Cora's Kismet (The Twin Destinies Saga Book 1) Read online

  “You got me. It’s freaking nuts. You think we should wait until they’re asleep and bail?” Viola asked Cora.

  “I just don’t know anymore. If we do, what’s waiting for us out there? Are we gonna end up back with pervert Patrick and cruel Anna? Will we end up on the streets somewhere? There’s nowhere for us to go Vi,” Cora said worried. “But if we stay here, what’s going to happen to us? These people seem to care about us and it is genuine, not faked. They seem to be angry over the fact we were mistreated, even though we haven’t even told them the half of it yet.”

  Viola stayed quiet, thinking over what her sister just said. Cora knew they were all valid points. She also knew because of what she was feeling for Liam, she may not be able to leave him behind. It was all so confusing for her.

  As if reading her mind Viola asked, “Are you considering staying because of him? I know he’s hot and all, but is he worth it?”

  “He’s part of it,” Cora conceded, even though she didn’t want to. She knew she’d never be able to lie to her sister, they knew each other too well for that. “Not all of it though.”

  “Angelica and Thomas?” Viola asked.

  “Yeah. We’ve always wanted parents who wanted us in their lives, and all along we had them but never knew it. If we leave now, we’ll never have that again,” Cora said, her voice turning wistful.

  “I know. All of this is so messed up,” Viola sighed.

  “Yeah, I know. Wanna sleep on it and talk more in the morning?” Cora asked, hesitating because she didn’t want Viola to say no. She hoped with all of her heart her sister would say yes.

  Viola let out a huge yawn and nodded her head. Her eyes were already growing heavy and starting to close. Cora wasn’t far behind as she smiled in relief, and they both fell into a deep, dreamless slumber.

  *****

  Cora’s eyes flew open as she sat straight up in the bed she was sharing with Viola. She wasn’t sure what had woken her, but she knew she’d only been asleep for a few hours.

  Her eyes flew around the room, scanning for anything, or anyone, that shouldn’t be there. When she didn’t find anything, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood. As quiet as she could, she moved around the room and looked out of the windows. Seeing nothing, she moved toward the private bathroom attached to the room.

  Being cautious, she opened the door and moved into the room. Her eyes flew wide when she saw the enormous Jacuzzi tub, separate shower stall and double sinks, with an enormous mirror over them. Her hand flew to her mouth in wonder. She had taken several steps into the room when she saw movement in the mirror from the corner of her eye.

  When she turned to see what it was, she was grabbed and pushed up against the wall, with a hand clamped over her mouth like a vice. Feeling stupid for having the same thing happen to her twice in less than 24 hours, she fought with everything she had.

  This time, she knew it wasn’t Liam who had her pinned, and whoever this was, was not here to protect her. That realization made her fight even harder. She kicked her legs out and after several tries, made contact with the man’s groin. When he bent over, Cora swung her fist up and caught the man in the face, causing him to release her. She screamed as loud as she could, as she ran from the bathroom, slamming the door behind her as she went.

  When she reached the bed, Viola was nowhere to be found and Cora panicked. The door to their bedroom burst open, allowing both of her parents to come rushing in with several guards on their tail.

  “What is it?” they exclaimed.

  “Someone just attacked me in the bathroom and Viola’s gone!” Cora screeched out. She ran towards the window but it was locked from the inside, so wherever Viola went, it wasn’t out through the window.

  “Was she here when you went into the bathroom?” Thomas asked, urgency in his voice, as guards surrounded the bathroom door and threw it open. They found, and subdued, the man inside and fanned out to search for Viola.

  “Yes, she was still asleep on the bed. I don’t know what woke me up, but I felt as if something was wrong when I did, so I got up to investigate,” Cora replied, her terror making her voice frantic. “Where is she? I can’t lose her! I just can’t.”

  “We’ll find her, I promise,” Angelica said, as she wrapped Cora in her arms and tried to soothe her.

