Chained (38 page)

Epilogue

So, this leads me back to where I started my story. A lot has happened since then, but I guess you’re still asking the questions. I guess you’re still wanting to know what it was all about, who I really was, and how the agency ran. Well, let me start from the beginning. I came from royalty. Who knew, right? My father was a direct descendant of a certain queen who lived a couple hundred years ago. I won’t say who, but maybe you can guess. Long story short, my father was offered the throne in Norway, but turned it down to get into politics in his own country. The place he was born and the place he loved. It still didn’t stop my parents from taking advantage of his heritage whenever they could. When I came along, I was just an inconvenience to them. They didn’t really want me. They just wanted someone to carry on their legacy. I was meant to be a boy, but hey… Shit happens.

I finally know Zac had something to do with my father’s death. I know he killed himself, but I don’t need to guess who really put that gun to his head. After all, he was the master manipulator. He was probably telling my father that whoever he thought was out to kill him was closing in. I don’t really know, and I shouldn’t really care. I loved my father, but what kind of father promises their daughter to a monster? All I ever wanted was his love and affection. I guess that was too much to ask.

So, this now leads me to Zac. I think he wanted me simply because I was a princess… Well, could have been anyway. He wanted the legacy. Plus, the fact he could control my every movement made him feel like the most powerful man in the world, and he was…for a while. He ran the agency. A league of army soldiers who were trained to obey orders or die. That was basically it in a nutshell. Kit was no different. The only difference was he was caught by Zac one day when he was nineteen, fending off six muggers. He was so impressed, he took Kit under his wing and trained him to be an agent. He was so young and impressionable. What nineteen-year-old would turn down an opportunity like that? It was secret spy stuff, covert operations… You name it.

Let me put it this way. If there was ever a time in history where certain VIP’s have died mysteriously, and there were conspiracy theories going around as to whether the person was actually murdered, the theories were true more often than not, and it was probably the agency behind it. They governed everyone who governed you. They were the silent puppet masters who lurked in the shadows, watching you.

My whole world has revolved around secrecy and lies. People with lots of money who held a multitude of power in their hands. The agency was no different. The only thing about them is they
did
rule the world. They made sure everything ticked over and that the common people remained ignorant as to what was really going on behind closed doors. No one could ever beat them. No doubt Zac will be replaced soon and the world will keep on spinning.

As for me? I’m happier than I could ever be. I have Kit by my side every day, and our love is growing stronger. It has been almost two years since we set sail on that fateful day. I am healing now and I feel better than I ever have. I still have the odd moment when I think about my past and what I went through with Zac, but it is getting better with each passing day. With a great man by my side, how could it not?

We’ve just left Australia and are setting sail for God knows where. We had to say goodbye to Ian. He never met the woman of his dreams in Anguilla, but he did in Australia. We stayed as long as we could before the winter hit but, as usual, we could never stay in one place for long. As long as we keep moving, we’ll be okay.

I will miss Ian terribly, but I’m so glad he got his happily ever after. Four months ago, he came up to us. “I met a bird. She digs me.” And that was it. When it came time for us to leave, Ian had to make a decision. We’ll stay in touch, but Ian is where he wants to be, and Kit is happy for his cousin. At first, I believe Kit was jealous of how close Ian and I were, but he eventually saw it as a mutual bonding of friendship. Ian was related by blood to Kit, but I will always consider him a part of my family.

I smile. Before long, Kit wraps his arms around me from behind as we both stare at the horizon. He rubs my small bump and the butterflies start quickly. It doesn’t take much.

And that leads me to the other important part of our lives. As you can guess, Kit and I are going to have a baby. I must admit. At first, I was upset because I didn’t want our son or daughter to have a life like mine, constantly running from place to place, never settling down. But then Kit took all that away. “This baby will be loved more than anything in the world.” That was all it took to take my fears away. He or she will be loved because Kit and I will make damn sure of it. We will be determined to give this baby so much love, he or she will never feel alone like I did when I was young. That is the one thing in which I can feel comfort.

“So, where to next?” Kit asks, kissing my neck and giving me that beautiful smile of his.

I look up to his adoring face and caress his hand that’s over my belly. I think about the life growing inside me and can only think of one answer. Right now, there is only one possible answer.

“How about somewhere beginning with a B?”

