She shrugs, picks up the fork again and continues eating.
"He knows you're gone,” I tell her, watching her reaction “He’s already searching for you."
She freezes. Her eyes snap up, wide with terror. The fork clatters against the bowl as she grabs the notepad.
I have a sister. He’s going to kill her because I’m gone.
"Relax. Your sister is safe.”
She shakes her head violently and writes fast, the pen sinking into the paper.
You don’t understand. He knows where she is. He said he would kill her if I didn’t behave.
So that’s how he did it. I laugh inside my head. Why am I surprised? Of course this makes sense. Kidnap a kid for her ability then threaten her with killing another kid.
“Your sister is safe,” I repeat. “Nothing will happen to her because she’s leverage. You don’t kill leverage unless you’ve failed.”
She stares at me, shaking her head, disbelieving.
“I know my father. He’ll search for you because he’s convinced he’ll get you back. In his mind, when he does, he needs your sister alive to control you again.”
You can’t know that.
“I can and I do.” I lean back, arms folded. “He’s my father and I hate him, but I also share his blood. You can trust me when I tell you, I’d do the same thing.”
Her lips tremble, even though I can see how much she wants to believe me.
He killed my parents. He told me.
I open my mouth to explain to her why her parents had to die, that no parents mean, there’s no one pushing an investigation. The cleaner the disappearance the better. I stop when I see her staring at her food, blinking too fast like she’s trying not to cry.
I pinch the bridge of my nose and let out a breath, trying to stay patient. “Listen. Your sister is safe. She’s alive for the same reason I am. My father kills people when they stop being useful, or when they dig too deep. Your sister isn’t searching for you. She’s doing nothing. A dead sister gives him no control over you. Okay?”
She nods, staring down at the notepad.
“Alright.” I give her time to let that sink in. “Just so we’re clear, he’s not getting you back. That’s not happening.”
She nods again, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. I blow out a breath, glad I prevented her from bursting into tears. That I couldn’t handle.
When she finishes eating, I push my chair back, ready to go over some ground rules with her. “You understand why Belova lost her mind when the girls saw you?”
She lifts a shoulder.“So no one could help me?”
“Yeah, there’s that. What I mean is, do you understand why you were kept hidden?”
Yes. Because Grigori is a monster.
I chuckle under my breath. “True. But that’s not the real reason. You’re not going to like this, but I can be a monster too.”
I turn in my chair. “See those windows? They don’t open either. These blinds, you also don’t touch. It’s not just your bedroom. It’s everywhere inside this apartment. That front door will always stay locked. There’s no Belova here. Just you and me. No one else will ever know about you. Unlike my father, I don’t share my secrets.” I look back at her. “You, Nala, are a very valuable secret.”
Her breathing slows.
“If word gets out that I have you… if people find out what you can do, they’ll want you for themselves. Or, they’ll kill you so I can’t use you.” I pin her with a stare, watching her lips part as she sucks in a breath. “That would be very bad. For both of us.”
She grabs the notepad again.I have to stay locked inside?
“Yes.”
