PRESENT. BLAKE MORENO POV. Gabrielle Genovese was standing at my door- and she was real... the fire in her gray eyes was all too familiar and my heart nosedived. The woman I would have given up everything for was standing right in front of me. With a gun aimed in my face. My head spun even tho I tried to come off unaffected- but my throbbing heart was still racing and my breathing had accelerated so it was a wasted effort. The memories that I had tried to bury slammed into my head with an intensity that made me aware of every part of her. Her scent assaulted my senses, and every inch of her skin that I'd explored called to me fiercely until It was overwhelming. Her hold on the gun didn't waver and it looked as if she was contemplating just letting loose a spray of bullets in my direction. But despite the threat she represented, all I wanted to do was relive every moment I had spent with her. I wanted to touch her, wrap her in my arms, and run away with her to the ends of the
GABRIELLE POV.Everyone gathered to hear me dole out the new terms to my rule, and anyone who opposed was shot dead immediately, their body burnt into ashes and tossed into the sea, not that most of them had anything to say while they stared at the head of Genovese at my feet. I wanted to shame him, even in death. He didn't deserve a proper burial. I was going to feed his head to the dogs he kept. The people in the room grumbled when I raised their returns to sixty percent but an arch of my eyebrow shut them up. They should be happy I didn't take them all out. Death was what they deserved, so they should be fucking grateful that I was letting them live. Simone stood beside me, his mouth clenched shut all through the process, but even his presence irritated me... Everyone that reminded me of Blake irritated me. The family dispersed and I appointed spies to keep an eye on them and report back to me about any misconduct, or any act of rebellion. If anyone broke any of the laws I'd lai
GABRIELLE POV.I stared at Micheal, then at the gun that he aimed at me, waiting patiently for him to pull the trigger but he didn't. I waited until my fingers trembled. "If you're going to shoot an enemy, you should never hesitate"."You killed my father" he screamed, his hold tightening around the gun, his aim getting steadier. Yes, Micheal. Get mad, and put an end to all of this pain and suffering. "Yes I did, and I'll probably kill you too, so you better pull that trigger now that you have the chance," I said, meaning every word as I stared at him. His hands wavered, and then he lowered the gun as tears escaped an eye. I groaned inside, clenching my fist as we both stood in silence, his eyes fixed on mine. "Why didn't you let that guard kill me? Why did you save me? I don't want to be indebted to you for anything. Why did you do it?" He asked, meeting my gaze fiercely and I lost it. "I didn't do it for you! I killed him because that is only what I am good at. These hands only
GABRIELLE POV TWO WEEKS EARLIER.Footsteps approached my room and I braced myself for whoever was going to step in through the door. The door flung open and two people stumbled in as they were shoved viciously. They dropped to their knees right in front of me and I jumped back, my gaze darting to those of the culprit. Burn stepped in behind them with a sick smile on his lips, the two guns he held pointed at the back of their head. "I brought some audience for our little show".I stared at Keenan who couldn't meet my gaze then at Micheal whose little body shook in tremors as he looked up at me to deliver him. But he was wrong, I didn't save people, I only destroyed them, just as I had done to Blake.I met Burns's amused expression. "There will be no show," I told, my voice so quiet, it sounded eerie even in my ears.Burn quirked an eyebrow. "Is that a no, Pet, because I get trigger happy every time someone says no to me and I really don't want to have to blast Keenan's head off or th
BLAKE POV.The raw pain in her voice carried through the room, the agony of it rending through my heart like sharp-edged darts as I listened to it, then the call ended and April glanced in my direction. My grip on the chair handle I sat on tightened as I struggled to keep my emotions in check. "It's done. She thinks you're dead now. Do we proceed with our plans. Do you want her behind bars... We can have her arrested with the evidence we have on her"."I don't know" I got out, my voice hoarse as my eyes lingered on the phone, willing it to ring again just so I could hear her voice. I was crazy. Crazy and bloody stupid, but I couldn't stop myself from longing for her, especially after listening to her. What if, no, it wasn't speculation at this point, she'd shot me not to kill me but to save my life? If she'd really meant to kill me, I would be dead. But then I remembered her voice, the way her gaze had brightened as she conversed with Burn on how she'd lost interest in me, how it w
GABRIELLE POV.Stepping into the house I swore I would burn to the ground once I took over made me feel like a failure but I was not going to be so easily defeated, especially now that I might have nothing left. The pain of the unknown was terrible and my head hurt- the misery making my vision blurry, as I thought back to the bridge. What if I had miscalculated the angle of the shot as I aimed for Blake... maybe I'd hit one of his organs and he'd bled to death, and if that didn't happen, maybe April hadn't been able to save him, maybe she hadn't even been able to find his body.My heart constricted, the realization that Blake might really be gone from my life hitting me hard until it felt like I would collapse. I don't. Instead, I forged on, forcing my legs to move even tho all I wanted to do was crash against the floor and just cry for all the injustice I'd been dealt with. But those scenarios were all what-ifs. I had to believe that he was still alive.Blake was tough, and I hadn'