Compared to the rest of her body, her face fared better than she would have thought, considering how many times Mars had punched her. The cuts, bruises, and broken bones she suffered from on the rest of her body were taking longer to heal, but she was much better.
The door to her room opened, and she looked up with a smile, expecting to see Ben. The smile faded when Cassius Boyd stepped inside.
“What are you doing here?”
The charismatic man she’d seen on TV wasn’t the man in front of her. Cassius looked crushed, his tailored suit replaced with jeans and a T-shirt. He held a pair of sunglasses and a ball cap in his hands. He didn’t move from his place in front of the door. His eyes were fixed on his feet.
“I don’t know.”
His voice sounded like the man she’d heard speak, but he sounded lost. Desperate.
“You should go,” she said with a little more force, straightening her posture to try and feel less vulnerable sitting in bed.
“I can’t,” he mumbled. Then he pierced her with dark, bloodshot eyes. “You have to take it back.”
Paige stiffened. “Take what back?”
He held his hands out, palms up, as if begging her to listen to him. “Everything you told the police. You have to take it back. Tell them you lied. You’re ruining everything.”
“Seems like you should be saying that to your father.”
He shook his head. “You don’t know him. He’s not the monster you told everyone he is. He gave me everything. Howam I supposed to win this campaign without him coaching me? I’ve been preparing for this my entire life.”
“Mr. Boyd — Cassius. It’s not me you should be having this conversation with. I assure you, everything I said about your father is true.”
“He’s not a murderer!”
The man shouted, but Paige wasn’t afraid of him. Though she wasn’t sure why he’d come to visit her, she didn’t believe he was here to hurt her.
“He is. I saw him. He shot Marty Warner to keep him from running against you and exposing your father for the man he really is.”
Paige only repeated what the news media had pieced together. Cassius had heard it all, she was sure, but he was probably trying to reconcile it with what his father told him.
Cassius shook his head. “No! It’s not possible.”
“It is. Your father saw me there, and he came after me. He sent Mars after me too. They broke my wrist, broke my ribs, cut me, and terrorized me. I was forced to go into hiding. I gave up my business and my name. Everything that was important to me. He threatened people I care about. You love your father. You depend on him. I can see that, but I’m telling you that your faith in him is misplaced.”
Cassius moved over to the window, and Paige almost felt sorry for him.
“Why? Why kill them? I could have won. I have what it takes to be the next president of the United States. He told me he believed in me. So why?”
“It was never about you.”
Paige’s head whipped back to the door, surprised that she hadn’t heard Ben slip inside. He moved to place his body between her bed and Cassius, ready to strike out at the man if he posed a threat to her.
Cassius eyed Ben suspiciously. “Who are you?”
“Someone you don’t want to mess with. My brothers and I took down your father. I’ll take you down, too, if you make a wrong move.”
“Don’t threaten me!”
“It’s not a threat. You should go.”
“What did you mean that it was never about me?” Cassius demanded.
“Your father is only interested in power. The more power, the more money and influence, and the more he can have whatever he wants. This was never about you getting the presidency. This was about using you to get the power he craved and about protecting what he already had. You’re a means to an end, Cassius.”
Paige spoke softly. “He’s right, Cassius. It’s not me that ruined everything. That blame needs to be placed at your father’s feet.”
