In the Crossfire

by L. P. Dover

  He leaned over on his elbows, his eyes never leaving mine. “Yes. Now do you see why this will never work? You don’t belong in my world.”

  It was as if I’d been slapped in the face. Anger boiled in my veins. “These days I feel like I don’t belong anywhere,” I said, my jaw hurting from clenching my teeth. “Most definitely not with my own family. I never realized it until now, but there had to be a reason my father was shot. I can see why Julian was killed. He was a cruel, narcissistic asshole who ruined every relationship I’ve ever had. There’s no telling what all he’d done to deserve the ending he got. And then…there’s my father. Makes me wonder what he did to be on that hit list. You wouldn’t happen to know, would you?”

  Bryce kept his eyes on mine. “Why don’t you ask him?”

  “I’m asking you,” I retorted back.

  His jaw clenched. “It’s not my place, Layla.”

  I could tell he wanted to say something more, but he closed himself off. “Fine,” I huffed, slamming my hand down on the table. “I’ll ask him myself. It’s not fair for me to be stuck here for something my dad did, especially if I have to put up with a dick like you.” I wasn’t about to let my spaghetti go to waste, so I grabbed my plate and the basket of French bread and stood. Bryce stared at me, a stunned look on his face. I glared at him once more and walked off. “Enjoy your dinner,” I called out. Since I didn’t get any answers from him, there was only one other option.

  I had to call my dad.

  *

  After I ate, I turned on the TV and flipped through the various news channels. There were still no leads on the shooter, but I already knew that. My nerves were shot. I was angry, but more so I was terrified of what my father, and most likely my brother, had been keeping from me. They couldn’t keep me in the dark forever.

  I sat on my bed and pressed my father’s number. I’d already played out the conversation in my mind a gazillion times, only for it to end with no answers. Not this time. I wasn’t about to let my dad play the “it’s to keep you safe” card anymore. He was the reason I had to have bodyguards.

  “Hello, cara mia,” my father answered, sounding as if I’d caught him at a bad time.

  Heart racing, I stood and paced the floor. “Hey, Dad. How are you?”

  “Sore, but I’ll get through it. What about you? You okay?”

  “Not really, but then you sound a little pissed.”

  He let out an angry sigh. “That’s because I am. No one has been able to give me answers about anything.”

  “I know exactly how you feel,” I replied.

  “What’s wrong with you? You should be happy to be home.”

  I laughed even though there was no humor to it. “I would be if I wasn’t a prisoner. Not to mention, my jail ward is an asshole.”

  “That’s because he wants you. I’ve seen it in his eyes, and the way he is around you.”

  I froze mid-step and sat back on my bed. “Why would you let him be alone with me then? You’ve always kept your people at a distance, especially the men who aren’t family.”

  “I have my reasons, Layla.”

  “And those are?” I asked, feeling impatient. “It is my life and safety we’re talking about. I mean, what if I’d slept with him? We are here, all alone together. What would you say about that?” It wasn’t exactly something I wanted to discuss with him, but I had to know.

  He sighed. “I’d say that was your business. You’re a grown woman. If you want to be with Bryce, then be with him.”

  His answer infuriated me. Never in my twenty-eight years did he ever approve of any man I’d had in my life. “Bullshit,” I snapped. “You’ve never been like this with anyone. And for your information, he wants nothing to do with me. Whatever your plan was, it failed. Now tell me what’s going on.” I stood and paced the floor again, the muscles in my jaw so tense it was making my head hurt.

  “Fine,” he replied. “I wanted Bryce with you so we could merge our families.”

  The breath whooshed out of my lungs. I never thought my own father would use me as a pawn. “Does Bryce know any of this?”

  “No. He has no clue. I figured with you two being alone there it’d happen on its own.”

  I sucked in a breath and fought against the burn behind my eyes. In his own warped way, he probably thought it’d make me happy, but I couldn’t help but feel betrayed. “It all makes sense now. I can’t believe you were trying to use me like that.”

