Page 26 of Born To Be Bad

“You’re not listening,” Ariana says in a dangerous whisper. “I’m not fucking going to your pre-approved nuthouse.”

I put my hands up to press pause on the nuthouse angle. “Where would you choose to go?”

She looks at me as if I’m completely insane. “I’m going back home. Obviously.”

I choke on a bitter laugh. “Home? The De Lucas? You must be kidding.”

“I’m going home to Sebastian.”

I can’t keep the incredulity out of my voice. “Sebastian?”

Ariana pouts and stares at the ceiling.

“Sebastian?” I demand. “The same Sebastian who stayed home while he sent you out to murder your own family?”

“You’re not my family,” she yells. “Sebastian is my family!”

Ivy stands, uncharacteristically scraping her chair. “Let’s get a coffee.”

I know what she really means is let’s walk this off and de-escalate the situation. My adrenaline is pumping, and my instinct is to finish this brutal conversation, but I know she’s right. I nod, and she gives Ariana a tight smile in farewell as we step out.

CHAPTER 16

Fighters

IVY

I give Alistair a while to calm down and gather his thoughts. I can feel his frustration. I hold his hand and wait for him to start talking, but all he does is shake his head.

Eventually, he bursts out. “Can you believe it?”

I take a deep breath and shake my head. “Honestly? No.”

It’s obvious to an observer what is going on, but poor Ariana is just so indoctrinated.

“They kidnapped her,” he grits out. “They killed Henderson Snr. and left Harry for dead. How can she know this and still be loyal to them?”

“Sandringham said it’s incredibly complex, and especially impossible to understand if you’re not in her shoes.”

He cinches his eyes shut as if he is in pain. “But it’s Ariana. Brave, loving, kind Ariana.”

Not at the moment, she’s not. She was pretty vicious to Alistair—as trapped animals are.

“We’ll get her help,” I say. “We’ll get Ariana back, the one you remember.”

Alistair stops and searches my eyes. “Do you really think so? Do you think it’s possible? She seems so … irredeemably … lost.”

“I know so,” I reply. “That little girl you lost is still there, inside her. She’s just hiding. It’s what trauma does. We need to show her that it’s safe for her to emerge.” I take a breath. “Fighting isn’t going to do that.”

Alistair rubs the back of his head. “I didn’t mean to be confrontational. Honestly, it’s the last thing I wanted.”

“It’s only because you care so much. The situation is … incredibly confusing and frustrating. But it won’t always be like this.”

“I just—” he sighs. “I just don’t understand how she can think of them as family.”

“I know this is really difficult to wrap your head around, but I understand it because, in a way—in a much less intense way—I was in Ariana’s position. I kept going back to Jeff even after he hurt me. And I had none of the history that Ariana and the De Lucas have. I wasn’t financially reliant on Jeff. I still kept going back.”

I used to hate myself for it. I think of myself as independent and intelligent, and yet I acted like a complete idiot. I used to tell myself how weak I was, how pathetic.

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