by Quinn Avery
When he dragged his fingers through his hair a second time, his shirt lifted to reveal the black handle of a pistol tucked into the back of his jeans. It was the same model as the Glock her father gave both Cineste and her older sister for each of their sixteenth birthdays.
Her stomach flipped over itself. The man wanted to hurt the Commander for whatever reason, and she was nothing more than a witness. A disposable witness.
Locking her fingers together until they were white, Cineste studied the extensive artwork covering his arms while trying to scheme a way out.
Around the time she started junior high, her last step-mom had decided the world had gone mad, and enrolled Cineste into an intense self-defense class on base. Cineste remembered the instructor saying a victim should always humanize themselves to their captor. With a chill, she also remembered him saying it was imperative that the victim did everything in their power to prevent being moved to a second location, because by then they’d either die, or wish they were dead.
“You were in the Navy,” she blurted, noticing a tell-tale anchor and USN insignia among the illustrations covering his forearm. “My father’s a Captain.”
He flinched as if jarred from his deep thoughts. “Seriously?”
With a flicker of hope, she nodded and gave him a shaky smile. “You could demand a hefty ransom for my safe return.”
“This has nothing to do with you,” he repeated through clenched teeth.
“It does now. What are you planning to do with me once you’re done with the Commander? May as well go for the extra payout. Your chances of extracting cash from his tight-ass would probably be less than favorable, but it’s better than nothing.”
A fire ignited his icy blues. “You saying your old man doesn’t care what happens to you?”
“Let’s just say Daddy Dearest and I don’t exactly see eye-to-eye.”
A door slammed in another room. “Honey?” a deep baritone called out. “Sorry I’m late. Is the new nanny here yet?”
Cineste’s captor slapped the meaty palm of his hand against her mouth, eyes hard with warning as he reached around for his gun. Immobilized by fear, she watched helplessly as the fair-haired man from the family portrait entered the room, brows drawn down with a menacing scowl, top of his NWU uniform unbuttoned to the waist.
The Commander froze mid-step. “Alex? What are you doing here, son?”
A warm vibration shot down to Cineste’s toes with the reveal of her captor’s identity. Alex. The name surprised her far less than the fact that her real employer called the intruder by his name.
The Commander’s crystal blue gaze darted from Alex’s hand over her mouth, continuing down to Cineste’s bound wrists. “What are you doing with our nanny?”
Alex released her to wrap both hands around the handle of the Glock. “I had no other choice.” He then aimed the pistol directly at the Commander’s head. “I’m here to put an end to this madness. I’ve come to stop you before you hurt anyone else with your sick games, Dad.”
17
As the pieces of the jumbled puzzle fell into place, the room spun underneath Cineste’s feet with dizzying speed. The Commander was Alex’s father.
“Alex, this isn’t necessary,” the Commander implored, exposing the palms of his hands. “I don’t know what your intentions are, but you aren’t going to accomplish anything noble with that gun. Put it down so we can have a civilized conversation.”
Alex laughed with a thunderous sound. “You wanna have a civilized conversation?” His hand trembled slightly when he laughed again. “That’s rich coming from a psychopath who murders women for fun!”
The accusation echoed against the polished floors, vibrating through Cineste’s chest. Could Alex be certifiable, or could what he said be true? She violently winced. What if she'd been lured there as the Commander’s next victim? She felt a whoosh of blood drain from her face.
“Where are Rebecca and the girls?” the Commander demanded in the same kind of authoritative voice Cineste’s father’s always used on her. His gaze skirted around the house as if expecting to find his family stashed in one of the corners. “What have you done with them?”
Alex shook his head repeatedly. “Your wife’s the one who started this mess! I came here to tell you I know the truth, and demand that you stop, but she knew nothing about me, or that I even exist! She threatened to call the cops if I didn’t leave!” He clenched his jaw, fisting his free hand at his side. “I only wanted to become a SEAL to get your attention, hoping to make you proud! But you still hide me like I’m your dirty little secret!”
