Page 126 of Cruel Knots

Lucia looks up at me, her emerald eyes widening in surprise. “Hey,” she says in a small voice and looks away guiltily, continuing to beat the batter.

My suspicion piques at once. I prowl closer, taking in the bags of flour and sugar, packets of chocolate chips, and a carton of eggs.

“Who’s making you cook?” I ask as she continues to look away.

“No one,” she murmurs. “Lilja said her favorite cake was chocolate, so I’m baking one for her. She’s been so sweet to me all this time, I wanted to do something special for her. If I had money, I’d have taken her out to a spa or something.”

Her explanation sounds fine but why is she still avoiding me?

Reaching out, I place a hand on hers, stopping her from whisking like a maniac. A shiver jolts through her at my touch. She stays still, reluctant to look at me.

Hooking a finger under her chin, I lift her face to me. Those jewel-like green eyes stare back at me, hypnotizing me for a moment. I blink, my gaze falling on a bruise on the right side of her forehead.

My heart squeezes at once. How did she get hurt?

“What happened last night?” I ask, caressing the spot with a gentle finger.

“This?” she says, chuckling nervously. “It’s all my fault. I was clumsy and fell. All my fault.”

My brows rise high on my forehead. She’s trying a little too hard to convince me she fell and hurt herself.

“You were always a bad liar,” I tell her.

Fear flits through her eyes.

“Who hurt you?” I ask in a deep, demanding tone. “Was it my brothers?”

“No!”

“Then, who?”

“No one,” she mutters, her gaze sliding away from my face.

“Did you get involved with the incident that happened at the club last night?”

Her widening eyes tell me I’m getting closer to the truth.

“What incident?” she squeaks.

“They found the body of a man whose throat had been slit open,” I say, relaying the news I read in the headlines this morning. “They also found a woman who’d been drugged and left in one of the bathroom stalls where the corpse was found. I had a feeling Leon was involved but you were there too, weren’t you?”

“It wasn’t Leon’s fault,” she insists.

“Tell me what happened,” I demand with a threatening growl. “Don’t miss a detail or I’ll make my brothers pay.” It’s an empty threat but enough to scare her.

She blurts out the whole story, telling me over and over that Mikhail and Leon aren’t to be blamed for what happened, that everything was a coincidence.

Deep inside, I feel the choke of a familiar fear. It’s a deep-seated terror that Callum Baldwin has buried in my mind. I hate knowing my mistake or ignorance can cost me the life of someone I love and cherish.

Casey Martelle had been reported by several victims. He was a lawyer who knew how to use the law against the women he preyed upon. The creep lured young women into thinking he was a friendly, laid-back beta guy.

When they lowered their guard, he poisoned their drinks and raped them. Some of his victims were roofied while the others were merely incapacitated while going through the terrible ordeal of being torn apart by him.

The thought of this man laying hands on Lucia sends a thrill of terror through me. She’s so soft and vulnerable. Her bastard brother kept her imprisoned in their home, never letting her see the ugliness of the world outside their glittering mansion.

My arms wrap around her, pulling her against me.

“Damien?” she whispers with a hint of confusion.

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