Bonus Chapter

Agent Christopher Chainey (Number twenty-four)

Three years… I had been doing this for three years. I had killed people, set people up, and blackmailed women after I licked their pussies until they screamed. I got so hard for some of them, I could have fucked them then and there, but I knew I was always being watched. Plus, I knew I had Maria to go back to afterwards. She was always there when I needed her to be. Sometimes I fucked her so hard, I thought I may have hurt her, but her screams of pleasure told me otherwise. She was a good fuck, but I didn’t know any better. I had lost my virginity to her when this all started. I was only nineteen. I had never touched a girl because I was too quiet. The agency soon fixed that. Now I was a fighter.

Now I was a killer.

I made my way into the quiet hotel room. I had a bomb in my hands and was instructed to plant it in the Caudwell’s bedroom. The only thing I was told was that Charles Caudwell was making deals with the Middle East. Deals he shouldn’t be making. He had to be killed in such a way that it would look like an act of terrorism. Planting a bomb seemed to be the best way to achieve that.

I swiftly made it inside and walked towards the corner wardrobe. I had been told the bottom had already been cut out for me to place the bomb inside. All I needed to do was loosen it and pull it up.

So I went to work loosening the square piece of wood and, sure enough, it caved. I pulled it up, then set the bomb to go off in forty-five minutes time. I was just in the middle of placing the wood back when I heard the front door open and voices filled the hallway.

Shit!

I quickly ran behind the door and hid as well as I could. I saw the Caudwell’s walk past and sighed, but then I saw someone else. At that instant, I couldn’t move.

It was a young girl with long blonde hair and the most captivating blue eyes I had ever seen. I could see the pain behind those eyes. It was almost like looking at myself.

“Stop slouching. How many times have I told you to act like a lady? You’re a Caudwell. Act like one.”

I saw the sad look on her face and my eyes widened. She wasn’t supposed to be here. She wasn’t part of the deal. I could kill adults, and I had time and time again, but I put my foot down when it came to a child. I couldn’t kill her. I wasn’t going to have her death on my conscience.

I waited until she walked past, then quickly ran back to defuse the bomb. I knew what to do. I set about picking the wood up and quickly put in the access code to defuse it. I knew the minute I did, I would be signing my own death warrant, but I didn’t care. I had been doing this for three years and had enough. Just that one sad look on that girl’s face made me realise what kind of monster I had become. It made me wonder how she would look at me if she knew.

I couldn’t bear it.

I was right in the middle of placing the wood back when I heard the young girl’s voice, “Okay. Mum, where’s my coat? I can’t find it.”

Shit! She was in the hallway and coming closer to the bedroom.

“I think it’s in my room, Olivia. Hurry now and get ready.”

Fuck! I knew she would find me. The only thing I could do was hide in the wardrobe and hope she didn’t spot me. I quickly slipped in, but couldn’t completely hide myself. My heart was beating wildly at the knowledge she might catch me and call her parents. It would only be what I deserved. I had a gun in my shoulder holster, but I didn’t want to have to use it. I wasn’t going to kill anymore. I had made that decision, but if push came to shove, I would have to use it to scare them in order to make my escape.

The young girl came skipping in. She looked happier now than she did when she first walked through the front door. She noticed the coat on the bed and walked in to pick it up. As she started to turn, she noticed something. She was almost looking right at me.

My heart started beating faster and faster. I knew I would be caught and would have to scare this poor girl to death. I really didn’t want to do it, but I would if I had to.

She tilted her head slightly, like she was trying to see what was there. She took a couple steps forward and I knew she would see me.

“Olivia, hurry up!”

The voice halted her and that was my cue to get out as quickly as possible. She turned her head to shout back, “Okay, Mum. I’m coming!” That was when I moved like lightening towards the door. I saw her move her head back to look once more, but I was already gone.

Trying to slip past the door as quickly and as quietly as possible, I was just about to turn to head out when the young girl snapped her eyes up to meet mine. Her eyes widened and I thought she was going to scream. The only thing I could think to do was put my fingers to my lips.

“Shh,” I uttered.

She didn’t say anything, just stood staring at me. When I realised she wasn’t going to scream, I thanked my lucky stars and made a hasty exit.

