Secrets (Portentous Destiny Series Book 2)

by S. E. Rose

  “OK, kiddo, time for bed,” I say to her. She understands bed and I see tears well in her eyes. I pick her up and carry her upstairs with Lance right behind us. We tuck her into bed. My mother has transformed one of the bedrooms into a beautiful little girl’s room. It’s amazing and I love it. We sit on either side of her and read her a story in Spanish. Three minutes into the story, she is fast asleep. I look down at her and then over at Lance and smile. My family. I smile with the secret I’ve been keeping from Lance.

  “I have to tell you something,” I say to him as I look across our daughter to meet his eyes.

  “What?” he asks. I smile nervously.

  “Remember when I got a sinus infection again last time we were in Colombia?” I tell him. He nods, remembering my second time visiting the pharmacist.

  “I had to take some medicine and it interacted with medicine I was already taking,” I try to explain. I can see he’s not putting two and two together. I take a deep breath.

  “I’m pregnant,” I whisper.

  His eyes widen so much that I think he may be on the verge of passing out. Instead, he moves around the bed, careful not to wake our sleeping beauty. He comes over to me and pulls me to my feet.

  “Are you sure?” he asks. I nod. He leans down and kisses me.

  “Does this mean you are happy about it?” I ask against his lips.

  He pulls back and stares at me. I can feel his love, and in this moment, I feel whole and complete. I have a family of my own, connections to the past and the future. My grandparents arrive tomorrow morning and we will all be here together. “Yes,” he answers, his eyes shining with tears. “So incredibly happy.”

  He grins and places a hand over my belly. He looks around at our house and his grin gets bigger. “I can’t wait for our house to be full of our children. There’s nothing more that I want than to be with you and our family, here in our home.”

  “I love you, Lance,” I whisper against his lips as he kisses me again.

  “And I love you, Lily,” he whispers back.

  He picks me up and carries me quietly out of Leidy’s room and downstairs to our bedroom.

  “We should go help my mom and Jack,” I say to him as he sets me down on our bed.

  “We will,” he says. “But I have other plans for you right now.”

  I smile at him as he removes my clothes and then his. He makes love to me slowly, almost cautiously and I wonder if it’s because of the pregnancy. We lie on the bed afterward holding each other until he announces that he needs to get a few things done and then he’ll be back. I’m about to argue that I need to help my mom, but he announces he’s going to do it.

  “Stay here and rest, baby,” he says as he kisses me and heads out of our room. He’s only gone about five minutes and then he returns and lies down. I wrap myself around him and place my head on his chest. I listen to his heartbeat as he lovingly strokes my back. He leans down and brings my head up to kiss me goodnight.

  “I am so in love with you, Lily. Thank you for making me the happiest man on the planet,” he says as his eyes penetrate mine.

  “I love you, too,” I say, and I snuggle closer to him as I fall asleep in the arms of the man I love. I can’t help but smile at the one last secret I keep from him, the secret that I get to keep to myself for another few hours. I glance across the room to the dresser where my sonogram photograph sits, tucked away in a drawer, a sonogram photograph that shows our twins.

  Interlude

  He smiles at the news clip on his laptop. Prominent Businessman Killed in Plane Crash. The imported whiskey tastes good as he sips it and skims the article. Drinking is a sin in his culture, but he doesn’t give a shit. Everything he’s done since he was fifteen is a sin.

  He knows now his plan is working. Only his brother, Saeed, and a few others know, and that’s how it will stay for now.

  He looks at the file he has received. He doesn’t want to leave this to just anyone. He’ll take care of it himself this time. No loose ends. His former colleague has something that he needs. He just hopes that Cody won’t discover what is on that memory stick. He contemplates his next move, and then looking at his map of office locations, he settles on a plan. It may take some time, but his plan will give him a home-court advantage if all else fails. Once his plans A, B, and C are flushed out in his mind, he returns his attention to a photo on his computer.

  The photo of Cody with a young woman comes up on the screen. She’s very beautiful. He smirks and his cock twitches. Perhaps he can fix this fuck-up and get some additional pleasure out of it. Again, he thinks “two birds with one stone.”