  “How can you promise that? You sent us away because there were attempts made on our lives, because of some stupid prophecy. Now someone’s attacked me in a bathroom and Viola’s gone. You can’t even keep us safe in your own house.” Cora’s body was shaking from the stress.

  “Can I help?” Cora heard Liam’s voice come from the doorway. She jerked herself out of her mother’s arms and flew into his, as she broke down into uncontrollable sobs.

  “Get her calmed down. The rest of us need to find Viola, now,” Thomas stated, before turning on his heel and striding out of the bedroom. Liam nodded as Angelica followed Thomas into the hallway and into their own room to dress and start their search.

  Liam pulled Cora to one of the plush chairs in the corner of the room and situated her on his lap so she would be comfortable.

  “Shhh,” he whispered in her ear, as he rocked her like a parent soothes a child. “It’ll all be ok. We’ll find her. You’ve got to calm down my love.”

  Cora’s head jerked up when she heard the words “my love” and she sucked in a stunned breath. Liam reached up and stroked his hand along her jaw and down the side of her neck.

  “You have to breathe,” Liam reminded her, in a soft voice, and she released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She looked deep into his blue eyes searching, but for what, she didn’t know. If she told herself the truth, she knew, but she didn’t want to admit it because then it would make it all real.

  They stared into each other’s eyes for several long minutes as Liam continued to stroke her face and her hair in a slow, gentle manner, savoring in the softness of her. He knew in that moment, without a doubt, she was his mate. He just wondered if she knew it too.

  “I-I can’t do this. Not right now,” Cora stammered, breaking eye contact. “I’ve got to help find Vi.” She tried to stand up but Liam wouldn’t let her.

  “If you want to help Viola, you need to stay here where I can keep you safe. Nobody’s going to get very far looking for her if they’re worried you’ll be taken, or hurt, in the process. Just let me take care of you,” Liam said almost in a whisper. His eyes had her melting in his hands and that was not what she wanted, even though she knew he was right.

  “I can’t sit here and not do anything,” Cora exclaimed.

  “You are doing something. You’re staying safe, so she can be found and brought back here, to safety. That’s very important Cora,” Liam said, stroking his hand down her arm. He was ready to grab her if she should decide to try to leave his lap and take off to find her sister. He would die before he ever let anything, or anyone, ever harm her again.

  “It sure feels like doing nothing,” Cora grumped, slumping back down against Liam. He leaned his head against hers and they sat there, not saying anything, while they waited for news of her sister.

  After about an hour, Cora stretched her muscles and moved to stand. Liam tightened his grip for a minute, until he realized he needed to stretch his muscles as well. He released his arms from around her, but slid his hand down into hers, so they could maintain their connection. His touch was soothing to her in a way that still confused her, but she needed it at that moment to keep her sanity. She looked down at their joined hands then up to his face, but didn’t object as they started to walk around the room.

  Cora jumped when the phone in her room rang out, loud and shrill.

  Chapter Ten

  Liam reached over, grabbed the phone off of the receiver and put it to his ear. “Hello.”

  He listened intently for a minute, said a brief “Yes, sir,” then hung up the phone.

  He turned to Cora and told her, “We’ve got to get you out of here. They�
��re running down a lead, but they think whoever came here to abduct both of you might make another try for you, while security here is lower.”

  He could see how she tensed up at his words and her eyes looked around the room, almost frantic. He reached up and smoothed back her hair, coaxing her to look back into his eyes, so he could calm her down.

  “It will be alright. Let’s go. There’s a car arriving to pick us up in two minutes, we need to be ready for it downstairs,” Liam told her, trying to be as reassuring as he could.

  Cora seemed to calm down enough to nod her head and take a couple of deep breaths. He found he respected her for pulling it together, again, after everything that had been thrown at her. She was tough. He was proud to call her his mate, even if she didn’t realize it yet. Although he was beginning to suspect she was starting to.