The way the Commander straightened his spine and jutted his chin while working his jaw reminded Cineste far too much of her father—unwilling to show feelings, or offer an apology when warranted. Unwilling to tell her the awards she'd received in high school from clubs and volunteer work made him proud, or her constant ability to make the dean’s list in college. Her last step-mom claimed he was lacking in emotion because of his military training. Around the same time, Cineste had decided he was merely an asshole.
“And look at you now,” the Commander sneered. “Look how you turned out.” His face turned a deep shade of red. “Where are my daughters, you worthless piece of shit? What have you done with them?”
The words Cineste’s father had said to her in the car chased after the Commander’s.
“…you’ve become an utter embarrassment to everything I represent.”
Alex’s father was cut from the same classless cloth as her old man. Something audibly snapped inside her chest, releasing a burst of rage from deep down.
“They’re perfectly fine!” she snapped, taking a step closer. “You should be more concerned with the damage you’ve caused by hiding the fact that you have a son from your family! If you were any kind of man at all, you’d stop being an asshole, and acknowledge that you fucked up!”
Alex gaped in her direction. “Cineste, what are you—”
She cut him off with a deep scowl. “You were right, Alex! He owes you for being a shitty father!”
The Commander chuckled, his hateful stare singeing a hole right through her toughened exterior. “I knew my wife made a mistake when she chose you for the position. I’d heard the stories, but your father insisted you had changed.” His lips curled with an ugly, indignant smile. “It shouldn’t surprise me that you wanted in merely to help my worthless son. What do you think your father will say when he hears you’ve been whoring around once again? As soon as he finds out his daughter’s spreading her filthy legs for a felon, he’ll want to send you away—permanently this time.”
Rage simmered in Cineste’s chest with every hateful syllable he sputtered.
Alex stormed toward his father, face burning a dark red. “The hell are you rambling about? She’s not—”
With a roar, Cineste charged past Alex and shoved his father off his feet. The older man tumbled to the floor on his back, releasing a loud grunt.
“Being a decorated officer doesn’t automatically make you a decent human being!” She trembled as she attempted to regain her own balance. “Why do you think Bexley left for New York and never looked back? Your wife was dying, and you couldn’t give her or your daughters the time of day! You’re a piece of shit! Everyone who’s ever met you knows it!”
The Commander gawked back at her from the floor. The stark reality of what Cineste had done hit her like a slap across the face. She’d channeled her anger toward her father on a man—an officer—she’d just met. One who knew her father.
Alex hooked her bicep, spinning her around. Cradling her face in his large hands, he pinned her down with a severe, questioning look. “Cineste…you crazy, beautiful girl…what’re you doing?”
Lost in his mesmerizing blue irises, she wanted to swim in their dazzling depths. Up close, she could see the hurt he was holding back from having a father who wished he’d never been born. Empathy swarmed through her chest, prickling her eyes with a rush of tears. Their tight breaths
mingled. Just when she thought Alex would kiss her, the Commander sniggered behind them.
“You’re both despicable,” he grumbled. They turned to find him back on his feet. “What do you want, Alex? Money? There’s over two hundred grand in the safe upstairs, plus some of Rebecca’s great-grandmother’s valuable jewelry. She received the inheritance under the table so we wouldn’t have to pay taxes. If I give it all to you—every last goddamned cent—will you promise never to come back here, and never contact me or my family again?”
Something dark flickered in the depths of Alex’s gaze. “You have far more money than that.”
“You want me to go to the bank and make a withdrawal? Maybe alert the bank manager that something’s amiss?” The Commander laughed mockingly. “Use your head, Alex.”
Alex yanked Cineste up close against him. “We’ll take the cash and the jewelry. If you call the cops, I’m telling them everything I know about your club.”
