Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34709 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34709 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
“I don’t think so,” he said. “If you’re going to be a queen, you might as well start acting like one.”
“You’re no king, asshole.”
He reached out to slap her, and she ducked, bursting forward and charging him, shooting her knee into his groin. It was a direct hit, and he breathed out, partially bending over. She took advantage and punched him in the nose as hard as she could.
His blood spurted across her arm, burning her instantly.
“That’s it.” He grabbed her hair and threw her to the floor. “Let’s get out of here,” he yelled at the pilots.
Glass shattered up front. Leah moved to her knees and ignored the pain in her scalp. Her head reeled, but she stood to see Jasper in front of the plane, firing smoothly. Both pilots jerked, their bodies convulsing.
“Those were head shots,” she observed mildly.
“Damn it.” Wallace stormed by her and reached the cockpit, tossing one pilot onto the floor. “Looks like I’ll have to fly this thing.” He removed a gun from the back of his waist and fired out toward Jasper.
Jasper went down.
“Jasper!” Leah screamed, panicking. She stood and scrambled for the button by the door. It slowly opened, and the steps started to descend.
“Let the door shut this time, or I’ll kill you,” Wallace yelled, sitting in the cockpit and pushing several buttons.
The door started to close. She slammed her hand against the button again, pounding wildly as she fought with whatever lever Wallace used.
Then suddenly, Jasper was there.
He seized the bottom of the stairs and started pulling them down, grunting with the effort as he fought the hydraulics.
Dax, blood pouring from a wound near his neck, sprang up by his brother, and they forced the stairs down.
Wallace careened out of the cockpit, gun out and firing.
Leah dropped to her knees, rolling toward the seats. Jasper vaulted inside, already firing. He hit Wallace several times in the chest and face. Wallace flew back against the already shattered window, his eyes wide. Jasper shot him two more times, and he dropped, unconscious.
Blood poured from several wounds in Jasper’s chest, and part of his ear had been blown off. He dropped to his knees and reached for Leah, pulling her close. “Are you okay? Were you hit? Are you good?”
She blinked several times, her vision fuzzy as the world spun around her. “You got shot in the ear,” she said. Then she passed out.
Chapter Thirteen
Jasper finished checking the seven female captives in the makeshift barn, somewhat surprised to find a fully stocked coffee bar in the back. At the moment, the women were seated and comfortable in leather sofas or chairs, each sipping a warm beverage.
“So, it’s up to you what to do,” he said, keeping an eye on Leah, who was still out but resting on a small loveseat closer to the door. “As soon as we’re out of here, you can call for help using the phone. What all did they tell you?”
The youngest woman, who seemed to be around eighteen with long, curly black hair and beautiful dark-brown skin, shook her head. “They didn’t tell us anything. They just kidnapped us and said we were going to meet our mates.” She shuddered but still looked ready to fight. “What the heck does that mean?”
Dax shrugged. “They were in a dangerous cult, and that’s all I can tell you.” He wiped blood off his forehead, having already healed his jaw, though it had taken longer than Jasper expected. He needed to speak with his brother about his age and soon.
“Who are you guys?” a petite blonde asked, both hands wrapped around a mug of hot chocolate.
If the women didn’t know about the Kurjans, there was no need to tell them about immortals. “We’re the guys who chase the cult,” Jasper said. “We like to keep under the radar, but it’s up to you what you want to tell the authorities.”
“We don’t really know anything about you other than you can shoot and seem abnormally strong,” a third woman said, her accent thick and Scottish.
“Yeah, we are.” Jasper relaxed now that they were safe. All the Kurjan sensors in Paris should be defunct by the end of the week, yet these women were already on the Kurjans’ radar. “It’s up to you how you live your lives, but if there is a way for you to move and start over somewhere else, I would take it,” he said.
“So the cult’s coming after us again?” the blonde asked, her eyes widening.
Dax lifted one broad shoulder. “We don’t know. We’re taking them out as fast as we can, and a good part of their organization has consolidated into something else, where they’re not looking for women like you.”
A redhead piped up from across the room. “Like us? What does that mean?”
Dax looked at Jasper, and Jasper shook his head, not seeing the need to let them know they were enhanced females. Either they already knew they were empathic or psychic or had abilities…or they didn’t.