Willpower

by Anna Durand

  "David's right," her grandfather said. "You shouldn't destroy it. JT established multiple research sites around the world, which means he may have been holding more innocent people hostage."

  "And there's Tesler," David said. "He escaped. Meaning he's free to torture those others."

  "The information on the flash drive is our only means of finding them and Tesler." Sighing, Edward ran a hand through his hair. "It was our research — mine, Christine's, and Mark's — that helped JT find, capture, and terrorize these people. It's my responsibility to set things right."

  Grace shook her head. "You didn't know what would happen. And you didn't willingly hand over your research to JT and his minions."

  "It doesn't matter. I still have to fix this."

  She bit her lip, and in a matter of two seconds, she made up her mind. A quick look at David told her he'd guessed what she was thinking and he agreed wholeheartedly.

  "Okay then," she said, squaring her shoulders and lifting her chin. "David and I will help you. After all, you'll need a couple of psychic weirdos on your side."

  "I prefer extrasensory perceptives," David said.

  She made a face. "You made that up, didn't you?"

  He smirked.

  "Well," Edward said, "I'd prefer granddaughter and grandson-in-law."

  He shoved a hand into his pants pocket and brought out a sparkly object, which he proffered to Grace. She took the object. It was a gold ring capped with a small diamond.

  Her grandfather winked at her. "I've been holding onto that for you."

  Grace closed her hand around the ring, shielding it inside her palm. "Can we get out of here please?"

  David led them out of the murky room and down the short entryway. At the threshold, Grace hesitated. She looked back at the nurse slumped in his chair.

  "What about him?" she asked.

  "He'll wake up in a little while," David said. "When I was shutting down the generator, I saw his car parked out back. He'll be fine."

  "Maybe we should call the cops and get these bastards arrested."

  "We can't explain anything that happened. No one would believe it and we have no evidence to support our claims."

  "The facility … "

  "JT may be dead, but his company is still alive. Even if they didn't know what he was up to out in the desert, I'm sure they'll come up with a reasonable explanation for everything. Corporations love to obscure the truth and subvert the law."

  She frowned. The pain behind her eyes was growing into a headache.

  David took her hand and squeezed it. "We stopped a homicidal madman. I'd say that's a pretty good day's work." He nodded toward her grandfather, who now stood beside the car. "And we saved a very important life."

  She felt the frown relaxing into a smile. He was right.

  David led her toward the car. Halfway there, she tugged his hand to stop him.

  He turned to face her, his brow furrowed.

  She held the ring out to him. He took it, and bowing his head, muttered, "You don't want it anymore."

  "No, that's not it." She grinned. "I love you too."

  His head jerked up. He stared at her in shock for a few seconds, and then his lips parted in a grin that matched hers for giddiness.

  She held out her left hand. He slipped the ring onto her finger.

  A thread of fear pulled tight inside her. "What if I never get my memory back? I can't even remember how we met — "

  "I can tell you anything you want to know." He touched her cheek. "And we can make new memories."

  She opened her mouth to protest, but she didn't get the chance. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her with a passion and enthusiasm that burned out all her anxiety and melted away her headache.

  They got in the car and drove away. In the rearview mirror, the forest swallowed up the little cabin. Everything it represented dwindled away along with it. The past receded into the distance as the road ahead became clearer, brighter, and smoother. She was no longer speeding headlong into darkness. Now, she rode into the light. Into the future. Into the unknown.

  And for the first time in her life, that didn't bother her at all.

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  Willpower

  by Anna Durand

  Copyright © 2013 by Lisa A. Shiel

  First paperback edition 2014.

  All rights reserved.

  Cover photos courtesy of iStock & Shutterstock.

  Used by permission.

  Cover design by Lisa A. Shiel

  The characters and events in this book are fictional. No portion of this book may be copied, reproduced, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or otherwise, including recording, photocopying, or inclusion in any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher and author, except for brief excerpts quoted in published reviews.

  ISBN: 978-1-934631-57-7 (pbk.)

  ISBN: 978-1-934631-70-6 (e-book)

  LCCN: 2014931743

  Jacobsville Books

  www.JacobsvilleBooks.com

  1-866-341-3705

  Publisher's Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Durand, Anna.

  Willpower / Anna Durand.

  1 online resource.

  ISBN: 978-1-934631-70-6 (e-book)

  ISBN: 978-1-934631-57-7 (pbk.)

  1. Psychic ability—Fiction. 2. Amnesia—Fiction. 3. Family secrets—Fiction. 4. Love stories. I. Title.

  PS3604.U724 W85 2014

  813—dc23