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harm will come to your friends by my hand.
That was the best she could ask for. She knew that Kenze wouldn t
go back on his word. It was a matter of honor.
She felt tears build in her eyes.  Thank you.
 You re welcome. He patted her on the rump.  Now, scoot. Get in and
lock the doors. I ll open the gate and you can follow me out. He turned
and walked away before she could speak.
Gail slipped into the driver s seat and locked her doors the way he d
asked her to. With that done and her windows rolled tightly up, she felt a
measure of safety while waiting on Kenze to lead the way out.
She heard the loud purr of the motorcycle before she saw it. She
craned her neck and saw Kenze coming around the side of the house on
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a flame red crotch rocket. He slowed as he passed her car and waved for
her to follow behind him.
When they reached the gate he stopped and took a small black
remote out of his jacket and pointed it toward the gate. It creaked
opened, allowing them to drive through. Gail pulled alongside her brother
and rolled down her window.  Kenze, she yelled over the loud rumble of
his motor. She wanted to tell him to be careful.
He waved and pulled off before she had to chance to speak. She
watched as his cycle disappeared over the hill, disgusted with herself,
him and the whole situation.
She sat still, glancing around her. Now that she d warned him, she
didn t know what to do. She couldn t very well go back to her house;
Shame and Ty were both still there.
She reached for her pocketbook on the passenger seat to see how
much money she had on her. Maybe she could afford to get a hotel room
for the night. Surely Shame and Ty would be gone by the following
morning. A tremble shot through her arms and hands at that thought,
knocking her purse to the floorboard.
Shame would be gone. Unwanted tears surged to the surface and
clouded her eyes. She d brought this on herself, but knowing she was
pregnant made it too painful to bear. He was going to leave, never
knowing that he left behind a small part of him with her.
Sniffling, she leaned over the console, one arm extended, trying to
grasp the strap on her pocketbook. Her fingertips skimmed the edge and
she stretched a little farther, reaching& reaching&
The passenger-side window exploded inward. Glass rained down on
her, scratching her face and neck. Gail screamed and pulled back, her
hands flying to her face.
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Shameful
The big tattooed face of the bruiser who d answered the front door
earlier appeared in front of her. He leaned into the busted window and
grabbed her by her hair.  There s been a change of plans, pretty, he all
but growled as he dragged her across the seat toward him.  You re not
going anywhere.
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Amanda Young
Chapter Twelve
Not for the first time that week, Shame wished his old friend and
former partner, Tristan, was with him. Having a little backup would have
made his predicament easier to stomach. It sure as shit would ve made
him feel more confident about the outcome of today s rendezvous.
Nearly four months had passed since he d been in touch with Tristan
and his wife Sara. The last phone call he d taken the time to make had
been hard too hard and he hadn t called back since. Hearing Tristan
happy, very much in love with his wife and son, set off a pang of envy
that Shame couldn t deal with. It wasn t that he didn t wish his friend
well he did. It was knowing that his partner was so& domesticated and
at peace. As much as he wanted that for Tristan, he wanted it for himself
as well.
Shame resolved that if scratch that when he got out of this jam, he
would visit Tristan and Sara. It d been too long, and he didn t want the
wall of silence to grow any bigger between them. Tristan was the only
person he felt he could trust and he valued their friendship too much to
keep letting his petty feelings stop him from staying in touch.
Several miles from his goal, Shame pulled off the road. He drove his
truck into a dense copse of pine trees and parked, satisfied that it was
out of sight from anyone who would pass on the main road.
After spraying scent neutralizer all over his body and deer piss on his
boots to camouflage any remaining personal smell, he began to hike
through the woods.
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Shameful
Half an hour later, he stood at the back of the property. Standing
still, he watched for signs of life in and around the house. When he was
sure it was safe to cross the field, he took off at a dead run. Even at a
fast gallop, his eyes scanned around him in all directions, his feet
avoided twigs and branches that would cause disruptions to the quiet air
around him, and he made sure he stayed downwind of the house at all
times.
Reaching the gate, he searched for cameras and immediately found
two. One was to his right on top of the gate, and the other was above the
back door. Both were mounted to pedestals that allowed them to swivel
at timed intervals.
Watching the cameras, he established their pattern and waited until
they were on a northbound swing away from him to move. Quickly, he
scaled the high wrought-iron fence, and dropped down on the other side
onto Tremaine s property.
Shame s feet hit the snow and skidded out from under him. His ass
smacked the ground with enough force to jar his teeth. He was hard-
pressed not to curse at his sore ass and his own stupidity for not
foreseeing that was going to happen. Spitting out a few good four-letter
words might have made him feel better but it damn sure would have
given away his position and that wouldn t be such a smart thing to do.
They expected him to show up sooner or later, of that he had little
doubt, but the exact time when he was going to appear, well, that they
didn t know. Even a small window of surprise was better than none at
all.
He dragged his ass up off the ground and checked the cameras. They
hadn t made the full rotation yet. Stealthily, he covered the ground
between where he d landed and the back door.
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Stopping underneath the camera, where its lens wouldn t be able to
catch his image, Shame pressed his back to the wall and tried to bring
his pulse down to normal. He needed to be able to hear the drop of a pin
and it wouldn t be possible with his heartbeat thundering in his ears.
He slipped his hand into the pocket of his jeans and drew out a small [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]