Page 122 of Love Bleeds Red
But this time, it’s not only me that has something to say.
Mum steps forward, determined like I haven’t seen her in years. She approaches the cell window, and Alfred’s face appears behind the glass, hope flickering in his eyes.
“Ada, darling?—”
“Don’t,” she cuts him off sharply. “You don’t get to call me that anymore.”
Alfred’s mouth opens and closes like a fish.
“For over twenty years, you made me believe I was nothing without you,” Mum continues, her voice growing stronger with each word. “You convinced me I was weak, that I needed your protection, your guidance. That I should be grateful for the scraps of affection you threw my way.”
She presses her palm against the glass, and Alfred flinches backward.
“But I raised a good man despite you. Leon is everything you’re not—he’s kind, protective, loyal. He chose love over power, family over legacy. He’s more of a man at twenty-four than you’ll ever be.”
Tears stream down her face, but her voice never wavers. I’m so damn proud of her.
“I wasted decades of my life loving a monster. But I’m done now. I’m done being afraid of you, done letting you control my thoughts, done feeling guilty for my son growing up without a father. He’s lucky you were absent.”
She steps back from the window, wiping her eyes.
“Rot in there, Alfred. You too, Greta. You both deserve every sickening moment you have left on this earth.”
The cell falls silent. Even Alfred seems stunned into speechlessness.
Mum turns to me, and I swear she looks like a different woman. “I’m ready to go home now.”
I lead her to the stairs and gesture for her to start climbing all while Alfred pounds on the door, shouting. “You can’t leave me here! This is murder!”
Once Mum is halfway up, I move to the cell window again.
“Maybe so, but it’s nothing you don’t deserve.” I hold up the portfolio so he can see. “Thanks for the inheritance documentation, by the way. I’ll make sure every penny goes to helping the people you hurt. Oh, and one more thing… we leaked everything to the media. You can die knowing that the whole world knows exactly what you are.”
His face drops but he recovers quick enough to pound on the door. “Leon, please. Don’t do this?—”
“I hope you left some water in there for your prisoners because that’s all you’ll have.”
“The authorities will find me eventually,” he says, sounding desperate.
“Maybe. Could be days though. Possibly longer.” I turn to follow Mum up the stairs, pausing at the bottom. “And Alfred? In case you were wondering, that emergency override systemyou disabled so your victims couldn’t escape during fires? We made sure it stays that way.”
His voice follows us up the stairs—shouting, pleading, threatening. But I don’t look back.
Some monsters deserve to die alone in the dark.
PART 3
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
BAILEY
It’s summer again. So ironic considering most of my recent entries in here were from the summer before. I’m back home now with Mom and Dad. It’s been an adjustment for all of us. Especially since Jasper and Damon still have a few months left on their lease for their apartment in the city and Leon hasn’t left London yet. I figured he’d have tons to do after everything. Still wrapping my head around who his father is… was, I mean. It was in the headlines about a week after the leak. He was found dead in his cell… it was deemed an accident. I didn’t want to know the details. The relief was good enough.
Anyway, back to Mom and Dad. When Jasper made that phone call before we left London, telling them theyfound me… it was surreal. Hearing their voices through the speaker, it’s safe to say I sobbed on the spot. They flew out right away even though we told them not to spend the money on plane tickets. Pretty sure Leon paid for them anyway, but no one will admit that to me.
I wasn’t sure if they would look at me differently. I know when I look in the mirror, I don’t see the old me. But I guess my scars are more internal than I thought.
It’s been kind of a mess since we got back. I’m not sure how but the investigators covering the case found me and I’ve had to rehash my story again and again. I’m going to need to go to court soon, which I’m really not looking forward to.
