by Mia Hoddell
Cora smiled as Rogan struggled to get through the door. He still wasn’t used to the wheelchair and the home hadn’t been fully adapted to cater for him. But, stubborn as always, he refused the help. He shouted at anyone who tried to aid him, and even if he was paralysed from the waist down, people still feared him. The bullet had hit his spine, rendering his legs useless. The doctors had said he would never recover his movement back but Cora was just pleased that he was alive.
“You wanted to see me?” Rogan asked, as he pushed himself into the room. He tried to mask the pain the movements caused but Cora could see it in his eyes.
However, she had learnt the hard way to let him get on with it so instead she continued. “I’ve made my decision. I wanted you to be the first to know.”
In the months Rogan had lain in the hospital, Cora had been by his side constantly, watching over him and answering his every beck and call. They laid the foundations for their relationship to grow but one memory stood out to her. It had been just after the doctors had admitted to Rogan he would never walk again and it was the most poignant memory that helped make her decision.
* * *
He looked so feeble and weak lying in the bed, the loose white sheet pulled up to his shoulders. His skin was paler than Cora had ever seen, his lips only a faint pink as he slept. She had to keep reminding herself that although the news was not what they hoped for at least he was still with her.
There was so much she wanted to say to him but he tired easily and the emotional exhaustion had affected him badly when the doctors made their announcement.
“You can stop staring at me you know, I’m not going to vanish,” Rogan muttered through his dry lips and Cora was there instantly with his cup.
“Sorry, there isn’t much else to do.”
Rogan pressed a button on the bed’s control panel, raising himself up so he could see her and take a drink. When he had swallowed enough water to quench his thirst and Cora had replaced the cup he said, “You don’t have to stay here, Cora.”
“Shut up, I want to.” They had been through the routine time and time again, Rogan not able to understand why she wanted anything to do with him. The truth was that Cora didn’t realise how much she would miss him until she was faced with the reality of his death. It tugged some emotions she had buried deep and she was tired of fighting for everything by herself and she hoped that Rogan would want her, if his letter was to be believed.
They remained in silence for a few minutes, it used to be awkward but Cora found it comfortable now. They both were lost to their thoughts but Rogan broke it sooner than usual. “I can’t do this anymore, Cora.”
“What do you mean? Of course you can.”
“I’m not talking about living, I mean running my business. I’m not the man I used to be. The fact that I’m in this situation proves that. I’m not going to be able to run anything in this state, people won’t take me seriously.”
“Of course they will, you’re Rogan Carvelli. Just your name is enough to strike fear into any man.”
“It won’t when they find out what happened. People will think I’m an easy target.”
“Rogan…” Cora sighed, she had never seen him like this and it worried her. She could be strong enough for the both of them but he couldn’t give up.
“Just hear me out. I’m not asking you to take over. I meant what I said in that letter, Cora. If your heart is still set against it, I’ll respect that. Whatever you want to do with the business, it’s yours, do it. All I’m asking is you think about it, give it some time because I’m not going anywhere right away. The territories must remain, Cora. They were set up with a purpose and without them, there’ll be anarchy once more. There must be leaders to look up to.”
“I don’t agree with your methods though, Rogan,” Cora interrupted.
“There are worse people out there than me, Cora. My territory is one of the best cared for. I may have been cruel during my rule but it was necessary. The people needed a strong leader, they needed someone to make decisions and get the area back on track, give the people some semblance of normality. The only way that was possible was through the methods I used. I’m not condoning what I did and I know that’s not the future, but don’t hate me for bringing stability, that was what was needed then.” He stared into her clear green eyes hoping she understood.
“I don’t hate you. I used to hate you, but I don’t anymore.”
“At least I’ve done something right then.”
Cora smiled.
“This is your time Cora…only you can build the peace. Will you at least think about it?” Rogan’s face had a weak smile on his face but his eyes were already closing again.
“Okay, I’ll think about it,” Cora murmured, not wanting to disturb him but she swore she saw his smile grow even more.
* * *
“Cora?” Rogan was snapping his fingers in front of her, when she reappeared from her memories.
“Yeah?”
“Your decision?”
Only silence filled the room for a while as Cora tried to sort her thoughts out. “I’ll be back in a minute,” she said finally, already hurrying through the door and leaving him in the room. She knew exactly where she was going and as she burst into the room three doors down, she breathed a sigh of relief that Nick was there.
“Cora, is everything okay?” Worry creased his forehead as he stood but Cora waved him back into his seat.
“Will you be there for me in all this?”
“Will I what?”
“If I agree to inherit all this from Rogan, will you be my second too?”
“Are you sure you want to do this? I’m happy to take over fully if you don’t want to, you know that right?”
“Thank you, Nick,” she said, her palm resting on his arm as she gave him one of her best smiles. She hadn’t smiled in so long. “I have to do this though. It’s my choice but I want you there too. I need my friend by my side…that is unless you want to leave now that I can end your contract...” A small amount of vulnerability crept into Cora’s voice as she trailed off with uncertainty that Nick would not want to be around her.
“Are you serious?”
“Of course. I’m not going to stop you leaving, it was wrong to have signed you up in the first place. I can’t ever make that up to you, but I can give you your life back.” Cora shrugged slightly embarrassed and worried he would accept her offer.
