Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83221 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83221 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Aria sits up straighter, her eyes taking in every detail. I tap my phone.
Lev: Your driver was found dead. It’s been hijacked. Get out of the car. We’re trying to locate you.
Fuck.
I take my phone and open a blank message. I type and hold it up to show her because anything we say can be overheard.
We were hijacked.
Aria’s eyes widen and her nostrils flare. She thinks for a minute and doesn’t lose her shit. Wordlessly, she takes the phone from me and taps back, her hand trembling.
I can help. But you have to distract the driver. Can you trust me?
Can I trust her? Of course I can’t trust her. But we need more than brute strength, which I’m happy to supply.
She types again.
If you can distract the driver, cars like this have an ECM I can access remotely.
The electronic control module supplies fuel. If she can disable the engine…Jesus.
I confirm with another text.
So what you’re saying is, I distract the driver while you disable the engine. But if you do that, we could crash.
She nods.
I’m aware. Seat belts? We’ll be attacked when we do, you have weapons?
Oh I fucking have weapons. I nod.
I’ll need your phone to do this.
I have to trust her. We’ll have to work as a team.
Okay.
“This dress — ugh, I need to be able to move,” she whispers.
She points to a few loops at the bottom and shows me how the train part is detachable.
Slowly, carefully, she detaches the train and shoves it under the seat. “Glad I said no to the heels,” she whispers. “You ready? He’s getting suspicious. We should look normal.”
I lean in and bend her back, holding her to me while I kiss her. At first, she struggles, surprised, but soon melts against me. “How’s that?” I whisper in her ear.
“Very good. You win an Emmy. You ready?”
“So fucking ready.”
We share a look. I nod, slide her my cell and we both buckle up. Her eyes light up as her fingers dance across the screen. I watch as she sends our location signal. My brothers will get that. Next, she skillfully taps into a screen I’ve never seen before, her tongue sticking out of her mouth as she concentrates.
“I’m in,” she whispers with a gleeful smile. She’s in her element. It’s so fucking hot. “Let’s go.”
The car’s speed drops dramatically at the same time the privacy screen lowers. The driver grasps at the wheel, but Aria’s effectively overridden the engine and brakes.
“What the fuck,” the driver mutters in a panic.
“Brace yourself,” she whispers with a grimace as she taps a button and we come to a screeching halt. We spin out like we’re hydroplaning. The driver’s thrown against the steering wheel, but we were prepared. Aria bangs her head but quickly sits upright, ignoring the flash of red on her temple.
“Go!”
I unbuckle my seat belt and lunge forward. I seize control of the wheel and slam us into a roadside barrier. Glass from the windshield rains down on us. There’s a pop as tires explode and sparks fly as we come to a sudden, violent halt.
“You alright?” I ask her, as I wrap my hands around the neck of the fucking driver. I hold him in place and look to her.
“Fine. Wish I had a weapon.”
I grit my teeth. “You don’t need a weapon.” I hold the driver in a choke hold. I’ve got three to four seconds, max, before he’s out. I’ll beat the shit out of this son of a bitch, but not until we have answers.
“Get on the floor,” I order Aria as I exit the vehicle and quickly scan our surroundings. Another car’s only a few car lengths behind us. They accelerate and I don’t hesitate. I pull the trigger and shoot their tires. They spin out.
Liquid fire courses through my veins. I grit my teeth and pull the trigger again. I hit the other driver in the shoulder and his accomplice in the neck. One will survive, and that’s all I’ll need. He fumbles with the car door to try to run when he sees me advancing on him, but he’s too late.
I yank that driver out of the car and slam his head into the concrete. “You fuck with me on my wedding day?” I kick him, ribs cracking, and he screams.
“I didn’t know you were married already! Volkov said to stop the wedding!”
“Volkov’s a fool and you’re a bigger fool for following his orders.” I put my gun to his head. Aria screams when I pull the trigger once, twice, three times. He slumps to the ground, in a pool of his own blood and battered flesh.
When I turn to Aria, she’s staring at me wide-eyed and pale.
I put the gun away and take a step toward her. To her credit, she doesn’t flinch when I reach my hand to her cheek and cup her face. “You alright?”