Allegiances--A thrilling romantic suspense by Cynthia Eden

Author:Cynthia Eden
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2016-05-08T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

His blood soaked her fingers. It was warm, slick, and the flow wouldn’t stop.

She’d pulled Ronald down onto the dirty floor. His head was in her lap. Her hands were over his chest.

“Celia...”

“Save your strength. Help will come soon.” She’d heard Sullivan tell Mac to call the cops. Any minute they’d be hearing the wail of sirens. “You’ll be all right.”

His laughter was little more than a rasp. “You know...that isn’t...true.”

Yes, she did. She also knew that when a man was dying in your arms, you said what you could to comfort him.

Even if he’d just tried to kill you.

“I’m...sorry.” Ronald seemed to force out those words.

“Shh...” She didn’t want to hear his apologies. She didn’t want to open the floodgate on the pain inside her. She needed to be strong now.

“Always...respected you...saw so much...in you...”

She pushed down harder on the wound. So much blood. If Sullivan hadn’t grabbed her, she’d be the one bleeding out on that dirty floor. She’d be the one struggling for each breath.

And Ronald would have been the one to send her to her death.

She stared into his eyes. Dark, deep and pain-filled.

She tried to smile for him.

“Celia...” He did smile for her. “You’re usually...a better liar...”

And he was usually a better man. “Why?” She wanted to know before it was too late.

“Because you were...destroying me.”

She shook her head but never let up the pressure on his wound. “I wasn’t. I never did anything to you.”

“Past...tied up...a weight that’s been pulling me...for so long...”

She stared into his eyes. His breath was coming in slower pants. “How were you connected to Sullivan’s mother? Were you—were you the man who killed her boyfriend?”

His bloodstained fingers lifted toward her cheek.

“Talk to me, Ronald.” You don’t have time to waste.

“I’m...sorry.”

“Then tell me what you can.” She still didn’t hear the shriek of sirens. “What was your connection?”

“Her boyfriend...was a target...”

Her breath expelled in a rush. “A government target?”

“Only doing my...job.” His eyelashes began to sag closed. “Hired...assassin. We didn’t...didn’t kill the woman. Let her go... She should never...never have been...there... She...recognized him...knew killer... F-family...”

His eyes had closed. His breath was so hard, so—

There was no sound.

No more hard breaths. No more rasping voice struggling to speak.

She swallowed. “Ronald?”

He didn’t answer her. Her left hand slid up his neck and searched for his pulse. Her bloody fingers lingered against his skin, but there was no pulse to feel.

“Goodbye, Ronald,” she whispered. She remembered the first time they’d met. His firm handshake when he’d welcomed her into his office. Her knees had been knocking together, but she’d refused to show him her fear. She’d promised him she could handle any job the agency threw her way. She’d been so eager to prove herself.

Carefully, she slipped from beneath him. Celia lowered his head to the floor.

She’d thought she knew him. She’d thought wrong.

Celia wiped her bloody hands on her jeans, then picked up her weapon again. She went after Sullivan.

* * *

HE HEARD THE roar of a motorcycle. The

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