Locked Away (Living With Lies Book 2)
Excerpt from Beneath The Lies, book 1
LOCKED AWAY
Living With Lies, book 2
Copyright © 2016 Riann C. Miller
Editing by Edee M. Fallon,
Mad Spark Editing
Cover Design, Formatting and interior design by Jersey Girl & Co.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of author.
This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
License Notes
This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite e-book retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to anyone who’s been afraid to try. Don’t allow your fears to hold you back from the amazing world that awaits you.
SYNOPSIS
Kiran Clark has kept his love life simple: no commitments, no relationships, no attachments of any kind. Lately, his reputation has left a lot to be desired, and his guilt is more than he is willing to admit.
Moving to a new town, Kiran vows to start fresh and let go of his old ways, but life did not prepare him for Belle Paasch.
Belle lived most of her life locked away from the world, but when she collides with Kiran, she is unprepared for what he has in store. When the shadows of Belle’s past threaten the only people she has ever cared about, she is forced to sacrifice her new life for the sake of those she loves.
DEAR READERS
It’s not required to read
Beneath the Lies (Living with Lies #1)
before reading
Locked Away
. However, it will enhance your enjoyment and understanding.
The first book of this series was written solely from the heroine, Kate’s, point of view. The reason for that was to add to the suspense of the story by keeping the reader unsure of the hero’s thoughts. My intention with
Locked Away
was to remain consistent. However, I reached a certain point in the story where I felt I wasn’t allowing Kiran—the hero in
Locked Away
—the justice and attention he deserved.
ALSO BY RIANN C. MILLER
Unlikely Love
Living With Regret
Living With Lies Series
Beneath The Lies
Locked Away
Belle
I walk into my father’s office only to find it empty. While many abhorrent things have happened in this house, I’ve always felt safe here in this room. As much as I love coming in here, no one, including myself, is allowed in here without Daddy.
Even though I know better, I wander through his office. I pass his hundred-year-old desk and make my way to the dark green, high back chair where I sit down. I remember climbing into this exact chair as a little girl and spending hours in my father’s arms. I used to feel safe and protected in this house, but lately, I feel more like a prisoner.
I want to go back to the time when I was naive to the world I live in, where men, including my father, didn’t kill people for foolish reasons; to a time when I didn’t fear what would happen to me. But I’m no longer that naive little girl, which means in order to stay safe, no matter how much I might hate it, I have to continue to live within the rules set for me.
“How the fuck did this happen? That’s what I want to know.” I jump when I hear my father roar at the top of his lungs right outside his office door. Quickly, I hop out of the chair and hunch down behind the couch. Seconds after I dropped to the floor, I hear glass shatter. I’m no fool when it comes to my father’s temper.
“I don’t know, sir,” Alejandro, Daddy’s second in command, answers.
“You don’t know?” my father repeats in a tone he has never used with me. His voice causes the hair on my arms to stand up.
“I’m sorry, sir. I wasn’t working for you at the time. As it is, I agree with you. Anyone with half a brain should have figured out she was only the niece and not your child.”
What in the world are they talking about? More importantly, who are they talking about?
“Those moronic thugs brought me the
wrong fucking baby
!” I was already on edge, but hearing that one statement causes my body to go rock solid.
My father roars again, louder this time, before more glass shatters along with my heart. I know the story of how I came to live with my father.
My mother—a druggie at the time—tried to escape the lifestyle and Damian Paasch by running away and keeping his only child from him. Anyone who’s ever met my father knows you keep him from nothing.
I was taken as a newborn by members of my father’s army and returned to Poza Rica where I’ve lived ever since. Growing up, I often thought about my mother, but my father loved me enough that I never felt her loss.
“I’ve seen the reports online, sir. She has your eyes.” I cover my mouth to keep from gasping aloud. I can’t risk them finding me.
My father has deep emerald eyes. They’re unique. They’re breathtaking. My brown eyes look nothing like his, but until this very moment, I never gave my eye color a second thought.
“I know. I’ve seen the pictures. There’s no mistaking what this is.” The room goes silent, leaving me to wonder if they left as the final nail is hammered into my coffin. “Kate Reynolds is my daughter, my real daughter.”
I blink several times as a tear seeps out and travels down my cheek.
His real daughter?
I’m not his daughter? That’s not possible...it’s just not. Oh God...my heart painfully drops to my stomach as his words continue on repeat in my mind.
His real daughter
.
“What are you going to do?” I hear Alejandro question.
Several long minutes pass before my father answers. “I don’t know.”
I wish I could see his face. Is he sad? Disappointed? Does he plan to replace me with his real daughter? My breath catches as my eyes continue to water.
“I’ll seek her out when the time is right. In the meantime, I want eyes on her at all times. She doesn’t so much as step foot out of her home without you or Miguel knowing about it.” I curl further into a ball, fighting my tears. That statement answers everything. My father plans to claim this woman...his real daughter, the woman that shares his eyes, a woman who’s definitely not me.
“We’re on it, sir.” I hear the office door open and shut, but I’m unsure if they both left, so I continue to hide.
A few moments later, I slowly peek my head around the edge of the couch and spot my father’s heartbroken face. Damian Paasch is a strong and powerful man. Many have called him evil, but at this moment, he’s anything but. He appears as shattered as I feel.
“Goddamn it!” he roars before another glass goes flying across the room, exploding right along with his anger. Thankfully, he gets up and walks out of his office, leaving me the opportunity to escape unseen.
Once I’m safe in the fortress that is my room, I allow myself to cry. The only remarkable part of my life has been the fact that I’m Damian Paasch’s daughter, his only child, the only person who holds the key to his heart, only now...I’m not.
Belle
“We’ll be here one night, two tops, and then we can relax and enjoy our vacation.”
My father is once again trying to convince me that life is great, that I’m still very much his daughter, and what I overheard in his office doesn’t change anything, but it does. That dreadful day changed everything.
“Tonight I’m going out for a little while. I plan to take my guys with me, but Sergio is staying back with you. You’re not to go anywhere without him, is that clear?” As usual, his voice is demanding.
I resist the urge to roll my eyes and risk upsetting him. “Yes,” I answer without looking in his direction.
Until the day in his office over a year ago, Damian Paasch was my daddy. Unfortunately, it didn’t occur to me until then that most twenty-year-olds don’t call their fathers Daddy, but I do.
My father taps his foot on the floor, waiting for me to say something more. “Belle, I love you. You know that, don’t you?” I take a calming breath and push down the lump in my throat.
In Poza Rica, I’m known as the Cartel Princess. Everyone knows of me, but few people actually know me, and that’s exactly how my father likes it. Everywhere I go, you’ll find one of Damian’s men a few steps behind me. The reason? My father runs one of the largest cartels in Mexico. He’s known for his money, his drugs, and more importantly...for his enemies.