“Want? Oh, darling. I want so many things,” she purrs. “But right now? I want you to understand the position you’re in. Your sister, your father—their lives are in my hands. And do you know why?”
I stay silent, bile rising in my throat.
“Because of him,” Elena continues. “D. Your knight in blood-stained armor.”
“I have nothing to do with D,” I spit out. My free hand slams against the wall. “If you want him dead, do it yourself. Leave my family out of it.”
A couple walks by, eyebrows raised. I turn away, lowering my voice to a hiss. “I’m fucking telling you, D has nothing to do with me.”
Elena laughs, the sound grating. “Oh, sweet little Wren. So naive. You see, D and I, we have history. He used to swear he’d protect me, love me forever. But then he met you, and well… let’s just say his priorities changed.”
My teeth clench so hard my jaw aches. “You’re delusional. D doesn’t give a shit about me.”
“No?” the bitch’s voice becomes cold. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you, Wren. The great D, brought low by a scrappy little nobody. It’s almost poetic, really. And now? Now I’m going to use that against him.”
63
Wren
Hilarious.
This bitch thinks she’s the big bad wolf.
I scoff out a laugh.
“Listen up,psycho-bitch,” I drawl, keeping my tone as lifeless as a cemetery. “Cut the bullshit. You’re not fooling anyone with your crazy jealousy act. I’m pretty sure you didn’t set up this whole circus just ‘cause your ex-boyfriend gave me a second glance.”
The line goes quiet, but I catch something in the background. A muffled whimper. Em? My stomach clenches. I strain to hear more, my free hand curling into a fist. One second. Two. Three.
Then Elena’s laughter crackles through the line. “I see why he likes you so much. You’re one interestingsuka.”
“Fascinating,” I snap. “Now cut the bullshit. What do you really want?”
The bitch laughs. “You’re right. All I want is what the Ivankovs have. And you, my dear, are going to help me get it.”
My stomach roils. “Look, you twisted fuck. Just tell me what you want me to do so you let my family go,” I hiss, pressing closer to the wall. Sweat beads on my forehead.
“It’s simple, really,” Elena replies, her tone light. “You come to me, and I let your pretty little sister walk away. Well, John might need some help walking after what Zimniy did to his kneecaps, but details, details.”
I slide down the wall, crouching with my head between my knees. “And if I don’t?”
“Then I start sending you pieces of them. I wonder… which would hurt more? Losing Daddy Dearest, or watching your baby sister suffer?”
“You fucking psycho,” I snarl, drawing looks from passersby. I press the phone closer, voice dropping. “How do I know they’re even alive?”
There’s a rustling on the other end, then a new voice. Weak, pained, but unmistakable.
“Wren?” Em’s voice, thick with tears. “Wren, don’t—”
She’s cut off abruptly. Elena’s back. “Satisfied? Now, here’s what you’re going to do…”
I listen, my breathing shallow, as Elena lays out her demands. A meeting point. A timeline. A warning about what happens if I try to be clever.
“Oh, and Wren?” Elena adds, her voice sickly sweet. “Don’t even think about contacting anyone… especially D. I have eyes everywhere. One wrong move, and, well… I hear screams echo beautifully in this old warehouse.”
The line goes dead. I stay crouched, phone clutched in my hand, as the world spins around me. Travelers rush by, laughing, arguing, living their normal fucking lives while mine crumbles.
I have a choice to make. My family or D. Em’s life or my own. And the clock is ticking.
