Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 100853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
“But I can’t access it,” Cole ground out.
Ford shrugged. “I’m sure eventually you can sort that out.”
“And when I do,” Cole said, and this time he added a sneer, “you know full well I’ll come straight for you.”
Ford’s lips pressed together in a hard line, and he gave a decisive nod. “Exactly. So why would I make that happen any faster? We both know you’re never going to stand down. I don’t think you’re capable of it. Your life went to shit on your own watch, and you want to blame my father? Fine. He was a bastard.”
Ford glanced over at the gaping hole in the concrete.
“My father was more of a bastard than you know. But he’s dead. You missed your chance there. The rest of us— We didn’t have anything to do with his bullshit, and you know it. I may have fucked over some of my own family, clients, and business partners, but never you. None of us here has ever hurt you. The people who did are dead, but for some reason, you can’t let it go. I could unfreeze your accounts and write you a big fat check—and it wouldn’t make a difference. Am I right?”
Cole narrowed his eyes on Ford. Then, with a sigh, he propped his hands on his hips, looking for just a moment every bit the lord of the manor with his perfect hair waving off his face, those sharp cheekbones, and vivid blue eyes. He was almost blindingly attractive, but so cold, and weirdly triumphant considering that his negotiation with Ford hadn’t been going his way.
I felt a chill in my gut as he cocked his head to the side and reached up to unbutton his black cashmere overcoat.
Chapter Thirty-Five
PAIGE
“Fine,” Cole said evenly. “I was trying to do this the easy way. You give me my money, and I leave you a gift you wouldn’t find until it was too late. But on the chance you weren’t prepared to be cooperative—”
Haywood undid the last button and spread wide the lapels of his overcoat.
“I brought the gift with me,” he finished, revealing a vest beneath, covered with blocks of—
“Fuck me,” Hawk said.
“What is that?” I whispered, not understanding. White clay and wires, with a small rectangular screen in the middle. On it, 4:00 flashed on and off in glowing red.
“C-4 on a timer,” he said, turning his head a fraction so I could hear his nearly silent words.
“C-4?” I asked under my breath.
“Explosive. He has enough to fucking blow a hole in the entire estate. If that goes off, there’ll be a crater where Heartstone Manor once stood.” Hawk tilted his head and said—I assumed into the earpiece connecting him to the rest of his team, “Kane, evacuate the Manor. Cole has a bomb. Keep it quiet. Get everyone past the gatehouse.” To me, he added, “Paige, go back in the Manor and leave through the front door.”
I ignored Hawk’s order. I needed to know what Cole’s plan was for the bomb strapped to his chest. And I wasn’t leaving Ford.
“You have three options,” Cole said. “Option one was to unfreeze my money. This is option two.”
Ford swallowed visibly. “Does option two involve you taking whatever that is far away from Heartstone Manor?”
Cole grinned. “In a way. Option two is that you leave with me, you make a phone call and get my funds unfrozen, then I let you walk, and you never see me again.”
Ford crossed his arms over his chest. “I don’t think that thing even works. It looks like you threw together some spare wires and blocks of play dough.”
“You don’t believe I’d blow up Heartstone Manor?” Cole asked, stroking a hand over the bomb on his chest.
Unlike Ford, I absolutely believed that thing worked.
“No,” Ford said, “I think you’d blow up Heartstone Manor and every single Sawyer in it if you could. I just don’t think you’d go down with us. You’re way too much of a narcissist to take your own life.”
“I don’t know,” Cole said. “I wouldn’t call myself a narcissist. Just confident. But I should be. I’m Cole Haywood. I don’t want to die, but if that’s the cost of destroying every last member of your family in one fell swoop, it’ll be worth it.”
Ford shook his head. “I don’t believe it.”
“So, you’re not going to leave with me?” Haywood asked, his eyes dropping to the mess of wires and white blocks on his chest as if he was seeing it for the first time.
Ford agreed. “No, I’m not.”
“Then I guess we’re on to option three. We all go down together.” Cole’s hand flew up, and he slapped the flat of his palm against the numbers on his chest. A second later, they flashed 3:59.
“Fuck,” Hawk growled. “Timer’s live. 3:58 remaining. Get the Manor clear.”