Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 114551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 573(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 573(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
“I scoured the fucking bylaws, spent sleepless nights agonizing over how the fuck I could have saved you, and now we’re standing right here, barely a few feet from the tomb, and I can’t fucking do it. I can’t save you and be the man you need me to be.” He closes his eyes, and in a fit of despair, drops to his knees before me, clutching my hands with everything he’s got. “Please, baby. Please tell me that you’ll forgive me. Know that if I was physically capable of walking away and offering you a life of freedom away from all of this, away from me, I would give it to you in a fucking heartbeat. I don’t want to do this to you, but fuck, I have to, Lamb. I have to see this to the end.”
My heart races, and I feel myself breaking, seeing the strongest man I know fall to pieces at my feet, but I won’t fucking allow it. He’s about to be the leader of this fucking organization, one of the most powerful men in the world, and if he’s about to make the decision to sacrifice me to get it, then he doesn’t get to fall apart. He doesn’t get to send me off into an excruciating death after telling me how he doesn’t want to do it. If we’re doing this, if he’s really plunging a knife through my chest and prying it apart with his bare hands, then he’s going to do it with pride for the crown that he’s so tirelessly worked for.
“Leaders don’t kneel to anyone, Zade DeVil,” I say, raising my chin. “Get up.”
He swallows hard, agony consuming him, and I watch as he clutches my hand and gets to his feet, that lost little boy desperately crying out, needing me to save him, but I can’t offer him that, not anymore.
“I know you’re hurting,” I tell him. “I know this decision has eaten at you since the moment you met me. I get all of that, but I need you to be strong. I need you to hold me together because I do not want to walk into this with fear. I need to know that you’ll hold my hand and be there every step of the way, despite the fact that you’ll be the one holding the dagger. I need your strength to get through this. Hear me, Zade. You can’t fall apart on me, not now.”
He holds onto me, clutching my waist, his forehead pressed to mine, breathing heavily as he struggles with his demons, and despite not saying a word, I know the second we step into that tomb, he’ll transform into the leader I need him to be. He’ll become both my savior and executioner, and as he slaughters me, he’ll hold my hand, walking me through every second of it until the life finally fades from my eyes.
“Come on,” Cara says, her voice breaking as she moves into us, giving us a gentle nudge. “We need to get out of these woods. We can’t have anyone seeing you like this.”
Knowing just how right she is, Zade starts walking again, his fingers threaded through mine, holding me close to his body, and before I know it, I’m staring up at Empire’s sacred tomb as a chill sweeps through my body.
Zade unlocks the heavy door before sliding it back out of the way, the stone scraping against the ground. Then offering me his hand again, Zade leads me to my death.
The tomb is colder than I expected, and there’s a foul, musty smell that lingers in the air. I can only imagine where it’s coming from or what I might find down there. Old oil lanterns send waves of light through the big tomb, showing off just how extravagant this place is, but I would expect nothing less of Empire.
We make our way down a set of old stairs, spiraling right down to the bottom as both Zade and Cara hold out their oil lanterns, leading the way. It’s eerie down here, each of our footsteps echoing through the tomb, the sound going on for miles.
We’re the first to arrive, and that much is clear as we reach the bottom of the stairs. It’s pitch black down here, and as I walk out into the main part of the tomb, I sense the ghosts of the innocent lives sacrificed before me.
My whole body shakes, and I watch as Zade makes his way around the tomb, lighting lanterns that hang from pillars, sending dull beams of light through the tomb. There’s writing on the walls, names of the men who have stood here before Zade, each of them proudly taking their position at the head of Empire, each of them willingly slaughtering an innocent life in order to gain their power.