Chasing The Forbidden

Chapter 11

The Edge of Betrayal

Julian watched the anarchy from behind her, grinning satisfactorily. His voice slipped through the noise, "You two really are something." "Such loyalty. It feels almost touching.

"Enough!" said Nolan, springing, separating from the struggle and lunging toward Julian. He seized him at the collar and slammed him against the wall. This ends now.

Julian's grin remained constant. "You're right," he remarked. "It does."

Julian drew a knife from his belt and sliced at Nolan before he could react. Nolan staggered back, clutching his side and blood streaming between his fingers.

No! I yelled, running for him.

Before I could get to him, Julian grabbed me and used a human shield to pull me against him. He cautioned Nolan, pushing the knife into my throat: "I wouldn't move if I were you."

Nolan said, "Sophie," his voice rough with desperation.

Julian begged, his eyes stinging, "Let her go." Are you looking for me? Fine. Let her go; just let her.

Julian's hold tightened, and I gasped as the blade rubbed against my flesh. "Such a hero," he snorted. But Nolan, you are too late. You already missed it.

Julian's face clouded as sirens sliced across the air. He pressed me forward and said, "It seems our time is up."

I crashed into Nolan’s arms as Julian and his men left, fleeing into the shadows.

Nolan replied, his voice faltering as he hugged me close: "Sophie."

Whispering, my hands shaking as I held him, "I'm fine." But you're hurting.

"It's nothing," he declared, his voice strong despite the tears in his eyes. "We have to leave here before they return."

Everything that had transpired pressed down on me as we lurched toward the exit. One thing seemed obvious, though, even as uncertainty and terror tried to overwhelm me.

This wasn’t over.

Julian may have fled for now, but his threats remain big. With Nolan injured and their enemies closing in, Sophie must determine how far she’s ready to go to protect the man she loves and herself from the dangers ahead.

My voice was shaking. "Nolan, you can't just drop something like that and expect me to trust you again," I muttered. The weight of his revelation loomed in the air, ready to explode.

He moved nearer, his dark gaze fixed on me. "Sophie, I wanted you to understand; therefore, I have told you everything. I never wanted any of this to transpire. But if we wait now, your safety is more at risk than merely my job being online.

"My safety?" My heart thumping, he leaned in. His proximity made clear thinking difficult. "Why should they aim for me?"

With his voice just audible, "because you're the only leverage they think they have left over me," he continued. And I would burn the planet down before I let them harm you.

I started to swallow hard. His voice had far too great intensity. Though the past tore at my ideas, reminding me of the treachery that had torn us apart, his words really spoke to me deep inside.

"You expect me to believe in following everything you’ve done?" My voice grew louder, rage mixed with a faint hurt undercurrent. "You shattered me, Nolan. And today you want me to assist you? To think you are unexpectedly the story's hero?

Between us, the air was packed with feelings I could not sort out. Passion. Injured. A glimmer of hope for which I felt guilty. His steady eye seemed to be challenging me to turn away first.

To escape the draw he still held over me, I wanted to sprint. But something about his urgency, the genuine vulnerability he sought so hard to suppress kept me anchored in place.

"I came here not to reopen old wounds," Nolan continued, his voice firm but tinged with desperation. "I came since I only trust you. Before, about so many things, I was mistaken; this is different."

"How?" asked. My voice broke, betraying the whisper inside me.

"Because now it's not about me," he added, advancing another step. "It's about us."

""Us?" I shook my head and laughed bitterly. "There is no 'we,' Nolan said. You made sure of that when you decided on your goals instead of mine.

"Do you think I do not regret that every single day?" His voice surged, a rare break in his well-trained front. "Do you think I'm not hateful of myself for losing you?"

"Words mean nothing, Nolan," I shot back, the bitterness flooding out. Show me to help me believe you. Show me that this is not merely one of your manipulations.

"How?" he questioned, his voice lower now, like begging. "Tell me how, and I'll do it. Whichever it takes, Sophie.

"Start by being honest," I murmured, my voice shaking with both the smallest flutter of hope and rage. "Who poses a threat to you? And also, why now?

He stopped and ran a hand through his hair. "It's Marcus," he said at last. He possesses extensive knowledge of both the trade and us. He is hovering over my head, threatening to bring down the business unless I do what he wants."

"And what is he looking for?" I asked, my gut turning around.

"To bury me," Nolan muttered bitterly. "And if I don't fight back, he'll use you to do it." His remarks set off an intolerable stillness. His revelation caused my barriers to crumble gradually.

"Why me, Nolan?" I questioned gently. "Why does he think I matter so much to you?"

His eyes locked with mine, and for a second I saw past the layers of shame and will to the unguarded reality below.

"Because you do," he said, just stating.

The words, more powerful than any significant declaration, lingered in the atmosphere. My breath seized, and I detested the way my heart deceived me, racing only a little quicker at his admission.

But the moment was broken before I could reply by a harsh knock at the door.

"Did you expect it?" My voice low as my instincts sharpened into great awareness, I asked.

Nolan's jaw clenched. "No."

We looked at one another, and for the first time I could see actual terror in his eyes. He went to the side of the door silently, gesturing for me to keep back.

"Nolan," my pulse pounding.

He raised a hand to silence me and unlocked the door only slightly.

On the other side stood a dark man whose face was hidden by the low corridor lights. The stranger replied, "We need to talk," their voice icy and uncompromising.

Nolan said, his tone stern, "Not here." And not now.

Stepping nearer, the stranger added, "You don't have a choice." "If you ignore this, it will not only be your firm that falls apart. He will be this.

The stranger turned to me before I could completely understand their words. Their eyes flickered with recognition, a dark smile crept across their lips.

"Ah," they murmured, their voices full of contempt. "This is the infamous Sophie, then. Nolan, now I see why you're so needy.

Nolan yelled, "Leave her out of this," striding between us.

The stranger laughed softly in the darkness. "Oh, but she already fits in. She will also be the first to drop if you misplace your cards.

As the man turned and vanished into the shadows, my heart thundered with a terrible promise that made me shudder.

"Nolan," I murmured, my voice faltering. "What have you got me into?"

He turned to me, his face austere. "Something I can’t get out of alone."

And I found out with a horrible sensation there was no turning back now as the door closed.