Page 17 of Tarnished Reign

I let him wrap his arms around me and hold me tight. I was uncomfortable at first, but Sian says her daddy is a big hugger, and over time, I’ve become used to his touchy-feely ways.

“Thank you for giving me a room,” I say.

“Nonsense, dear girl.” He smiles, dimples making him appear friendly. “We wish you’d come and stay forever. Don’t we, Sian?”

“Forever and ever,” Sian says.

“And ever and ever,” he repeats.

Sian nods. “And ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and…”

I jerk awake with a gasp. Oh my God. My heart is pounding. I must have fallen asleep. I’m curled on my side, my arms wrapped around myself. No wonder I dreamed about being hugged.

The dreams are slow to fade. They were real events, things that actually happened. I did play ball that way with Cade while my father and stepmother got drunk. I was shown my new room at Sian’s home, although she didn’t malfunction like a broken robot the way she did in my dream. They’re re-doing the room now, they say. Making it even more perfect because Sian wants me to go live with them, but I don’t want to leave Cade. Except, look at me now.

I ache with the need to speak with her. She’d tell me what to do. She is grounded, despite at times seeming excitable and childish; she always has good advice. I had to grow up far too fast when my mother died, and so did Sian; it makes her a great sounding board for advice.

Dimitri said no phones, and I don’t want to piss him off. He’s the only saving grace I have in all of this.

The only beacon of light on the horizon is a man who is clearly a criminal.

“God,” I groan, my head in my hands.

How the hell do I get myself out of this mess?

6

DIMITRI

“Her stepmother was the one who did it?” Alexis stares at me as if I've grown a second head.

“I know, it's horrific, but that's what she said.”

It is the next morning, and I’m exhausted, physically and mentally. I spent hours working over Dorian’s men. Interrogating them, beating the crap out of them. Some were more stoic than others, and we had to get creative. Eventually, they all talked. They always do. I now have a variety of addresses around the city and surrounding area to raid for the rest of the men in the organization.

They didn’t know Adriana personally, though. Only that she was purchased in exchange for a debt, but some did know of her stepmother, Hana Leka, who they said is related to Ari and Dorian. I spent some quality time with Dorian too, but he’s a tougher nut to crack. He’s at the deserted cabin where we take people to interrogate them. I might even get to use my favorite toy, a special torture device I save for the very worst people. Luckily for me, Adriana slept most of yesterday, which meant I didn’t have to deal with her at the same time as dealing with Dorian’s crew. Clearly exhausted from her ordeal, she slept through the night. I kept a guard on her door, not because I thought she’d run but because she awoke twice in the afternoon with nightmares, so I told her there was someone on her door who reported to me, and she could send for me at any time. The guard reported he heard nothing after that, and I assume she rested.

I’m having Dorian’s suite and the rooms next to it redecorated, and I’ve paid a fuck ton of money for them to finish it in a day. New furniture only, not new paint; that would smell for weeks. All the rank art and the garish shit is gone. I might only be staying there a short time, but I want it to be comfortable.

Alexis blows out a long breath. “Are we going to let that go? Let the woman get away with it?”

“Fuck no.” I need to find out as much as I can about Adriana’s stepmother and make her pay for what she did. “We need to find out why she was in so much debt to Dorian and his crew, and we need to figure out why he was willing to swap Adriana for the debt.”

“She’s hot,” Alexis observes. “And Dorian’s men said untouched, right?”

“Yes, which makes whatever the stepmother did even worse in some ways. She will fucking pay once I get the information I need.”

“And the girl?” Alexis keeps his tone mild, but there’s an underlying interest there. “Are you going to let her go?”

“Yes, of course. Once we’ve done this shit that Jacob wants. Why?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know. You’ve bought her clothes, and you seem … distracted.”

He’s not wrong. I am distracted. I won’t admit it, though. He doesn’t need to know how I’m feeling. Hell, I don’t understand how I’m feeling myself. Littleblue has wormed her way under my skin. Somehow, in so little time, she’s burrowed her way in and has me thinking about her constantly. I’m going to ask her date of birth when she awakens, so I can have my men look into her background more. She has a British accent, but from what I understand from the brief intel we got from Dorian’s men, she lives here, in the States, now with her stepmother and father. I’ll question her further when she’s in the right state to hold up to it.

I tell myself there’s plenty to do in the meantime, but even when I’ve been directing the men and sorting out business, my mind keeps flicking back to that girl, in that room. Sad. Scared.

Alone.

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