  Liam gave her hand a reassuring squeeze without letting go, and they walked out of the bedroom. As they exited the room, they were flanked by guards in all directions. Her safety was their number one concern. Her eyes got bigger, but she didn’t say a word, just continued walking.

  Just as they made it to the bottom of the stairs, they saw headlights flash through the beautiful stained glass window in the front door to the house.

  One of the guards turned to them, “Wait here, we need to make sure they’re from our team before you get in that car.”

  Cora nodded, staying silent and wondering what would happen if it wasn’t one of theirs. She gripped Liam’s hand tighter in hers and he turned his head to look at her. She kept her gaze straight-forward, knowing if she looked in his eyes again, she’d be lost, and neither of them could afford that right now. Surrounded by guards, she felt like she was some important celebrity, or dignitary, or something. In reality, she was just a girl.

  The guard opened the door and shut it behind him with a soft click, exiting, while another guard stepped up to stand watch. They were all tensed up and ready for something to happen.

  In a sudden explosion, shots rang out from the direction of the car and she saw the guard, who had been checking the occupants of the car, fall to the ground. Liam clamped his hand down over her mouth to stifle her scream, while pushing her down into a crouch, as the remaining guards surrounded them.

  The guards steered them towards the back of the house and down a staircase that led into a well-stocked wine cellar. At the bottom of the stairs, one of the guards broke away and opened a passageway that lead to a tunnel. The guards had started moving Cora and Liam into the tunnel when she heard the front door break open with a loud crash. Cora wasted no more time, rushing into the tunnel, and was relieved when the guard closed the door behind them.

  A flashlight was flipped on and a guard instructed for them to move forward as quickly as they could go. The small group wasted no time getting through the long tunnel and out into, what looked like, the basement of a neighboring house. The guards secured the area and then moved them up the stairs and out through a back door, into a waiting SUV.

  Cora’s breathing was rapid as she tried to settle in and wondered where they were taking her. She opened her mouth to ask, when Liam shook his head at her. She closed her mouth and cuddled a little closer to him.

  They drove for quite a while and it seemed, to Cora, they were going in circles, before they pulled down a long winding road and stopped on the side of the road where another dark SUV was waiting for them. Cora turned questioning eyes up toward Liam, but again, he shook his head for her not to speak. She would give anything to know what was going on.

  After one of the guards verified the occupants of the second SUV without incident, they were escorted over and loaded inside, where they were taken for another long ride of driving in circles. Just when she thought she was going to be dizzy, or sick, they headed off in a different direction. It wasn’t long before they were at an airport.

  Her eyes widened when they drove right onto the tarmac toward a sleek, black helicopter, bypassing any and all security measures.

  She looked back and forth between the helicopter and Liam, wondering if they were going to be flying, or if this was a diversion of some sort. She got her answer soon enough when she was ushered out of the SUV and into the helicopter, and was buckled into the passenger seat before she could blink. Liam took the pilot’s seat and placed the headset on. A guard placed a headset on her as well, and she marveled at how cool it was to be able to have this experience, especially with him.

  The guards pulled back as Liam fired up the chopper and lifted off from the ground. As they glided through the air, Cora’s eyes remained wide open, taking in everything from the city lights to the stretching fields and even a lake that glistened with the lights from nearby houses shining down onto the water. Before today, she’d never even been in an airplane, let alone experienced anything like this.

  Liam glanced over at Cora several times and smiled to himself. He was glad she was enjoying the flight, given everything that was going on in her life. He wanted to show her the beauty in the world. Show her life could be wonderful, gentle, kind and full of love. He wanted her to know that no matter what happened, he would always protect her.

  He refocused on the controls and landed in a remote clearing near a cabin his family owned. Shutting it down, he removed his headset and turned to remove hers as well. He then released his safety harness, jumped down out of the bird and ran around to help her to do the same. Once she was unbuckled, he helped her down and they took off across the small clearing, just as the sun was starting to peak above the horizon.

