The Widow Maker (Dark Vows Duet 2)

“Get away from me, Rain,” I snarl as she picks herself up from the bed and slowly approaches me. “I fucking mean it.”

“I’ll help,” she whispers.

“No!” My bloodcurdling scream sends her sprawling back. “Stay the fuck away or I don’t answer for myself. Not with you.”

“Heath, I-”

“Leave now.”

She trembles as she heads for the door’s remains, stepping over them. But the animal side of me has awoken. I feel like I’m high again as I snatch my arm after her, scratching her arm deeply. Rain cries out.

“Let go,” she cries out when my fingers grab her dress. “Let go of me!”

The fabric rips as she pulls away. The fear in her eyes grows as I near her and she runs down the stairs. I rush after her, but three guards block my way the next moment.

“Don Heath, retreat,” one of them says nervously, eyes wide at the sight of me. I must look like a wild beast. I fucking feel like one. “Let go. Go back to that room and calm yourself.”

I don’t want to listen to him. My gaze is focused on Rain cowering behind the line of guards. But then the sudden rush of adrenaline seeps through my pores in an instant, making me collapse to the ground with a groan. The reality of what I’ve done hits me fucking hard and I reach out for Rain.

“I’m sorry, Sunshine. I’m so fucking sorry.”

She doesn’t respond.

“Please, forgive me. I… I’ll get better for you. I swear it, Rain. I’ll be a better man.”

She watches me silently as I fold over on the ground. Wretched grunts of pains overtake me. The withdrawals are kicking in again, making me feel broken as fuck, as if my body’s bleeding out of every pore.

When I get it together again, even the guards can’t look at me.

I try to find Rain behind them, but she’s long fucking gone.

Chapter 20

RAIN

Heath’s sweat soaked body next to mine is still better than not being near him. Even in the night, I cling to him, remembering what it felt like to be without him. He’s still weaning off the drugs, and his moods are ever changing. Tonight, I’m struggling to get a wink of sleep. My thoughts are with Heath, wondering whether he’ll ever be able to break free of the addiction that is ruining both our lives.

I watch him, trailing my fingers over his chest that rises and falls with each labored breath he takes.

When the gunshots start, though, my fingers stop what they’re doing. Heath shoots up next to me. In a split second, he’s thrown the covers off us and is reaching for the gun on the bedside table next to him.

The shrieks and gunshots are getting louder and louder and my heart pounds as Heath silently shows me out of the room. In the hallway, he works quickly while panicked guards run past us to deal with whatever is happening downstairs. Heath pushes aside a rug and points to a well-hidden trapdoor in the ground.

“Get down there,” he barks at me. “Don’t make a fucking sound, Rain.”

I swallow thickly, doing as I’m told. I know better than to argue with Heath, so I climb the rickety stairs leading into the darkness below without saying a word. Heath stands above me with a manic expression.

“Everything is going to be okay,” he promises me before closing the trapdoor and enveloping me in darkness. “Don’t come out under any circumstances. Don’t revel yourself. Someone will collect you once this is over.”

I can barely comprehend what’s happening, but it’s clear from the blood-curdling screams the Palacio is under attack.

Did Xavier find us, or is this Xander’s work again? Either way, I know I’m in danger, and Heath will do his best to protect me. But hidden under the floorboards, I feel like a sitting duck. All it takes is for them to discover the trapdoor, and I’m as good as dead.

Shivers go down my spine as I listen to the screaming get louder and louder. A heavy thud above me tells me there’s at least one victim. And when blood seeps between the floorboards, I force myself to press a shaky palm over my lips, whispering a prayer for the fallen man. I can see a glimpse of him through a part of the floor that isn’t covered by the rug. A single, unseeing eye stares at me, wide open and definitely fucking dead.

My heart and head hurt as I try to make sense of where I am. I hadn’t seen this hidden part of the hallway before. The space is compact and I can barely stand up in it. But I know I’m safer here than I would be anywhere else in the house. Whether it’s Xander and Xavier attacking, I know they would try to take me back with them. But Heath will never let that happen, not again.