Early this morning, I got word from the man I had tailing him—he was getting out, awaiting trial at home.
He didn’t spend even twenty-four hours on the outside. Now he’ll never return anywhere.
“You didn’t have the chance. You went into her room, haunted her in her own house, a place where she should’ve felt safe.”
I don’t mention the nightmares she still has sometimes—he doesn’t deserve to know he marked her that deeply.
“I have the videos, Ramon. All of them—from most of Lilly’s adolescence.”
“You’re bluffing. If you had them, you would’ve handed them over to the court, like you did with the other girls’.”
I give something close to a smile, but it’s more of a snarl of hatred, as I start cranking the handle that lifts the chains suspending him. “That was only so those girls could have their justice. Oh, almost forgot—some friends of mine, very good at tracking offshore accounts, drained yours. Right now, every one of the girls you hurt is receiving a generous anonymous donation. It’s the least I could do to compensate for what you stole from them.”
“What about Lilly’s cut?” he asks, sweat pouring down his forehead. The chain is fully tightened now, and his feet no longer touch the floor.
“Your life,” I reply, and then I begin his punishment.
Two hours later, I get into my car while the cleanup team makes sure no trace is left behind.
My phone rings.
“Are you coming to dinner with us?” my woman asks.
“Popcorn?” I know it’s Bruno’s night, and “dinner” is always the same.
“And sundaes.”
“I’ll be there in just over an hour, baby. Wait for me.”
I start the car, already forgetting Ramon completely. For me, he’s the past.
Lilly and Bruno—they are my future.
Chapter 69
Boston
Five Months Later
We walk hand in hand into the courthouse, waves of anxiety rippling through my body.
Today is the day they will decide whether we’re allowed to adopt Bruno.
I feel like my future is on hold until I know that no one will ever take him away from me.
The three of us went through countless interviews with social workers and psychologists. Normally, the adoption process takes about a year, but Bruno’s case is special, and we used every possible legal means to speed it up.
The days following the nightmare of Maria’s death were an emotional rollercoaster. I had to hide any signs of distress, never missing a single visit with my little boy. I didn’t want him to sense that anything was wrong.
After passing out the day I finally put an end to that woman’s evil, I woke up in the hospital to find Ethan sitting beside me.
Following everything that had happened, the mess my brother had created seemed secondary to the possibility that my love and I might not have survived.
Amos needed surgery to remove the bullet from his leg, but he recovered quickly.
He’s more protective than ever and has practically moved into my apartment.
My floor was busy for a while, since the apartment the criminal had used became a crime scene. They discovered that Maria had rented it only three days after I moved in.
