Page 61 of Fatal Scheme

“Me either, baby girl. I have you, and Massi. That’s all I need,” I tell her, swiping at the tears trickling down her cheeks.

“I need to talk to her. I need to know how long she’s been spying and pretending to be my friend.” She tries to get up, doing everything in her power to push me off, but I hold her tight, not ready to let go just yet.

“I thought I’d lost you, baby girl. You have no idea how scared I was,” I breathe, inhaling her scent and thanking my lucky stars that we were able to find her so quickly.

It was only minutes, but during that time, I was terrified that I’d be forced to live without the one thing that makes every day worthwhile, and that was a dark fucking place.

“I’m sorry, Tyson. I’m … never this careless.” She settles against me once more, her body still weak from the drugs, but the fight that lives in her heart still ever-present.

Before we can say anything more, Massi bursts into the room, his body immediately relaxing once he sees that Carter’s awake.

“Oh, come here, Principessina.” He holds his arms out, and I pass her fragile body to him, tugging the tube on the IV so she doesn’t rip it out.

“Thank you for finding me. Both of you,” she whispers, settling against his chest while he hangs onto her for dear life, the emotion displayed on his face.

He was being tough before, taking the brunt of the violence while we were looking for her – and subsequently scaring his fresh victims – but now that he’s reunited with Carter, all that bravado has gone out the window.

“I’d literally search heaven for you, my priceless little devil. Don’t ever scare me like that again. Please,” he begs, burying his face into her hair, and I swear, a sob leaves his chest.

“I won’t, I promise. You smell like blood,” she laughs, tipping her head back, the light returning to her body now that we’re both back in her orbit.

“The participants weren’t very willing. Comes with the job description,” he jokes, placing her back into my arms, pressing kisses along her forehead and cheeks.

“Was she really involved, Jasper? What has she said?” Carter asks, her curiosity never-ending, but I understand the urge to destroy those who have wronged you, the betrayal cutting so deep that your bones rattle with each and every breath.

“She will only talk to you, Carter.”

TWENTY-EIGHT

JASPER

I’m a lot of things.

A trained assassin who takes pleasure in eliminating those who are marked.

A violent killer who enjoys the hunt and torture of victims who deserve it.

A soldier who obeys orders and deals with those who have betrayed the family oath.

Tonight changed everything, and I became something I never could’ve seen coming.

A desperate man.

Something inside of me shifted the moment I didn’t see Carter’s beautiful body dancing, and nothing else mattered until that firecracker of a woman was back where she belongs – with us.

I would’ve burned down the world, shot at anything that came too close, or thrown myself into the line of fire, as long as she prevailed safe and unharmed.

I’ve never cared about another person enough to undoubtedly lay down my life for theirs, but the second Carter was missing, everything I’d ever been taught was thrown out the window, her name the only thing that echoed in my mind, all my thoughts belonging to her.

Thankfully, we were able to find her just before the worst happened, and she’s relatively unharmed, but whoever wanted my girl is going to pay a steep fucking price, that much I know.

Seeing her, speaking to her, even breathing the same air as her is a privilege, one I’ve never taken for granted, but appreciate much more after the scare we all had.

Tyson is taking good care of her, already flushing whatever they gave her and treating her with the tenderness she needs at the moment, the exact opposite of how much rage is burning through my veins.

Just thinking about it has me ready to scrape skin from bone, and lucky for me, I have two bodies in my playroom, chained and stripped, just waiting until I begin the games I’ve come prepared to play.

Being my obsession isn’t something many people can handle, but these two are the first layer as I prepare to peel them all back like an onion, getting to the core of who is behind the attempted kidnapping of Carter.