  Lily’s Playlist

  “Mayday (M’aidez)” by People in Planes

  “I Lived” by OneRepublic

  “Ashes” by Embrace

  “Closer” by Tegan and Sara

  “All I Ask” by Adele

  “Rise Up” by Andra Day

  “Good Days Bad Days” by Kaiser Chiefs

  “Beautiful Pain” by Eminem

  “Fix You” by Coldplay

  “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of” by U2

  “Empire” by Shakira

  “Ride” by twenty one pilots

  “Don’t You Worry Child” by Swedish House Mafia

  “You Belong Here” by Anberlin

  “Politik” by Coldplay

  “Let Me Try” by Sugarplum Fairy

  “Next to Me” by Civil Twilight

  “Sometimes You Can’t Make it on Your Own” by U2

  “Wonderwall” by Oasis

  “Call to Arms” by Angels and Airwaves

  “Girl On Fire” by Alicia Keys

  “The Fighter” by Gym Class Heroes

  “Down” by Anberlin

  “Never Let Me Go” by Florence + The Machine

  “Feel Again” by OneRepublic

  “Heroes” by The Wallflowers

  “Won’t Back Down” by Eminem

  “If I Lose Myself” by OneRepublic

  “I Gotta Feeling” by The Black Eyed Peas

  “Good Life” by OneRepublic

  Acknowledgements

  This book is particularly special to me because I spent a fair amount of time in Colombia when I adopted my children. So, my first thank you goes out to all the amazing Colombians that embraced me and made me a part of their family during my time in their country.

  As always, a huge thank you to my readers! It’s been a wild ride so far, and your support means so much to me.

  Thank you to my family and friends for always being there to read my books and pimp them out to others!

  And lastly, thanks to all my fellow authors, especially my Kiss and Tell Romance ladies, for always having my back.

  About the Author

  S.E. Rose lives in the DMV. And if you know what that means, then you know where she lives. She currently resides with her husband, two children, and always at least two cats and usually other random creatures her children decide they need. While she works at a desk during the day, her evenings and weekends are devoted to writing and editing her romance novels. She loves all things wine, coffee, tea, and dark chocolate, that’s right dark chocolate. In her spare time, she enjoys photography, traveling, going to concerts, and reading.

  Learn more about upcoming books from S.E. Rose at www.seroseauthor.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @seroseauthor. She has many other social media accounts and you can find them all at: https://linktr.ee/seroseauthor .

  Coming Soon…‘Bravura, Portentous Destiny Series Book 3’

  Prologue

  Zoe’s Playlist: “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten

  Present Day - Afternoon

  I slowly open my eyes and at first see nothing. It’s pitch black and there is cold damp soil beneath me. I mentally survey my body and realize my ankle is throbbing and my hip hurts. Carefully, I sit up and wince as I touch my ankle. It’s swollen, but I don’t feel any protruding bones. My eyes adjust as I look around. I’m in so
me sort of cave or cavern. Rocks jut out from the sides and ground. I glance upward and the only light I see shines down, blinding me momentarily. I force my eyes to stay open and eventually I can make out a small hole in the ceiling of the cave. The forest plants seem to cover most of it, making it difficult to see anything beyond the sunlight streaming in through the spaces in between vines and leaves.

  Hope of someone finding me seems to dwindle by the millisecond and my fear that someone I don’t want to find me seems to grow with each millisecond. I sit back down and look around. As I scan to my left, I see my bag. My bag! I’d almost forgotten I had it with me. I crawl over and open it. My phone is somehow still intact, but has zero service. Well, shit, that won’t help. I scour for something useful, anything. A candy bar, a pen, a piece of paper with Xu’s number, a pack of gum, a bottle of water, Kleenex, my backup phone charger, a coin, a map of the park, an extra hairband, my sunglasses, and a hat. OK, I’m officially screwed.

  With a sigh, I sit down and pick up my phone. I see the last text message that I had gotten before the service dropped. It’s from Cody.

  Cody: Stuck in a meeting. Will see you at 7.

  Great, my knight in shining armor won’t even know I’m missing for three more hours. I turn the flashlight app on and look at the map. I’m fairly certain I am somewhere near the eastern perimeter of the Laoshan National Park. Why do I have to be so damn independent? I could have taken the guided tour or had Xu show me around, but no, I had to go traipsing around on my own.

