldn’t have entertained during the short car ride. He’d hated his brother and yet someone else killed the bastard. Now the same had happened with his father. Had he taken too little agency in his life, floating through it and enjoying the riptide without much thought on where it would land him?
Today was irreversible. If he survived, he’d have to hide forever. He might manage to access one or two of his secret accounts in the future, but even that would be a risky thing to consider with the likes of Hugo Cano on his tail.
And yet he was risking it all by saving the man who’d caused this calamity and wouldn’t explain himself. A man who’d betrayed him for a personal cause. A man who seemed so utterly lost now, he’d wanted to put a gun in his mouth and shoot his brains out. What could have pushed him in that direction?
Nero shouldn’t care, and the fact that he did meant he had a soft spot for Miguel, but he hadn’t been lying about needing him either. If they stayed together, he’d have someone to watch his back as he slept and another gun at his side. Miguel’s handsome face and ambivalent sexuality were just a bonus.
The valley was used for agriculture, so he breathed a sigh of relief when they passed the slope and directed the parachute away from the trees, to a road cutting through the landscape with its stark line.
“You feel that wind in your face?” Nero shouted, glad to be hidden behind Miguel’s broad form, because no one wanted air pushing into their nose and eyes. “We’re gonna make it!”
Miguel yelled something back and pointed to the road, but Nero couldn’t hear him through the wind. If he was still trying to convince Nero they should head back to civilization, he had another thing coming.
“Land on bent legs,” Nero hollered as he pulled on the straps controlling their direction and led them over the fields, for a softer landing. This might end in pain, but at least they’d be alive.
Their shadow followed them across a brown field, and then to the next plot, green with plants growing in neat rows. They descended rapidly, and Nero braced himself, knowing Miguel would take the brunt of the upcoming impact and wanting to make it easier on him.
Nero was hoping to gently lower their altitude when something snapped at his arm.
His heart stopped when he realized one of the shoelaces broke, sending them off course with the sudden lack of balance. Miguel screamed, losing any of the cool he’d displayed so far, and scrambled in the air like a helpless bug getting his wings ripped off by an invisible force. The rectangular canopy tilted in response to the sudden shift below, and a gust of wind threw them in the direction of trees separating one field from another.
Shit.
Nero pulled on the steering line to attempt correcting their course, but it was too late, and he screamed as they dashed toward thick leafy crowns that could break all their bones. His last moment tug was what saved Miguel from crashing straight into the trunk, and allowed them to pass between two trees, but just as Nero hoped the danger was over after all, the harness yanked him back as if he were bungee-jumping.