Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 83994 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83994 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Senesi.
No doubt in my mind.
I’ve seen men like him before. Killers and monsters. My brother Cormac was like that a while back before he found his family and saved himself.
But this creature is something new.
Senesi looks like any other nondescript old person wandering the streets. Except the manic glint in his eye hints at the demon lurking under the surface.
I raise my gun—
But Senesi twists, putting Casey between me and him.
She screams in pain, and my finger stops inches from pulling the trigger.
My heart’s racing. Senesi peers at me over Casey’s shoulder. Her face is drawn in agony, and her eyes are pleading with me.
Please help.
I have to steady myself. I can’t let how much I care about her fuck up this situation.
“Let me guess. The guards gave me away.” Senesi’s grin gets bigger. “I guessed I had at least another ten more minutes before you showed up.”
“I drove fast. Let her go.”
He tuts, shaking his head. “Can’t do that. She’s mine now, Whelan. I don’t have any problems with you in particular, but I will if you insist on getting in my way.”
“Let her fucking go.” I keep my gun steady. Tears roll down Casey’s cheeks. I hate that she’s so scared. But I keep my aim trained right on Senesi’s skull.
Can I kill him before he stabs my wife?
“You know the funniest bit? This boring fucking bitch wandered right into my trap. She came to me. Isn’t that hilarious? The stupid, naive cunt practically tilted back her head and begged me to cut her throat. It was almost too easy. Now you’re making it fun.”
“I won’t ask again. Let her go, Senesi. She’s not yours.”
His lips twist into a snarl. “You’re wrong. She’s fucking mine. Her parents ruined me, don’t you get it? I’ve been hiding away in shithole countries, bouncing around between worthless jobs, wasting myself all because I knew the Feds would come after me if I ever set foot in America. But then I heard little baby Casey Brennan was tangled up with Declan Whelan, and you know what? I couldn’t help myself. I thought I’d better come finish what I started and bury her whole worthless fucking family.”
“Last chance. Let her go.”
“Now you get to play hero. Big, strong Declan. My dick’s hard right now. You’re so tough and strong. Look at how much you care. It’s so fucking delicious. But here’s the thing. I’ve really enjoyed myself these last weeks. It’s nice to have a purpose again. So I’ll do everyone a favor and keep the fun going, how’s that sound?”
I’m inches from going for the kill when he shoves Casey forward. She screams in surprise and stumbles ahead. I try to get a good angle on Senesi, but the old fucker’s fast. He darts away, using the alley’s dumpsters as cover, and scrambles around the corner as Casey staggers and drops to her knees.
There’s a half second when I consider going after him. If I can catch him now and kill him, that’ll end all our problems. But Casey’s crying, and I can’t stand the thought of leaving her alone.
“It’s okay, baby, it’s okay.” I shove my gun away and pull her into my arms. Her body shakes with sobs. “I’ve got you now.”
“It was him,” she whispers. “I can’t believe I was so stupid.”
“This is what he does. It’s the reason he’s so terrifying. Senesi’s a master of sneaking and surprise. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
I guide her out of there before the killer decides to come back for another round. We reach my car right as Seamus pulls up with a whole truck filled with Whelan guards. “Fan out, you might find him.”
But we both know that isn’t going to happen.
Chapter 26
Casey
I’m probably in shock.
I’ve never had someone threaten to kill me before. Much less shove a knife in my back.
It wasn’t fun.
My face aches from where Senesi slammed me into that dumpster. I tried fighting back, but he was so fast and strong. I couldn’t believe it. He seemed like such a nice old man, totally harmless, maybe a little weird, but definitely not a threat.
Right up until he transformed into a monster.
Running saved my life. If I had stayed there in front of that diner, I think Senesi would’ve cut my throat then and there.
But he nearly got me anyway. The bastard caught up with me when I tried to lose him in the alley. I kept thinking to myself, this is where I die, this is how it all ends, right up until Declan came running around the corner.
Now I’m slumped against him as he takes me back to the house. He talks most of the way, trying to be as soothing as he can, and only about half of what he says registers. I let him take me inside, up into the master suite, and don’t even argue when he starts to draw a bath.