  “Like what, Layla? You and Bryce basically brought yourselves together. I barely played a part.”

  “Now that my head is clear, I’m starting to have doubts.”

  His tone hardened. “About what? What are you talking about?”

  The sound of his obvious annoyance didn’t help me one bit; it only made me angrier. “Were you the one who hired the shooter?” I blurted.

  “What? You think I’d have myself shot?”

  It was as if all the pieces finally fell into place. “It’d be the perfect opportunity to seclude me here with Bryce under the guise of safety. And I know you hate the Carmichaels, especially Julian.”

  “This is ridiculous.”

  “And,” I continued, “you know what Bryce can do. Kind of strange how all the cameras around the area were tampered with during the shooting.”

  A low growl echoed through the phone. “I had nothing to do with that, cara mia. How could you think that?”

  I scoffed. “Something tells me you’re capable of it. I already know you’ve killed people.”

  “Seriously?” He huffed in annoyance. “We’re back on this again? Everything I’ve done was to keep my family safe.”

  “Okay. Then answer me this…if you didn’t order the shooter, what could you have possibly done to make someone want to hurt you?”

  He snorted. “That’s a stupid question. These days, you can look at someone wrong and they’d want to kill you. You need to drop this now.”

  I walked over to my closet and pulled out my suitcase. “All right. Guess I’ll just head back to the city and find my own answers.” I didn’t want to threaten him, but I felt like he was giving me no choice. If he nor Bryce would give me answers, I had to get out on my own.

  “I’m not going to let that happen, Layla.”

  I tossed the suitcase onto my bed. “Good luck trying to stop me.”

  I hung up on him and piled my clothes into the suitcase. Going to the city on my own and searching for answers was dangerous, but it was the only thing I could think to say that might light a fire under my father. I had no actual plans to do it; I just had to get away.

  Chapter Twelve

  Bryce

  After eating alone by the pool, I went inside to the media room and sat down, watching all the different feeds. Layla was nowhere to be found, so I figured she was in her room. She said she was going to call her father for answers, but he wasn’t going to tell her shit. That man had her completely fooled.

  It killed me, not being able to tell her what her father had done and what he was capable of. It just wasn’t the right time, not after I told her the truth about myself. I was pretty sure it wasn’t a shock to her, but I’d never come right out and told any woman what I was—that I was a killer. In her eyes, I was just a murderer, but in reality, I only sought justice on those who deserved it. For now, it was best that Layla thought the worst and stayed away from me.

  An hour had passed, and there was still no movement from Layla. I wanted to go to her room to make sure she was okay, but it’d only give her mixed signals. I’d made a mistake getting close to her. How could I fall for her and then turn around and kill her father? The answer was simple…I had to keep my distance. However, the problem was that I didn’t want to. Every second I was with her, I wanted to get closer.

  I took one last look at the TV screens and stood. Before I could leave the room, the phone Isaiah had given me rang. Anthony’s name popped up, and I took a deep breath. It got harder and harder to keep my disdain of him a secret with
each day that passed. I wanted to complete my mission and go home. It’d be easy to abandon it and gain my identity back, but I wasn’t a quitter. I came to New York to kill Anthony Corsino, and that was what I had to do, even if it took months.

  I turned away from the monitors and answered the call. “Yeah.”

  “You have to stop her. She’s going to leave.” Anthony sounded both pissed and frantic.

  I jerked around toward the screens. Layla was nowhere to be seen on any of them. “What do you mean?”

  Anthony huffed. “She wants answers, but I refused to give them to her. She’s threatening to go back to the city. I need you to stop her.”

  “I’ll call you right back,” I said, then hung up quickly. Rushing out of the media room, I ran through the foyer and up the stairs to Layla’s room. I knocked hard on the door and listened. There was no sound or movement that I could hear. “Layla, open the door.” Still, there was nothing. When I opened the door, her closet was open, and it’d been cleaned out, along with her dresser. “Motherfucker,” I huffed. “Layla!”

