Broken Anchor (Sinful Truths Book 6) Read online

  “No, I’m not going anywhere with you.”

  “You don’t have a choice, Siren. Trust me.”

  I scoff, still munching on my crackers. “You want me to trust you?”

  He nods.

  “Then fix me. Fix what you did to my head. Make it so that I don’t dream about you anymore. So that your words aren’t in my head. Fix me. Earn my trust. Then maybe I’ll go with you willingly.”

  He stops walking, so I do too. His eyes narrow, trying to read my thoughts to determine if he gives me what I want if I’ll really work with him willingly. Doubtful. I just want him to fix me, so I can be free.

  My head starts spinning the longer he looks at me. I feel him creeping back into my head, my thoughts…

  Come with me.

  Don’t fight me.

  Do what I say.

  It’s easier.

  I shake it off and try to focus on the man in front of me, instead of the version of him who has been haunting me and demanding my thoughts.

  We continue our stare-off. Neither of us budge or move. I hope like hell that Langston Bishop doesn’t realize how much he can still control my thoughts, and that he can’t tell how weak I am. How easily he can win.

  “Come with me,” he says.

  “No,” I say firmly, surprising myself when the word I’m thinking is yes.

  “Fine.”

  Wait, did I just win?

  Langston Bishop grabs my arm, and he’s lifting me in his arms again.

  Nope, I definitely didn’t just win.

  I fight. “Let me go! You can’t just do whatever you want to me!”

  “I told you to come with me. To get on the boat. You chose not to; your decision has consequences.”

  I beat against his chest as he climbs onto the yacht, but I don’t struggle too much. I’m afraid he’ll drop me and hurt the baby. He knows that. It’s like fighting while handcuffed. I only have limited ways that I can fight.

  But I am a fighter. I won’t give up just because I’m pregnant, especially when this man thinks he can bully me around after doing horrendous things to me.

  So while I’m yelling and beating against his chest, I’m also making a plan.

  I search for his gun with my eyes. I find it. As soon as we are firmly on the deck of the ship, I grab it and then kick hard, forcing him to drop me. I’m prepared and land on my feet, aiming the gun at his head.

  Langston doesn’t react like I expect him to. He doesn’t put his hands up. He’s not afraid of death, not in the least. Or is he not afraid of me?

  “Now, fix me. Tell me how to get you out of my head, or I’ll shoot you.”

  “Shoot me.”

  “What?”

  “Shoot me, it will make you feel better.”

  I frown. Why does he want me to shoot him? I glance over my shoulder, but there is no one behind me. We were the only ones on the yacht when we arrived, but I don’t trust that he doesn’t have other men here. That must be the real reason we stopped, not to get me my damn Sprite.

  “No one is here. Shoot me, Siren.”

  I smirk. “If I shoot you, I’ll kill you. I’m not some weak girl who has never held a gun before. This is what I do for a living. This is who I am. I shoot you, I kill you.”

  “You won’t kill me.”

  “Yes, I will.”

  “No, because if you kill me, you’ll never know the truth. You’ll never know how to fix your head. I’ll always be there, even when I’m gone.”

  Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.

  Continuing to aim the gun at Langston Bishop, I’m more confused than ever who the man standing in front of me is. Is there still a piece of him that is Zeke’s old friend? Or is he all monster now?

  What should I do?

  Shoot him.

  Kill him.

  Or surrender.

  Surrendering doesn’t seem like an option. Killing him isn’t one either.

  But I could shoot him. I could hurt him.

  I could make him pay for everything he’s done to me.

  Would it really help?

  It would make me feel a tiny bit better to know that I got a little piece of revenge. And maybe it would strike a tiny bit of fear into him.

  I don’t think.

  I fire.

  One single shot.

  It hits him in the shoulder, just above his heart.

  He doesn’t react. He doesn’t flinch. He doesn’t reach for his shoulder. He stands there as solid as ever.

