Page 8

“Excuse me? You know I could find her whether you’re alive or not.” Dom growled.

“Maybe. Maybe not. But if my guys don’t hear from me in the morning,

they have instructions to execute her,” he said as if it were no big deal killing not only a child but his motherfucking daughter.

“Why do you hate her so much?” He’d never cared before, but he also never thought Bradshaw was as much of a lowlife as he did now.

“She’s not mine. Her mother fucked around on me. I kept Deidre to torment the bitch. The fact that I was able to make her life miserable was a constant comfort to me and being able to sell her daughter would have been icing on the cake. But you fucked that up!” The first signs of anger finally entered Bradshaw’s eyes as he thought of the monetary loss Dom had caused him.

Dom was sickened by what the man had done to her and her mother. He was even more sickened by what he was about to do. “I need to know she’s safe first.”

Two

Deidre ~ 18th birthday

As soon as the clock struck midnight, Deidre was gone. Creeping out the old windows of her boarding school was easy as pie. Climbing the barbed wire fence, not so much. Aside from the cuts all over her legs and arms, she managed to do it.

Not looking back, she ran into the street trying to get as far away from the horrible school as she could before they did the nighttime bed check in an hour. Legally, she was free to do as she wished now that she was eighteen; however, her father and the nuns didn’t see it that way.

She’d been rebelling against any authority for as long as she could remember. The only people to ever give a damn about her had already left, so what was the point of trying to be accepted? She couldn’t live life for anyone else anymore. It was time for her to take control and do what was best for herself.

Since arriving in Lugano, Switzerland a little less than seven years ago, she’d not had a single moment for herself. Every day was planned. Every minute was scrutinized. Maintaining a strict diet and exercise regimen had been expected from the moment she got there. Feeling more like she was being trained for something than receiving an education.

What little she had been able to see of Switzerland from behind the confines of the school was stunning. The small city they were in was surrounded by gorgeous mountains and covered in a variety of full green trees. She couldn’t begin to name them other than to know they were beautiful.

Lake Lugano bordered the breathtaking city, sharing its eastern shore with northern Italy. That was what she was banking on to be able to exit the country. She’d heard from other girls that had been allowed to leave the school that there were boat taxi’s waiting to take her right into Italy and from there, she could rent a car.

The only reason she had any money was because her mam had been sending her some as often as she could, and she had saved every euro since she arrived. By her estimation, she had roughly fifty thousand Swiss Francs. Hopefully enough to get her to Ireland and her ma.

She had to wait on going home, though, because she knew her dad would search for her there. The waiting would be the hard part. Her mam didn’t know she was coming, so she might be worried if he showed up there looking for her, but she couldn’t risk him finding her. Something was going on with him; he’d been checking in more and more of late. It was suspicious.

*****

Four months later

Italy was stunning. The ocean. The sunsets. The villas. It was almost magical, but Deidre’s time was coming to an end. She had stayed longer than anticipated. At one point she even feared her da had found her, but it was her imagination.

When she first arrived in Italy, Dee had no idea what she was doing or where she was going. She’d rented a car in Milan under a fake identity her mam had sent her two years ago. This had always been the plan, and without her ma’s help, she never would have been able to execute it the way she had.

Since arriving, she’d been more isolated than ever before, unwilling to risk making friends or being seen very often in town just in case her father’s cronies were out looking for her. She stuck close to the isolated beach she was living on, only leaving if it were necessary.

When she’d been at the local market one Saturday, she witnessed one of the most heart-breaking scenes of her life: A young woman having a panic attack or a flashback. She still wasn’t sure which. What she did know was that the person, who’s name turned out to be Kennedy, was one of the most broken women she’d ever met. She felt for her. Knew the loneliness that ate away at them both was slowly killing them.

It hadn’t taken long before they realized they lived right next to each other. The need for isolation had them wary at first, but it wasn’t long before they met up on the beach for early morning walks, watching the sun set, and that soon progressed into having lunch together. They talked about frivolous things or nothing at all. Neither wanting to delve too deeply into who or what they were running from.

Ken was lucky, though. She had family who cared. Two gorgeous men who came to her rescue at a time when she was ready to give up. Deidre was lonely. So lonely, she had almost risked going home too soon. But first, she had to make sure she was out of her father’s clutches. She was almost home free, too. She’d spoken to her mam that morning and finally got the confirmation that the coast was clear so to speak. That her da’s men had left the area about a week ago, and she could start slowly making her way home. Which was good because she was nearly out of funds.

Excitement filled Dee at the thought of finally moving back to her native Dublin. She missed the bustle of the city, the congestion that was too many people and not enough homes. The smoky air. The rolling green fields and mountains. She was ready to go home.

A knock on her door pulled her out of her reverie. Figuring it was Ken coming to check on her, she didn’t bother to see who was there.

Big mistake.

*****

He’d been watching Deedee for a little over two weeks now. She was isolated, kept to herself except for her one neighbor, a cute little redhead around her age. He still couldn’t believe the connection they all had. He’d been kidding in London when he saw the Black twins. He hadn’t actually thought they were all so close together in Italy, let alone for nearly the same reason—to collect a woman.

Yet here he was ready to call on an old debt. As far as Dominic was concerned, once he brought Dee home to her father in London, she was free to go as she pleased. He wasn’t even certain why Bradshaw wanted to see her, so he’d have to be on his guard while they were there.