Chapter 34: 23| Target

┏━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┓ Target ┗━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┛ Chapter 23: Target (Tristan's POV) Truly, there was no denying that Amara was a smart and cunning woman who outplayed me at my own game. I never expected her to drop out of the case. It was something she had never done before, in fact, it was something she always refused. I saw it first-hand during my own case when the world told her to quit it and let it go because everyone believed she was playing a losing game. If it wasn't for the fact that all those people wanted me gone, even I might have believed them. But Amara never did, not even for a second. I would never admit it to her but I was past lying to myself about my losses when she was the one who beat me. I was wrong about her, about how invested she was in the Ambrose case, about why she wasn't taking my warnings seriously. It wasn't because of the Ambrose case at all, it seemed. The reason she refused to cower before me was because she was working on something else, something bigger, something worth everything she had, perhaps even her life. Whatever it was she was working on, whatever battle she was fighting behind closed doors, it seemed to be taking a toll on her. She was frustrated and tired and her outburst proved it to me. She truly was having a hard time, so much so that she turned down a challenge which was very unlike her. I wouldn't help her, no matter what it came down to. Nothing would change the fact that Amara was my opponent here. But if I had to wait to kill her then I might as well make it worth my time. It would be an opportunity to keep an eye on her, to get the information about her that even Dante couldn't. This was my chance to figure out the mystery that she was. My chance to pinpoint her weaknesses, my chance to learn and understand her. If I'm lucky… maybe this is my final shot at finding reasons not to kill her. And if she's lucky, maybe I'll be enough of a fool to believe those reasons and let her live. I could no longer deny that I was curious about her. I wanted to know which case was so powerful that it controlled her to this extent, so much so that she was willing to risk her life for it. "Fuck," I cursed under my breath as I shot out of my seat and grabbed my keys, walking out of my office and into the second elevator mere moments after Amara had left. I have to catch her and I can only hope I make it before she leaves. I didn't know what I would say to her but I had to speak to her at that moment. Watching her walk out of my office when she was so troubled by the case she was working on… left me bothered for some strange reason. Something didn't feel right as I watched her leave and suddenly, I had a bad feeling about tonight. Watching her walk away ignited a strange sense of urgency within me. I had to stop her, no matter what, even if I had to follow and chase her. I'd follow her to the end of this fucking earth if I had to. There wasn't any corner of this world that I wouldn't follow her to, no matter the reason. That thought alone bothered me more than I admitted. But I couldn't deny that there was a pull between Amara and me, some kind of tether that brought us back to each other. It was unfortunate that we only clashed whenever that happened. A part of me, no matter how small, liked to believe that we could work past it. We did it once, and it felt like the most perfect thing at that moment. Now, I despised the fool within me who fell for it. As I reached downstairs, I caught a glimpse of her as she walked into the parking lot and towards her bike. Once she gets on it, she's impossible to catch. Trust me, I learned that the hard way too. Trailing behind her, I managed to block her path just as she reached her bike. "Ms. Milano," I said firmly. Ignoring me, she attempted to side-step me but I moved with her, blocking her path once again. A small breath escaped me as she managed to push past me and plugged her keys into the bike. "Listen to me, goddamn it," I exhaled roughly, grabbing hold of her arm and spinning her around, forcing her to meet my gaze. Her jaw clenched as she looked at me, her gaze hard and unwavering, swirling with a bold challenge in them. As tempting as it was to accept it, I would be asking for a death wish if I pushed her any further tonight. Stepping forward, I braced both my hands on her bike as her back collided with it. "I'm not done with you yet," I said quietly. Tilting her head back, she lifted her eyes to mine. "You don't think you've already done enough?" I glanced up at the entrance at the sight of an unfamiliar black SUV turning on the ignition and its headlights flashing ahead once. I could barely see the car but I saw the headlights vividly. "No," I said, diverting my attention back to her, "I don't think I have." A soft frustrated sigh escaped her. That SUV caught my eye now that I had noticed it. "Is that yours?" I asked her, nodding towards the vehicle. "Did you bring someone with you?" "What?" she asked with an annoyed huff. Following my gaze, she briefly glanced over her shoulder before facing me again. "No. That's not mine." I