I took a small breath, and my arms curled around my stomach protectively. Actually, I did know why she was here. The gun pressed against my head told me exactly why.
“Maybe I should call you little rat instead,” she snarled, the gun moving across my skull as she walked around the sofa to face me. “Yeeah, little rat seems more apt. You are vermin, Amy. And left unchecked, vermin always gets out of hand. “
I lifted my eyes to her, trying to focus on her face and not the muzzle of the gun that seemed like a massive black hole this close.
“You have teeth, don’t you? Sharp little teeth. I didn’t realize before, but I can see them now. You’re not a placid little dove. You are a fucking rat, and you are trying to steal Alexei away from me.”
I wanted to scream at her that Alexei was my husband, not hers. I hadn’t stolen him away.
“Answer me, you fucking bitch,” she screamed. The gun came crashing down. Smashing into the side of my jaw and rocking my head to the side.
Pain radiated through my face, and blood trickled from my mouth, but I didn’t cry out. I could take this, I told myself, as long as she kept hitting my face and didn’t take aim at my stomach. A beating I could and would happily take.
“I left him,” I said through my split and bleeding mouth. “I—”
She raised her hand to hit me again, and I tried to shy away, but her other hand came and tangled in my hair, yawning it up and pulling it out by the roots.
“You can’t have him. I need him. He will find you, and you will ruin everything.” She was breathing so heavily that she was almost hyperventilating. “I have to do this, you understand.”
Violet’s voice dropped to an almost sincere whisper, and that was scarier than her screaming. I didn’t like the tone of her voice at all. It sounded apologetic.
“I should have done it before, but, well, I thought he would comearound, and now I see that he will never love me again when you are still alive.”
Fuck, she was going to kill me. I clenched my legs together to stop myself from urinating.
“Get on your knees, Amy,” Violet said softly. “Face me. I want the last thing you see to be my face so that you know I’ve won.”
I didn’t want to do that. It was like I was frozen to the spot.
She brandished the weapon again. “Now, Amy, I don’t have all day.”
I shuffled to the edge of the sofa and fell on my knees, my huge stomach hindering my movement as I turned to face her.
“Faster,” she snapped.
“I’m going as fast as I can,” I snapped right back because if I was going to die, I wouldn’t do it as a snivelling, crying wreck of a woman. Setting myself down, I craned my neck up at her. She had changed a lot since the last time I had seen her. The ungodly polished good looks were gone. She looked gaunt, and her skin was blotchy.
“Ah, yes, the Petrovov heir.” Her eyes narrowed as she looked at my bump, and I wanted to curl my body around myself to protect it. “You know we did discuss cutting it out of you and passing it off as mine, but then that wouldn’t have worked because you had to go and pull me with you down the stairs didn’t you?”
Defiantly, I lifted my chin. “It wouldn’t have worked because I know Alexi never touched you.”
I didn’t know what made me say it. I knew no such thing for certain, but it felt like the truth.
Violet’s face fell, but only for a second. “You’re right, he didn’t. But I didn’t need a man in my bed to get him to do what I needed him to do, Violet. I need him to love me again. And believe me, he won’t say no forever. He’s mad at me now, but everyone knows Alexei can never stay mad at me.” Her smile was dazzling. She believed that with her whole heart, and so did I. Alexei had proved time and time again that he would always forgive and choose her.
I pushed those thoughts down. It didn’t matter about the past. All that mattered was keeping myself and my baby alive until Alexi gotback. He’d only gone across the parking lot. He should be back any minute. I just had to stay alive long enough.
My eyes darted around the room. And for the first time in my life, I cursed my cleanliness. There was nothing left out, nothing I could use as a weapon to defend myself.
Violet’s smile grew as she watched me look around. “You know I would shoot you before you could even start moving, Amy. So don’t even try it.” To prove her point, she pressed the gun between my eyes.
My nose wrinkled. She stank of stale alcohol.
“I mean, I’m going to kill you anyway, but I want you to know why before I do it. I want you to understand.”
Because you’re an evil bitch, I said silently. “Then tell me, Violet,” I hissed. “Tell me what I don’t understand.”
I just had to keep her talking for long enough, that’s all. Just a few more minutes…
