Free Unstoppable: Truth is Unstoppable (Truth and Love Series) by Bethany Hensel Page A

extremely clear that the facts of the case must remain under wraps.”
    Mr. King? Oh, he means William.
    “Victoria is here with me, under the guise that I am her doctor. Her cover story is that she contracted malaria the night she came into the hospital with her father. As you know, there are different types of the disease, but for our purposes it's a mild case.”
    “Just enough to keep her away from people, but not bad enough to force her into quarantine.”
    “That's right.” He furtively glances around, as if making sure no one can overhear him. Satisfied it's just us, he says, “Victoria is here to say goodbye. That's it. She's not here to talk to anyone. She's not here for people to pay their respects to. Do I make myself clear?”
    “So what are you saying? I can't talk to her?”
    “That's exactly what I'm saying, yes.”
    My shoulders slump. I shut my eyes. I shift on my feet, grind my teeth. I feel like he just showed me paradise and then burned the bridge to get to it. The urge to just plow over him and find Victoria is so strong I can actually feel my weight start to shift, my eyes open to sketch out the exits. Captain Pearce can't be everywhere at once. I mean, there are so many people here, I could easily slip out. I could find a way to get to Victoria. Someone must’ve driven her here, so I could sneak into the car that drove her; hell, I could pretend to be the driver. Or maybe I just grab her and go, run like the devil is chasing us, and never look back. Hope blooms in my chest. Or maybe...
    “Derek,” he says, “You don't want to do anything rash right now. Do you understand?”
    His voice brings me back to reality. The gravity of it, the seriousness. And there's something even darker twisted in the syllables that I'm not sure how to decipher. My gaze flickers from him to the people still in the house. I can't see my parents anymore. I look back at Captain Pearce. Some of the desperate urge to bulldoze over him is gone.
    He nods. “Wise decision.”
    Captain Pearce goes inside. I lean my head back, letting a cool breeze wrap around me. I breathe in and out several times, just trying to clear my head. It doesn't work.
    I open my eyes and a bright light shines right in them. I squint and blink, unprepared for such concentrated light. I glance up to see what caused it. My breath is taken away.
    Four snipers are on the roofs of surrounding buildings, their guns trained on every exit.

 
     
    VICTORIA
     
    The guest bedroom is smaller than I remember. Or maybe that’s because I was so young last time I was here. William had just bought the house, but since Robin had to go out of town for a work emergency, he had to move in by himself. Now, if you ask him, it was my idea to sleep over, to check out the new place. But the truth is, he asked me. Because the truth is, for all his poise and polish, my big brother was terrified of being alone in a strange new house.
    That was the first time I ever came over just to come over, no holiday as an excuse.
    It was the last time , too.
     
    “Victoria, please.” Jace’s voice is hushed. No lights are on. It’s like no one’s in the room at all. Which I suppose is the point. “You’ve got to be quieter.”
    I’m sitting on the floor in the corner, my knees pulled to my chest, my arms wrapped around a pillow. The pillow is pressed against my face. It’s the only way to muffle the sobs. I try to keep them down, but they’re like bullets ricocheting inside me .
    I press harder.

 
     
    DEREK
     
    I'm shivering when I come back inside, and it's got nothing to do with the blasting AC. Snipers? On the roof? Images of Victoria being shot, harmed, killed, flash in mind. I have to shut them down. I can't even think about it. I can't. But the possibility is so close it causes my stomach to dip and dive, and my skin burns as I think about what might provoke them to pull the trigger. A cross-eyed look? A sneeze? A sudden cough?
    “Derek?”
    Mom comes up beside