stared down at her. "Daddy didn't send guards for his princess tonight, did he?" She laughed dryly and glared up at me. "Daddy would kill you himself if he wanted to." My jaw ticked as she took another glimpse at the SUV. "It's not my father's. He doesn't send people to keep tabs on me or force any security on me against my will." "Does he know where you are?" I pressed further. "No," she groaned softly, pushing my arms down and moving to get on her bike. "Were you followed?" I asked, spinning her back around with a firm grip on her arm. Ripping her arm out of my grip almost immediately, she glanced at the car once again. "I didn't notice if I was," she answered reluctantly. "Why do you care? Oh, I'm sorry," she scoffed dryly, "you like your possessions unharmed." Leaning forward, I grabbed the keys just as she put them into the ignition, and before she could stop me, I pulled them back out. Her jaw ticked as she reached to snatch them back but I moved my arm out of her reach and behind my back quickly enough. "Stop," I told her, "you're being watched." Her movements slowed down to a halt as the gravity of the possible situation finally rained down on her. Cautiously, she moved to take another look over her shoulder but stopped as I stepped closer, taking her chin between my fingers and making her look at me. "They'll catch on if they know you saw them." Getting even nearer, I forced her to take a few steps back until she collided with her bike. As I braced my hands on the motorcycle behind her, I leaned in until we were mere inches apart. I inhaled deeply as I shifted closer. "And how are you going to catch them if they catch on first, hmm?" Her gaze narrowed in doubt. "And what exactly is it that you're doing at this moment? Helping me?" She arched a brow at me. "Or just deceiving me?" I tipped my head to one side. "How about a little bit of both?" Scoffing lightly, she rolled her eyes, breaking my gaze. "This doesn't change how furious I am with what you did today," she said. "I understand that, crystal clear, Malyshka. It's not your forgiveness that I seek. I just need you alive." Her brows furrowed and an annoyed expression took over her features. "Should I be grateful for that and thank you?" "No. I only ask that you listen to me and heed my warnings when I think you're in danger." Shifting to my own bike, I grabbed a hold of my helmet and then moved back to her. "I'll take you home." Despite the suspicion carved into her features, she huffed and took a step back to give me enough space. Throwing a leg over her bike, I tugged my helmet on and glanced at her over my shoulders, holding her helmet out. "Get on." Reluctantly, she took it from my hands and pulled it over her head, grabbing my shoulders as she climbed on. Her hands slid down my back and moved away completely as I started the bike and backed it up a bit. "You might want to hold on, Ms. Milano," I said to her, keeping my gaze on the SUV parked outside. Tightening my grip on the handlebars, I revved up the engine as she grabbed my shoulders begrudgingly. Turning to the side, I looked at her. "Tighter than that, sweetheart." She refused to cooperate and tugged her hands back down instead. "Start driving, Mr. Harper," she bit out. Resisting an eye roll, I reached behind me and took hold of her hands, bringing them around my waist, noticing the sharp inhale she took as her front collided with my back. "Hold on tight," I said to her before hitting the accelerator and speeding out of the parking lot. As I drove at high speed, Amara's hold on me tightened and her body was completely pressed up against mine. I couldn't deny that it made it a little hard to focus on the road. Within a minute, I caught a glimpse of the same SUV tailing us, struggling to keep up amongst the bustling traffic. "Would you look at that?" I eyed the car through the side mirror. "Looks like you're somebody else's target too, Ms. Milano." I felt her pull away as she turned to glance over her shoulder, but I abruptly hit the brakes at the red light, eliciting a sharp gasp from her as she grabbed onto me and stayed flushed against me. Her gaze met mine through the side mirror and the anger in them flared up. "Eyes on me, Malyshka," I said, smirking beneath my helmet. "Only on me." The thought that Amara was someone else's target had briefly crossed my mind when Dante told me that other people had asked him to dig up Amara's past. Under client confidentiality, I was sure he couldn't reveal all the names. But if she was being followed, and this wasn't the first time that happened either. I was there myself when she took care of Clark Walker's men at the club. But I couldn't shut down the possibility that this was beyond him and the Ambrose case. This could be someone else entirely. Someone worse. Someone else wanted Amara dead. It was simple in my mind. The moment I sensed that someone else on this earth was a threat to her, I would get rid of them. Anyone who tried to hurt her would be buried six feet underground before she even knew it. I would never let anyone lay a hand on her ever again. She was mine, goddamn it. To hate, to save, to kill… to crave. . . . . . Chapter 23