Never Give You Up (27 page)

“You’re a widow because of this man, Mary,” Wanda cut in, her voice loud, daunting. “How much do you want him now? He was only using you for an easy fuck like every other greedy, heartless bastard.”

Mary cringed as the duct tape was violently ripped from her mouth.

“Mary, I swear. I’m not using you,” Terry blurted, his voice desperate. “I felt ashamed about what happened. That’s why I visited you, to make sure you were okay. I didn’t plan to care about you, it just happened.”

But she had nothing to say now that the tape had been removed. Too much to think about. She hung her head and tried not to break down in front of these people, in front of Terry. She’d suffered enough already. Crying wouldn’t bring her any peace.
No. No more crying.
She was sick and tired of nothing but heartache. If she died today, she’d die with her head held high, knowing she didn’t do anything wrong, and only did everything she could.

At that moment Gabe groaned and opened his eyes.

“Wonderful,” Wanda said. “Let’s get this over with so I can return home.”

“That’s not your fucking home, it’s my mother’s,” Terry said through clenched teeth.

Something Wanda had said before entered Mary’s mind. She looked back up at Terry, her resolve stronger now. He deserved to know the truth. “Wanda led your mother to the pig pen, Terry. Your mom is dead because of her. She planned it all along so she could marry your father.”

“Shut up!” Wanda shouted.

Terry glared at his stepmother. If the look in his eyes could kill, they were ripping Wanda apart right now. “I’m going to kill you with my bare hands. My mother was an innocent woman.” He struggled against the men holding him down, but he wasn’t strong enough to take them all.

“Untie his little fruitcake,” Wanda shouted. “I’m bringing her with me.”

Mary struggled as Sam untied the rope from the post and roughly hauled her up. She hauled back and punched him hard, but Sam grabbed her as if she weighed no more than an empty bucket and shoved her into the arms of another man. She kicked and struggled against him, but he was too strong. As the man pulled her back toward the door, she dared one last sorrowful glance at the man she loved.

“Where are you taking her?” Terry struggled against the men once again.

“Kill them,” Wanda ordered Sam. “I have a special treat for Mary. She’s going to meet those hungry little pigs.”

Mary gasped as Wanda and one of the men dragged her from the room. She saw Terry staring at her with pure fear in his eyes before the door slammed shut behind them.

* * * *

Terry glared at Sam as he took a deep breath, lifted his hands, and cracked his neck. “Stand them up,” he ordered the three remaining guards.

Terry and Gabe were yanked onto their feet and forced to stand side-by-side. “You’re going to pay for this, Sam. I swear to fucking God,” Terry warned. “My father trusted you. I trusted you.”

“So did I,” Gabe added, his voice seething with rage.

Sam’s smile was almost comical as he shook his head. “You boys have a lot to learn, and we don’t have a lot of time.” He lifted his gun and shot one of the guards clean between the eyes.

Terry blinked in stunned confusion, his eyes wide. “What the fuck—”

Before Terry could comprehend what was happening, Gabe spun around and elbowed the other guard right in the eye. As he stumbled back, Gabe took him down to the ground as Sam shot the last man three times in the chest.

Terry lunged for his gun. “What the fuck was that?” He lifted his weapon and pointed it at Sam’s face.

“That was me saving your ass,” Sam said, as calm as ever.

Terry’s hand shook as he stared Sam down, his weapon still trained on him. “But I thought you were with Wanda—”

“I was.” Sam slipped his gun back into the waistband of his pants, trusting Terry not to shoot him.

While Gabe broke his attacker’s neck, Terry and Sam stood face-to-face in the middle of the room. “Colton ordered me to return to base a couple of months ago, but I don’t think he knew how far she would go to get what she wanted. Even
I
didn’t know the extent of her greed until today. Your father would’ve given her anything. Money. Jewels. A house anywhere in the world. He asked me to watch over her, and to take care of her, and I mean I did
everything
she want—”

Terry trembled with so much rage he almost pulled the trigger. “Please, spare me those details.”

“Fine. Anyway, your father became suspicious of her when large sums of money went missing soon after your mother’s death. Turns out, Wanda—Daniella—was forming her own empire to take over yours. Then she was going to take out her own father. Colton was catching on to her.”

Sam stepped closer and put his hand on Terry’s trembling shoulder. “I’m sorry how things happened, buddy, but I had to do what I had to do, and I feel responsible for your dad’s death too. He may have been a hard man to love, but he took care of all of us. Now let me finish my job and help you avenge him. You have no idea how long I’ve waited to kill that bitch without you shooting me first.”

Terry released a hard, pent-up breath. Everything happened so fast he couldn’t get his mind around it. How Sam could sleep with Terry’s stepmother—even if he had been ordered to—went over the edge of reason. But that was the kind of man Sammy was. He’d do anything for the old man, no matter how insane the job would be. He had to give him credit for that. His father must have known Sam would do the job without fail. Even though Colton lost his life, at least the truth was out.

He lowered his gun. “You had me fooled, Sam. I almost shot you.”

Gabe stood up and dusted himself off. “Will you two shut up? We still have shit to do.”

Mary.
“We have to stop them before they reach the estate.”

“I swear I didn’t know about that part,” Sam yelled as Terry shot out of the room and bolted up the stairs.

He had his woman to save.

Chapter 13

Mary slunk in the back seat of the limo as it raced toward the McCoy Estate. Beside her, Wanda held up the mirror of her makeup powder and freshened her lipstick. She could be going out to a luncheon, the woman was so calm and cool that Mary shook her head in complete shock.

What the fuck is wrong with these people?

She eyed the small handgun peeking out of Wanda’s purse as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Wanda was dumb enough to allow Mary to be untied, which gave her an advantage. If she could manage to talk to her, and distract her, maybe she could get the gun.

