"You..." Ronan breathed, the syllable carrying a weight so immense it seemed to crush the air out of the room. He remained on his knees, his hands hovering just inches from her exposed shoulder, afraid that if he touched her, she would vanish like the phantom she had been for two agonizing years.

Julian screamed as she raised the gun.

He threw his hands over his face and curled into a pathetic, trembling ball on the blood-stained concrete of the warehouse floor. His designer suit was ruined, soaked in dirt, sweat, and the pooling blood of Valeria’s slaughtered guards.

"Please! Please, Si