by Ella Miles
Broken Anchor
Sinful Truths Book 6
Ella Miles
Copyright © 2020 by Ella Miles
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Contents
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Truth or Lies World
Prologue
1. Zeke
2. Siren
3. Kai
4. Enzo
5. Zeke
6. Siren
7. Zeke
8. Siren
9. Zeke
10. Siren
11. Zeke
12. Siren
13. Zeke
14. Siren
15. Zeke
16. Siren
17. Zeke
18. Siren
19. Zeke
20. Siren
21. Zeke
22. Siren
23. Zeke
24. Siren
25. Zeke
26. Siren
27. Zeke
28. Siren
29. Zeke
30. Siren
31. Zeke
32. Siren
33. Zeke
34. Siren
35. Zeke
36. Siren
37. Zeke
Epilogue
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About the Author
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Truth or Lies World
TRUTH OR LIES SERIES:
Taken by Lies #1
Betrayed by Truths #2
Trapped by Lies #3
Stolen by Truths #4
Possessed by Lies #5
Consumed by Truths #6
SINFUL TRUTHS SERIES:
Sinful Truth #1
Twisted Vow #2
Reckless Fall #3
Tangled Promise #4
Fallen Love #5
Broken Anchor #6
Prologue
Zeke
How far will I go for love?
That’s the question that stays with me as I float, bobbing up and down over waves that could easily consume me. I’ve been here before; been in this same dire situation. Felt like I can’t breathe, like this is the end.
My blood is slipping from my body. My ribs are tightening around my lungs like a vise grip. My head is raging in a bone-spitting headache from all the pain I feel.
The only pain I care about, though, emanates from my heart.
Last time I was here, in the darkness of night, in the middle of the vast ocean, I was content. I was dying to save Kai and Enzo, my family, those I love.
This time, I’m dying to save my one true love.
I thought I knew what dying for someone felt like. But this—this is so much more. This is different. This is what I was put on this earth to do—to die protecting someone I love.
I’ve always been a protector.
That is who I am.
I could change careers, but it wouldn’t change who I am. I, Zeke Kane, am a protector. I am only me when I’m protecting others.
I’ve protected many people in my life—sacrificed over and over again. But I’ve never risked it all like I did to protect Siren.
I’ve never hurt someone I love in order to protect Siren.
Never sinned like I did to protect Siren.
I would do it all again.
I would end up right here back in this ocean if it meant I got to love Siren like I did. That I got the honor of protecting her, saving her, even though she didn’t need me to save her. She never did; she was always enough for herself.
She tried to tell me all along—trust her, let her save herself. That way, I wouldn’t have to give up myself.
Siren didn’t understand that I wanted to give up everything for her. The only way I could love her was to love her with everything, even knowing that our love would destroy everything.
For a moment, Siren thought I turned my back on our love. She thought I was ashamed of what I did. It took her all of five minutes to figure out my lie.
I would never turn my back on our love. And I would do all the horrible sins over again, if it were the only way to keep her and our unborn child safe.
My only regret is that I can’t love her forever. That I have to give her up. That one day she will find another man to make her happy. And when I haunt her ass from hell, I won’t even be upset that she found happiness. She’s made so many sacrifices; she deserves all the happiness in the world.
It makes dying easier—knowing that Siren gets to live. I will take her sins with me when I die. She will get to live in truth, in love, in happiness.
How far am I willing to go for love?
Too far.
How much am I willing to break?
All the way.
We’ve all sinned.
Enzo.
Kai.
Langston.
Liesel.
Siren.
Me.
All of us.
We’ve all hurt each other in unforgivable ways while protecting those we hold dearest. And that’s the way it should be. None of us hold grudges for what Enzo did to protect Kai. What Langston did for Liesel. Or what I did for Siren.
In the end, we protect our own.
We all do what has to be done to protect the love of our lives.
We are all a family. And we fix our mistakes.
I’m leaving this earth knowing my family forgives me for the sins I’ve caused.
And I forgive them. All of them.
In a game of truth or sin, we all chose sin.
The truth broke us.
Love destroyed us.
Sin saved us.
How far will I go for love?
As far as it takes...
1
Zeke
Siren is safe.
My child is safe.
They are safe.
That’s what I repeat over and over again as I step into the helicopter following Julian. That’s the only thing keeping my feet moving.