  I frown, and my head drops to the side, annoyed. “You’re wearing a bulletproof vest.”

  He grabs the back of his shirt and yanks it over his head. His abs ripple into my view. He’s not wearing a vest. With the shirt off, I spot the bullet wound in his shoulder with blood dripping out.

  “Now that you got that out of your system, go rest while I set sail. And eat more of the ginger,” he says before storming away.

  He doesn’t wait to make sure I head toward a bedroom. He’s not afraid of me running off. Letting me shoot him was another attempt at gaining my trust.

  Fuck him.

  I’m leaving. I’ll find the box myself. I’ll go after Zeke. I’ll save the motherfucking world. And when I do, I’ll come back and kill him.

  “Let me go to her first,” Bishop says.

  “Why? So you can fuck her first? I don’t think so. I’ve waited a long time for this. She’s mine,” Julian says.

  “Getting the information is more important than raping her. Let me talk to her.”

  “You can talk after I have her.”

  I hear a loud sound.

  “You punched me, you bastard.”

  “Don’t touch her. Don’t rape her. She doesn’t deserve that.”

  I blink rapidly. Did that really happen? Or was that another dream? Another thought Bishop put in my head.

  My head is throbbing. I need to lie down.

  The engines start up. I have limited time left to make my decision—jump now or stay with Langston Bishop on this yacht.

  I watch the gap between the yacht and pier grow bigger until the space becomes too big to jump. If I jumped now, I’d end up in the water.

  I choose to say. I need to rest. More importantly, I need answers...

  7

  Zeke

  I knock the gun out of his hand in one swift motion. I get Julian in a headlock, intent on killing him, when I see Siren and Langston exit the building and start walking down the street.

  I can’t lose them. I need to get Siren. I need to make sure she’s safe.

  I raise my gun to finish Julian when Dustin rounds the corner. He looks at me holding Julian in a headlock.

  “What do you need me to do?” he asks.

  I should stay and make sure Julian’s interrogated and then killed, but I have to be the one to ensure that Siren is alive and safe.

  I want Julian Reed interrogated. I want to know everything he knows. I want to ensure there are no other people he’s working with, but I want him dead more. Every second he’s still alive is a second that he could escape and kill us.

  I throw Julian into Dustin’s capable arms.

  “Kill him and then meet me at our yacht.”

  He nods.

  Then I’m running out into the street, trying my best to think that Julian is dead. That he won’t escape this time. That it doesn’t matter that I’m not the one to put the bullet in his head. I just need to keep Siren safe. That’s what I do—protect. And protecting others doesn’t mean that I have to be the one to kill him.

  When I round the corner onto Main Street, I don’t see Siren or Langston, but they couldn’t have gone far. I scan quickly through the crowds of shoppers casually strolling down the sidewalks, through the cabs and cars honking at each other.

  Where did they go?

  My heart says the pier. I run down the street, and I see several more men who work for Black and were with me on the yacht.

  “Go to the alley between Second and Third Avenues. Make sure that D
ustin kills the man he’s holding,” I bark.

  The men nod and run in that direction, while I continue on to the pier.

  I spot the yacht at the end—it’s moving.

  “Fuck.”

  I run down the pier, moving as fast as humanly possible. And then I’m at the end of the pier. The yacht is still creeping along, but soon it will be in deep enough water that it can pick up speed.

  I have two choices. Either get in my boat and chase after them again or jump in the water and swim.

  I choose the latter, as they’re not going very fast yet, and I need to be as quiet as possible.

  I take a deep breath as I prepare to jump back in the water. “Fucking hell.”

  I jump back into the cool water. I hate this ocean right now, but it gives me a chance at saving Siren.

  Their yacht continues to pull away as I swim, but there is no way I’m letting it get away. I push my arms through the water and kick hard with my legs, ensuring that I swim as fast as humanly possible.

