Page 44 of The Last Shadow

“Revenge,” I say.

She stares at me with a blank expression. A poker face if you will. “Wow. You’re a serial killer, Damien.” Her words are barely a whisper, but they hit harder than any slap. “And I’m married to you.”

Francesca looks down, tracing her fingers along the grain of the table like she’s trying to gather her thoughts. I want to reach for her, explain, take her hand, but I don’t move.

“You know,” she says, finally breaking the silence, “I thought I knew the man I married. I thought he wouldn’t have lied to me. He wouldn’t have…” She trails off, taking a shaky breath, and something inside me feels like I’m dying.

“You say you don’t want to hide from me anymore, Damien, but now I’m the one who has to figure out what to do with this. With us.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Damien

After my talk with Francesca this morning, all I want to do is to see Olivia. I don’t know if Francesca is going to arrest me because she hasn’t said a word to me since our little chat.

Olivia’s progress means everything to me. I can’t let anything, or anyone interfere, but she needs to know in case I get locked up for life. I know it could still happen, but Francesca is my wife, and unless she secretly recorded me, which I don’t think she did, it’s her word against mine.

Would she want the world to know she’s been fucking a serial killer so intimately that she said, “I do?” While searching for said serial killer?

I don’t think so.

I step into Serenity House, donning my charming brother persona. Tara’s radiant smile hits me like a breath of fresh air in this otherwise suffocating place.

“Mr. Wolfe! It’s so good to see you.”

“Tara.” I nod. My actions this morning have made my heart race, but I need to ensure that Olivia is taken care of forever.

“You’ll be shocked at her progress,” she says with a smile, but my mind is so preoccupied that I can’t even manage a smile back.

I linger in the doorway, unable to step inside just yet. Seeing Olivia like this—light in her eyes, a small but genuine smile as she talks to Dr. Atkins—is almost too much to process. She’s come so far, and part of me doesn’t feel like I deserve to see it. After everything I’ve done in her name, all the blood on my hands, here she is, more at peace than I ever expected.

Dr. Atkins catches sight of me and gives a small nod before leaving, allowing me a few moments alone with my sister. Olivia’s eyes follow his exit before they settle on me, and the smile on her face widens just a bit.

“Hey, big brother.” Her voice is soft but steady, and that alone sends a jolt through my chest.

“Olivia,” I say, stepping forward, trying to keep the tremor out of my voice. I swallow the lump forming in my throat. “I hear you’ve been doing… really well.”

She chuckles softly, a sound I haven’t heard in years, and it nearly undoes me. “So they say. But you know how it is. Some days are better than others.”

The understatement doesn’t go unnoticed, but there’s a clarity in her gaze now that wasn’t there before. She’s really here with me at this moment, and I don’t know if it’s relief, guilt or pure fear that’s weighing heavier on me.

She pats the bed beside her, and I take a seat, feeling my heart race with every second. I know she doesn’t know the whole truthabout why those people who hurt her can’t hurt anyone else ever again. She doesn’t know about the real monster sitting beside her, masked by a brother’s love. And I can’t stop wondering what would happen if she did.

“Remember when I couldn’t even look people in the eyes?” she asks, breaking the silence. “And now I’m talking to therapists, working through all the darkness.”

Her words hit deeper than she could ever know. The darkness she’s conquered is nothing compared to the darkness I carry. She’s fought her way out of it, while I walked right into it willingly.

And I’d do it again for her sake.

“Yeah, Liv. You’re stronger than anyone I know.” My voice is raw, barely more than a whisper. I can’t bring myself to say anything else because I’m not sure if it will come out steadily.

Olivia reaches over and squeezes my hand, a simple gesture that almost undoes me. She has no idea what I’ve done, what I’d do all over again to protect her. And now that I’ve told Francesca everything, how long before Olivia has to live without me?

“What’s going on, Damien?” she asks, her gaze searching my face. “You look, I don’t know, stressed.”

Her question catches me off guard. Her eyes narrow a bit, as if trying to read me more deeply. I drag my hand back slowly, running it through my hair in a weak attempt to ground myself. “Just a lot on my mind, I guess.” I force a small smile. “Nothing for you to worry about.”

“But you’re always here, Damien. All these years, you were here.” Olivia smiles, and I look down, swallowing hard. I don’t have the heart to tell her I may go to prison.

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