Her hand trembles slightly but she remains silent.
"I know about Frederick." I take another step toward her, thriving on the fear that shines in her eyes. "I know about Gregory." I move forward again. "I know about the money."
My hands curl into fists as she remains silent. "I know what you did to Quinn."
Daire swallows, but makes no sound. No denial and no excuses, because she knows she's caught.
"I know you told Bruno to put peanuts in her food." The rage that’s been curling around my chest is ready to escape. "You tried to kill my wife."
Daire lifts her chin, the fear disappears and that fucking mask slides back into place. Arrogant, cold, untouchable. The facade Daire has spent years building, the one that has her believing she’s smarter than everyone around her.
"Did I?" she asks quietly.
I smile. God, she’s fucking pathetic. "You really think this is still a conversation?"
Her jaw tightens and I reach into my jacket and pull out a thick file, then I drop it onto the table. The sound echoes through the cabin. I watch Daire's eyes flick to it. It has everything. Travel records, bank transfers, photographs, and phone logs. Years of evidence laid out in the file on the table. I watch the color drain from her face.
"We have everything."
For the first time she doesn't have a response ready.
"There isn't a single thing left for you to lie about."
The panic returns, her eyes are wide once again. "You don't understand."
I laugh. "No, Daire. You don't understand."
I straighten. "Frederick is gone, and so is Gregory. They left you behind."
She flinches as hurt flashes through her eyes. Good.
"Nobody came for you,” I goad her. "Nobody warned you what was coming." I hold her gaze. "Nobody even bothered to move you to somewhere safe."
The silence is brutal. Tears well in her eyes, and I know she’s fighting them not to fall. So, I deliver the final blow. "Even Rurik handed you over."
Daire's face crumples. I see the fear and betrayal, the understanding that she’s alone. Completely fucking alone.
"You were going to be mine," she says.
"No," I say, my lips twisting into a snarl. "I wasn't."
"We could have?—"
"No," I say again. "There was never a fucking we."
"What are you going to do?" she asks.
I don't answer. There's nothing left to say. Instead, I pull my phone from my pocket and hit dial. Daire's eyes follow the movement. When the call connects, I put it on speaker and set the phone down on the table between us.
For a second, silence spreads and then a voice fills the cabin.
"Hello, Daire."
She goes pale. "No." The word leaves her in a whisper. I don't think she even realizes she said it out loud. Her eyes lock on the phone. "No." This time there's panic behind it.
"Daire?" the voice says again.
Her composure shatters, and for the first time since I walked into this cabin, I see her for what she really is. Just a frightened woman who has finally run out of places to hide.
