Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 79685 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79685 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
“I’m not leaving my family,” Gleeson says. “I’ll lay low so I’m not caught on any CCTV cameras.”
Nodding, I drink the rest of my coffee, watching as Manuel cuts the headshots he took before carefully sticking them in the passports.
Knowing it’s still going to take a while, I drop the empty mug in the sink on my way out of the house. With nothing better to do, I take a seat on the chair, staring out over the dark landscape.
I notice a light shining from the house behind the trees, but it doesn’t hold my attention, and I glance up at the stars.
I see a few satellites moving across the night sky, then suddenly, a shooting star has a smile curving my lips.
Let me find my woman.
It’s the only wish I’ve had since Lorena told me about the woman I’ll share my life with.
Mi Sol.
Chapter 8
CIARA
Lying next to Nolan, who’s sick as a dog, I listen to his wheezing breaths.
He’s been in and out of consciousness all night, and with every passing minute, my heart beats faster and faster.
I slowly turn my head and whisper, “Nolan?”
He doesn’t stir, and I cautiously sit up. Reaching for the chain, I carefully gather the metal links while creeping off the bed.
“Where are you going?” he mumbles weakly.
I freeze and glance over my shoulder. “The toilet.”
He tries to sit up but slumps down again, then hoarsely orders, “Be quick.”
I slowly blow out a breath of relief and climb to my feet.
I have no idea how long I’ve been with Nolan, but a while back, I managed to steal the key out of his pocket while he was asleep. I managed to unlock the chain, but before I could get the front door open, he was on top of me.
Since then, he’s left the key on the kitchen counter where it’s out of my reach.
I walk to the bedroom door and take a second to glance over my shoulder again. Nolan seems to be asleep. I crouch down and pull most of the chain toward me, careful not to make a sound as I gather it in my arms.
Slowly, I look at Nolan. His face is pale and sweaty from the fever. Earlier, he left to get flu medicine, but he took the key with him, so I couldn’t try to escape.
It’s now or never.
My heart pounds against my ribs as I begin to inch my way down the hallway, carefully setting the chain down so it doesn’t drag across the floor.
The minutes it takes for me to get to the kitchen is nerve-wracking, making my breaths burst over my lips in short puffs.
Months of hell flash through my mind, my panic skyrocketing because if Nolan catches me, I know he’ll beat me until I’m unable to walk.
That’s if he doesn’t kill me.
In the beginning, he used the belt on my butt, but with time that’s changed until he wouldn’t hesitate to beat me with his fists.
Luckily, he hasn’t raped me, but that doesn’t stop him from sexually assaulting me. Every day, Nolan will rub his release over my breasts and between my legs and force me to stay naked for the entire day before he bathes me.
For a second, I shut my eyes while I force the horrible trauma out of my mind so I can focus on escaping.
When I open my eyes, they settle on the key where it’s lying on the counter.
I glance around for anything I can use to get to it, but there’s nothing long enough.
Placing my hand on the back of the chair, panic wells in my chest, but then my eyebrows fly up, and I look at the chair.
Careful to be as quiet as possible, I lift the chair and move as close to the counter as the chain will allow me to. When the metal links dig into the skin around my ankle, I spread my legs as wide as they’ll go. With my thigh muscles burning, I stretch my arms out, struggling to keep the chair in the air.
Come on!
My breaths keep speeding up as I lift the chair higher, but then the back legs slam down on the counter, making one hell of a noise.
No!
Desperation pours through my body, and panicking, I scrape the wooden legs over the counter. One catches the key, and it drops to the floor.
Nolan’s weak voice comes from the bedroom. “Ciara.”
I fall to my knees and stretch as far as I can, my middle finger almost touching the key.
Letting out a frustrated cry, I grab the chair again and quickly move the key closer. Shoving the chair to the side, I snatch the key from the floor, and swinging around, I unlock the chain.
The moment I’m free, I dart up to my feet and run for the door. My fingers are trembling badly as I unlock the door, and as I yank it open, I hear Nolan coughing uncontrollably.