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“Yes,” he admitted with a small groan. “And to be fair, some of it just feels good without the emotional baggage. Like when you pull my hair?”
“We should probably get out of here. I’ve just realized we fucked in your mom’s home and that has me all creeped out, seeing as she is actively trying to murder us both.”
“You don’t have to keep that on if you don’t want to,” Nate murmured, seeming to read my thoughts. “I just wanted you to have it.”
“Do…do you want
me to take i...
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“...
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“I told you to watch your back, and you didn’t listen. Now look what you’ve done.” I read the text aloud, my stomach clenching painfully with fear. “She has him. Heath, Jocelyn has Nate somehow.”
Unknown Number: I’m willing to trade. You for my son. No need to involve the authorities again, Ashley. I’m sure by now you’ve seen how well that worked out at Clearview.
“How do you think Nate would feel,” Heath said softly, his voice choked with emotion, “if you were killed to save his life?”
“I think he’d be alive, and that’s all that matters.”
“Why are you doing this?” I asked as I attempted to subtly test the strength of my restraints. “Why do you hate Ashley so much?”
“I don’t,” she replied. “She seems perfectly nice. If you excuse the fact she’s dull as old paint, dumber than a bag of hamsters, and horribly raised. But I have nothing against the girl
herself. Her mother, on the o...
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“So you’re torturing Ashley because you’re jea...
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“I’m not jealous, Nathaniel. This isn’t some petty, scorned-wife
wife revenge. Honestly, I’m insulted that you would belittle my life’s work to such trivial matters. What I’m doing is revolutionary, son. It’s going to forever change the path of governmental control and military operations. If the trash gets taken out as a side effect, well, that’s just a happy coincidence.”
“Are you going to kill me here, Mom?”
“Is this the end for us?”
“Don’t be silly, Nathaniel. You’re clearly just bait. If you play your part as intended, there will be no need to kill you. Be a good boy and smile for the camera, yes? Ashley is refusing to play without confirmation that you’re alive.”
“Ashley isn’t stupid,” I told her through gritted teeth. “She won’t just do what you want simply because you asked.”
“Not even to save her fiancé?” my mother mocked with a pouty face. “I think, Nathaniel dear, you’d be amazed what a woman would do for the man she loves.”
That fact struck me like a knife through the heart. The idea that Ashley’s feelings for me could potentially get her killed was ...
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All I could do was cling to the thin shred of hope that maybe…maybe…she didn’t l...
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“Oh, good, she’s on her way. Alone too. Such an obedient girl. It’s a shame she has to die. She could have been a valuable player in my experiments, like Abby was.”
“No,” I croaked, shaking my head in disbelief. “You shouldn’t be here!”
Her eyes met mine in a torturous clash of emotions that shredded my soul. Determination, anger, fear, love…but not a single drop of regret. That infuriating, beautiful woman was utterly fearless, and it was going to be the death of us both.
“She can’t hear you,”
“You think I kept her in my facility those weeks for fun? Don’t be an idiot, Nathaniel. I raised you to be smarter than this.”
“Shoot yourself in the head, Ashley.” “No!”
I couldn’t stop her. I couldn’t get there fast enough—it simply wasn’t possible. I was going to sit here and watch the light of my life
extinguish, and there was nothing I could do.
“Stop!” Jocely...
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It couldn’t end like this… We couldn’t end like this…
“Ashley.”
“Shoot my son. Kill him.”
The emotion slid through me, burning a little too hot, impossible to evade but so incredibly inevitable. She was everything I’d ever wanted and feared in one beautiful person.
“See how she’s fighting the suggestion? See how tense her muscles are as she fights the command? This is what I wanted to see! This proves my work is a success! She wants nothing more than to break the command, but she can’t. I’m in control now.”
If nothing else, I had faith that the guys would get to Ash. They’d save her and continue to keep her safe through her grief. They wouldn’t ever let her know what’d happened here. They wouldn’t burden her with guilt over my death. They’d lie…and they’d take that lie to their graves.
“It’s okay, Duckling,”
“I love you, Layne. You’re my everything.”
Her gun was aimed at Jocelyn. “How’s that for science, bitch?”
“Hey, it’s okay, Duckling. I’m here. I’ve got you. It’s all over.”
“I almost k-killed you.” Ashley’s little voice reached my ears, despite the way her face was buried in my shirt. “I n-n-nearly sh-shot you.”
“But you didn’t,”
“I love you too.” Well, fuck. The way my heart thumped in my chest at those words reassured me I was still alive, and I had everything to live for.
Sir Carter: Spark, you really are the light of my life. You illuminate all the darkened corners I’d gotten so used to being there. When I’m with you, nothing else matters. I can’t tell you how stupid happy I am that you let me love you and that you love me too.
“Her CT scan showed significant brain damage,” Max said softly. “Irreparable damage. At least that’s what the doctors believe for the moment. She is unlikely to ever remember her life as we knew it was. Time will tell, though. And she’s going to be closely monitored. No assumptions.”
Abigail: Thank you. You did what I never could, but now it’s my turn to keep you all safe. It’s the least I can do, for my part in this experiment. Sorry doesn’t cut it, but maybe this will help?
Abigail: Seek therapy, Ashley. One bad egg doesn’t need to spoil the batch, and you’ll need help to move on. But rest assured, your part is over. I’ll be watching your back for you. XX - Abby