  The sound of a door slammed downstairs, so I took off out of her room. How the hell could I not see her on the cameras? I ran down the stairs and out the patio door. There were a line of trees blocking my sight of the driveway, but I could see the top edge of one of the open garage doors. As I drew closer, I could see her tossing her luggage in the back of a silver SUV. She’d changed out of her green sundress from earlier into a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” I called out as I stepped away from the trees. Layla jerked around, eyes blazing like fire as she grabbed the gun at her waistband and pointed it straight at me. I stopped and held up my hands. “Whoa. What the hell are you doing?”

  “I’m leaving. And if you try to stop me, I’ll blow off your balls.”

  Glancing down at her gun, I couldn’t help but notice how perfect her stance was. She looked like she knew what she was doing. “I don’t doubt it,” I replied cautiously. “Where’d you get the gun?”

  Her eyes narrowed, but she kept the gun pointed at me. “My uncle.”

  Still holding my hands in the air, I slowly took a step forward. “Did he teach you how to shoot as well?”

  The muscles in her jaw tightened. “Yes. Believe it or not, I’m not the helpless princess everyone thinks I am.”

  “I never said you were, Layla.” I nodded at the video camera just above the garage door. “How did you get out here without me seeing you?”

  She lifted her chin, her lips tilting up in an evil grin. “You’re not the only one who knows how to manipulate a camera. How else was I supposed to sneak out as a teenager?”

  Now I was impressed. “Guess we all have our secrets. Can anyone see us right now?”

  She shook her head. “No.” I took another step closer, and her body tensed. “Dammit, Bryce, don’t test me. I already know my father told you to stop me. No matter what he says or what you do, I am going to get out of here.”

  “And go where?” I asked. “To the city to find out the answers?”

  “If that’s what it takes. I’m not returning until he tells me the truth.”

  There was nothing but sheer determination in her eyes. The woman was so goddamned stubborn she’d get herself killed in the process. We were only about six feet apart, with the gun still pointed at my chest. There was only one thing left to do. I wasn’t about to underestimate her.

  “What if I told you what you want to know?” I said, hoping she could see the truth in my eyes.

  Her lips pursed. “Why should I believe you?”

  “Because you said it yourself—you’re not going to stop until you find out the answers. This is the only way to keep you safe.” It was also the way to test her. I had to know how far her loyalty went with her father. It might be what I had to do to finish my mission. Anthony would surely try to come after me, but he’d have a hell of a time trying to find me.

  She snarled and shook her head again. “For all I know, you’re just like him.”

  “I am nothing like him,” I growled. Hearing her say that pissed me off to no end. I took another step closer, not even caring about the gun anymore. “Yes, I kill people for a living, but they all deserved it. Remember Brock Trainor?”

  Her eyes widened in shock. “Yeah. He was a rapist who got away with it. His body was —”

  “I killed him, Layla. He was a disgusting piece of shit that needed to die. That’s what I do,” I said, moving a little bit closer, “I kill those who deserve it. When you compare me to your father, you couldn’t be more dead wrong.”

  She blew out a shaky breath, and tears filled her eyes. “What has he done, Bryce? You’re not on camera, and no one can hear you. Just tell me the truth. What was he going to do the night of the gala?”

  “Lower the gun and I’ll tell you,” I said. She did as I requested, and I slowly dropped my hands. As much as I hated her father, it made me sick having to be the one to see the pain on her face when she found out the truth. “Your father had James and Roger build a bomb. He was going to blow up Avery Hall and everyone in it.”

  A look of sheer horror passed across her face. “Oh my God.” She grabbed her stomach and turned to her car. She set the gun in the back with her luggage and lowered her head. “How could he do something like that?”

  “It wouldn’t be the first time,” I added, my voice low.

  She jerked around. “You mean, he’s actually done that before?”

  I nodded. “The news labeled it a terrorist attack, but there was a bombing at a restaurant a couple years ago. James and Roger planted it, on your father’s orders. His enemy was killed, but so were a lot of other people.”