“No you idiot, serious about me being your second. Of course I’ll be there for you. And just so you know Rogan never treated me badly. In fact I had a better life than I was used to so really, I should thank you. I only hated you because you took away my options but Rogan never made me do anything I didn’t want to and made me his second. I think it was because I was your friend.”
Cora stared at him, shocked by his admission as she punched his arm.
“You asshole! You made me think you had it so bad and here you are saying it was great. How can I ever trust you again?” she teased a smile still plastered on her face so he would know she was joking.
“People can’t lie to you, Cora,” he pointed out with an easy smile that Cora hadn’t seen in years.
“No, but they can omit stuff. Anyway, I had better get back to telling Rogan.” She hurried to the door but paused. “Oh, your first job. I want you to bring Jed in, unharmed. We need to keep him close as, although he helped me, I’m not sure where his loyalties lie. He could pose a threat left to his own devices.” Nick nodded but Cora was already leaving the room and rushing back down the corridor to Rogan’s office.
As he heard the door open, he spun his chair to look at her, an eyebrow arched in question.
“I was just clearing up some last minute details with Nick,” Cora said by way of explaining.
“So I take it, you want him to succeed me?” A look of disappointment crossed Rogan’s face but he quickly masked it. He had hoped Cora had had a change of heart over their time together; she was at least acting like it, but may
be he had read her wrong.
“No, I will take over on one condition.” Cora didn’t think it possible for his eyebrows to travel any higher up his forehead but they did.
“Cora, I’ve told you before, you can do what you want.”
She only shrugged. “I just want you to know.”
“Okay, what is it?”
“I will run things my way and I don’t care what anyone else thinks. I’m not going to become you.” The words came out with a surprising amount of force as she spoke about the past.
“There will be people fighting you every step of the way, you do realise that, right? There are people who are loyal to the system,” Rogan warned but he had a glint of admiration in his eye as he looked at her.
“Then let them fight, the country is due for a change and I’m not compromising my ruling for anything. I will run everything exactly as I want. The people deserve a choice in matters.”
“If you think that’s what’s best and are willing to fight for it, I’ll back you all the way, Cora.”
Placing a hand on his shoulder, Cora looked down at him with a genuine smile that didn’t hide the emotions she was feeling towards him. She never thought she would be able to stand in the same room as Rogan Carvelli and feel a sense of love but that’s what was flowing through her. She knew everything was going to take time to move on and for them to be close—if it ever got to that stage—but Cora finally had someone in her corner. Never before had she had someone fighting with her and she didn’t want to lose that.
“No Rogan, I know it’s best.”
“You’ll have to tell the other leaders that.”
Before she could say anything, Rogan lifted the remote she hadn’t seen on his lap and clicked a button to reveal the TV in the wall once more. Moving over to his desk he brought up the conference call where the five leaders of the other territories were waiting, their eager faces appearing on the TV.
“As you are all aware my organisation came under attack recently and the fight has left me paralysed from the waist down. Under the circumstance, I am passing my control to my successor while I help lead in the background. We are telling you this as a courtesy, not an invitation for a fight over control. My successor will keep the stability of my territory and my men are loyal to her.”
Rogan beckoned her over, his hand out of camera shot, and she moved in so the men could see her, confidence radiating from her. “Hello gentlemen. My name is Cora Carvelli and I’m Rogan’s daughter. I thought you should all know that the world is about to change.” Cora only caught a glimpse of their confusion and anger before she disconnected the call, more determined than ever to bring peace to the country through her own methods.
THE END
Acknowledgements
False Finder couldn’t be what is without the help of many amazing people along the way.
Dad—Thank you for reading countless drafts, blurbs, and synopses. Thanks for listening to my ideas, allowing me to vent when things weren’t going right, and for telling me when I was being ridiculous. Without you Mayana and Jed would still be running around as rebel ninjas!
Mum and Joe—Thanks for all of the love and support you give me, and for putting up with my crazy moods while I was in the process of writing this book. It means the world.
A big thanks to my editors Roco and Darryl for helping make False Finder the best it could be.
To my betas: Lauren, Steph, Maddie, Alexis, Shannon, Kelcea, and Sara. You guys were great! Thank you for pointing out the last minute kinks with the plot, the positive comments, and for the support.
To Limitless Publishing, thank you for taking a chance on me and for guiding me through this new process. Also, thanks to Redbird Designs for the amazing cover that I fell in love with instantly.
I can’t forget all of the brilliant bloggers who have supported me. I’m unable to express how much what you do for my books means to me. You are truly amazing and some of the best people I’ve had a chance to meet since I’ve started writing.
Finally, thank you to all of my readers or anyone who has given my books a chance. You guys make it possible for me to follow my dreams, and I hope you enjoyed False Finder as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.
About the Author
Mia Hoddell lives in the UK with her family and two cats. She spends most of her time writing or reading, loves anything paranormal or romantic, and has an overactive imagination that keeps her up until the early hours of the morning.
By the age of nineteen, Mia had published nine books, including the Elemental Killers series and the Seasons of Change series. Since then, her books have charted on numerous Amazon Bestseller Lists, and she has also had poems published in a many anthologies. With an ever growing list of ideas, Mia continues to create fictional worlds through her writing, and is trying to keep up with the speed at which her imagination generates them.
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