Page 49 of Kiss of Ruin (Brutal Empire)

“Has she left her room?” I hear the voices outside my room.

When I woke up in the room I stayed in when I stayed in Miami, I didn’t remember anything after taking off from New York. Sobbing on the couch, I think I eventually passed out, with no memory of coming back to the house.

The memory of Nico walking away from me is seared into my brain. I can’t escape it no matter how hard I try to forget the look in his eyes. The look of betrayal and hurt.

I knew that he would be upset when I left, but I did it to stop that bitch from taking everything from us. She had been crazy enough to bring a child with her.

Frankie.

When I can finally escape thoughts of Nico, I’m bombarded by memories of the look in Frankie’s eyes as his mom collapsed to the ground. His screams fill my ears. The tears come harder, and the cycle begins again.

This morning, I didn’t think I had any tears left to cry. I curl my hands into the blanket, pulling it tighter to my chin. Here, in this bed, I don’t have to face the outside world. Face what I’ve done and what I lost in the process.

“No. I don’t think she’s left the bed since she arrived.” If I listen closer, I could probably decipher who’s speaking, but I don’t have the energy to try.

“I’m going in there.”

“Sofia, do you really think that’s a good idea?”

“What else are we supposed to do, Mom. She’s been here for days. She hasn’t eaten anything.”

“I can bring her food.”

“We’ve tried that. I have to get her to leave the room.”

There’s a light knock on the door and it opens slowly revealing Sofia’s dark hair. She steps into the room and shuts the door behind her. “Scarlett?”

I turn my back to her, hoping she’ll take the hint and leave the room.

“You can pretend I’m not here. It’s not going to convince me to leave. Not until you talk to me.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“I don’t care if you want to talk about it, you need to talk about it. Get it off your chest. You can’t stay hidden in here for the rest of your life.”

“No of it matters anymore. She’s dead and he’s gone.”

“Dead, who’s dead?

I roll over. Sofia’s not going to let this go until I tell her what happened in New York that night. The night I lost more than I gained. “Elena DeLuca. Elena Deluca is dead and I’m the one who killed her.”

“You did what?”

Fresh tears pour down my cheeks. “I killed her. I had to…had to protect our family. I didn’t know she’d bring him with her when I taunted her to come and find me.”

“Him? Taunted her? Scarlett, you’re not making any sense. Who are you talking about?” Sofia climbs up on the bed and lays on her side facing me.

“She brought him to a battle between the families. She never cared about him.”

Sofia cups my cheek in her hand. “You’re not making any sense. Scar, you’re scaring me. Please…please talk to me.”

“I posted that I would be at the club. I knew she couldn’t resist trying to get to me, but I never expected her to bring her son Frankie. Why would she bring him?”

A sob bursts from my chest and now I can’t stop them. Sofia pulls me forward into her arms, rubbing my back. “Breathe. Just breathe.”

“I…I…I just don’t understand. She could have gotten him killed.”

“I don’t know…who’s Frankie?”

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