Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 93002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
“No, this one has some life left in it. I’ll get it, Sterling. Don’t worry,” he said and swung his arm again, putting his whole body weight behind the rock in his hand.
The door lifted at his strike and kept going, rising up and open. Forrest fell forward, catching himself in the open doorway, the rock tumbling to the ground by my feet.
Fresh, warm, humid air flooded into the root cellar, and from above, I heard a familiar voice as Callum Leary leaned in and said, “You two need a little help?”
Chapter Twenty-Five
STERLING
Callum Leary’s smug grin faded as I stepped into the light, and he got a good look at me. Based on his expression, I must have looked exactly as awful as I felt.
“You know who locked you in there?” he called down.
“Not yet,” I said.
“You planning to come out?” he asked.
“As soon as you give us some room,” I shot back, not loving the way he loomed over the entrance. I was thrilled to see him—he was a human who was saving us. But I didn’t trust him.
Forrest looked at me. “Go on. I’ll be right here.”
I stepped back and shook my head. “Hell no. I’m not going up there first.”
“I’ll be right behind you,” Forrest reassured me. “I don’t think—”
I cut him off. “It’s not that. They need me. I’m not sure they think they need you. I’m not leaving you behind. You go up first.”
Forrest’s eyes narrowed, and he crossed his arms over his chest. I didn’t know if he didn’t like the truth being thrown at him that way or if he was reacting to me pushing back. I didn’t care.
“Okay,” I said. “You don’t like that reason? Try this one. Whoever’s head pops up through that hole first is going to be the most vulnerable if they have bad intentions.”
“That’s your argument for why I should go first?” Forrest asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I figured it had a higher likelihood of convincing you.” The truth was I hadn’t liked the way Callum had treated him in our last meeting, as if Forrest was an obstacle. Disposable. I wouldn’t put it past Callum Leary to separate us if he could.
Forrest sighed, his arms dropping to his sides. “You’re right. Either way, this is fucked. I want you behind me. Like inches away.”
“Trust me,” I said. “I have no intention of getting trapped down here again.”
As promised, I stuck to Forrest’s back like glue, two steps behind him, as close as I could get without risking knocking us both over. The light above was dimmer than I expected. The sun set late in July, but we’d been down in the cellar for hours and hours. It was bright enough to see Callum and the man who had been with him at Willow Springs. As soon as we cleared the top of the staircase, I stepped to the side, putting space between me and Forrest. I wanted the focus on me. If they didn’t think I cared about him, they wouldn’t be able to use him as a lever. Hoping Forrest would understand, I turned to Callum.
“You’re spending an awful lot of time down south. Don’t you have business back home?”
Forrest sent me a warning glare but didn’t close the distance between us. I hoped that meant he understood why I was five feet away instead of right next to him. I didn’t have to wonder what the glare meant. He’d already made clear he didn’t like me sassing the mobster with the gun. Fair enough. But sarcasm and attitude were my defense mechanisms, and Callum Leary scared the crap out of me.
Callum ignored my query. “You’ve had better days, Sterling. If we hadn’t shown up, you two would have been screwed. I think that means you owe me.”
“How did you find us?” Forrest asked, leaning forward a fraction as if he wanted to move. Toward me or Callum? I gave the tiniest shake of my head. Please, I tried to send telepathically. Please just be quiet.
Callum ignored Forrest, his focus on me. “Did you find what you were looking for down there?” Before I could answer, he added, “I’m prepared to make you a very good offer.” His eyes flicked to Forrest, then back to me. “We don’t need him. You said he offered you twenty-five percent. Why don’t you let me make it fifty?”
“Why not seventy-five?” I countered. Sass. Anger. Meeting Callum where he thought I should be. That was how I was going to get us out of here safely.
“I like you,” Callum said, crossing his arms over his chest. “But seventy-five is a little too much, even for a pretty girl like you.”
The way he called me a pretty girl grated on my nerves. The leer was masked in his eyes, but it was there. I could feel it as he looked at me. Gross, but I’d put up with it if I could use it. This was a battle, and I needed to use every weapon I had.