Page 86 of Like a Hurricane

“Me?” Olivia squeaks.

“Yes, Miss Lauder.”

“Why!?” I growl, “you can’t need her status or money.”

“Because Everett, all Farrow’s are expected to marry within six years of taking the business. I was planning a wedding to Kenneth’s niece, but I don’t like her much. She’s like her uncle, greedy and spoiled and since I no longer have any ties to keep me bound to that deal,” He flicks his eyes to Kenneth’s cooling body.

“Little Olivia here is the perfect candidate. A strong background and status and quite frankly, I like little broken things.” Those last words are aimed directly at the youngest Lauder.

“And if we don’t agree?” Arryn grits her teeth.

“Then the death marks stay in place. I have men ready to go at a push of a button. I can assure you, you won’t win against them.”

Arryn stands abruptly, ready to fight but Olivia speaks first. “I’ll do it.”

“Olivia!” Arryn gasps.

“Arranged marriages happen all the time,” Olivia speaks softly, “in our circles, it’s not uncommon.”

“You do know who he is!?” Arryn pleads, stepping towards her sister.

I grip her wrist, keeping her from flying off at Malakai. She’s brimming with enough anger that rational and logical thought aren’t keeping her controlled right now.

“The devil,” Olivia says, “But there’s been too much death.”

“Very good,” Malakai grins, pulling out a folded piece of paper from the inside of his suit pocket, “I had this drawn up, an agreement of sorts. Sign here, please Miss Lauder.”

He slides the paper towards Olivia with a pen.

“Don’t,” Arryn begs but her youngest sister steels her spine and picks up the pen.

“Please, Oli,” Arryn cries, “Don’t sign it!”

The scratch of the nib on the paper is loud, like the chiming of a death bell. Olivia had sealed her fate to save her sister.

“There was nothing you could have done,” Olivia says to Arryn some few hours later, the sisters curled up on the couch in a room we picked to stay in for the night, “I’ll figure out a way of getting out of it.”

Arryn shakes her head, “This was not your burden to bear.”

“And it was yours?” Olivia scoffs. “It’s always been your burden, it’s my turn to save you.”

Torin paces on the phone near the window, the conversation with Maya being taken in hushed tones.

We would go back to the mainland in the morning but right now we all needed some sleep. Kolten hangs back by the door, ever silent, ever watching and my anger for him was still boiling at the surface.

“He’s dangerous,” I tell Olivia, “You have to be incredibly careful around him.”

“I plan on making his life hell,” Olivia growls, “I don’t have the power like he does but trust me, I can make him wish I never signed that piece of paper.”

“When will he contact her for the wedding?” Arryn asks me, her eyes rimmed red and puffy from tears.

“Could be weeks or days, he’s unpredictable.”

“He’ll let us see her, right?” Arryn gasps, panic filling her voice.

“I don’t know, little storm.”

I turn my attention to my adopted brother, teeth gritting even just looking at him, “You took her from me.” I accuse.

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