Willing Captive (24 page)

Collapsing in my
arms, she cries softly. I turn her around and pull her into a hug.
I’m immediately relieved when her arms come around me and she
squeezes me tight.

“
I
just heard- I mean, I walked in and--then you said--and I didn’t
know--and it hurt
so
much!” She
cries into my chest and I kiss the top of her head.

“
I
know. And I’m sorry you thought what you thought. But it was Mitch
who needed to think what you thought. I heard you come in, baby. I
knew you were there the whole time. I still had to do it,” I say as
I rub her back.

Feeling protective
of my girl, I decide to let her in on one little secret. “Doesn’t
matter where you are, baby. I’ll come for you.” She lifts her
watery eyes to mine and I state confidently, “I’ll come for
you.”

Lifting her face, I
lower mine. We meet in the middle.

The kiss is sweet.
So much conveyed in that small gesture. I release her lips to
whisper, “You gotta trust me like I trust you, ‘kay?”

She nods and
sniffles. So I kiss her sweet lips again.

And again.

And again.

***

Lily

I hang out with Nox
in his office for the rest of the afternoon.

He puts me to work
filing, and although it’s a crappy job, I used to do it at Flynn
Logistics all the damn time, so I’m good at it. Within an hour, I
have him up to speed and he sets me to work looking through boxes
to see if there’s anything else I can do without getting bored.

Nox types away at
his laptop, clearly busy, so when I open the first book and gasp
quietly, he doesn’t react.

There, on top of the
files, is my cell phone.

Picking it up, I
hold it for a while before placing it back in the box and shutting
the lid.

Closing my eyes, I
breathe deeply. Temptation will not win out. I am stronger than
this. I do not need to turn it on. I’ve been fine without it for
months. I don’t need it.

You don’t need
it.

No. I don’t.

Opening the
box again, I pick up my cell and hold down the power button. It
starts without a problem. There are a ton of text messages and
missed calls, but before I can check anything, the phone
rings.

Staring at the
display, I still.

Jett.

Jamie’s twin
brother.

I need to take
this.

I’m so tangled in
the phone ringing that I don’t hear Nox move until he’s behind me.
“Lily, baby, don’t answer.”

Still kneeling in
front of the open box, my fingers twitch.

“
Baby, that phone isn’t secure. Don’t answer.”

Standing, I hold the
cell phone by my side and turn to Nox. He looks worried. I whisper,
“I have to take this.”

Nox shakes his head.
His lips thin. “It’s not a secure line, Lily. Anyone can track
it.”

Looking back down at
the still ringing phone, I whisper again, “I need to take
this.”

Nox reaches out to
take the phone, but I hold it out of reach. His eyes meet mine,
confusion written all over them. Breathing heavily, I say, “I’m
sorry.” Then run out the door, down the hall and into my old room.
Taking the chair from inside the room, I drag it into the bathroom
with me and lodge it under the door knob.

Not a second after I place it there, the door handle jiggles.
Nox yells, “Babe! Stop! Do
not
answer!”

Closing my eyes, I
press the call button. I hold the cell to my ear and whisper,
“Hello?”

Nox bangs on the
door and booms, “Hang up, Lily! Fuck!”

“
Lily! Lily, darlin’! Please don’t hang up! It’s
urgent!”

Oh my effing
God!

A heavy Irish accent
but the wrong brother. A clearly distressed Jamie Harrison begs for
me to stay on the line.

The person who I
thought was my friend.

The person who
organized a hit on me.

He was going to have
me killed for money.

And I trusted
him.

My finger dances on
the end call button. I accuse, “I thought you were my friend,
Jamie.”

He yells, “I
am, Lily! I feckin’ love ye! Yer my family, girlie. I’m more a
feckin’ Flynn than I am a Harrison! Please listen ta
me!”

There’s something
about the desperation in his voice I don’t like.

I know Jamie. I know
him well enough to know that he isn’t a shaking-in-your-boots type
of guy. The boots are shaking now. I can almost hear them through
the phone.

Steeling my voice, I
tell him, “You’ve got thirty seconds to make me listen.”

His voice shakes as
he whispers, “Never meant for this ta happen. It wasn’t meant ta
happen like this. I swear, Lily.” Voice breaking, he mutters,
“Swear on my own life.”

