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TRIGGER WARNING

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Lila

Thoughts flashed through her head faster than lightning.

The mole.

The hidden intel logs on the system.

Chris took Tish home before she disappeared.

Shit.

Shit, shit, shit.

Chris?

Holy shit.

But... Dane had always trusted him—as much as he trusted anyone. Yet, even Dane had, at times, warned Lila to tell no one—including Chris. Had he known his brother was betraying him? Or at least suspected? He'd never told her outright, but there'd been times she'd wondered…

She wanted to claw his face off. She wanted to scream and throw him out of the Penthouse by the window. And she wanted to crumple into a ball on the floor and scream for everything to just stop moving for minute!

"Lila, this isn't what you think—"

"Get out!" she hissed, backing away from him. "It's been you all along, hasn't it?"

"No! Not… not the way you think—"

Lila whipped around and ran the few steps to the phone he'd thrown on the couch and grabbed it, trying to get her shaking fingers to the call button, but Chris—so much quicker than he should have been able to be as big as he was—was behind her immediately, his arms wrapped around her, hands fighting her for the phone. "Lila, you have to listen to me!"

"You're a fucking liar! You're the mole! You've been bringing that psychopath into our lives you fucking Judas!"

"No, it isn't—that isn't—" he pried the phone out of her hands and was able to pin her with one arm while he threw it away from her, keeping her pinned to his chest.

She tried to use her training, tried to grab him and flip him, but he was prepared for her this time and he kept his weight low and planted, and pulled her off her feet. And with her arms pinned to her sides she couldn't get a good grip on him.

For a moment she fought, like a cat—spitting and swearing and doing everything in her power to get loose, but when she snapped a closed fist backwards into his thigh he just grunted, then grabbed both her wrists in one hand and pinned them to his chest as well. She tried to twist and her ribs screamed at her.

"FUCK!" He was so freaking strong!

Lila found she was more angry than scared as she got a foot up on the couch and tried to push him back, off his balance, but he just started dragging her away from the furniture until they stood in the middle of the carpet and she was starting to see stars. Her side kept throbbing, but at least she hadn't had that sharp pain she'd gotten when Dane grabbed her.

"Let me go!" she shrieked at him. "I can't believe you did this!"

"I didn't do what you think I did!"

"I don't believe you! I'm not listening to a word you say! Fucking Judas!"

"You have to listen, Lila1 You have to let me explain everything—because there's a lot and you'll see." He grunted, holding her tight as she fought again. "You'll see," he muttered through his teeth, "when I explain it, you'll see that I didn't… I wasn't… it was to help!"

"Help? HELP! Help who, Chris? Your bank balance? Or was this some kind of sick revenge plot because you're so jealous of Dane."

"What are you talking about?" his voice was low and quiet. Too quiet. Lila's heart raced, but no way was she backing down now. She tried again to struggle free, but he held her without any struggle, his breath hissing through his teeth. "What did he tell you?" Chris snarled.

"Nothing, but I've seen it! I've seen how you look at Dane and the… the way you look at me too! I know you're jealous of him—you were jealous before I even arrived. And after… He's your brother, Chris! I can't believe you would—"

"I DIDN'T!" Chris yanked her off her feet and her sore rib jabbed at her. She gasped, crying out. But he was walking her to a chair. "You are going to fucking listen to me and then I'm going to let you go, because you're going to realize that we are in this together. Fuck!"

Lila swore and gritted her teeth against the pain as he dropped her into one of the dining chairs, but kept her wrists pinned. As soon as his arms weren't around her anymore, she fought like a cat—like a desperate woman. She twisted and kicked and tried to bite him. But in the end, apart from swearing when she got her nails to his face when he was leaning down, and her teeth into his forearm, he was able to keep her pinned and get her hands behind her, tied so she couldn't use them. And when she tried to run, he used a cord from the television to tie her feet to the legs.

They were both panting when he finally stepped back and ran his hands through his hair, swearing loudly and shaking his head. "You're forcing me to do this, Lila. This isn't necessary. If you'd just listen! But no, you insist on having it your way, so it's your way we'll do it."

He growled with frustration, then stormed into the kitchen. She heard drawers open and slam closed, then he was stalking back out a second later with a tea towel that he promptly tied around her mouth. Then, despite her muffled swearing, he pulled another dining chair over to sit in front of her, sat down, and leaned on his knees.

"You have no idea what you're in the middle of, and how long it's taken to get to this point. So I'm going to say this once, and only once, Lila: I absolutely cannot risk you getting word out there that you know I'm in Doug's pocket. Absolutely. Cannot. You will get Dane killed faster than you can say fucked.

"This started before we even knew your name, and don't you dare glare at me like that—I know who my brother is, and I know what he's done, and I have been doing everything in my power to save him from himself. But that's proving a lot harder than I anticipated. But I am almost there, Lila. Almost there.

"Now, you can listen to me, and you can come along for the ride and you can apologize to me later, or you can force me to choose between saving Dane, and saving you. Because I'll tell you right now, no matter what I think of you? If I have to choose, I'll choose Dane. And it would break him to lose you after all this. But you know what? I'd still be there to help him—not running blindly into things I don't understand.

"So shut your fucking mouth and listen. Don't make me take you out to save him, Lila because I'll do it, you understand? Don't force my hand. Don't. Make me. Do it."

*****

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