Total pages in book: 168
Estimated words: 159420 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 797(@200wpm)___ 638(@250wpm)___ 531(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 159420 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 797(@200wpm)___ 638(@250wpm)___ 531(@300wpm)
He smiles and continues, “Kidnapping doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as murder. Murder raises eyebrows, turns heads. Murder creates complex court cases with tons of media attention. You play your cards right, it gets attention from the government too. But mostly, murder brings down the value of the land. Drastically. The land that I was ready to pay upwards of ten million dollars for, if they were nice, would go for only a quarter of that. And if you ask me, murder makes the most sense. Hank Turner killed Radisson’s parents, made him an outcast, silent and scarred. Someone everyone’s afraid of and rightly so. It was no surprise that his mind snapped one day and he killed the Turner Princess in revenge. Much better than kidnapping, any day of the week.” Then, “Oh, and I hope it’s clear by now that I was just using your father. I wasn’t going to give him any percentage of that land whatsoever.”
“You’re a…” My throat is dry. “A psychopath.”
“I’m just a businessman,” he corrects me. “But I will say I underestimated your boyfriend. He is your boyfriend, isn’t he?”
My heart slams in my chest, but I keep quiet.
“Instead of handing you over, he double-crossed me.” He keeps going, his eyes harsh, “I counted on his hate, his anger, his drive for revenge. It was a perfect opportunity for him. But he chose to protect you. He ruined my entire plan. I should kill him for that. I should kill his sister for that.” My mouth falls open and I lean forward in my chair so fast, it squeaks. He smiles and continues, “And judging by your reaction and the fact we found you wandering alone in the woods, I’m guessing you were the one who messaged me tonight, not him. Why? Because you wanted to help him get his sister back?” He looks at me like he’s trying to crack a code. “You could’ve died.”
I swallow and stay silent. He’ll not get a word from me. Even though he’s right. I knew there was a chance they would kill me on sight. Especially when Radisson didn’t go for my plan and I had no defense against them. But I had to do it. I had to. If there was even a little chance that I could help him get Lynnie back, I was going to take it. Only I don’t know if what I did helped or not. If Radisson would be able to find me and Lynnie in time.
He chuckles, shaking his head. “You should be thankful that I’m able to see the humor in this situation, your need to protect each other. Or I would have killed you as soon as you arrived. Because I don’t like ruined plans. I had my heart set on the whole murder thing. I had my friends in the media on standby to cover the story, make the biggest splash in the state of Montana, giving Radisson the most sensational trial this state has seen in a decade. But that’s no use anymore. So we’ll just make the best of the situation since you walked into the lion’s den on your own: I’ll let you and his sister go if the Graysons agree to sell their ranch to me. Their whole ranch, not just the little piece I wanted before. Given how much your boyfriend loves you, I’m sure he’ll be able to convince his family to do the right thing here. And if your brother agrees to throw in the Turner ranch too. For all my trouble, of course.”
This makes my father wheeze again, but this time it’s not his air that’s bothering him but the fact that his precious land is being threatened.
“Until then, you’ll stay here,” he says as I look back at him. “It won’t be long. I’ve been waiting for this for a year now, and I don’t really like your town. I’d like to go back to California as soon as possible. So maybe a few days tops, just until everything is finalized.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
AS SOON AS they throw me into a room and close the door, I spin around and start to bang on it viciously. I’m about to start screaming too. Though I don’t know what that would accomplish, I’d like to create as much ruckus as possible. But then a timid voice stops me.
“Wh-who’s there?”
My eyes go wide and I spin around. There’s a girl sitting in a corner, on one of the couches of this surprisingly comfortable-looking room, maybe a suite from the size of it. Several years older than me, she has dark hair, long and up in a ponytail, and she’s wearing simple yoga pants. She’s hugging her knees tightly as a thick frown furrows her brow. She’s so beautiful, with her fair skin and plush lips, she makes my heart clench. Her most striking feature is her green eyes, though, that she’s got aimed at the door, seeing but not.