My chest squeezes.
This is so unlike Jamie.

Sniffling, he
states, “Jett’s trying ta kill me.”

What? No way.

Jett and Jamie are
closer than close. I don’t believe it.

Covering my mouth
with my hand, I listen wide-eyed as he starts, “Jett came up with
an idea ta get money. We needed ta do something ta look after mam.
Do ye ken? It was all for Mam, Lil.”

He moans low, as if
in pain. Panting, he goes on, “Da knew about what happened when ye
were a bairn. He told us all about it. We were desperate enough to
use it against ye.” Panting harder, his voice shakes. “Said it’d be
perfect. No one would get hurt. We get the money. Then we
disappear.”

Jamie breaks into a
coughing fit and my heart races.

More banging, then
Nox yells, “Open the fucking door, Lily! Don’t make me break it
down!”

Don’t hang up!

Eye prickling, I
ask, “What then, Jamie?”

Breathing deeply, he
steadies his voice. “Then it changed. Jett started ta hide shit
from me. He changed the password on our laptop, Lily. I couldn’t
get in. Took the work phone away from me. Started listening on yer
father’s conversations and asking about ye. A lot, girlie. I knew
something wasn’t right, but I didn’t ken how much.”

Jamie makes a choked noise, he whispers through tears. “He
framed me, Lily. I swear it.” My entire body jolts as he roars,
“The feckin’ twat framed
me
!”

Tears fall onto my
cheeks.

Fuck.

He isn’t lying. No
way, no how. I whisper, “What does he want?”

His voice
shakes, “Never about you, Lily. Never. He wants two things.” I wait
patiently as he utters, “Money. And Terah. He’s on his way ta get
her now. He knows where ye are, Lily. Don’t be fooled. He’s smarter
than he shows. Ye need to get out of there. Get somewhere safe.
He’s lost his mind.”

My blood runs
cold.

Trembling, I
screech, “Nox!” before breaking into sobs.

Standing, I kick
away the chair that holds the door locked.

Jamie starts to
cough again, wheezing as he mutters, “He feckin’ killed me,
Lil.”

My voice quakes as I
ask, “What do you mean, Jamie? Where are you?”

His voice weakens.
“In my apartment, love. And it won’t be long now. I’ll be back with
Da.”

Tears fall freely
down my cheeks and I shout, “You’re not going to die!”

Jamie
chuckles, “Oh, sweets, the two bullets in my chest tell me
different.” Doubling over, I clutch my stomach, bawling as I listen
to my dying friend. “Ye were the best thing about America, Lily.
Never wanted ta live here, but I had to come. Yer da is a good man.
And I loved him like he was my own.”

More banging in the
background.

Arms come around my
waist, but I clutch the phone to my ear and whisper, “You’re going
to be okay.”

“
No, Lil. I won’t. But I’m good with that. Get ta see Da.” His
voice turns reverent. “Never had a sister before, Lil.”

My body shakes
violently with my tears. A second more and I hear the call
disconnect. Panicked, I wail, “No!”

I’m crumbling.

Nox rocks me, but
not before taking my cell and throwing it hard against the bathroom
wall. It shatters into a hundred pieces and I sob while Nox holds
me.

Between choked
breaths, I tell him, “Jamie’s dying. They got it wrong. It’s Jett,
not Jamie. He shot him, and now he’s going after Terah.” Closing my
eyes, I whisper, “Don’t let him get her. Please, God. Don’t let him
get her.”

Opening my eyes, I
look at Nox through the mirror and say quietly, “He knows where I
am.”

Nox’s arms tighten
around me. Offering false security.

Chapter
Nineteen
Leaving
on a Jett
plane

Lily

Pandemonium.
That’s the only word I could use to describe the hours after
that call.

Rock yells on one
cell while Nox barks orders through another, and Boo packs a bag
full of my things.

We’re leaving
tonight.

I don’t know where
we’re going, but as long as I’m with Nox, I’ll be okay.

My body
trembles.

I’m not showing my
true fear. Nox is stressed enough without having to deal with my
BS.

Boo stops what she’s
doing at the sight of me. And I thought I was hiding it so well.
She comes over and wraps her arms around me, and I let her. She
whispers encouraging words that I don’t actually hear.