Cineste gazed up into Alex’s eyes, and realized he was deeply conflicted by his decision. What kind of proof did he have against his father, and why would he agree to stay quiet with a bribe? All at once she wanted to be as far away from Alex as possible. But when she tried to step away, he only gripped her tighter.
The Commander stepped forward, casting Cineste a dirty look before offering a hand to his son. “You have my word.”
As the two men shook on the agreement, Cineste’s stomach violently churned. Regardless of whether or not Alex walked away, she could kiss her life goodbye. The possibilities of what would happen once the Commander filled him in on her alleged involvement with Alex made her lungs burn. She’d be forced to explain her behavior, forced to admit the fact that Alex’s absent father brought out her own discontent for the man who raised her. Assault on an officer under his command wouldn’t go unpunished. Her father would probably throw Cineste in the brig himself. Her life was essentially over.
18
The second the Commander left them to retrieve the hush-money, Alex went to work in releasing her bindings. “Why did you say those things?” he demanded, eyes volleying between her face and the rope. “Why’d you let him believe we’re together?”
Acid burned the back of her throat. “I couldn’t watch him disrespect you like that. Just because my father stuck around to raise me doesn’t mean he’s any better than yours.”
Taking her freed wrists in his hands, Alex gently stroked the pads of his thumbs over the red irritation marks. He dropped his forehead against hers, casting labored breaths over her mouth. “He was right, you know. You have no business with a felon. And you’re so damn young—too young to put up with my shit.”
She pulled a hand away from his to stroke his square jaw, marveling in his handsome looks. “I’m twenty-one. How old are you?”
He glanced downward, swallowing hard before licking his lips. “Twenty-five.”
A sigh stuck in her throat with the sight of his tongue. “I’m not that much younger. Why don’t you let me decide how much I can put up with?”
He cupped her chin, forcing her to look him in the eyes. “I know it doesn’t make sense considering we just met and I threatened you, but I feel this unexplained pull…like we were meant to cross paths or something. Does that sound crazy?”
Her eyes flickered back and forth between his, and her stomach filled with astonishment. “Maybe…” A hard swallow bobbed against her throat. “Why are you letting him pay you to keep quiet? Did he really kill someone?”
Air whooshed from her lungs when he took her in his arms. Then, a blissful second later, he kissed her. His perfect lips and greedy tongue sucked and licked every crevice of her mouth, tasting and searching with skillful strokes. She was intoxicated by his alluring scent, enslaved by his powerful hands holding her in place by her long hair. She clung to his bulging arms, becoming a heap of molten lava beneath the powerful kiss as he tilted her world off its axis. Holy hell, the man could kiss.
Their bodies joined in the dance, bumping and grinding with insistency. Desperation clawed at her throat, knowing the intoxicating moment couldn’t last. Her fingers threaded through the silky strands of his hair, anchoring them together. She throbbed and yearned in places his tongue and lips couldn’t reach as she kissed him back deeper and harder.
They reluctantly broke apart, with the sound of his father stomping down the hallway. She imagined the amount of pent-up desire in Alex’s scorching gaze reflected the way she looked back at him. It didn’t make sense. Why wasn’t she scared of him, and conflicted by his choices?
His father came around the corner looking more enraged than before. “I’m not letting you leave here until I know my family’s okay,” he threatened in a menacing growl. “Give me the key to the master bathroom so I can check on Rebecca.”
Standing a little taller, Alex wound his fingers with Cineste’s. “You have my word that your family’s unharmed.” He eyed the bag clutched in his father’s fist. “Hand it over, and I’ll be out of your life forever.”
“I told your mother you were a mistake,” his father seethed, tossing the bulky gym bag in their direction. It hit the marble floor with a noisy thud. “She adamantly refused to get an abortion.”
“I’m sure that’s when she realized you were the mistake,” Cineste volleyed back.
