Warmth spreads through me at the thought of him wanting to give me the company even though I don’t need it. I do not wish to preserve the legacy that brought me so much pain.
“I’m proud to be my mom’s daughter. At least she had a heart. Not sure what pumps the blood in your veins.”
His breathing speeds up, and he takes a step forward, only to still when I pull the string of my bow, aiming the arrow right at him as we face-off. “You took everything from me. My beloved wife. My com?—”
My laughter stops him. “Your beloved wife? If you loved her so much, maybe you shouldn’t have cheated on her.” He fists his hands at his sides. “Your son is a spoiled brat who has no talent for the family business. The only person who took everything from you is you yourself. Because you’re a coward who could never admit his mistakes.” And saying it all finally frees me from the guilt that consumed me my whole childhood.
My entire life, I felt guilty for merely being born because in my head, without me, my mom would have been free from him. She’d have left him and found happiness with someone else. And then my existence wouldn’t have shamed my father.
Except it was just a childhood illusion.
My parents made their own choices, and whatever happened to them is the result of those choices.
I should stop looking back and focus on my future, and my future holds a man who actually adores me, and part of that adoration is kicking the asses of those who hurt me.
How could I ever hold that against him?
“You’re my biggest mistake, and you think you can live happily?” My eyes widen when he fishes out a gun from his pocket and removes the safety. Sending my arrow his way won’t do a thing because he’ll pull the trigger faster than I could shoot. “I have nothing to lose. But I won’t let you live either.”
Before he can fire, a whistling sound rocks between us, and he cries out, the gun dropping on the ground when he sinks to his knees. My father’s hands grip blades of grass, and that’s when I notice the arrow protruding from his back, his gray suit jacket slowly staining red. Once again, the wound isn’t deep enough to kill him, but it’ll hurt and damage his spine. And if it’s not treated soon, it will have fatal consequences for him since the wound is very close to an artery.
I raise my eyes until they meet possessive, angry green ones.
Orion holds his own bow and throws another arrow up, catching it in midair and twisting it around before sending it flying right at my father’s lower back. This earns him another agonizing scream, which turns into a painful groan.
He just shot my father, and the worst part is, I don’t care about him that much. All I can think is that my husband found me, and he looks furious!
A conversation from a few days ago on the island flashes in my head from when we explored Rush’s family house.
“Why does he need all these targets?” I ask, pointing at the shooting ranges in the distance, and Orion wraps his arm around my waist. I notice the axes lying around on the table and mutter, “Oh.” My nose twitches in disgust. “He likes to throw around axes.”
“They have a certain charm to them, don’t you think?” Orion asks, rubbing his stubble on my shoulder, and I giggle. “They reach the target fast, and the weather conditions rarely affect their performance.”
“Axes are very dangerous. They can easily harm the ones who throw it.” Some of them are heavy too, so if someone inexperienced grabs it and decides to play, they could do more harm than good. “I prefer archery.”
He spins me around and threads his fingers through my hair, tilting my head back and pressing a soft kiss to my lips as the sun beams brightly all around us, and we can hear seagulls in the distance. “Of course you do, my beautiful huntress.”
Rolling my eyes, I slap his chest and sigh. “That was so cheesy.”
“It was, indeed.” We share a laugh. “Want to know a little secret?”
“Always.”
“I prefer archery as well. In fact, you’re looking at a champion.”
Circling my arms around his neck, I rise onto my tiptoes, our mouths a breath apart. “Is that so?”
His fingers dig into my hips, bringing me closer, and I gasp when my body molds against his muscles. “Yes. My private school liked to host all these competitions, and Mom loved the idea of her Orion having archery skills, so it kind of fit. After her death, it became something I continued to do. Just for her.” His hollow chuckle chills my blood. “Conrad hated it, so it added to my desire to succeed in the sport.”
My heart flips inside my chest at the echoes of pain still present in his voice, so I hug him tighter and whisper, “Want to know a little secret?” He nods. “I was a champion in my school too.”
“Then we make quite a pair, don’t we, darling?” He bites the tip of my nose. “Maybe we should host our own competition.”
“That depends. Are you a sore loser?”
“Never lost in my life.”
“I’d hate to burst your bubble then.”