Rock finishes up his
call looking more than worried.

Shit.

Turning to Nox, he
waits patiently for him to finish his call. Once off the phone, Nox
barks, “Tell me something good, Rock. I couldn’t handle bad right
now.”

Rock lowers his eyes. He says quietly, “Safe house
Zed
was breached just now.”

My heart stops
altogether.

Before I can ask
about Terah, he adds, “Jon knew something wasn’t right. Went with
his gut and took Terah away from there. I don’t know where they
are, but wherever it is, they’re safe.”

I turn my face to
watch Nox. He swallows hard. He looks angry. Very angry.

Sniffing, he asks,
“Fallen?”

Rock stills a moment
before answering softly, “Takeshi and Sean.”

Nox steps back,
sucking in a deep breath.

I still don’t know
what’s going on.

Hands on his hips,
Nox enquires, “Gunfire?”

Rock says even softer, “Explosion.
Zed
was blown apart.”

Oh
God. Oh God. Oh my fucking
God
!

People are dead.
Takeshi and Sean are dead.

My eyes fill with
tears. They died protecting my sister. And I never even met them.
I’ll never meet my sister’s heroes. I ask a hollow, “People are
dying?”

Nox, Rock, and Boo
all look at me. I ask again, quieter, “People are dying because of
me?”

Immediately, Nox is
by my side. And he’s furious. “No. Don’t do that. This is not your
fault. This is because of some sick fuck with a crush.” Looking up
at him through blurry eyes, he cups my cheeks and leans his
forehead on mine. “Not your fault, baby. I swear.”

I know it’s not
appropriate, but I love that he used my version of a promise by
saying ‘I swear’.

Reaching up, I hold
his hands over my cheeks. “What do we do now?”

Pulling back, he
states, “We get outta here. Take Jonathon’s line of thinking and
disappear. Just me and you, babe.”

Taking a deep
breath, I nod as I exhale.

Nox whispers, “Good.
Get your shit.”

As I walk over to
back of the room, a deafening boom sounds from the back of the
house, and I see a flash of blinding white light before an unseen
force throws me backwards to the ground.

The house shakes.
The fixtures rattle. The furniture moves. My heart slams into my
chest. I’m winded from the fall. Shaking, I hold my hands over my
ears and watch as the windows, a foot away from me, explode.
Ducking my head, I scream in shock and use my forearm to cover my
face.

Glass shards spray
me, and closing my eyes tightly, I feel wet warmth on my forehead
and arm.

Looking around, I
see Nox yelling so hard the veins in his neck bulge. He motions for
me to come to him but I can’t move.

I’m petrified.

Army crawling
towards me, he yells some more, but I can’t hear a thing. A ringing
sound echoes through my head.

Blinking, I shout,
“What?”

His lips move, but I
still can’t hear over the ringing. Adrenalin causes blood to roar
in my ears, and finally I begin to hear.

Boo and Rock yell
out while Nox directs them.

Confusion seeps
through me. I can’t comprehend what’s happening. All I know is that
it’s bad.

Another explosion.
Closer this time. The house shakes feverishly.

A
frightened shriek escapes me. Nox shouts, “Go with Boo!”

Opening my mouth to
respond, arms come around me from behind and pull me backwards.
Everything’s happening so quickly. I’m in a panic.

Watching Nox watch
me, a torrent of tears escape me. Shrugging off the arms, I fall
forward on my knees and scramble across broken glass back to Nox.
Crying hysterically, I yell out, “I don’t want to leave you! Please
don’t make me leave you! Don’t make me go!”

His eyes shine
bright. Taking my face in his hands, he takes my mouth in a short
possessive kiss. Releasing me, he shouts out, “Go with Boo!”

Reaching forward, I
clutch his shirt, shaking, “Don’t make me go! I want to stay with
you!”

His face turns
pained. Pulling my clawing hands off him, he stands and says, “If
you ever loved me, you’ll go with Boo.” Lowering my face, I burst
into another bout of tears. He adds, “You have to trust me,
Lily!”

Crying only a moment
longer, I pull myself together. Straightening, I demand through
gritted teeth, “You better come for me. You promised.” Not waiting
for a response, I crawl back to Boo through the destruction.