Bound by Prophecy

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Deception

I was lying to her.

This poor girl was clearly Brianna's sister, and I couldn't tell her the truth. There was no way I could reunite them.

It wasn't safe.

"Emily," I said, coming to a standstill despite the insistent tugging on my arm. "Where are you dragging me?"

Her brows dropped, unbelievably, lower. After a long, uncomfortably silent wait in the shed, she'd decided the policemen were no longer a threat and gone ahead with her mission, pulling me up from the floor to follow her through the maze of containers and outbuildings surrounding the warehouse. Her mood had decidedly not improved after my capture.

"I have to get my bag," she explained, "and I can't very well trust you not to run off, now can I?"

There was no accounting for the way her anger consistently caused the corner of my mouth to twitch, but I bit down against it. Her tone made everything she hadn't said perfectly clear. I was a psychopathic kidnapper. No two ways about it.

She pulled forward again, and then, two steps later, came to an abrupt halt. I started to question the pause when she spun on me, her chest heaving long, angry breaths.

When she at last spoke, she punctuated each word. "How. Did. You. Know. My. Name?"

My lips pursed. I knew better than to answer.

I hadn't actually known the name was hers. It had only been whispered in sleep, loosed in restless sobbing. I had assumed the name belonged to the girl's mother. But I'd not known she had a twin. I hadn't understood.

She stared fire at me.

"Your sister," I finally answered. "Brianna."

Her face twisted at the words, and I felt a sudden stab of guilt. I was protecting her, I reminded myself. Protecting us all. This was the only way.

And then she hauled off and punched me.

It might not have hurt if I wasn't sporting a broken shoulder. I automatically gripped my arm at the elbow to support the injury, and cursed. For one brief instant, I considered leaving her. Touching her face, dropping her into a coma, and walking away.

But I couldn't. Morgan would find her. Use her.

We stared at each other for a long moment, both of us knowing there was no other way.

And then she grabbed my arm again, yanking even harder as she tugged me behind her.

We passed the side entrance I'd used when spying on Morgan. Before I got caught, I thought bitterly, and it steeled my resolve. I had to help this girl. If for no other reason, Morgan could use her against Brianna.

Emily let go of my arm as we came to a pair of trash dumpsters, and slipped into the narrow space between the two. The smell was rancid, as if somehow this empty warehouse churned out fish guts instead of lawn furniture. And then I remembered even the furniture hadn't been produced here in years. The metal scraps that littered the yard were aged, rusting.

So Morgan's goons were using these buildings for something. Something that reeked of death. My eyes narrowed on the dumpster's lid.

"Are you having an episode or something?" Emily snapped as she reappeared inches from me. "Is this part of your 'condition'?"

I didn't open the lid, which was probably a good thing, since this angry young woman would no doubt think I was responsible for whatever lay inside.