  Catching up to them, I grab onto a loose floating buoy at the back of the yacht. I exhale a deep breath in relief. I’m not on the boat yet, but it won’t get away from me, not this time.

  Hand over hand, I pull myself up the rope until I can grip the railing of the boat. Then I pull myself out of the water and over the railing onto the deck of the yacht.

  I’m huffing hard, my chest expanding and deflating wildly when I stand up. My body is fatigued, but I don’t care. I don’t know what danger is on this yacht. I don’t know if it’s just Siren and Langston or if Langston has more men on the boat, just like I do back at shore.

  I should have called and had my men get on the yacht to meet me here, but I don’t have time for even a phone call. I need to get Siren. I need to protect her. I need her in my arms.

  And I need to kill Langston.

  Fuck, I can’t think about that. That’s going to wreck me, no matter what he did to Siren. Shooting Enzo was bad enough even though Kai eventually got word to me that he’s alive after making me suffer first.

  Although, I just now realize that his bitchass has all my money since I had to buy Siren from him. That will make it easier to shoot him.

  I pull my gun out as I creep through the yacht.

  It’s eerily quiet.

  Someone is obviously steering the yacht, but that is one of the most secure rooms in the yacht. If it’s locked, I’m not getting in. Hopefully, that’s not where Siren is.

  I make it to the stairs where I have to decide. Do I go up or down?

  Downstairs are bedrooms with locks that I will have to manually unlock. If Siren is downstairs, she’s most likely tied up and locked away.

  Something tells me to go up, even though it makes no sense to me.

  I keep my gun pointed in front of me as I climb the stairs, not having a clue what I’m going to find.

  When I reach the top deck, the wind of the yacht speeding up brushes though me, but that’s not what takes my breath away.

  Siren.

  She’s leaning against the railing as the sun beats down on her. She’s wearing tiny shorts and a flowy tank-top that hides her growing belly. She looks like sunshine in the middle of the darkest storm.

  The second both of my feet are on deck, Siren turns and faces me. For a second, we just stand, not sure what we are seeing is real. We only just saw each other last night. It’s been less than twenty-four hours since we’ve been apart, but it feels like a lifetime.

  I said goodbye to her. I thought I was going to die, or even if I did survive, I would do such horrible atrocities to protect my family that she would never want me. I thought I was leaving her with the best person possible. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

  “I’m really here,” I say when tears water her eyes.

  Then we are running at each other like we haven’t seen each other in years.

  I grab her in my arms before we collide too hard. I don’t want to hurt the baby, but I can’t help but spin her around a second before I kiss her hard on the lips. My joy at seeing her safe and kissing her again overtakes all other feelings.

  “You’re here. How? Why? How?” Siren starts.

  “Shh,” I say before kissing her again. Langston must be on the bridge, but I don’t know for how long. Once we are out to sea, he can set the autopilot and come search for her.

  “We need to go,” I say.

  “Go?” Her eyes dart out to the ocean. She’s right. We aren’t going anywhere. I might brave the seas and swim the mile to shore, but I would never allow Siren to. And as we pick up speed, that option becomes less than ideal.

  “I need to get you somewhere safe; then I can deal with Langston.”

  She laughs, not the reaction I was expecting.

  “Oh, so you’re going to tell me your plan this time before you leave me somewhere safe? Not like last time where you left me with the enemy and didn’t let me talk about the plan first.”

  I frown. She’s right, but I don’t care right now. I just want her safe.

  “Are Enzo and Kai safe? Alive?”

  “Yes,” I say.

  “What about Julian?”

  I suck in a breath. “Dead.”

  She narrows her eyes. “What does that mean?”

  “It means he’s dead.”

  “You’re lying. Why?”

  I bite my lip as my veins pop out of my head and blood swishes through my body like raging rivers. “Because I had him. I could have killed him, but instead, I came after you. I needed to know that you were safe.”

  “So, why do you think he’s dead?”

  “Because men who work for Kai and Enzo found me. They are working for me. They ran into me when I got Julian. I told them to kill him.”

