“You should be careful what you wish for, Mona. It may be the last thing you ask for,” Eli says from behind me.
Tears gush from my eyes, my heart dying.
There’s a crack in his exterior, the façade dropping and his true self coming through the fragments.
“You want a life away from this island, and I’ll grant you that—you’ll have no life at all.”
He lunges for me as I turn.
“Wait,” I plead, falling backward into the sand.
He hesitates, stopping in his tracks.
“Just tell me…why her heart? Where is it?”
“It’s here, where it belongs.”
It’s been here all along?
“Whose bones are in that cave?”
“The first traitor who broke my damn heart.”
“I don’t understand…”
“My mother. She ran away back to her false family and thought we would just accept her return. She was always coming and going, tainted by the outside world. And then, Clara. I found her sneaking away. I followed her there, watched her be with those heathens, corrupted by money. They thought they ruled the world and could have what they wanted from ours.”
“Is that why you left her body there? To frame them?”
“You sound like one of them, Mona. They’ve filled your head with delusion. I left them her empty shell. Her heart will forever be here, as will yours.”
“Did you follow me there?”
“I had to. I had to see for myself, your betrayal. It broke my heart.”
“Did you kill Annemarie?”
“She was a sinner, Mona. She was a warning, but you didn’t take it as one. You didn’t return home, and that’s when I knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That you couldn’t be saved.”
I grasp a handful of sand and throw it in his face. He yells out in pain as the particles fly into his eyes. I pick myself up and run into the water, the waves lapping at my feet, my shins and then thighs as I push myself deeper.
“Mona!” Eli roars. Gaining his composure, he enters the water, but I know he can’t swim—learning was forbidden. I power my arms like I remember Cash doing and kick my legs like Colt taught me, moving farther out, the ocean floor too deep for me to stand now. I sputter the water trying to enter my mouth and swim around the edge of the island, I’m too far from anything else and would tire and drown if I attempt to swim away from here. Eli doesn’t go any deeper than his knees. I move sideways, and he stalks my actions, tracking up the beach with me. A large gathering of rocks cuts off the beach, forcing him to watch as I swim away from him beyond the rocks. His arms flay as he loses all his composure. Turning, he disappears back into the trees. I power my arms and legs, ignoring the biting cold of the water and pain screaming in my limbs as I follow the border of the island. I keep moving until I physically can’t stay in the water any longer and drag myself to shore. I have to squint and rub at my eyes when I see a boat a few yards up. A cry of relief chokes out of me when I see Cash’s face coming toward me.
Twenty-Five
Colt
It took too long to realize Mona was gone. And not just walked out and went for a fucking stroll—she was nowhere. Panic spiked in my veins when Cash said she must have gone back to Cult Island.
I couldn’t believe she’d willingly go back there. Someone came for her. Probably the same cunt who killed Annemarie. “Fuck!” I roar into the dead of the sea. “If anything’s happened to her…” I mutter to Cash, who’s driving the fucking boat to that shithole.
We’re getting our girl back.
“Go around the back. We don’t want to alert them to our presence,” I tell him pointing farther down from their dock.
The horizon has swallowed the sun, casting us in darkness, making navigating an issue. Cash cuts the engine and jumps out of the boat, looking for something to tie it to. “What’s that?” I ask, pointing to something down the beach. Someone dragging their leg and waving their arms.
“Fuck! It’s Mona,” Cash barks, taking off running toward her.
I leap from the boat and give chase after him. Why the hell is she limping?
Cash gets to her first, engulfing her in his arms. It’s then I see someone coming out of the trees behind him.
The boy steps forward. The moonlight hits his face, and recognition sparks inside me. He’s Mother’s son, Eli.
“She belongs to me!” he roars, raising his arm, catching Cash off guard.
I charge forward, wrapping my arms around his waist, knocking us to the sand. I pin him beneath me, landing blow after blow to his face. “How about you let her decide where and who she belongs with,” I growl, my knuckles splitting as I demolish his face.