Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
I kept my mouth shut as I glared up at him. I wasn’t giving him anything. It wasn’t on me anyway because I made sure of that last night. No one was getting their hands on that key but me.
Arvo grabbed me by the front of my shirt, dragging me forward roughly.
“Really? You think you can deny me?” he growled at me.
I held his gaze, trying my best not to flinch. I didn’t like seeing him this angry because it meant the odds weren’t in my favor at all. It didn’t help that I was at the tallest point of the academy. There were two ways down, and I doubted that he would choose the stairs for me.
“Fine. If you’re going to be stubborn, I’ll tell you what I’m going to do,” Arvo said coldly. “I’m going to lure the others up here and kill them. Then, I’m going to take you to Geneva to get the money.”
I clenched my jaw, steadying myself. I wanted to lash out at him, but I was afraid he would lash back at me even more violently. If I could just keep him from killing me for just a little while longer, maybe someone would find me up here. My chances were slim, though.
“Don’t do this, Arvo,” I pleaded, trying to seek out his heart if he even had one. This was my Hail Mary moment. “You can be better than your father. You don’t have to kill people or control everything. You can be a part of something better.”
“Something better? What’s better than running Stormcloud however I want?” Arvo scoffed at me.
I slowly rose to my feet, my eyes flickering to the gun and then back at Arvo. He could end my life at any moment. All it took was a flicker of anger to push him over, and he certainly wasn’t the most cool-headed person.
“Making Stormcloud a better place overall. You can make the legacy of the Kings something to be proud of,” I replied, hoping he saw the appeal in starting from scratch. He had to know that his plan to rule Stormcloud wouldn’t work out in the end. Eventually, someone would stop him and overthrow him.
Arvo stalked closer to me, narrowing his eyes.
“Do you really think I’m that weak? I don’t need or want help!” Arvo snapped at me. “I know what I want to do with Stormcloud and not a single soul is going to stop me from getting it.”
My heartbeat was deafening as I quickly took a step back, trying to keep distance between us. I didn’t sway him at all. All I did was offend him and piss him off, and he was intent on making me pay for that.
“The only weak thing I’ve done is keep you alive this long,” Arvo told me, stalking towards me like prey. He backed me up toward the door that led to the outside edge of the clocktower, trapping me.
When my back struck the door, my chest tightened, stopping me from breathing in. All I could do was stare into his cold eyes as he got closer and closer. I had been so close to my happy ending with the men who loved me more than anything else in the world. Now, I wouldn’t live long enough to even see them again.
CHAPTER 18
BIBA
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep your face intact, so the guys know it’s your dead body.”
Arvo’s words struck something deep inside of me, fueling a fiery rage that I didn’t even know could burn so harshly. As he stepped closer to me, nudging me closer and closer to death, I realized that I had to fight like hell for those I loved. They worked so hard to save me from Edward and Peter, and I couldn’t let that all go to waste. I wasn’t going to go down easy.
I suddenly lunged forward, pushing my hands against his chest to knock him back a few feet. He lost his grip on the rifle in the process, and it clattered against the floor. I quickly kicked it to the side before he could snatch it off the ground.
With an angered shout, Arvo dived at me, grabbing my shoulders and slamming me against the door. He leaned close, his heavy breaths fanning against my face. His hands applied bruising pressure against my shoulders, making pain pulse through my upper body.
“You’re weak just like your father.” He laughed in my face. His tone was cold and sharp, cutting into my soul. “And you’ll die a coward just like him.”
I gasped as his hands went around my neck, squeezing tightly to cut off my airflow. My left hand frantically shifted around, finding the doorknob. As a last resort, I turned it, making the door fly open behind me. We both stumbled out onto the narrow outer strip around the clocktower, and the thin railing was the only thing that kept us from toppling off and falling to our deaths.