Chapter 780
Chapter 780:
He finished the cut, leaving me in a makeshift cocktail length. He tossed the fabric aside.
“Show-off,” Liam muttered from the driver’s seat, but he was grinning.
We moved through the desert corridors toward the estate. The landscape shifted from rock to scrub. No guests here. No phones. Just silence.
“They’re going to say I couldn’t walk down the aisle because of cold feet,” I whispered into his ear, trying to lighten the mood.
“Let them talk,” Alistair said, holding my hand tighter. “Let them see that I’m never letting you go, no matter how rough the road gets p>
Up on the ridge, Ethan was thrown—literally—onto the dirt by the recoil of his own failed trap. He sat there in the dust, watching the trail of our SUV. He saw Alistair protecting me, looking at me like I was the only person in the world worth saving. He threw his detonator against the rock wall. It shattered. He pulled his knees to his chest and, finally, bitterly, began to curse.
The perimeter of the Sterling Summer Home was a cavern of stone walls and overgrown ivy, filled with the scent of dry sage and the murmur of wind through ancient pines—or at least, the elite fortress my father had built under the guise of a vacation home.
My father, Richard, sat in the backseat, dabbing his forehead with a handkerchief. Beside him, Victoria sat stiffly, scanning the perimeter monitors like a hawk.
I stood by the car door as we parked in the hidden garage, my arm linked with Liam’s for support.
“Ready to go in?” I asked.
“I’m not just going in,” Liam corrected, patting my hand. “I’m escorting you to your legacy p>
The wind swelled. The heavy oak doors of the main house groaned open as Alistair bypassed the lock.
We walked. The hallway seemed miles long. Shadows blurred. I focused on Alistair standing at the end of the foyer. He stood still, an anchor in the shifting sea of memories.
We were halfway down the hall when the doors behind us banged open again.
𝘊𝗈𝗆p𝗅е𝘁e ѕto𝘳𝗶eѕ 𝘰𝘯 𝖻𝗲𝗹ոov𝘦𝗅𝘀.сo𝘮
“Stop!” a voice bellowed.
The silence faltered. Heads snapped back.
Liam stood in the doorway, chest heaving, tie askew. He looked like he had just run a marathon from the garage.
“Liam?” Alistair’s voice was calm but dangerous. “This better be good p>
“I… I have the biometric bypass,” Liam gasped, holding up a small scanner. “I left it in the car… in the dash… had to run back p>
A ripple of relieved laughter went through the group. The tension broke.
“You had one job, Kensington,” Alistair sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“I got it!” Liam marched down the hall, ignoring the glares of the ghosts. He handed the scanner to Victoria. “Don’t drop it p>
“Smooth,” Victoria whispered.
I reached the central atrium. Richard kissed my cheek and placed my hand in Alistair’s.
“Take care of her,” Richard said.