“You heard the woman.” Damian motions to the needle.
I smile when I watch David pick it up, his whole being now frightened. His hand shakes trying to line the needle to his vein. Cocking my head to the side, I watch. He looks down for a second to find a vein, and then eyes are back on me, and I’m glad he keeps the contact when he cries out pushing the plunger. I want to see the fear course through them the second the chemical hits his bloodstream. I bend down to look at him, wanting to see his eyes change. In seconds, the Comet invades his bloodstream; his hold on the needle loosens, sticking into his arm with no help. His breathing becomes labored, fear runs white on his face as foam spews from his mouth, body shaking uncontrollably. I watch and smile the whole time. No feeling.When I grab the gun beside him, place it under his chin and pull the trigger, blood and brain matter fly to the ceiling and on me, painting the old walls with his crimson sin.
His body collapses, blood pouring out as half his head is now missing. “I win,” I spit on his dead body.
Using the bottom of my shirt, I clean the wetness, knowing I just smeared it worse, but not able to handle the feeling of the spray on me, before I stand, turning my eyes on her.
Tsking sounds draws my attention, veering my gaze to look at the man now standing next to Damian. “Get in the car, I’ll take care of her,” he speaks right at me, like no matter what I say, he isn’t listening.
Eyebrows raised, “Who the fuck are you?” I sneer at him, watching as Damian stands up straighter, a smile transforming his face before he wipes it away. Confused, I squint at him.
My eyes trail the man as he strolls over to the shaking woman, turning to me. “I’m Stephen, Luca’s father. And you need to get to the car.”
I stand there, gaping at him. Luca’s father… My head swivels so fast to Damian, he shrugs his shoulder giving me a look of don’t ask me, before he motions his hand to the door.
“How did you know I was here?” I question Damian, not directing my words to Stephen, ignoring him.
One word and my stomach drops: “Luca.” Comes from Damian’s mouth.
Sighing, my hands shake. This is something I didn’t want him to know for a while. This was mine. No one else's. Anger engulfs me. “How the fuck did he know I was here?”
Damian moves to the door, expecting me to follow. “Let’s go to the car and I’ll answer you.”
I stand still and stoic. The quietness of the room becomes loud before it’s broken by Stephen. “Be glad he did, because if not, you’d be dead.”
“Fuck you.” I throw at him, moving past Damian, hitting him with my shoulder. A running car greets me outside.
Slamming the car door, making me jump, Damian leaves me standing on the sidewalk. I stand there thinking about walking down the road, getting away from them, but I change my mind. I need to know what’s going on.
Throwing myself onto the back seat, Damian looks at me from the passenger's seat. “I don’t want you to freak, but something happened tonight.” I open my mouth, but he holds up his hand. “Luca is okay. As soon as he could, he called me. This was bigger than anything we could have expected. This was an ambush, Rowan.”
My heart and stomach fall at the same time. “Luca,” I quietly cry out.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Luca
One hour earlier
“A scorned woman will burn the world down, making the soot her walkway to hell. Paved in despair and retribution. Clare Briggs is my aunt, the closest thing I have to a mother, and when a mother cries, those who love her will hurt who or whatever made her shed those precious tears. And that was you and your little bitch. Taking the only thing Clare loved, and that was my uncle Briggs. If you thought this was all over, you’re an idiot and deserve to die. But for you, you get time, time to suffer along with that sweet piece of pussy you have back home.”
Rowan. Fuck. I’d die right now if it meant she’d stay safe, but I know that isn’t the case. They’ll do whatever they can to make sure she’s taken care of, too. “You put a hit on your own self.” It comes out like a question, but it’s a fact. I rack my brains, going back over all our correspondence, wanting to slap myself for overlooking, but they did it so well.
“I was tired of waiting. We were going to take care of it sooner, but apparently, you have a guard dog living in your backyard.” He shrugs like the pompous asshole he is.
His words confuse me, but I don’t let him see it. Roxy?
Needing to get to my earpiece, I say what I know will ruffle his feathers. “You better hope I don’t get out of here becausewhen I do, ole Aunt Clare will reenact the scene Rowan went through in the tomb.” I give him a bloody smile.
I see the punch and brace myself, playing it off, rolling to the side, maneuvering my hand up to my ear, pressing on the button to give them sound so they can hear what’s going on. Groaning, I roll back over, eyes searing into Aiden.
The big man limps out of the restroom, his balls still in his stomach. My eyes track him until they can’t anymore.
“She’s going to have fun with you.” He laughs. “Aunt Clare!” Aiden positions his bare foot on my neck, applying pressure.
The sound of high heels clicking against the floor announces her before her presence does, until her small body takes residence between the threshold of the bathroom and the bedroom. She looks so much like Catherine; it’s scary. Her glare is laser-focused on me.
“You should have minded your business, and you’d be living in complete oblivion about the goings on around you, but you had to be a hero.” Closing the gap between us, she gently crouches down, her tight pencil skirt becoming a second skin as she whispers, “You were stupid if you thought there'd be no consequences for you. For you both.”
