I snickered. If this asshole thought I was going to beg him for something, he had another thing coming. “Are you gonna call Callista or not?”
He chuckled. “Yeah. I’ll go get her.”
He stood up from where he was forming his pallet and walked out of the room. The slap of my hands against my face as I fell back against the bed was more forceful than it was meant to be. I tried to think back to the last time I let someone into my bed, but the person didn’t come to my mind. I’d been in the Binachi household for a little over a year before I started trying to infiltrate the Varassos, and thanks to a certain smoldering middle brother, I wouldn’t let anyone near me while he was in my sights. In truth, I hadn’t been with someone since before I left Chicago.
That was definitely going to need to be rectified.
Even as I thought it, my brain was rejecting any image that wasn’t Ashton. Was I just attaching to him like how some animals imprint, or was there something hinging on the fact that he did what my own sister didn’t even do, which saved my life? I didn’t know what it was like to be important to someone, but it seemed like I was important to him.
It terrified me.
There was a knock at the door, for which I was grateful since it served to distract me from my own torrid thoughts. “Come in.”
The door parted slowly from the frame, and Callista’s head peeked around the doorframe. “Hey.”
I sat up. “Hi.”
“Are you going to kill me?”
“I should,” I growled back, “but if I’ve proved anything this past year, it’s that I’m miserable at killing my own family members, so…”
At that, Callista stepped all the way into the room. She kept the door open, likely so that someone could hear if things went awry, but I didn’t actually have any intention of hurting Callista. All I really wanted to know was, “Why?”
Callista didn’t respond for a very long time. I didn’t rush her, mostly because I wanted an honest answer. The coy look of indifference on her face reminded me of the first time we met. Our mom had taught me the best of her conning techniques, and it allowed me to successfully do what she hadn’t been able to—get close to Callista. It took a few days of watching her and studying her routine, but eventually, I was able to bump into Callistaby chanceat a nail shop. At that time, I introduced myself as Caitlyn, and when we started to talk, we realized we had a lot in common.
Not only was I the eldest Costa, but the closest girl to me in age was much younger than me. Callista was only a year younger than me. It was amazing to suddenly have a sister, and one so close to me in age, at that. We ended up getting lunch after getting our nails done, and we talked for hours. I was terrified for weeks to tell her the truth about who I was and, even more, to tell her the truth about who she was. Her father hadn’t told her, and she believed Anthony’s wife was her birth mother. Anthony nearly killed me then too. He only spared me because I was willing to let Callista pull him into my plan to take down our mom. Little did I know that he would end up taking the reins on my plans and changing them entirely.
What I was searching for when I first went to meet Callista, I didn’t know. A way out? Someone I matter to? Callista brought none of that. If anything, I was now more twisted into this web of a lifestyle than I’d been originally, and Callista had stood silently by as her father aimed a gun at my face.
“I don’t know what you want me to say, Denise,” Callista said finally. “This was on you. You messed up, not me.”
“He’s our brother, Calli,” I replied. “I didn’t want him dead. I don’t want any of my siblings dead. I just want us to be happy.” I watched her face carefully for any discernible emotions. “You would have been okay with me killingyourbrother?”
Callista shook her head. “Don’t. Don’t do that. I didn’t even know him.”
“His name is Gabriel.”
“Stop it.”
I stood up off the bed. “He’s short but handsome. He’s got a baby face, with all these adorable freckles.”
Callista looked anywhere to avoid looking at me. “Denise, knock it off.”
“He’s got a wife, a beautiful one, named Stacy. She’s amazing. I think she might be a witch, but she’s a good one. They were getting ready to start a family. For all we know, she’s probably pregnant by now. You’re an aunt.”
“Stop it!” Callista barked.
Anger was boiling up in me as I crossed the room to stand in front of Callista. “He went vegan for this chick andloveslearning how to cook vegan food. They made a cake while I was there, and I tried it. It wasn’t half bad.”
“He’s not a person to me.”
I punched the wall next to Callista’s face. “He is a person!” Callista looked at me, and her eyes were wild with fear. “He’s a person, just like us. He didn’t ask for this, just like us.” My voice calmed, and I backed away a little before I could get myself into trouble. “I wanted to save us. That’s all I ever wanted.”
“I know.” For the first time since I came back to Chicago, there was some emotion in Callista’s voice—sadness. “We can still do that.”
I shook my head. “Your dad doesn’t give a shit about me or any of the rest of my siblings. My brothers—ourbrothers—they’re gonna protect Illiana with everything they’ve got. There’s no way it doesn’t end with us dying. You’ll be the only Costa left.”
“You’ve changed,” Callista said. “Where’s all this sympathy coming from? What happened with the Varassos?”
