Page 40 of Revenge (Corrupt Empire 3)

“I know the risks.”

“You don’t fucking understand. Frazier is a psychotic cunt and Tristan tried to rape you. Do you think he won’t try again? He fucking told you he was going to fuck you at your birthday party.”

She flinched. She’d told me that the day after. I was fucking mad about it. His dick was not allowed anywhere near her. He was not having access to my wife. My fucking wife. I wasn’t even being a possessive or jealous piece of crap. I was worried about her fucking safety. It wasn’t fucked up to not want my wife to get raped by someone who’d threatened it on more than one occasion. I took his fucking threats seriously. I didn’t trust him near Avery.

“I know what he said.”

“Then why are you arguing with me about this?”

She turned away, continuing with her makeup. I couldn’t fucking stand this. She was acting like my concerns meant nothing. Maybe I was going off the deep end because of my conversation with Rick, but that didn’t negate how helpless I felt. I couldn’t protect her. Fuck. This reminded me of how I’d felt the day Rick took her.

I strode towards her, grabbed her arm and forced her to look at me.

“Stop. Just stop. I don’t want you going to their house.”

“Aiden, you agreed to this. You said it was our best chance. You don’t get to change your mind now. I have to do this. I need them out of my life. This is the only way I can expose them all. Don’t you get it? I’m married to you, but I can’t openly admit it. I can’t tell the fucking world I’m not a Daniels any longer and that I love you. You. My husband. Do you know how that makes me feel? Like shit. I can’t carry on like this. It has to end and it has to end now.”

She wrenched her arm out of my grasp. I knew this was tough on her, not being able to be honest about us being together. But this is how it’d always been from day one. Things didn’t just change overnight. We had to work towards it. Did she think I wanted to hide it any more than her? Fuck. I wanted everyone to know she was mine. I was fucking proud to be her husband. I was proud to have her on my arm. She was the fucking world to me. The most beautiful girl I’d ever seen. So fucking smart. So fucking radiant. And she picked me. Me of all people to be her man.

“I get that you’re angry about Rick phoning you and taunting you with whatever bullshit he decided to sprout, but you don’t get to take that out on me.”

“Take it out on you? I’m not fucking taking it out on you. I’m fucking well scared for your fucking life and wellbeing.”

She didn’t soften. Her doe eyes hardened.

“You are. You’re shouting at me and getting pissed off because you think I’m not listening. I am. I understand what this is doing to you. Do you think I want to go over to their house and make small talk with two people I hate? I don’t. I really don’t want to do this, but I have to. I can’t go on like this. I want to have a normal fucking life without all of this bullshit. I want a life with you. What we have now is not a fucking life. We’re living in the shadows. I’m living in hell because of my family and Frazier fucking Shaw.”

Tears welled in her eyes. The sight of it fucking killed me. Her words destroyed me.

“I love you, Aiden. I love you so fucking much, but you’re not going to stop me doing this.”

She turned back to the mirror, finishing up her makeup whilst I stared at her silently. What the fuck could I say to any of that? I wanted a life with her too. A life that didn’t include her shitty family and the Shaws. And one where Rick fucking Morgan left us alone.

I followed her out of the bathroom. She slipped on a low pair of heels and her coat.

“Avery, please don’t do this.”

She didn’t look at me as she opened the front door. I couldn’t let her fucking go. I walked out of the flat with her, grabbing my keys on the way. She fiddled with her phone, doing her best to ignore me as we rode down in the lift to the ground floor. My heart was in a fucking vice. I needed her to come back upstairs with me. How was I going to convince her? I understood what she was saying, but the threat the Shaws posed to her was more important.

Why the fuck had I even agreed to this stupid idiotic plan in the first place? Why had I ever thought this was a good idea? It was the worst idea. Absolute worst idea ever. She fucking knew that. This is what broke us apart in the first place.

I stopped her from opening the door when we reached John’s car, turning her to face me. I had to try. I had to convince her.

“Avery, please. Just stop and think about this. Think about what you’re walking into.”

She took a deep breath, her doe eyes softening.

“I know what I’m doing. Please, stop making this harder for me.”

She reached up, placing her hand on my cheek.

“I love you. I’ll be back with what we need.”

She stepped back out of my grasp, opened the car door and slid in. I watched the car pull away, unable to stop the sinking feeling in my stomach. The one that told me this was going to end badly. Avery was walking into a trap of Frazier’s making and I couldn’t stop her.

“Fuck.”

I turned away to walk back into the building when I felt a sharp pain radiate from the back of my skull. I staggered, reaching up and touching where someone had clearly slammed something into my head. My vision blurred a little, but I kept upright. I swung my fist, connecting with something soft. The person grunted.

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