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.He kicked himself for believing in this idiot, for tracking downMelissa at his bidding, without checking him out more thoroughly.Not thathe believed all politicians were squeaky clean, but he d never dreamed onecould be so evil, one of the devil s demons.He couldn t even talk to Christina as he was still gagged.His lips,teeth, and tongue had never ached so badly in his life.His arms had neverbeen so sore.Blood seeped from his shoulder wound and he was afraid he dpass out any moment.His vision was getting blurry and he was feverish. You re hurt, Christina whispered.She looked much like her oldersister, except she was a paler version with her white-blonde hair, grayish-green eyes, blonde eyelashes, and pale flesh.At this moment with worryplastered over her face, she was completely washed out.Of course, even after what she d been through, she looked terrificconsidering.Another helicopter powered up.Without warning, Cody was yanked up from behind and he stumbled,falling on his face.The dirt and moldy leaves tasted bitter on his tongue andhe spit them out.DEADLY LOVE Ashley Ladd 99 The Reverend requests your presence at his wedding.Too bad youforgot to get a gift. The man tsk-tsked and prodded Cody forward.Cody s fists itched to deck the idiot.But he schooled his temper intosome semblance of quiet, knowing he d do neither Melissa nor Christina anygood dead. Get up! Brother Larry jabbed him in the back several times.The man was overconfident.Perhaps he planned to kill them, sofeared no reprisals.In fact, Cody wondered why he was still alive.NeitherAlexander nor his ex-buddy, ex-agent Brother Chet could afford to let himlive.That meant this was a temporary reprieve only, so he d better think of away to escape and fast.But handcuffed and gagged, he was impotent.If hewere truly being taken to the wedding, they d have to free him for at least afew minutes. You Feds think you re so smart.You think you have it all figuredout, don t you? Brother Larry s voice was raspy and gruff.If Cody could talk, he d point out he was no longer a cop, but itseemed to be a blessing he couldn t answer and stop the flow of BrotherLarry s confessions.He listened intently, all the while highly aware of thefrightened woman at his side, whom he willed not to faint or panic. You and your little red-headed friend landed in the middle of oursacred rituals.I couldn t believe my eyes when I saw the gods delivered theprincess straight into our hands. Princess? Christina almost choked on the word, echoing Cody sthoughts. Are you talking about my sister? Sacred ritual? Cody s gut almost erupted.Could these be the samemonsters that ravaged and murdered his sister? Or any of the other childrenhe d found dead over the years? Fury unlike he d ever known nearly rippedhim apart.If he could free himself from his bounds, he d rip this animalapart limb by limb here and now. Reverend Alexander promised us a high priestess with flaming,flowing red hair and jade eyes.We ve been searching for her for four years.The Reverend near tore apart the whole country.God save them! Melissa! She was in more danger than he d everimagined.He d rather see her dead than suffer that kind of torture and fear.No wonder he d found some of those kids in such bad condition.His skinprickled with disgust.These religious fanatics that practiced human sacrificewere the worst scum of humanity. The Reverend was all set to meet us in Jersey, then you had to helpher escape and make us follow you back here.DEADLY LOVE Ashley Ladd 100 But the wedding was scheduled to take place on Daddy s estate inL.A. Christina s brows drew together and her nose wrinkled. Plan B to smoke her out.And it worked brilliantly.We should vedone that long ago.That was almost too easy to be fun. Brother Larrypunched the seat, making Christina flinch. Little Miss High-and-Mightyinsists you be at her wedding or she won t play nice.I ll teach her to messwith the Reverend s plans.Not if he had his way! Cody glared at the psychotic monster.It washis fault Melissa was in danger, his fault Nathan had caught up with her.Itwas up to him to save the sisters and put these madmen away where they dnever hurt anyone again.He couldn t forgive himself for not seeing beforewhat a reptile Alexander was.His stomach grumbled reminding him he d gone without food foralmost twenty-four hours.Nor had he had any water since early morning andhis mouth was parched.Impatience gnawed at his gut as he watched forest turn into desert anddesert merge into city.Finally they d reached the City of Angels--although itfelt anything but angelic.Seconds ticked into minutes as he willed the chopper to reach itsdestination.It seemed as if forever had passed before they hovered over asprawling estate and mansion. We re here, Christina said, relief oozing from her.Brother Larry drew a gun on them and cocked it.The soundreverberated in Cody s ears. We re going to take the handcuffs and the gagoff, but don t think you re free.My men will be watching your every moveand we ll shoot to kill if you try anything funny.One less Judas in thegarden won t be missed.Comprendez-vous?Cody nodded, biting on his tongue to keep from growling.Nathan, Melissa, and Chet met them when they landed.He nodded toBrother Larry. He give you any trouble? Got him under my thumb. Brother Larry kept his revolver aimed onthem. Untie them and clean them up for the wedding. Nathan pointed toCody. You ll be the best man, so you can see what I m taking from youfirst hand. Leaning his head back, he laughed maniacally, all trace of sanityabsent from his voice.Brother Chet pulled the gag off him and un-cuffed Cody.His voicecame out rusty his throat was so dry. Reverend, Senator, or whoever youare, you re nuts!DEADLY LOVE Ashley Ladd 101Melissa s eyes widened with trepidation and she stiffened, watchingintently.God but she was beautiful, even scraped up and dusty, with herglorious hair mussed and billowed about her pixie face.The thought of thismonster touching her, marrying her, enraged Cody.Thunder flashed in Nathan s dark eyes as he walked up to Cody andstruck him hard. No one calls me crazy!Cody s jaw stung where the man s hand connected.He bit his tongueand swallowed bitter blood.Wiping a trickle of blood from the corner of hismouth, he squared his shoulders, wincing when pain radiated from hiswound. What s in this for you, Brother Chet? You into his demonicreligious rituals and human sacrifice, too?Nathan s gaze turned murderously on Brother Larry. You ve beenrunning off at the mouth? You ve been talking to cops? Ex-cop. Cody enjoyed watching Brother Larry squirm.It wasalmost worth being dragged here against his will. Witnesses! Nathan s eyes narrowed at Chet. Hose him off and stickhim in a tux. To Brother Larry he said,  Keep your gun on him.He triesanything, shoot out his knee caps. Grabbing Christina s elbow, Nathanpropelled her before him. You come with us, Little Sis.DEADLY LOVE Ashley Ladd 102Chapter Nine Who s going to guard us while we dress?Melissa wrenched her arm out of Nathan s clutches and marchedregally to the house she d sworn never to enter again.Little things she dforgotten about threatened to choke her up [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]