Once I was out of the hotel, I got into my black Range Rover and got the hell out of there. By now, they knew I had been in the room and, within the next few minutes, the bomb would probably be found. Once the Boss knew it had been defused, he would have me killed.

I had to dump the car and gather as much of my things as possible. The only chance of me surviving was if I went underground. My life as an agent was over. I didn’t want it anyway. I was sick of it. That young girl was like my beacon of light in the darkness. I was so glad she came into the room and made me see the kind of man I had become.

After heading out of London, I dumped the car, grabbed my belongings, and took a road to the unknown. Luckily, I always planned in advance. I always had my things with me just in case shit hit the fan and I had to bolt.

Well, the shit had just hit the fan.

But all I felt was the relief of freedom. For once in my life, I felt free. I breathed out heavily and all my anxiety of the past three years left me.

I knew it would never last. I knew I would live my life constantly looking over my shoulder, constantly wondering if I was being followed, constantly having to move around.

I knew Zac would look for me. I knew what would happen to me once he found me. It would be something I could never escape.

I was a walking dead man.

Acknowledgments

This story was a little hard, but I’m really glad I started it. I wanted to capture the right element of light vs. dark, and I hope I managed to keep you interested enough to finish the story. It was a little complex, to say the least. Certain scenes were difficult to write (I think you know which those were) and the characters were very unique in their own way. Zac was a piece of work. It will be interesting to hear your views on his character. No doubt a lot could be said about him.

I can’t say enough about my family. They’re all so patient and supportive of me, it’s unreal. Sometimes I’m there typing away, or sitting in a dream world with my characters. I really don’t know how you put up with me. I love you all and thank my lucky stars I have you in my life.

I would like to thank my gorgeous girls, Sabine Willems and Sally-Ann Hall, for reading the first draft for me. You both gave me some great feedback and I love you girls to pieces!

I also want to thank two brand new beta readers, Amy Evans and Lynn Blockley. I reached out to any beta readers on Goodreads, preferably anyone who hadn’t heard of me. They both read the original draft and gave me some fantastic feedback and suggestions. Amy actually showed me a picture of a heart. One half was red and the other was black. Both ends were tied with ribbon, linking them together. She was trying to show me a visual of how I should link both dark and light together. The visual alone helped me immensely and I wish to thank you so much for that, Amy. Hopefully this has brought together a good solid story. I’m sure anyone who reads it will let me know in good time.

I want to say a BIG thank you to Book Beauties Promotions for hosting the blog tour and release day blitz for Chained. Jill, you were fantastic and patient with me throughout the whole process. Thank you so much for your help and support. You’re an angel.

I also want to thank Give Me Books and Jo&IsaLoveBooks for hosting a review tour of Deviant and Redemption. I had great feedback with regards to this, so thank you, thank you, thank you!

I also want to thank Our Bookstars, Devilishly Dirty Book Blog, Loving The Books, M&D’s Have You Read Your Book Blog, Pimp & Whore Your Book/Blog/Page/Group/Author/Writer/Street Team Here, and What to Read After Fifty Shades of Grey for pimping me whenever you can. I know there are more and I’m sorry if I haven’t mentioned you. You all do a brilliant job and, as always, I take my hat off to you.

I also want to thank Summer Clark and Joe Rossi from Summer’s Book Blog. We’ve had some amazing chats and I’m now proud to class you both as friends. Thank you so much for all your support. It has been a pleasure getting to know you both.

As always, I want to thank Line Norgaard Fallesen and Serena Kett for being there and listening to my drivel. It’s mostly about prosecco, shoes, and fictional men, so I won’t be surprised if you both think I’m a little cuckoo. I think the kinds of things I write already tell you that!

I want to thank Kellie Dennis from Book Cover By Design for designing the fantastic cover for Chained. The messages alone on just the cover were unreal, so thank you for a stand-up job, Kellie. The cover’s amazing!

As always, I want to thank my editor, Kim Young. As well as being a fantastic editor, she is also a fantastic person. She’s very patient with me and I am really grateful for that. She will edit everything, believe me. She will probably even edit this!

Lastly, I want to thank you, the reader, for giving me a shot by delving into my world of make-believe. Without you, there would be no story. For that, I am truly grateful. Thank you to all of you, and I hope I can write stories you will continue to enjoy.

Take care and happy reading!

Jaimie xx