Page 21 of Revenge

Damn it. I’d had enough.

“OK, timeout. You shouldn’t be anywhere near Kai now. You divorced his father.”

I moved forward on the bed and crossed my legs, a twinge of pain shooting across my side at the motion.

I closed my eyes and swallowed, desperate not to picture that line of crimson; blood.

Pathetic really for an ex-mafia princess.

“That’s the thing, sweetie. You divorce husbands, not children.”

My mouth fell open at that one. Calling Kai a child was borderline hysterical. As was that word coming from the mouth of a woman only seven years older than he was.

I felt a wave of sickness and placed my palm against my head.

“Are you OK?” Suki said with a whisper of concern.

Dropping my hand, I released a sigh of frustration.

“You still shouldn’t be living in his house mother. I take it you’re free to come and go as you please?” I asked on the back of the ‘escort you to your room’comment.

“Yes, but I don’t go out much because of the Italian thing. I hate feeling that I am being watched and there’s no need. Kai has everything brought in that I want.”

And there it was, manipulation at its best.

Another knock sounded on the door. Great. Our time was up, I guessed.

Suki fluffed up her hair and pursed her lips, deep in thought before she replied.

“Look, why don’t you freshen up and I’ll see you at dinner,” Suki said as she pushed off the bed, glancing nervously behind her.

“OK. But this isn’t over. We need to talk about leaving this place. I love you and you know I only want what’s best for both of us.”

“I know sweetie and I love you but everything’s going to be fine, you’ll see.” And then she left me there.

As the door clicked behind her, I realised that at least I wasn’t locked in.

Pushing myself off the bed, another dizzy feeling swam around my head, the after-effects of whatever was still in my system.

Kai.

I knew he could be charming and had seen that side of him in the past. But how could I ever trust him again?

Three

Ava

It hadn’talwaysbeen bitter between Kai and me. Once upon a time, we had shared a normal conversation. We had even laughed together, shot the shit. It was during those early daysbeforeour parents announced they were getting married. Kai had been almost human back then.

And now, I wasn’t surewhathe was.

The night Gerard and Suki announced their nuptials when I was fifteen, things changed overnight. Kai became a tormentor more than a friend, bossing me around like the little sister I wasn’t. He had wiped away my girlish infatuation and, in its place, grew resentment; a deep-rooted type that slowly decayed the soul.

And he never believed what had been happening under his nose.

As I padded barefoot to the window, I realised my phone wasn’t in my jeans. Kai must have taken it, although who would I call? My mother was theonlyfamily I had. I also couldn’t chance calling Anton and Kai learning of his involvement in what went down with Gerard.

No, Anton would be worried, but we needed radio silence, for the time being. As far as anyone else was concerned, Anton Quinn was an old friend with an apartment I had been staying in.

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