Little Dark One

57 - mercy

Keira

We arrived at the new compound safely, with no rival gangs or federal agents on our tail. The soft morning light illuminated the mansion beautifully as we drove up the winding tree-lined driveway. The newly built home was set in a deep valley, circled by tall mountains and surrounded by an endless, dew-covered lawn. 

I understood the appeal of this location, it was virtually undiscoverable unless you had the exact coordinates, or flew over with a helicopter. 

I let Tommy lead me through the deserted house and up two flights of stairs to a private wing with more security measures than a damn airport. The modern bedroom was decorated similarly to his old room, with monochromatic tones, marble, and soft fabrics. An entire wall of windows looked out over the majestic mountain views.

I turned down Tommy's offer to join him in the shower, claiming I just needed a few minutes to myself. He didn't pressure me to bend to his will or ask endless questions about my wellbeing, he simply leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to my hair and left me to acclimate on my own. One more thing to add to the list of reasons I loved him. 

The TV hummed softly in the background, barely drowning out the running shower and my amplified thoughts. I tried to focus on the quick-moving lips of the news anchor, but anxiety overpowered my will. 

It wasn't the trigger I pulled countless times or the explosions I produced, it wasn't even the sudden appearance of Alejandro's men. The anxiety coursing through me had nothing to do with the implosion of my own life, the dream career I would forever be an enemy of or trauma I was unlikely to outlive. 

Every particle of my being feared the loss of the all-consuming love I unwillingly fell into. The feelings I had for Tommy grew by the hour, with every action. I couldn't imagine the momentum would ever slow, and with that came the fear of losing the only man I'd ever allowed myself to love. Somehow I had gone against every instinct and fallen for a dangerous man with a target the size of a galaxy on his back.

I didn't care enough about my own survival, every bullet I had fired hours before had been for the sake of my lover, every death I'd caused was to keep the love of my life safe, and I would do it again. The lengths we would go to in order to protect each other were far beyond sane.

At this moment I knew, I would kill a thousand more times if it meant he would live. I would follow him blindly to his grave if that the fate the universe chose. And that was a terrifying realization to come to. But not as terrifying as the possibility of living for a single second if he was not. 

"What are you thinking so hard about, my love?" his husky voice startled me out of my spiral of dark thoughts. 

I glanced up from my seat on the edge of the bed, he was standing before me with a plush towel hanging off his hips. Water droplets cascaded down his chiseled muscles before getting swallowed by the towel. 

"The information I overheard that night at the FBI headquarters..." I lied smoothly, I wasn't ready to share my fears with him. I knew he would only make empty promises it was impossible to keep. He would promise I wouldn't lose him, and it would be a lie.  

"What about it?" he called over his shoulder as he walked into the oversized closet, as big as a second bedroom. I followed him in, my subconscious leading me without a second thought. 

"They talked about plans to kill the Vice President... but weeks have gone by and he still lives." I mused. 

"It can't be an easy job to pull of, Keira, the VP is an incredibly hard man to access. From what Dane and I can tell, all of their efforts and resources are dedicated to hunting us down right now. If what you said is true, and they are blackmailing someone else to do it for them, there are hundreds of ways that could go wrong. Plans change, I know ours did." he smirked at me as my gaze trailed down his expertly sculpted, art-covered body.