Page 65 of House of Soot

“I didn’t know?—”

“Karma’s bitch, isn’t it, you two? Now, she’s shown me the passage so I can take my revenge.”

"You showed him the passage?" Ronan's voice cuts through my despair. "After everything we've done for you and your mother?"

My voice cracks. "I thought he was just concerned about security."

"Stupid girl." Ronan advances on me, making me shrink against the wall. “You handed over our secrets to the first man who batted his eyes at you?"

The contempt in his voice makes me flinch. This is worse than being invisible to him.

"I trusted him because?—”

"Because what? Because he made you feel special?" He sneers. "Look at you. The naive little gardener, so desperate for attention that you'd betray everyone who's ever protected you. Just like you did ten years ago."

“No.” I look between them, still not understanding how I play a part in all this.

"Don't play innocent." Ronan's face twists with disgust. "You were always hanging around, always watching. Always trying to get my attention. And when I asked about ways into the house, you couldn't wait to show me. Just like you showed him."

The memory returns. All those endless days trailing after him, my heart fluttering every time he glanced my way. How special I felt when he finally noticed me, finally spoke to me.

"You were so excited when I asked about the house." His lips curl. "Practically tripping over yourself to show me every secret passage you'd found. Just like you did with him." He jerks his head toward Blaise. "Some things never change. Still the same pathetic little girl, buying men's attention by betraying the people who put a roof over your head."

Finally, the synapses are connecting. Blaise isn’t just accusing Ronan of setting the fire. He’s accusing me of helping him by showing him how to get into the house. Which I did, but I had no idea Ronan would set a fire. The fire was an accident, wasn’t it?

"No. That's not… I never…"

"You did." Ronan's voice drips with contempt. "And now you've done it again. Some things never change—you're still that pathetic girl, so desperate to be noticed, she'd do anything for attention."

"That's not what happened." I glance at Blaise, horrified that he’d believe I’d help Ronan kill his family on purpose. "I didn't know?—”

"Didn't know what? That giving away estate secrets might have consequences?" His laugh is cruel. "We took you and your mother in after the fire. Gave you jobs, a home. And this is how you repay our kindness?"

The walls close in as I realize I unknowingly helped cause the fire that killed the Ifrinns.

“History repeats itself, eh?” Blaise asks, seeming amused by this exchange between me and Ronan.

“Where are the rest of you?” Ronan asks Blaise.

Blaise gives a sinister smile. “They’re just as eager to see your family pay. I find it interesting how you berate Jenna for betraying you after all you’ve done. I could say the same for you and your family. You were all nothing until my father took you in. And look how you repaid us.”

My gaze shifts to Blaise, seeing him through new eyes. The son of the family that it appears I’ve inadvertently helped destroy. And every kiss, every tender moment between us had been his revenge.

I think of our baby. A child conceived in lies and manipulation. A child whose father plotted to use me just like Ronan did all those years ago. They’re right. I was desperate for love and attention. I wanted so badly to be seen, to be loved, that I never stopped to question why either of them would be interested in me. God, I’m pathetic.

The bitter taste of bile rises in my throat as I realize how both men played me. One when I was an innocent child, the other when I was a lonely woman. Different methods, same result.

“And you…” Blaise looks at me with disdain but also hurt. “My mother first gave you that cottage. Allowed you to tag alongwhile your mother worked. I wonder what she’ll think when she learns you?—”

I can’t bear to hear the accusation again. "I never knew what I'd done. But you…You made me fall in love with you to what? Break me? Are you going to kill me too?” Until I say the words, I hadn’t considered that. Fear rips through me.

“I did use you.” There’s something in his voice, though, that belies the coldness of his words.

"None of it was real?"

"How could it be?" His laugh is hollow. "You helped kill my parents. Did you think I could actually love the person responsible for destroying my family?"

My voice trembles as I take in the man I don’t recognize anymore and ask again, "Are you going to kill me too?"

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