Page 74 of V for Vindictive

I’d been so bloody sure my despair was under lock and key that I’d forgotten who I was up against—Kris was an emotional terrorist, and she’d get the goods whether or not I was willing.

Leaving the collection of weapons on the floor, Kris stood up in another curve-clinging outfit, curly purple hair dropping around her black-coated eyes. Her hands danced up her sides, then crossed against her chest, and I’d know that pose from twenty klicks away.

I was in trouble, gods help me.

The woman was beautiful, but she was a viper who sunk her fangs in the second you showed weakness. She’d been my partner and close confidantfor years; something I begrudgingly thanked Phillip for despite knowing he’d done it for himself. Her weapons were lethal, but it was her tongue you should be most wary of. It lashed and spat truth that’d tear apart even the most confident person in the room, and it never failed to enlighten anyone who was willing to hear it—truly hear it.

In all the years she and I were partners, she’d never been less than brutally honest with everyone she met. I wasn’t any exception, and I silently prepared myself for a lecture. That fearsome look on her face meant I was in for one hell of an ear-lashing.

“He’s going to break her heart, Sloan. Hell, the dude already has. He left that poor girl and only returned after you’d started to pick up the pieces.” She caught sight of her reflection and fixed the soft-pink lipstick around her mouth. Then her eyes were on me again, tearing apart any feigned nonchalance I projected. “Don’t sit here and tell me this is for the best and she loves him. She’s young. Barely a woman. Naïve to how the world works and vulnerable to bad men. Phillip was the first person of her own kind she connected with. If I had a dollar for every time I was confused by some asshole parading as a guy who totallygot me, well, I’d probably have enough money to retire.”

Her speech cut through all my carefully crafted excuses—ones I’d given her when she suggested I go back to V. The femme fatale saw how deeply I cared for the little darling I left behind, and she’d never sit back and watch me make the biggest mistake of my life. As was her way, Kris would beat the sense back into me. With her fists if she had to.

I deserve nothing less.

“Besides, we both know you’ve nevereverlooked at anyone like you look at V.” Grabbing my shoulder, Kris’s eyes slid to the side to meet mine. “Andunlike a certain asshole we’re both forever tied to whether or not we like it, you actually deserve to be with her.” Her dazzling light eyes caught a stray sunbeam from the window and twinkled before she winked at me, knowing I’d never be able to argue with her.

Then I was left to my thoughts before a voice tore me away from them. I pivoted, catching sight of the woman I knew only from stories Phillip and V told about her.

Rose’s tired eyes glinted before she walked into the room and took a seat in a nearby chair. To anyone else, the aging woman would look frail and time-worn. Her skin hung from her bones, and the world had taken its toll on her body. But when she looked up again, fire burned in hazel-colored eyes. In an outfit that was far from grandmotherly,she narrowed her stare on me, suggesting another ear-lashing was in my immediate future.

Double bollocks.

“She’s not wrong,” Rose finally said, her weary voice wistful and airy.

Thankfully, I controlled the sigh bent on leaving my mouth. I wasn’t eager to take this verbal beating a physical route, and what I’d learned about Rose assured me I’d be knocked out cold the second I argued. My genes might be superior, but Rose would out-Hunter anyone she met.

“He’s broken and too self-centered to give my granddaughter all that she needs,” she added with a voice drenched in defeat.

I stiffened like I was under attack, unsure how best to address her, and the smile the old Hunter gave me was full of amusement. Rose motioned to the chair beside her, and I slowly made my way over to it.

“Do you want to be with her?”

I fingered through my hair, put out. “It’s not whether or not I want to be with her…the only thing that truly matters is what V wants, yeah?”

Rose’s lips twitched and she crossed her arms, staring into my very soul for all I knew. Those eyes could penetrate the deepest recesses of the ocean, pick apart a stone-faced killer, topple governments and sus out spies. And sadly, I wasn’t Phillip, she’d know the truth from lie with me.

“I know my granddaughter, but I couldn’t tell you what she wants these days, or who she is. She’s been confused since everything she learned about her upbringing was a lie.” Her faded hazel eyes slipped away from mine to the nearby window, and all the sunlight landed on her tired features.

Something about this woman ate away at the heart. Tragedy beamed everywhere you looked, plagued by a lifetime of it. The world’s burdens were in her slouched shoulders; her granddaughter’s pain in her sunken face, every line and sallow dip portraying nothing but sadness. But when her eyes skated over to me, the fire was back in glimmering irises, embers now full flame, a determination that reminded me this was V’s family.

“I’m mostly to blame for that, and I know a part of her resents me for keeping it from her. But what she needs right now is someone who waits and understands. Someone who knows perfectly well what and who they are.” The elderly woman sighed and shook her head. “Not someone who’s just as lost and confused as she is.”

Was this a coordinated effort by the women in this safe house? It was starting to seem like one, but I couldn’t argue with either of them or their points.

It wasn’t that I’d admitted defeat when I left that day knowing it was Phillip V waited for all this time, but I didn’t really have much choice in the matter. The look in her eyes smothered out any hope I might ever win her over, and I didn’t want to burden the young Hunter with my feelings.Though, that was in part an excuse. Honestly, I wanted to lick my wounds and reorganize my thoughts.

Yes, I promised to fight for her, but Phillip returned and I’d never seen her smile the way she did with him. Sure, it was after some impressive verbal beatdowns—one physical, even—but V lit up the second she saw Phillip come to her rescue. Her gaze never truly left the Austrian, and it was difficult to see our connection unraveling before my very eyes.

How was I ever to win against him?

The entire week she’d been held hostage, my thoughts churned and I was desperate to go to her. Phillip was on a warpath to find her whereabouts, and I’d forgotten for those few days all about being love rivals—until she stood in front of him, barely noticing me at all.

So, I considered bowing out like any man in my position would. I wanted what was best for V, even if that wasn’t me. I’d give her whatever made her happy. Except, these powerhouse women’s words sunk into me, into the place that still pined and yearned for the spritely Hunter.

Finally, I opened my mouth. “What would you have me do?”

When Rose grinned, I was reminded that the two of them were related. It was all mischief and sneaky intentions, and quite honestly, jarring on the seventy-something woman after nothing but tragedy in her expression. I hadn’t been prepared to see it, so my mouth fell open in a I’m-a-daft-wanker sort of way.

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