Novels by Belicia Espinal

Adam"Shhh... You're okay," I gently cooed as I swayed side to side with Nightingale on my shoulder. She had been crying all morning, no matter what I did. We were ready to go and waiting for Chad and Ben to pick us up.I heard the front door open, and Ben called, "Adam, it's me!""I'm in the living room," I said, hoping Ben could hear me over Nightingale's cries."What's going on?""She won't stop crying."Ben quickly came to my side and asked, "Is she sick?""No. I checked her temperature, changed her diaper, fed her, and she's still upset."The front door opened again. I expected it to be Chad telling us it was time to go; I was surprised to see Maybell walk in."Oh, no. What's wrong?" Maybell asked as she stepped into the living room."I don't know. She won't stop crying, no matter what I do."Maybell gestured for me to hand her Nightingale, and I reluctantly did so. She cautiously walked over to the couch and sat down."She knows what today is; she's sad too."I took a deep breat

AdamI sat in the back of my SUV, trying to calm my rage. We finally found the house. Alexandros has his vacation home signed under a different name; his distant cousin was the legal owner. He probably arranged that for a scenario like this, where he had to go into hiding. It was so obvious yet so challenging to figure out.What was driving me toward insanity was that we had to wait; Alexandros had gone on a brief vacation and took Nightingale with him, leaving Daphnie alone. I wanted nothing more than to break down that door and hold Daphnie in my arms, but Alexandros had a security system that would let him know if someone broke in or out. If he knew I found Daphnie, he would take off somewhere with Nightingale. I needed to make my move when they were together.As we waited, I hacked into the security cameras and would occasionally check on Daphnie. Being so close yet so far away was fueling my anger. I wanted to beat Alexandros to a pulp, crush his skull, stab him repeatedly, and w

AdamThe worst part of any mission was waiting. Alexandros had a vacation home in Pittsburg that was an hour and twenty-five minutes flight, yet I had to wait. Chad had concluded that Alexandros had left his Michigan home a few hours before I arrived. He needed time to get settled and check if I was after him. If he knew I knew his whereabouts, he would relocate Daphnie and Nightingale, making it difficult to get them back.In the meantime, Chad kept an eye on security footage in Pittsburg. At the same time, I strategized how we would get Daphnie and Nightingale back. Chad and I would only be on this mission; it was too risky to send all my men to Pittsburg, and Ace would give away our position if he barked."Sir," Chad said."What?""Security footage shows Alexandros shopping for groceries; Nightingale was with him.""What about Daphnie?""No sign of her, sir.""He knows Daphnie won't run without Nightingale; he must be keeping them separated.""If Alexandros wants a happy family, he

AdamDaphnie and I lay together on the couch. I was leaning against the corner as Daphnie lay her chest on my back so my arms could wrap around her waist. The television wasn't on, nor did we say anything; we sat in peaceful silence. I gently grabbed Daphnie's left hand and ran my thumb over her promise ring.I smiled as I gently kissed her cheek; I was so lucky to be with Daphnie, and I couldn't wait to call her my wife someday."I love you," I softly said.Daphnie giggled and said, "I love you too."I snapped out of the flashback and refocused on checking the accounts of some of Phil's benefactors. I couldn't believe the number of people who supported his work. Then again, these were people in high places, probably unaware of what happened in his clinic. I narrowed it down to a few men closely linked to the stock market and the Greek mafia. Surprisingly, few had private planes; they preferred to fly first class or business.My attention was caught when I noticed one man had bought s

AlexandrosI was foolish to think this would be easy; I paid the doctors to keep Adam Carter hospitalized for several weeks. Still, the man managed to escape and somehow found out I was the one who had taken Daphnie and Nightingale. Now I understood why so many people feared him; the rumors about 'The Devil Dog' were true.I let out a frustrated sigh. I had spent so much time preparing this home for my family, and now we would have to flee. I heard rumors of how quickly Adam Carter worked and hunted down his enemies. I knew it was a matter of time before Adam figured out our location, and I had no doubt he'd bring an army with him.We were currently in Port Huron, Michigan. I had a vacation home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where we could stay while preparations at our new Ireland home were finishing. If we left now, we could easily escape before Adam Carter could find us. My only challenge would be getting Daphnie to come with me without a fight. After her reaction toward me when she

AdamWith Ace by my side, I walked into my central hotel, ignoring everyone who greeted me. I wanted to hunt down whoever kidnapped my family as soon as possible. Diego could only do so much as this wasn't his expertise. Chad would've been able to find a lead by now and deduce where my wife and daughter were, but he wouldn't help me.I was practically on my own.When I stepped into the elevator, it couldn't move fast enough. My patience was running dry. Every moment I was without Daphnie caused the ache in my chest to worsen. I needed to find her. Without Daphnie and Nightingale, my life had no purpose.I stepped out of the elevator and walked to my office. I stopped a few feet from the door, feeling uneasy in my stomach. Ace's body tensed, and he began to growl. I took out my gun and slowly approached the door without a sound. I kicked the door open and stepped into my office to be greeted by Dr. Phil Sweetheart sitting at my desk."Hello, Adam," he casually said."Dr. Sweetheart," I