  We both stare at each other. Julian Reed could be dead. Or he could have escaped again.

  “He’s not dead,” we both say at the same time.

  “At least we need to assume he’s not dead until we know for sure,” Siren says.

  I nod reluctantly.

  “I think I’m going to be sick.” Siren grabs at her stomach. “Can you help me to a bathroom?”

  I take her hand. I want off this boat immediately, but I’ll go along with what she wants. And we don’t have another option at the moment. She’ll be safe enough in one of the bedrooms with me as her guard.

  I hold my gun in one hand as I lead her down, hoping like hell that Langston doesn’t pop out, and I don’t have to shoot him. I’ve shot enough of my friends to last me a lifetime.

  When we make it into one of the bedrooms, I quickly lock the door, praying Langston hasn’t overridden the security system already. I help Siren to the bathroom just before she vomits.

  I rub her back, hold her hair, anything I can do, but I don’t feel like I’m doing enough.

  Finally, she sits back.

  “I need my Sprite.”

  I frown. Sprite?

  “Is there some up in the kitchen?”

  “No, it’s in the bag on the bed.”

  I get up and return with the bag and hand her a Sprite. Then I pull out crackers and ginger.

  “You should really try the ginger. It would help.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Don’t get me started.”

  I sit next to her on the bathroom floor, as it doesn’t look like we are leaving anytime soon. I still hold the gun, but Langston hasn’t come searching for her, so I have no idea if he knows I’m here or not.

  “How did you get these supplies anyway?”

  “That’s why we stopped at the island. I was getting sick and said I needed them. Langston agreed to stop.” She nibbles at the corner of a cracker as she looks at me.

  “Why would he do that?”

  She raises her shoulders.

  I frown, staring at my hands that are folded above my knees with my gun in my hand. “I should call my men, tell them to meet the yacht, and then attack.”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I n
eed Langston Bishop to trust me.”

  “Langston Bishop? You know Bishop isn’t his last name, right?”

  “I know, but until I figure out who he is, I call him by both names.”

  “He’s Langston, the monster who tortured you.”

  She’s quiet.

  “What aren’t you telling me?”

  “I’m just not sure about him. I’m not sure I remember correctly what he did to me.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean that he may or may not have tortured me.”

  “That’s pretty black and white. How do you not know?”

  She stands up suddenly. I follow as she walks into the bedroom and begins to pace. “My head is all fucked up. I don’t know what he did. The memories I do remember are clouded. They keep coming back to me in short bursts that don’t make sense.”

  “Which is why we need to leave, now.”

  “No, I need Langston to fix me.”

  “He won’t. He’s too far gone. He’s evil now.”

  She raises her eyebrows. “Don’t you start. By that measure, we are both evil, too.”

  I take her hand and place it over her stomach. “We are.”

  She smiles.

  “That’s why we have to destroy our enemies—to protect this little guy.”

  “Guy, huh?”

  I shrug. “Our little warrior.”

  “Better.”

  I keep my hand on her stomach.

  “Langston Bishop trusts me. I think he does, or he wants me to trust him. And I think I can trick him into fixing me, by guaranteeing I’ll work with him if he fixes me.”

  “No.”

  “We don’t have a choice. I can’t live with him in my head. It’s not safe for our little warrior. I’ve had thoughts, dark thoughts. I’m afraid I’ll go crazy.”

  Fuck.

  “What do you suggest then?” I say.

  “Langston Bishop doesn’t know you are here. You stay hidden and prepared to protect me, while I convince him to fix me. It’s the safest plan.”

  “I don’t like it.”

  “You don’t have a choice.”

  “Fine, but if he puts one hand on you, I’ll kill him.”

  She nods, agreeing.

  “I’ll sneak into the security room and get it wired so I can watch the feed on my phone. Then I’ll stay hidden but close so I can protect you. I won’t let him hurt you. I promise.”