I walked away from Siren. We hardly spoke before I left her, but we both knew what it meant. That I wasn’t coming back—either because I’ll die protecting my family or do something so horrible that Siren won’t want me back.
It’s a lie.
It’s all a lie.
I can pretend all I want that I’ll die in battle with Julian, or that the best thing for Siren is to live without me. I tell myself I can stand to leave her to find a new man—one who hasn’t murdered for her.
Lies.
Siren is my everything. The reason I’m still alive. The reason I’m getting into this damn helicopter.
And as for the sins I’ve committed, I would commit them all again. I would shoot Enzo again. I would betray my friends again. I would betray every person on this planet in order to protect Siren and my child.
If that makes me a monster, so be it. I’m a monster. I’m a horrible friend. I’ve betrayed everyone who was ever good to me.
I look at the
man standing in front of me—a man smirking like he’s won. Julian Reed is the devil. But when I put a bullet into Enzo, not knowing if he was going to survive or not, I became the devil too. It doesn’t matter that I was doing it to save us. It doesn’t matter that I shot him to protect Siren. It doesn’t matter that I did everything in my power to ensure that Enzo lives.
I shot one of my best friends.
Then I shoved him over the edge of the yacht and left him to die.
My stomach tightens, threatening to spill at the thought.
No, Enzo Black is alive. I did everything I could to protect my friend. He’s alive. Kai will find him. She’ll realize what we did.
I won’t have to ask for Enzo or Kai’s forgiveness this time, but what if there’s a next time? How far will I go for Siren?
As far as it takes to keep her safe.
Which is why I’m here, on Julian’s helicopter, committing my loyalty to him. It’s why I left Siren alone—to fulfill my destiny to protect her and our baby at all costs.
So I’m going to do this. I’m going to help Julian. Then, I’m going to kill Julian, Bishop, and any other man who threatens to hurt Siren or my baby. Finally, I’m going to spend the rest of my life loving Siren like it’s my job, my reason for existence. And I don’t care how many people we burn with our love.
I strap myself into the seat next to Julian in the second row. The propellers spin overhead, buzzing loudly in my ear. I pick up headphones and cover my ear, muting the sound.
We lift off, and my heart cracks, leaving Siren behind.
She’s safe.
Our baby is safe.
That’s why I’m doing this—to keep her safe.
Langston will protect her as well as I could. He’ll get her the fuck away from all the danger.
Kai and Enzo will come. They will fight. They are too invested not to.
But Siren will be safe with Langston. He promised me he would keep her safe. He has no one else to live for, so he’ll live for her. Protect her like he loves her.
I thought Langston was in love with Liesel. I thought he would be the next to get his happily ever after. I guess I was wrong.
But I trust that Langston will keep his word.
I glance down, my first mistake. Siren is on the top deck of the yacht, staring up at me with so much pain and sadness in her eyes.
I had to, baby. I had to give up myself to keep you safe. I had to turn into a monster, the devil. You can be a little devilish too. And when I return, our darkness will blend together. We will heal each other.
She grips her biceps as if holding herself back from running after me. It’s not like she has another option; she can’t chase after a helicopter on foot. Although, I wouldn’t put it past her to dive into the ocean and swim stride for stride keeping up with the helicopter. That’s how incredible she is.
I look at her sternly out the window. This sacrifice will all be for nothing if you follow me. Stay safe. Protect our baby.
Her eyes tell me I’m wrong. Her eyes tell me I’ve made a mistake.
She screams, I think, or maybe she sings. I can’t tell from the whirl of the helicopter blades. But I can feel her pain hit my heart.
I know, baby. I know. This will all be over soon, though. Just wait a little longer.
I watch as Langston walks up behind her.
She’s safe. I glare at him with my most dangerous threat. If you survive and she doesn’t, the first thing I’m going to do is kill you.
Langston smirks, but there is a heaviness behind his eyes.
What am I missing?
Nothing. I’m just being paranoid—Siren is safe with Langston.
Julian leans his head to look out the window, and then he looks back at me. He does this over and over again. And then he’s chuckling, wildly, madly. His wretched chuckle rings in my ear thanks to the headphones we are using to communicate with each other.
“What’s so funny?” I ask, assuming he’s not going to tell me.
“Who is that man standing behind Aria?” Julian asks.
I frown. “Langston.”
“Bishop,” Julian says simultaneously.
It all clicks.
