Total pages in book: 159
Estimated words: 149148 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149148 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
The half-crumbling walls surrounding the plantation were about five feet tall. Easy enough to scale and in seconds I was over it, landing quietly in a crouch. Leaves from an overhead branch were in the way, and I carefully pushed it away as I positioned myself. I lifted my camera, peered through the lens, and zoomed in.
My breath caught at the sight of a man on his knees. He seemed to be in his mid-twenties, his white shirt stained with dirt, like he had been rolling all over the ground in it. His jeans also had a stain. I bit my lip when I realized what that stain on his crotch was.
He was surrounded by boys – just boys my age. They were well-dressed and had ‘rich spoiled brats’ written all over them. Dangerously spoiled. They didn’t seem to be American – their skins were too dark. Maybe Mediterranean. They also looked like they were out of it, maybe a combination of booze and drugs.
I inched closer to hear what they were saying, crawling nearly flat on the ground to avoid being detected. When I was close enough to hear them, I hid behind a rainwater well and listened. They seemed to be taunting the man about playing nanny to a bastard, and one of the boys actually spit on the man as he said the word.
“Consider this as a gift from the true heir of Andreadis,” another boy said as he slowly pulled out a gun.
My heart slammed against my chest in fear. What should I do now? Fat luck if my pepper spray could do anything against that.
The boy took aim.
I prepared to scream. A distraction was all I could give him. I’d scream, tell them the police was coming, then hope they’d be fooled while I ran for my life.
When he cocked his gun, I opened my mouth and screamed.
The sound died unheard.
An enormous black bike had come out of nowhere, the rumble of its engine deafening to my confused mind. For a moment, it was like I was thirteen again, and James was telling me for the first time to lie on the ground. I’m going to drive over you, and you’re going to hope I don’t stop while I’m on top of your little body.
Gunfire broke out in the air, and I emerged from my nightmare with a gasp. You’re okay, you’re okay. I said the words over and over, reminding myself that I had survived James’ stunts 266 times now.
The rider had flown over the man kneeling on the ground. As he and his bike soared in the air, he held the handlebar with one hand while his other hand revealed a gun.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Each shot landed an inch away from the boys’ feet, forcing them to skip and scream like those high-kicking dancers I saw on TV who kept throwing their skirts up.
The bike landed right in front of the man. He was still alive, but I wasn’t surprised when he slowly fell to the ground, passing out. My hand went to my throat. I felt like I wanted to pass out, too.
The rider got off his bike, the gun still aimed at the boys. With his helmet still on, I couldn’t tell how old he was. But what I did know was that he was tall – the tallest man I had ever seen. His body cut a lean figure in his black leather jacket and jeans, but I would bet my life every inch of his body was packed with muscles.
He gave off mean vibes, but somehow he didn’t terrify me at all. His mean was a good kind of mean. I’d-punch-you-for-shouting-at-an-old-woman kind of mean.
“Were you saying something about me?” Bang. Bang. Bang. One shot at each boy, the bullet landing in the space between their legs. One of them started to cry. Another peed himself. The last one dropped his gun and threw his hands up.
“Your brother told us to do it!” the boy with the gun blubbered.
“Didn’t mean you had to follow him.” Bang. Bang. Bang. “I don’t give a fuck about being an heir to the Andreadis fortune, and you can tell that to my dear older brother.”
His voice hardened. “What I do care about is when you bring your shit into my territory. Every inch of land here belongs to Afxisi. You harm any of our people and we take it very personally. Enough to kill. So this will be your only warning. Go home to Greece and don’t ever think of coming back. If I ever see any of your faces again, you won’t have a second chance of coming out alive. Do you fucking understand me?”
None of the boys spoke.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
“I didn’t hear you say yes. Did you fucking understand me?”
Yes. Yes, sir. Yes. They started sobbing the words out.