  As they approached the cabin, he placed a finger over his lips and then pointed toward her and the ground, indicating she should stay where she was until he’d cleared the cabin. She nodded not saying a word. He pulled his gun from an ankle holster, checked it for ammo and took off up the stairs. He paused at the door to unlock it, then pushed it open wide. When nothing shot at him, or jumped out at him, he entered aiming his weapon in every direction, before moving to another part of the cabin. Once he’d cleared every room, he came back out and gripped her hand tight in his.

  “Come on inside, I’d like to show you my family’s cabin,” he said, with a small grin, as he tugged her hand, pulling her toward the door.

  When they entered the cabin, Cora was charmed by its coziness in an instant. This felt more like a home than the spacious mansion where she and Viola fell asleep last night. The thought of Viola brought tears to her eyes.

  Liam noticed and pulled her into his arms and held her there for a few minutes, as tears streamed down her face and sobs rocked her body with the misery that came with the loss of her twin. When he was sure she was steady enough, he pulled away from her and led her into a moderate-sized kitchen that boasted modern appliances. He seated her on a stool at the island, pulled out coffee grounds and began to brew a pot. The strong aroma filled her nostrils and made her sigh in a deep breath. He could see the exhaustion all over her face and the way she sagged against the counter.

  “Come on, let’s get you into bed, you need some more sleep, before you drop,” he said, helping her up with a gentle hand. It was a true testament of how tired she was when she didn’t protest at all.

  He guided her to the guest room at the back of the cabin and got her settled in. She was asleep before he pulled the blanket up and tucked it in around her. She looked so peaceful in her sleep. The tension that had been clouding her face since he’d met her yesterday eased and made her look how he’d always pictured an angel would look. Her dark eyelashes fanned out across her high cheekbones and her chocolate colored hair fell down on the pillow, around her head like a dark halo.

  He couldn’t bring himself to leave the room just yet, so he sank down in the chair next to the bed and watched her sleep. Before he knew it, he’d dozed off himself.

  Liam awoke to the clattering of pots, pans and dishes in the kitchen. Jerking himself up to a full sitting position in the chair, he saw that Cora was no longer in bed. With terror clutching his heart, he raced from the room
to find her in the kitchen moving around as if she was right at home. That was when the smells caught up to him. She was frying bacon and sausage. She had eggs sizzling in another pan and pancakes going in another one. Amazed, all he could do was stand in the doorway and watch her cook.

  It was a few minutes before she turned around and noticed him standing there watching her. She dipped her head in embarrassment and said a soft, “Good morning.”

  “Good morning to you too,” he said, stepping into the kitchen area with a wide smile. He hated seeing the embarrassment written all over her face, she was trying to hide, so much he veered around the island and stopped in front of her. With a gentle nudge, he lifted her chin up until his eyes met hers.

  They stood like that for a few minutes, locked in each other’s gaze, until the smell of something burning broke them apart. The current batch of eggs had to be disposed of, but he didn’t care. She started a fresh batch, as he poured coffee for them both. He noticed it was not the same pot of coffee he’d brewed before they’d fallen asleep. That pot had probably turned to sludge and he was grateful she’d thought to brew a fresh pot for them.

  Once Cora was finished cooking breakfast, they sat down at the island together and began eating. After tasting some of everything he looked up and flashed a thousand watt smile at her.

  “This is the most amazing breakfast I’ve had in a very long time,” he said happiness in his voice. “Thank you.”

  She dipped her head in embarrassment again. He lifted her chin and forced her to make eye contact with him and repeated what he’d said before, with even more passion in his voice. When she tried to look away again, he held her chin in a firm grip. He wouldn’t let her look away from him again. “Don’t do that Cora,” he demanded in a low voice.

  “What?” she asked, her voice so quiet he almost didn’t hear her.