Everything I’ve been too stupid to see. The reason that Langston has been gone this whole time. It’s not because he was chasing after a girl. It’s because he was busy working with Julian. He was busy turning on his friends, betraying us all in a way that makes me shooting Enzo look like exchanging friendship bracelets instead of the stark betrayal it was.
Langston is working with our enemy. What he did to Siren’s head. What he could have done to her body. Tricking me into thinking he will protect her instead of using her in some grand scheme with Julian Reed.
“You bastard,” I curse as I try to figure out my next move. Apparently, my next move is choking the man next to me; consequences be dammed. I can’t actually kill Julian, though. This was his security plan all along—have Langston, or Bishop, whoever he is, watch Siren and hurt or kill her if I don’t do as Julian says.
So I can’t kill Julian, but I can hurt him a little.
Julian shakes his head, and that’s when I realize the man sitting next to the pilot has a gun on my head.
I release him.
“You promised Siren would be safe,” I bark as I unhook my seatbelt even though a gun is still pointed at my head.
I have to get to Siren. She’s not safe. Not with that lying asshole. He hurt her already. He fucked with her head. I never thought I would want to kill a man who I grew up with. A man that a few moments ago, I would have done anything to protect. Langston is like a brother to me. But Langston is dead. Bishop took over.
Why? What happened to turn him into this cruel man?
I don’t know.
And I don’t care. I just want to put a bullet in his head for hurting Siren. Just like I want to burn Julian at the stake for raping her.
Before I think it through, I have the door of the helicopter open, and I’m staring down at the ocean below. We’ve flown far enough away from Siren and Langston that I can barely make them out in the distance. We are flying too high above the ocean. If I jump, there is no guarantee that I’ll survive.
Fuck.
I grab the gun out of the asshole’s hand in the front seat and have it aimed at Julian so fucking fast.
Julian just grins. We’ve been here so many times. And he knows just like all the others, I won’t pull the trigger. If he dies, there is nothing stopping Bishop from killing Siren a second later.
“Turn this helicopter around,” I say.
“You really think I planned this?”
“Yes. You two have been working together this whole time. Turn this the fuck around. I didn’t agree to work for you while you let your guard dog watch Siren and kill her if I put one toe out of line.”
Julian considers his next words carefully, which puts me on edge. Is he concocting a lie? Or trying to figure out some way to prevent me from killing him?
“Turn this helicopter around now. Or I’ll kill you and your men, then turn the helicopter around myself. This wasn’t part of our arrangement. I work for you; Siren is safe. This is the opposite of Siren being safe.”
“Bishop doesn’t work for me.”
“Bullshit.”
Julian laughs. “Really? Bishop, or Langston, whatever his name is, was loyal to you a lot longer than he’s ever been loyal to me. What makes you think his loyalty lies with me and not you?”
“The fact that he hurt Siren.”
A sly grin works its way over Julian’s features. His words only had one goal—get me to remember just how dangerous Bishop is; realize just how much danger Siren is in.
“Shoot me and find out whose side Bishop is on.”
I hold the gun right up to his forehead. He doesn’t try to bat my hand away. He knows that even though Bishop is definitely on Julian’s side now, I can’t shoot Julian. It’s too risky. I can’t kill Julian, kill the two men in the front of this helicopter
, and return to Siren before Bishop kills her.
Bishop staying with Siren is their insurance policy that I behave. That I do what they want. That I hurt everyone I love for them.
“Tell Bishop to let Siren go.”
Julian cracks his neck. So cavalier with his own life. So sure that I won’t kill him. I won’t kill him today, but it doesn’t mean I won’t kill him soon. His day is coming. And then I’ll commit the ultimate sin, and I’ll enjoy every second of it.
“Tell him,” I command, my threat clear in my voice.
“No.”
I fire, purposefully grazing the top of his head, so the bullet only burns over his hair, searing it and leaving a permanent mark on the top of his head, but not seriously wounding him.
But it does what I intended—send fear into him. Fear that I will actually kill him.
I kill the man in the passenger seat, and then I shoot the pilot before I jump out of the helicopter, grabbing the landing gear under the helicopter and hanging from it.
I know that if Siren can see me, I’m probably causing her a heart attack right now. So I hope that she can’t. For once, I hope that Bishop has her tied her up in a bedroom or the yacht has turned and driven far enough away that she can’t see me.
I don’t have time to think about Siren right now. I’m dangling from the bottom of a helicopter that is going down, at least until Julian gets into the pilot’s seat and takes control.
