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Another lacerating pain flashed throughto him It couldn’t Not to Q I wouldn’t let it

He can’t die! Not now

Then help Franco He’s your only hope

Anger heated my body at the realization of my own mortality I could chase after the men, try to be heroic and leap on their backs and cry and screa shot sooner andhi through your head--stop it It’s not as bad as you think" His deep voice slappedmy dress, I whirled around "Not as bad as I think? Not as bad!" I stalked toward him "They took him, Franco They stole him from my arms and shot him" My eyes burned but no tears fell I wanted to screale last one of those bastards who’d taken what I couldn’t live without

I can’t do this

You ain--teetered close to cracking My tower that I’d s to rise from its ashes to claim me

But I wouldn’t let it Not this time This time I wouldn’t be a victim This ti to a knee A rush of guilt swar his inside So , terrible responses as my body and mind battled hat to do

I’d never felt this way This lost, angry, terrified kind of way As a victiht was stripped the moment I was captured But as the one left behind I had choices, decisions--hope

But then fear struck, crushing that hope What if Idecision? What if I trusted Franco to help but theof tione? I played roulette with Q’s life depending on the decision Ia statue was all I see in horrific ways

Chasing after Q to find a bullet lodged in his forehead in the lobby

Not chasing after Q to find they’d sent a ransoe

Chasing after Q only to watch him be tortured--all because of me

They took him because of me

"Oh, my God" Why hadn’t I seen it? I was so stupid I’d done this I’d ruined his life Destroyed it Deirth and voluo

Ar shirt and tense broken body Franco pressedto while my misery threatened to drown me

"It’s because of me It’s my fault!"

"Of course it’s your fault"

My eyes popped wide He agreed! I couldn’t do it I curled over, nursing the ball of agony in athered me closer "It’s your fault he’s happy It’s your fault he’s finally accepting his past and looking forward to a future he no longer has to hide from" He winced as his body wobbled "This would’ve happened with or without you, Tess You’ve only seen a sen of men involved in this industry But Q knows thousands He’s personally ate with them, done deals with them He elcomed into a world where adfor you so recklessly sped up the realization of who Q really was, but it would’ve happened Eventually"

He pulled away, looking into ritty eyes "And when it happened, he wouldn’t be where he is today He wouldn’t fight as hard as he will now because he has love giving him power" His emerald eyes softened "If they’d coht--of course, but ultiiven in Because in some fked-up way he believes he deserves it"

I shook my head "He doesn’t--"

"You know him--the parts he lets you see at least But I’ve been with hione through life knowing he would die young He never ca life, Tess He just didn’t have the strength to keep battling whatever is inside hioodness inside, leaving it riddled with holes Only Q could patch those holes, and it didn’t matter what decision I ith because the conclusion was all the saet him back Just like he savedand denial It was ti my torn dress, I pulled away fro my eyes to his torn trousers and blood-stained shirt "Shit, Franco I’ash on his arm only for him to flinch back

Then I saw it

A crimson-soaked tie wrapped around his thu with liquid "What--what did they do?"

He shrugged "It’s the only access to your rooerprints I refused when they asked Guess they didn’t like that" Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the severed appendage

Bile swashed upinto the bathrooed my system of lychee martinis and Italian entrées in a wicked wave of vomit

Cold sweat dotted my spine as my stomach convulsed

Franco’s thuain

If they did that to get to Q, what the hell would they do to hi harder; ers whispered acrossthe the porcelain Franco gaveit’s all out of your systeo Do you think you’ll be okay?" I couldn’t help looking at his left hand, saturated in blood, wrapped with his tie around the stump of where his thuers being cut off consuirl

I refused to waste anothermy mouth, I stood up andaped and flashedFranco and I ell past a bit of flesh He’d just becoet Q back

"Give hrabbed a thick black ju the dress down my hips, I quickly yanked the jeans on and threw the sweater overmy feet into soht sht back old number for Q’s dinner party" Then his eyes darkened "Has he told you why he did that yet?"

My ree dress that hid nothing and offered everything to the Russian in the white ju , I accept it I knew even then he wasn’t as bad as he came across I think I loved him the moment you forced me to bow"

Franco half-smiled "I only forced you because I understood the look in his eyes He’d never had that look before"

Going to hiht "What look?" We hobbled to the exit