  The tears fell down her face, and she slapped a hand over her mouth. “I remember. It was horrible. All those innocent people.”

  She broke down, and I closed the distance between us, bringing her into my arms. “I’m nothing like your father, Layla. If you want to leave, I’m not going to stop you.” I stepped back, and lifted her chin. “But I am going with you.”

  “Why are you being like this now? Earlier you wanted nothing to do with me.”

  “I have my reasons, and I still do, but...” I brushed the tears off her cheeks. “I’m sorry for being a dick. It’s not what I wanted. I can take you anywhere you want to go.”

  She shook her head. “He’ll find us, and he’ll kill you. His reach goes far.”

  A chuckle escaped my lips. “I’d like to see him try. Besides, he won’t find us. His reach might be far, but mine’s farther.” I took her hand and pulled her toward the house. “Come on, you’re coming with me. I can’t have you trying to sneak off while I grab my shit.”

  Luckily, she didn’t protest and came with me willingly. “Trust me, I could get away from you if I wanted to.”

  I glanced back at her and smiled. “Now that I’d love to see.”

  “Don’t tempt me.” She glared, and it only intrigued me more. Once inside the house, she stopped me before we could reach the stairs. “Where are we going to go, anyway? It’ll have to be away from New York.”

  “Don’t worry; the place I have in mind is a long way from here.” I really wanted to take her to Wyoming, but I’d run the risk of exposing who I was. There was only one other place I could think of, a place where I had family.

  North Carolina.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Layla

  It was pushing ten o’clock by the time we left the estate. We’d only been on the road about ten minutes, and I already felt free. It was a good feeling. Bryce claimed that his car couldn’t be traced, so we loaded up the back with all of our things, including a box full of food Francis had packed for us. He didn’t want me to leave, but if anyone understood what I was going through, it was him.

  Looking out the window, it was pitch black except for the occasional house lights here and there. We had about a twelve-hour drive before we reached North Carolina.

  “North Ca
rolina, huh? You never told me what part,” I said. I reached into the box in the backseat and pulled out a container of honey-roasted peanuts.

  As soon as I opened them, Bryce reached over and grabbed a handful. “Franklin. It’s a small city in the mountains.”

  I tossed a couple of peanuts into my mouth. “Do you know people there?”

  He nodded. “Several, in fact, but I don’t want them involved just yet. For now, we’ll keep to ourselves. There’s a lot we can do at the cabin to keep us busy. Then again,” he said, giving me a side glance, “that kind of stuff might not be up your alley.”

  “What are you saying, that I’m not outdoorsy?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. “I know how to fish, hike, and any other mountainy type of activity.”

  He tried not to smile and failed. “Okay. Whatever you say.”

  I threw a peanut at his head. “You’re so infuriating.” He laughed, and everything inside of me trembled. That was the Bryce I’d seen before. The second we left the estate, it was like he became someone else. Don’t get me wrong, there was still a dark and serious side to him, but it was like he could be himself now that we were gone. I felt the same way. I ate a few more peanuts and turned to the window. My stomach fluttered with nerves. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

  “What is it?”

  Because of the interior lights, I could see him look over at me through the reflection in the window, but I kept my attention on the forest of trees I could only see as the headlights flashed against them. “My dad told me something tonight,” I began, “and it really pissed me off. He said you didn’t know so I figured I’d tell you.”

  This time, I turned to look at him, and our eyes met. “Tell me,” he said.

  I didn’t want it to change things between us, but I couldn’t keep it from him, not when my father deceived him as well. “Did you ever wonder why my father trusted you so much with me? He’s never left me alone with someone like you, but yet, he did.”

  His brows furrowed, and he nodded. “I wondered that myself. If I had a daughter, there’s no way in hell I’d have left her alone with a virtual stranger, especially if she was in danger. Figured it was a test of sorts, but I honestly couldn’t see how he’d gamble with your safety like that.”