Page 18 of Heart of a Villain

There was absolutely no fucking way.

Before he could storm the semicircle, he felt himself being dragged backward by his shirt. He didn’t look away from the “visitor” until his feet came to a stop in the middle of the large kitchen.

“Who is she?” Joel asked.

He glanced across the room. “I…

“You know her, though, right?”

“I’m,” he exhaled, rubbing his forehead, “not sure. She looks like…someone.”

Someone beautiful.

Someone incredible.

Someone dead.

“Is that the woman you think is Ayesha’s sister?” he asked.

Joel nodded. “Yeah. She introduced herself as Juliana, but once we’re done with introductions, we’ll let her know that she can drop the pretense. Her real name’s Sayeda.”

His knees nearly gave out.

There was no way it could be her. She had Sayeda’s face, Sayeda’s eyes, and Sayeda’s name, but he’d seen the burning body. He’d smelled the burning flesh. He’d ignored the pain in his chest for the last decade.

“You know her, Adrían?” Dez asked, joining them. “Because, when you walked in, you looked like you saw a ghost.”

Adrían glanced again. “Did she see me?”

“Don’t think so,” Joel said. “Who is she? She’s the real reason you’ve been obsessed with Eesh, isn’t she? See, I knew something was up. Don’t get me wrong—my wife is worth the obsession—but you wouldn’t let the shit drop even though you know I fully intend to assassinate you.”

“Intended,” he corrected.

Joel didn’t comment.

“But it can’t be her,” he insisted. “Yes, they look the same and have the same name, but the woman I knew, she died. How do you all know her?”

“Julien met her years ago while trying to break into Central’s servers,” Joel explained. “Over the years, she’s helped him secure a shitload of confidential information. In turn, we’ve been helping her lay low, hence the fake name. First, he helped her escape Morocco?—”

“No, no.” Adrían, head bowed, thrust his fingers into his hair. “Morocco?”

Morocco.

Central.

Sayeda.

Each piece fit into the puzzle of his past—perfectly.

He raised his head. “Wait, did or does Julien use a code or covert name? If so, what is it?”

“Atlas,” Dez replied.

The blood left his body.

It was her.

How could he have given up on her so quickly? All he’d seen was a body and a dress, the same dress he’d seen her wearing last, and then he’d left her behind. He walked away. He’d closed himself off, but the minute he saw Ayesha, he’d crumbled.

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