  I toss the map down and use my flashlight app to scan around the cave. Nothing. I decide to walk around the cave and check each wall. After five minutes, as I stand on the opposite side of the cavern, I hear water. I stop dead in my tracks and listen. Yes, water. I look around. I don’t see any water. And then I spot it, about halfway up the wall there is a small opening. I step back and shine the light toward it. It’s small, about the size of one of those small hula hoops. I search for a way up and decide to try and climb the wall. I throw everything back in my bag and toss it over my shoulder. I try to put weight on my ankle. My attempt isn’t great as it hurts too much to put all my weight on it. I need to stabilize it before I attempt this. I look down and curse myself. I’m going to have to rip my t-shirt. I love this t-shirt. I put on my big girl pants and rip it. OK, I shed a few unnecessary tears, but I manage to get a good long piece of fabric from the bottom. I tourniquet my ankle and try walking on it. Much better.

  I slowly scale the wall, only partially wincing in pain with each move. It takes two failed attempts and a good thirty minutes before I reach the hole. I toss my phone into the hole and climb inside. It’s dark and the tunnel seems to go on for quite a ways. I turn back to the cave. Shit! I should have left something in case someone does peer down into the hole. I take the pack of gum and chew a piece and then write a message on the piece of paper and stick it to the pack of gum. I slightly pray to the softball gods that my aim might still be passable, and then I toss the gum toward where the sunshine lights up the floor of the cavern. Yes! It’s not perfect, but it’s good enough.

  I turn back toward the tunnel. Please, please don’t let there be bugs! I hate bugs, spiders, bugs, and anything else that might live here. I force myself to crawl on hands and knees into the tunnel. I feel like I’ve crawled the length of a football field or more and I still don’t see an end in sight. The tunnel seems to be getting smaller and that concerns me. Did I just crawl into a dead end? I shudder at the thought of crawling backward in the tunnel. I force the idea from my head. I need to think positive. Yeah, like I’m positively sure I’m going to die here. Ugh, why was I so stupid?!! I can only imagine what my brother, Rob, would say in this moment. He’d definitely tell me I’m a jackass and should have never gone off on my own. Yeah, yeah, useful info now.

  I crouch down and army crawl as the opening narrows further. It’s difficult to move and it takes me almost forty-five minutes to go what I assume is about the same distance as I had gone with the opening that was twice this size. Just as I am about to give up and turn back, I feel a slight breeze against my cheek. I stop, thinking that I’ve really lost it now. But then I feel it again. I can hear the water better as well. I scoot forward a little more and I feel a blast of air against my face. The opening is now so narrow, I’m afraid I might get stuck. I’ve already resorted to pushing my bag in front of me. I hold onto it now, not knowing if there is a drop-off ahead and I try to make myself smaller. I squeeze myself and blow out more air and just as I begin to move I see an opening about ten feet ahead. I wriggle until I reach it. Pulling the phone up, I shine the light around.

  There is an underground river ahead. I don’t see any light but the fact that water is running here is promising. I push myself through the opening, barely making it. Eventually I manage to force my hips through the stone. My injured hip now throbs even more. I swallow the pain and look around. The water seems to be flowing east according to my phone’s compass. Seriously, what did explorers do without cell phones?

  I begin following the river. At first, it’s small, little more than a stream, but eventually it widens. I stumble over rocks a few times; however, I manage to keep my footing. The pain in my ankle is excruciating, but I’ve had worse. I’m alive. I’ve beaten the odds twice now and that has to count for something.

  I stop to rest and look at the time. It’s now after seven and I know Cody must be worried and I wonder if Xu is looking for me since I never met him at our rendezvous point. I notice my battery is nearly dead, so I place it on the charger and sit. It’s probably dark outside. I debate what I should do. Where will this river lead me? Will it be safer to stay here or outside tonight? How cold does it get at night in here? Who else is out there? I look at the GPS on my phone and then at the park map. I think I’m about five miles from a ranger station or something like that. If I can make it there…then maybe.

  I decide it’s do or die, and I trudge on toward what I hope will be an entrance into this cave. It isn’t long before I see moonlight ahead of me. I find myself in the forest. I don’t see any paths, but I again check my GPS against the map, and then using my compass I attempt to head toward the ranger station. It’s completely dark out now. Thankfully I see the moon overhead which provides me with ample light as I walk through the dense trees and foliage.

  In the distance I hear a twig snap and I freeze. I hear another and that is all it takes for me to push aside my physical discomfort and break into a sprint toward what I hope is safety.