"Fuck! What is the problem now?" Hugh demanded very irritably. Ignoring the query, Shawn removed the genuine ring from his pocket and placed it on top of its duplicate to give it more weight. The ground began to tremble again, and the ancient stones' grinding sound resumed at full volume. Instead of ascending, the ground began to descend this time. "Oh, my bloody hell... I hope this isn't the end of us, Shawn! I want to see more of the world and its wonders!" As the massive apparatus continued to glide downward, Dave shouted above the din. "Good!" Hugh and Elizabeth looked at each other, then smirked, while Eddie looked worried. Shawn was suspicious, but he was eager to see where the lift would take them. As they sank into a shaft cut neatly into the sandstone, the ground above was gone. Then, along the border of the moving surface, a gap appeared, growing wider and wider until the old elevator came to a standstill with a thud. The passengers' gaze carefully probed the dark reces
Shawn had taken advantage of the unexpected and moved swiftly, slamming his arm as hard as he could. The flame struck Hugh's and his men’s temples, sending embers and flames crawling around his skull. The huge man swayed for a split second, dizzy from the impact. He instinctively dropped his revolver and rushed up with both hands to his face, screaming in anguish. Shawn retaliated with another swing. His men’s scream echoed in the chamber when he fell from the platform. Hugh screamed, “Haaaa!” his face was burning, and one of his men attacked Dave and one attacked Catherine, while Elizabeth went to the golden Buddha statue. Catherine screamed, "Shawn, to your left." He was surprised; he hadn't expected Hugh to be able to stabilise so quickly, even though his face was burning. Hugh took the lamp with one hand and Shawn's throat with the other after blocking his attack. Shawn tried to dislodge the fingers that were squeezing his breath, but the grasp was too tight. He swung hard at H
One year later, Chicago The laughter of Shawn and their four-year-old adopted daughter from the orphanage, Mathea, was the sweetest sound in the world to Catherine Richmond. It had been a long trip for the two of them, and after their third wedding, friends gathered to celebrate her coming back into the world. Chelsea was the one who was overjoyed to learn that she was alive, and since then, Shawn vacation house has been tormented by their gifts almost every week, and because Catherine was three months pregnant, they decided to take a long holiday in the Maldives, as Shawn had promised. Everyone had been kept in the dark about Anthony's riches and their travels to Scotland and Thailand. Catherine paused and listened to their antics. Soon, Catherine strolled into their bedroom. "What’s all the laughter about?" she asked, zipping her suitcase. Shawn responded with a smile on her lips. "I helped Mathea close her case and lift it to the floor. It was so heavy I told her I’d better chec
Two months ago,The palatial manor, three hours outside Paris, glittered like a jewel beneath the starlit night sky. Lights glowed from within the sprawling mansion and along the circular drive out front, where half a dozen sleek sports cars were parked on the cobblestones.From Dave Brown's vantage point on a tree-studded hill five hundred yards away, he watched as a beautiful yellow Ferrari rolled up to the villa and took its place between a dark Veyron and a silver Pagani Huayra. Add in the pair of Lamborghinis, the Maserati, and another Ferrari, and there was well over ten million dollars worth of automotive luxury parked outside the late Alfonso Richmond III Alfonso’s mansion. Plus a collection of cars worth twice as much that was hidden in the huge bays of the private garage of the alleged drug-dealing mob.If nothing else, Alfonso and his criminal associates had impeccable taste in cars."Apparently, selling your soul to the devil pays well," he muttered into the wireless mic t
Inside Alfonso's mansion, Chelsea held her composure until she had reached her private quarters on the mansion’s second floor. Once inside, she leaned against the closed door and let her revulsion leak out of her in a shudder. At least she was getting better at the charade. She doesn't have any choice but to play this game if she wants to know about the sudden death of her step-dad. Yes, the man was not perfect, but he raised her enough to know that he didn't just die for some unknown reason.There was a time when she might have had to bite back a scream because the revulsion of Hermano touching her was too much. It had been a year since the old man’s death, but still, she was at a loss of what really happened to him in Thailand, and she knew Hermano was the one to blame.Her skin, however, crawled everywhere Hermano touched her. His strong fingers were still on her body, on her breast. His harsh smack to her backside wounded her dignity as much as it did her ass. She despised being
Even though she believed she was ready to face him again, her first glimpse of Dave standing barely inches away from her stunned her.Her terror was replaced by an intense sense of incredulity... and uncertainty as she lifted her fingertips to her lips.Although she recognised his voice and perfume, she couldn't place the harsh, disapproving face staring back at her.The flowing golden locks that would have accentuated his slim, pointed cheeks and hard, square jaw were hidden beneath a black knit skullcap. While she knew he had dimples on either side of his sumptuous mouth when he smiled, his sculpted lips were kept in a cruel, unforgiving line right now. His brown eyes were focused, his brow furrowed as he held her in a measuring stare that seemed as threatening and unyielding as his grip on her a minute ago."What in the world!" Dave exhaled sharply and muttered. His face stiffened even more. "It's truly you, Chelsea. I needed to be certain. I refused to believe it."She frowned. He
Dave sighed. Looking at Chelsea seemed like just a dream, and damn, she was even lovelier than he recalled. No longer the model sweetheart girl who’d been his sister’s best friend. No longer the little pretty girl next door who used to delight in racing through the male population of massive billboards, but a matured woman with a refined beauty that stirred everything male in him. Not to mention his friend down there. What happened to them anyway? A year ago, after his sister’s wedding, he vanished into nothingness to avoid anyone tying Chelsea into his life just because he didn't want to repeat what happened. He knew Alfonso wasn't kidding when he told him that the woman he loved was under the bastard's watch and anytime they could kidnap and hurt Chelsea in any way, he avoided her like the plague. Memories of a night two years ago came to life in his mind in vivid, erotic detail. Her warm, naked skin against his. Her sweet, breathless cries as he tasted every virgin inch of her be
They made it to Chelsea's apartment in just under thirty minutes, thanks to clear late-night roadways and the seven hundred horses at work inside the Ferrari’s massive engine.Even before Chelsea pointed him in the right direction, Dave turned onto a narrow two-lane and headed to the beautiful and obviously expensive neighbourhood. Unlike Chelsea, however, he had no family of his own, just Catherine and her family. For a long time, he thought he'd found a place to belong when he began hanging out with his sister's pals, Jane and Chelsea. He had belonged... until he fell in love with Chelsea. Yes, Catherine had informed her that, even though Chelsea was her friend, she was known to have numerous unsuccessful relationships and never took her last relationship seriously. But he never listened, and even Chelsea's coworker thought he was unsuitable for her.Chelsea deserves someone better. Even now, Dave would not argue that. But as he looked over at her and saw her exquisite face turn as