“Why are you doing this, Wanda? Why go to all this trouble?”

The woman glanced at her with a bored expression on her face. Her right hand settled on top of the gun, makeup now forgotten. “
Ugh
. Good thing you’re cute, because you certainly are not smart. I told you already. They killed my brother.”

Mary shook her head. “It’s more than that, and I’m not an idiot. If you’re going to have me killed, what harm can a few questions make? Humor me in my last hour.” She was really getting tired of all this drama and bullshit.

Wanda sighed and settled more comfortably in her seat. “Very well. What else do you want to know?”

Mary was careful not to look down at the gun, but she was ready to pounce when given the opportunity. “How old are you?”

“Thirty-eight.”

Only a few years older than me.
“Do you have any children?”

“No.” Her demeanor changed then, and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

Mary knew immediately she had something to work with. “Do you want kids?”

Wanda shrugged and looked out the window. Mary discreetly reached for the gun but Wanda turned her head and Mary stopped short. Wanda noticed the change in her demeanor and took her gun in hand.

Mary pretended not to notice and forced her attention to the window. The beautiful landscape with its mansions and summer cottages whizzed by. She wanted that gun. She wouldn’t kill Wanda, but she would use it as a threat and a way to get out of this car. Killing a person was different than shooting an animal for its pelt and its meat. But in her heart she knew she would pull the trigger if given no other choice.

They were almost there. Only a few miles away from the end of her chapter. She had to come up with something and save her baby.

“With my luck I would have a daughter, and she would be worthless. Only boys get what they want in my culture.”

“If I told you I was pregnant, would you let me go?”

Wanda’s eyes widened. “What?”

Mary blew out a shaky breath, not quite sure how to say it. She forced herself to look back out the window, and pretend there wasn’t a gun aiming at her. “I took a test this morning, right before you kidnapped me. I’ve been sick every morning for nearly a week now, but I hadn’t told anyone.” She glanced back at Wanda, her expression tight. “Terry doesn’t know he’s going to be a father. And you know what? I’d be happy if I found out I was going to have a girl.”

Wanda’s eyes were still wide, maybe unsure if Mary was lying, or that female instinct to protect a child warred in her mind.

Driven now, Mary kept going. “My husband, the one Terry killed, said I’d never be good enough because I couldn’t get pregnant. He said it was my fault, and then he’d hit me. So you see, Terry did a good thing by killing him.” She looked down and rubbed her flat stomach, in awe something could actually grow in there. Too bad it had to happen in this fucked-up situation. “I guess Tom was wrong.”
Come on. Let your guard slip. That’s all I need. One little slip up from you.

A slight smile curved Wanda’s lips. Her chin quivered. She reached out tentatively toward Mary’s stomach with her free hand. “Can I?”

Mary nodded, and a look of wonder crossed Wanda’s beautiful face as she lightly rubbed her palm over Mary’s stomach. Her eyes shimmered.

“I always wanted a baby of my own, but my first love was killed before we could marry. I aborted the child because I couldn’t handle it alone. I couldn’t bear to look at my baby’s face and see my dead lover.” Tears glistened in her eyes and slid down her cheeks. “My father is a bad man, just like Colton was. They only care for power, not of their wives or their children. Only power. When I married Colton he couldn’t give me a baby. He already had his family with his first wife.” She dried her tears with a handkerchief. She looked sad, but that didn’t change the person Wanda had become.

“Then you’ll understand why I have to do it,” Mary said.

“Do what?”

In a desperate move, Mary smacked the gun out of Wanda’s hand. The weapon flew onto the opposite seat. Before Wanda could react, Mary grabbed the back of her head, and smashed her face into her knee. Wanda’s body fell unconscious to the limo floor. “That.”

Mary grabbed the door handle, prepared to jump from the vehicle, but it was locked. Frantic, she looked around the back seat. Nothing was large or heavy enough to break the glass.

There was only one option left.

Mary grabbed the gun and slid forward, rapping hard on the middle window separating them from the driver. As the dark tinted window rolled down, she quickly jumped back and grabbed Wanda, jabbing the weapon against her neck.

“Stop the car or the bitch is dead.”

Still holding an unconscious Wanda, Mary jolted forward as the driver slammed on the breaks, and unlocked the doors.

She had no time to waste. Mary shoved Wanda’s limp body toward the other seat and opened the door. There was no time to form a plan. She heard the man exit the vehicle with a curse as Mary made a mad dash straight for the bush, still holding the gun.

She was free.

Crouching behind a thick stand of red willows, she waited, not daring to make a sound, keeping a keen eye on the vehicle. The small handgun shook in her hand.

Moments later, Wanda staggered from the limo looking like a disheveled and pissed off cat. The distinct smudge of mascara marred her usual perfect face. Her pristine bangs stood slightly on end as if whipped by a strong wind. She stared at the bushes, with a look to kill, right where Mary was hiding.

“What do you want to do?” The driver asked. For some reason he seemed oddly familiar to Mary, but she’d met so many people lately, she couldn’t tell for sure.

“There’s no time to go after her. Besides, the boys will be dead by now and Sam will make it look like they killed each other.”

“And when he returns?”

Wanda smoothed her bangs and grinned up at him. “The pigs can still have their dinner. I never intended to keep him anyway. Let’s go.”

Mary released a wretched sob as the limo sped away.
Terry.
She fell to her knees in the grass and covered her teary face with her hands, haunted by Terry’s image. Now she was truly alone, and pregnant, stranded on the side of a road she wasn’t familiar with. She’d tried hard to be strong in the face of danger, but this was too much to bear.

She lifted her face to the sky and thought of everything they’d shared in their short time together. He would want her to be strong, to move on and be safe. She could be safe in her little mountain house away from all this insanity.