With a muffled chuckle, Alex squatted to quickly inspect the contents of the bag. Once he was satisfied the cash and jewelry were accounted for, he stood. “One day your wife and daughters will see you for the monster you are.”
Then he snatched Cineste’s hand and pulled her outside with hurried steps. She stumbled along until they were well beyond his father’s property; their sandaled feet buried in the warm sand. The roaring waves crashing against cliffs and the warm breeze whipping through her hair all at once brought Cineste back to reality. What in the hell was she doing with this guy?
“What happens now?” she asked.
Alex turned to her, slinging the gym bag over his shoulder. Again, she was awestruck by his exceptional features. His icy blue eyes sparkled.
“I’m gonna lay low in Mexico for a while—at least until I’m certain no one’s coming for me.”
Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, still tender from his ferocious kiss, Cineste stared down at her trembling hands while weighing her options. If she didn't end up serving time in jail, there’s no question her father would be hell-bent on making her life miserable. The only other job she had lined up for the summer involved working tables at one of the finer restaurants near base. Considering it was frequented by officers, she might as well kiss that position goodbye too.
For all she knew, Alex had gone AWOL from the service. Though he hadn’t shown violence toward her, he had threatened his own father with a gun, albeit a deadbeat father who wanted nothing to do with him and an alleged murderer. Still, he was a complete stranger.
The day Cineste realized she would never gain her father’s affection, she decided that she was done cherishing her life like some precious gemstone. It would’ve broken her mom if she'd known the little girl she loved and cherished with all her heart had given up on the notion of being happy, and focused merely on survival. But Cineste was no longer anything like the lost five-year-old who stood by her mother’s casket, refusing to let go of her cold hand throughout the entire church service. She was no longer the awkward twelve-year-old who paid the neighbor girl to pretend they were friends so she wouldn’t get shipped off to another school. No trace remained of the beaten-down sixteen-year-old who had to sneak out of the house for prom, only to be dragged away in the middle of the Grand March, or the submissive nineteen-year-old who let her father end her social life.
Her mother’s death proved there was only one life to live, and nothing ever went as planned. If she didn’t go at it balls to the wall, she wasn’t going to live her best life.
“Take me with you!” she blurted.
Lips pressed tightly together, Alex rubbed at the back of his neck. “As much as
I appreciate what you did in there, that’s not happening. Sorry, but I got to split. I’m in too deep to bring you along.” He turned away, starting toward the edge of the property with a slight limp that Cineste hadn’t noticed before. He called over his shoulder, “Take care, Cineste.”
Refusing to accept his answer, she took off jogging after him. “I’ll find a way to make money once we’re down there so you don’t have to take care of me.” Yanking on his arm, she forced him to stop and face her. “Just…please. My life’s a complete disaster, and it’ll be ten times worse after tonight. I’ve never needed a new start more badly than I do in this moment, and I get the feeling you know exactly what I’m talking about.”
“You may think your life’s a disaster, but I guarantee it pales in comparison to mine.” As he held her stare, his scold became a little more reluctant. Letting his wide shoulders roll forward, he gripped her jaw in his hands while letting out a deep breath and searching her face.
Cineste tried to image what he saw…if he thought she was brave or merely insane. Did he worry she was too young to handle whatever dangers were ahead of them, or could he sense the stronger side of her that would prevail? She could be whatever he wanted if he gave her the chance.
He bent down, touching his forehead to hers. “You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into, beautiful girl.”
It was the last thing she heard before a needle pierced her skin.
Part III
19
Papaya Springs, California
January 2nd
It felt as if Bexley had held her breath for an eternity before it felt safe to sneak back out of Shane’s office. Her heart hadn’t slowed since she came across the picture of Cineste. Did it mean her sister was also being paid to sleep with any rich asshole who participated in this ostentatious boys’ club? Was she really into drugs, and maybe even dealing like Faith suggested? For whatever reason they had killed Willow; would they come after Cineste, too? What if time had already run out to save her?
