Buttons and Grace (Buttons 6)

“You’re going to tell me where she is. Once I have her, I’ll let you go. Seems like a fair punishment for the way you both screwed me over. You get your freedom, and you can imagine what your wife is doing every hour of the day while she’s chained to my bed.” His eyes bored into mine, full of vengeful hostility.

I didn’t blink. “I’m not going to lie and say I don’t know where she is. I know exactly where she is. But there’s nothing you can do to make me hand her over. You can cut off every single limb piece by piece until there’s nothing left or I bleed out and die. You can torture me in whatever way gets you off. I still won’t say a damn word. If you don’t believe me, call my bluff. Break out the saws and drills and kill me slowly.” I was the one who remained tied up and beaten, but I never lost my confidence or authority. Tristan was at my mercy because he was trying to break in to an unbreakable vault. There was no amount of money or weapons that could get him any closer to his goal. I’d gladly die before I let a man go near the woman I loved.

Tristan studied my gaze like the very words I spoke were written across my face. He didn’t smile or frown, soaking up my message like a sponge. He rose from his chair and pushed it aside. “I told Cane that’s the only trade I’m willing to make. So, in either case, one of you is going to crack. I’m just not sure who it’s going to be.”

Cane knew exactly what I would want in this situation. Even if he handed over Pearl, got me out of there, and then we teamed up to steal her back, I wouldn’t want that. I didn’t want a man to even touch my wife’s hand, no matter how temporary it was. Even if Pearl agreed to it, I still didn’t want it.

I’d rather die.

Cane knew that. I had no doubt he would make the right decision—even if that meant he would never see me again.

Chapter 3

Pearl

The world was spinning.

I couldn’t stand on my own two feet.

No matter how many breaths I took, I wasn’t getting enough air.

My heart was beating so fast I thought I’d have a heart attack.

So many tears.

The sobs. They made my chest hurt.

He told me he loved me before he disappeared. His tracker had shut off. I was completely in the dark in another country. My husband was captured, probably suffering every single moment as it passed.

I waited to wake up from this nightmare, but it never ended.

I called Cane over and over but could never get through to him. I hoped that meant he was in the middle of getting Crow back. I hoped he was putting a bullet in between Tristan’s eyes at that very moment. I hoped he was doing everything he possibly could to save my husband—the love of my life.

Lars sat beside me on the patio. The night had passed, and it was a beautiful and sunny day in Greece. But to me, I was in the middle of the biggest storm in history. The ship was sinking, and I didn’t think we’d survive.

Lars wrapped his hand around mine and held it on the cushion, doing the only thing he could to comfort me. I’d hugged Lars once or twice over the years, but we’d never touched this way. And I knew why.

He was scared.

I cried on and off as the hours passed. Not knowing what was going on was the worst part. I wanted to take off to Italy, but I wasn’t sure what help I would be. The reason Crow sent me away was to protect me. It would make all of his efforts pointless if I handed myself over to the people he was protecting me from.

My phone rang, and Cane’s name popped up on the screen.

I answered instantly. “Please tell me you got him. Tell me he’s okay. Please…”

Cane’s silence was the most painful answer.

I started to cry.

“I’m working on it, Pearl,” he said calmly. “Losing that signal has made things more difficult. But I promise you, I won’t stop until I find him.”

“You have to get him back.”

“I will, Pearl.”

“I can’t live without him…” I sobbed between my words, an emotional wreck. “I can’t. You have to get him back.”

“I know,” he whispered. “I will. I know he’s still in Italy. I’ve contacted all the air traffic controllers, and no private planes have taken off in the last day. So I think they’re hiding nearby.”

“You need to narrow it down more.”

“I know.”

“What does he want, Cane?” I whispered. “Does he want Adelina?” I didn’t want to turn that woman over to the devil, not after everything we did to save her. But I didn’t want to lose my husband either. We’d both suffered so much. We just wanted a quiet life in the countryside where we could raise our child. Apparently, that was too much to ask.