BLOOD TIES (Decklan Jennings Thriller Book 1) by Philip Duncan (book recommendations for young adults txt) 📕

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he replied, not really knowing what to say.

“Thanks!” she said. “Then it said my mother was still alive but had moved shortly after his death. She took a job in Moscow and has been living there ever since. I am going to find her and meet her for the first time. I have a lot of questions.”

“That’s incredible, Rebecca. I really hope you can find her and get the answers you want. Family is the most important thing in …” Decklan said but couldn’t finish because he was starting to choke up again.

Damn it, man. Keep it together!

***

“Everything okay?” she asked.

“I’m okay. It’s just been a rough month,” Decklan replied.

“I can understand that for sure.”

Decklan knew she was just trying to be nice but there was no way she could possibly understand what he was dealing with. No one could. It was unimaginable for most people, but it was his reality.

“Well, I’m going to try and get some rest now. The jet lag and time change are going to be rough once we get there,” Rebecca said.

Decklan smiled and nodded. “Good idea. I’m going to do the same.”

The conversation finally stopped, which Decklan thought was what he wanted. However, silence seemed to be even worse. With nothing or no one to distract him from his pain, it easily crept back up and started to consume. He began seeing flashes of the past with his family. All the memories were good. He knew there were hard times over the years, but his mind didn't allow those to find any space in his thoughts. It was only the good times, which made it even more difficult to keep it together. He was strong, highly trained, and skilled, and had been hardwired to push through difficult situations. It was something he had to do in order to survive over the years, but this pain was different. Nothing about his life was ever easy, until he met his wife. She saved him. She turned his whole world around and showed him that things could be good…even great.

But what did that matter anymore? She wasn’t here anymore, and she was never coming back. He had no interest in ever finding love again because he knew she was the only one for him in this life. All he could do now was make up for not being there to protect her and their children.

They had only been in the air for a couple of hours, which meant it would still be half a day before they landed in Moscow. He looked over at Rebecca and she was fast asleep. She looked so peaceful. Decklan wondered if he would ever sleep like that again. He slept because he didn’t have a choice, but he never actually felt rested. He stayed exhausted all day every day and the only thing that allowed him to push through was adrenaline and his thirst for revenge. Plus, he now had two promises to fulfill…his own and Langley’s. He couldn’t let their deaths be in vain.

Several more hours passed, and he still couldn’t fall asleep. He figured at this point that it wasn’t going to happen. He just gazed out of the window, watching as the world passed by underneath. Everything seemed so small and meaningless from this perspective. The plane spent most of the time over the Atlantic Ocean. The vast and open waters of the deep blue. Several more hours passed by and they were finally over land again. He looked up at the small TV on the back of the seat in front of him to check the flight path. They were flying over Ireland, then the UK, Germany and eventually into Russia. The only time he had ever ventured out this far east was Germany when he was in the military, but never beyond that. Russia would be the farthest place he had ever gone, and probably would ever go. Hell, it might be the last place he ever saw.

Ding! Ding! “Hello, this is your captain speaking. I hope everyone’s flight has been comfortable thus far. We will begin our descent here shortly and should be landing within the hour. We want to thank you for flying with us and we hope to see you again soon.”

About time.

Decklan noticed Rebecca was starting to come out of her long slumber. He couldn’t believe how long she slept. Basically the whole trip, minus their back and forth at the start.

She removed her eye mask and returned her seat to the upright position.

“Are we almost there? How long was I out?” she said, still half asleep and fighting off a yawn.

“Almost. Less than an hour according to the captain,” Decklan replied. “You slept almost the whole way.”

“Wow, I must have been pretty tired, huh?” she said with a sleepy smile.

“I guess so.”

“Do you know where you are staying once we get there?” she asked. “Maybe we can share a cab, or whatever they call it in Russia.”

“Oh, I’m not sure yet to be honest. I was going to figure it out once I got into the city,” Decklan replied, not wanting to tell her where he was going.

She looked at him inquisitively. “That sounds stressful, but I am sure a good-looking businessman like yourself won’t have any trouble finding your way around,” Rebecca said with a flirty tone.

Good looking? You are young enough to be my daughter, Decklan thought to himself.

“I’ll manage,” he replied, purposefully ignoring her comments.

They could feel the plane start to descend, which meant they would be landing any minute. Decklan wanted to grab his bag and get off the plane as quickly as possible. He needed to find Parker’s contact as soon as possible. The last thing he wanted to do was be wandering around a foreign country, especially Russia, without a gun. Especially since he was looking for one of the most dangerous men Russia had to offer.

They finally landed and were ready to exit the plane. Rebecca was just as