Chapter 481
Colton wiped blood from his split lip with the back of his hand. “Look at yourself, Asher. You’re just as pathetic as I am.”
“You think so?” Asher said with a sly grin. He placed his hand on the back of his wheelchair — then suddenly shoved it forward with all his strength.
Colton reached out and stopped it with one hand. “Resorting to cheap tricks? How sad,” he mocked.
But a split second later, the smug look on Colton’s face vanished.
The wheelchair had been a distraction. Asher had used it to close the distance to the vehicle. He grabbed the car door handle and yanked it open with one powerful pull.
But when Asher looked inside, the car was completely empty. There was no one there at all.
The realization hit him instantly. He spun around and fixed Colton with a hard glare. “You played me?”
“Think of it as getting even,” Colton replied calmly, dabbing a trace of blood from his lip.
The villa in Crestwood was protected by the best security cameras and alarms money could buy. The moment Asher and his people had broken in, Colton’s phone had buzzed with alerts.
Asher knew exactly what Colton meant — he was still furious about the time they had faked Kristine’s death.
He looked at Colton with icy eyes. “Give Kristine back to me. Right now.”
“You don’t have the power to tell me what to do,” Colton snapped.
Asher nearly blurted out the truth — that he and Kristine were already husband and wife — but he stopped himself just in time. Even if Colton knew they were married, he wouldn’t let her go. It would only make him more dangerous.
“If you keep her locked up like a prisoner, she’s only going to hate you more,” Asher warned.
“I don’t need you telling me how to handle my business,” Colton said sharply.
Asher held his gaze for a long moment. “So you’re really refusing to let her go?”
“I’m not letting her go,” Colton answered.
“Fine.” Asher raised his hand to get Tripp’s attention.
With Tripp’s help, he settled back into his wheelchair. “I’m going to find her, no matter what,” Asher promised.
Colton gave him a cold smile. “I’ll be right here waiting to see you try.”
Asher squeezed his hands into tight fists and murmured to Tripp, “Let’s get out of here.” Tripp nodded and began pushing the wheelchair back toward the car.
When Nathan saw them leaving, he took Danica by the arm and steered her after them. She looked genuinely irritated. “Are we seriously just walking away?”
“What else can we do?” Nathan asked, guiding her into the car.
He couldn’t figure it out. He had no patience for clueless people as a rule — and yet, somehow, he had an endless supply of it when it came to Danica.
“We’re in Gridron,” he explained. “This is Colton’s town. If we stay, he’ll make us regret it. But at least we know Kristine is here. She’s safer with him than she is with those professional killers.”
.