White Rabbit: The Rise (The Kingmaker Saga Book 1) Read online

  But that was why Uilleam kept him.

  Because he was good at what he did.

  Uilleam did what he did best—he manipulated the truth until it appeared as he wanted it to.

  No one would ever know what happened here.

  “Sneaky little poison, that one,” he said conversationally. “It attacks the nervous system, so I promise this won’t be painless. And I have all the time in the world to watch you slowly eat away. But the best part is that when the day comes that I finally put you out of everyone’s misery, you’ll never see it coming. As far as you’ll ever know, I killed you this day. And there’s fuck all you can do about it.”

  Gaspard gave a jerky shake of his head, his coughing fit sounding worse as the seconds creeped on.

  “Because I have everything I want.”

  He had Karina waiting for him, and once Gaspard was no longer around to interfere, he would have his seat.

  A pleased smile lifted the corners of his lips as he returned to his seat, staring at the man slowly dying in front of him.

  Yes, he had all the time in the world when he was king.

  41

  Consequences & Choices

  As she tucked the necklace Uilleam had given her in Paris away inside the jewelry box, she carried it out into the living room and placed it on the mantle above the fireplace.

  The start of something new, she thought.

  Out with the old, in with the new.

  Everything else she had stashed away where Uilleam would never come upon it.

  In the grand scheme of things, the action didn’t mean very much. It wasn’t as if her mother was here to see what she had done—or that she would be moved in any way had she been there—but it still meant something to Karina.

  The reasoning behind it.

  The symbolism.

  She was her own person, with her own ideals and dreams and thoughts, and even if she wasn’t completely sure what all she wanted—or how any of this would end—she still had to try.

  She still had to see what she was made of outside her family.

  She had to believe there was more to life than the life and role Katherine wanted her to step into.

  There was no better time to try than now.

  Otherwise, she knew she would regret it for the rest of her life.

  And one little secret wouldn’t hurt too much.

  Since she’d been home, she’d been doing a lot of that. Thinking. Rearranging. Taking little bits that reminded her of her old life and tucking them away.

  Though she was ready for a fresh start—a real fresh start this time—she wasn’t quite ready to let them all go yet.

  One day, maybe … but not now.

  Instead, she tucked it all away to deal with another day.

  As she was finishing, a sharp knock sounded behind her, a moment before the lock turned and the door opened.

  “Since you have a key,” Karina reminded him without looking behind her, “you don’t have to actually knock when you come in. You just … come in.”

  She’d meant the words as a joke, already smiling, at least until she saw the rather serious expression on Uilleam’s face.

  In the weeks since Gaspard, a lot had changed while remaining the same.

  Uilleam took frequent trips, sometimes for days at a time, but when he left now, he made sure she knew.

  He didn’t provide her with details most times—something she was still trying to change—but he shared, and that meant more to her than anything.

  But he wasn’t supposed to be back for a couple of days more, yet here he stood with an expression that worried her.

  “Uilleam, what’s wrong?”

  He stood in the entryway holding a single blue rose. The color was just as impeccable as the others he’d given her, but it still seemed better somehow.

  As if it were freshly cut for this moment.

  “What are you …?”

  He opened his mouth, but no words came out. He just continued to stare at her with an expression that made her worry.

  The intensity of his gaze made her break the silence stretching between them. “Uill—”

  “I need you.”

  He said it so bluntly. Without inflection or the slightest hesitation.

  He said those words like he meant them.

  Those three little words meant everything to her.

  It almost felt as if they burrowed themselves inside her and planted themselves right in her heart.

  “I can breathe when I’m with you,” he continued, stepping further into the room. Closer to her. “I can sleep. I … I feel everything I never thought I would. You make me a better man.”

  She was struck mute, unsure what to say. How to say it.

  When she imagined how this conversation would go, she thought she would have some sort of clever response. That she would know exactly what to say, but she was fighting the ridiculous urge to cry, so for once, she didn’t have all the right words.

  She only had the unflinching truth.

  “I need you too, Uilleam.”

  More than she ever thought possible.

  More than she would ever accurately be able to put into words.

  She’d chosen him, after all. “I … love you,” she whispered, fighting past the lump in her throat.

  “Then give me a chance,” he said, reaching for her hands. “Let me give you the world.”

  A deal he offered so many …

  And now, it was her turn to accept.

  TO BE CONTINUED …

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  Acknowledgments

  Wow!

  There were some days when I wondered if I would ever get to this point. Five years ago, when I first had a spark of an idea for Uilleam and Karina, I knew, even then, that I would absolutely love telling their story. They both have captivated me so much over the years, but I also knew they had to wait their turn—that it wasn’t time yet for their story to be told.

  Now, I can finally, finally, say that the Kingmaker is here and it’s time for his, and Karina’s, story to be told. I really hope you enjoyed reading the first installment in their series as much as I enjoyed writing it.

  And speaking of writing, I wouldn’t have been able to finish this book without two very special people in my life. H, thank you for all of your love and support, and especially for letting me wake you up at two in the morning whenever I needed plot advice. You’re the best, Lol.

  Kris, my fave human ever—the Niklaus to my Luka—I literally don’t know where I’d be without you. I can’t count how many times you talked me off the ledge while writing this book while simultaneously making sure I was still actually writing. I’d probably be lost without you, so consider yourself my best friend for life.

  And to my readers, you guys make my job so easy. Your enthusiasm for this book and this couple kept me going. If you think you’re ready for White Rabbit: The Fall … trust me when I say, you’re not.

  It’s going to gut you.

  xx LM

  About the Author

  London Miller is the author of the Volkov Bratva series, as well as Red., the first book in the Den of Mercenaries series. After graduating college, she turned pen to paper, creating riveting fictional worlds where the bad guys are sometimes the good guys.

  Currently residing in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and two puppies, she spends her nights drinking far too much Mountain Dew while writing.

  For more information:

  www.londonmillerauthor.com

  [email protected]

 

 

 
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