Page 37 of Ruthless Beasts

How can the beasts have so much control while lying low? Hadn’t we crushed them enough?

They are ruthless, they’ll do anything to get what they want.

They aren’t human; they have no morals. They really are beasts.

All whispers, of course, off handed comments I had no clue at the time were about the men that captured me. Or would it be saved? The line was blurred. But I knew after the moments in the church, watching them ruthlessly slay men, their enemies, who whispered behind their back for so long, I’d no doubt that they were capable of almost anything.

Adam closed his eyes and inhaled, letting it out slowly. “My anger is not directed at you, Belle. My anger would never be at you.”

With trembling lips, I admitted the truth. “Yes.”

How could I be anything else when I was never allowed out of my father’s sight? Never allowed off his property unless with an escort. Except the one time I had gotten permission to go out, and somehow…

“And you know that Joseph Accardo is our child’s grandfather?”

My heart pounded so loud it was all I heard roaring in my ear. How had he known? Who told him? “Y-yes.”

“You weren’t going to tell me?” The intensity of his gaze was unnerving. I wanted to look away, but doing so only brought my gaze to Mercer’s, his eyes equally hard.

“I had nowhere to go. I didn’t want to go back to my father.” I pleaded with my eyes, begging them to believe me. “But if you knew…”

“If I knew our child was related to the man who killed my wife. My son…”

I flinched. I hadn’t known, not fully. I suspected. I didn’t know the entire story. But hearing the words coming from his mouth, with such clarity, only solidified what I feared. He wouldn’t let me stay. Not when the blood of the man he hated so much ran through my baby’s veins.

“I’m sorry.” I didn’t want to cry, but the tears came anyway. The words were inadequate, but they were all I could offer. There was no coming back from this, I was sure. I may be his wife right now, but I was never the wife he wanted.

His brows pulled together. “You think I blame you?”

“Don’t you?”

“I need to apologize to you, Belle.” He swallowed. “I’ll admit I brought you here out of revenge and my sheer desire to be petty. I didn’t want you. I didn’t want another wife. None of this reflects on you, just a reflection of my mindset. But you’re here now, and you belong to us.” His eyes flicked to Mercer. “All of us, and I’d never blame you for actions that were beyond your control.”

“But—“ I tried to argue that I was pregnant and those actions had a cause, even if I didn’t remember them too clearly.

He cut me off. “We saw the video, Belle.”

Video. I was confused. I hadn’t a clue what he was referring to. “I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about.”

“You didn’t know?” Mercer’s face went harder. Harder than I thought possible for the man who usually had been nothing but gentle with me.

“I don’t understand what we are talking about.” My pulse was so intense I wondered for a moment if I was going to pass out. They were scaring me. They had never sat me down like this, never stared at me so intently that every nerve in my body pulsed. In fact, if it weren’t for the meals they insisted we eat together, I couldn’t remember a time I’d ever been in the same room with more than one of them for more than a few seconds.

“There is a video, Belle.” Adam’s face gave away no emotion. “Of you with the young Accardo.”

“I-“ I shook my head, horror filling me. “I didn’t know. Have you watched?”

“Yes.”

I’d watched these men gun down a church, kill the father of my child inches away from me, and yet, I’d never felt such horror. “No.”

I tried to deny it but they ignored me. “Would you like to see it?”

Did I want to see? Absolutely not. Except I was curious what exactly was on that video. Horrified, but curious. Scared to know, but scared to be left out of the knowledge they had about me. When I didn’t answer, Mercer opened a computer and sat it in front of me. “Hit play when you’re ready.”

I may never be ready.

Still, I reached forward, hitting the play button, watching as my father mixed a drink innocently enough in our kitchen. I walked in, wearing the outfit I was going to meet Hannah in, except Hannah had told me my father said I was sick and canceled our meeting. Then I drank, and that’s when the innocent scene turned to utter destruction of my heart. I remembered that moment vividly, though I must have blockedit out until now. The feeling of unease, knowing something was wrong but not being able to pinpoint it. Then, I felt nothing.

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