Page 95 of In Love and Revenge

And I should be happy about it. I should be bloody ecstatic after all the times I’ve had to endure his company and wished I hadn’t.

I should be punching the damn ceiling over the thought of never having to speak to him again.

I really should.

Chapter 25

Rafael

The vending machine coffee grows cold, a layer of oil floating on its surface within the flimsy Styrofoam walls.

‘Something tells me you didn’t request to come and see me so we could sit in silence. Although, I can keep pretending, if that’s what you want?’

George Thorne relaxes in his plastic chair on the opposite side of the small, cheap table. If I wanted to reach right across and wring his neck, I could. I could flip the bloody thing over, then smash his head against the floor.

I could make him tell me what I want to know.

I roll my lips, glancing away. The thought of Aurora getting a call telling her that her father’s been taken to the hospital is the only thing stopping me. She’d be worried. She’d be upset. The thought of either of those things is more unpleasant to me than the man sitting opposite me. The man who’s wearing an open expression, like we could actually have a conversation, man to man.

I clear my throat.

‘This is how it’s going to work. First, you’re going to tell me what you did with the money you took.’

He laughs, actually goddamnlaughs.

‘Okay. And then I’ll tell you I’m Santa Claus too.’

‘You think this is funny?’ I glare at him.

‘How much did you lose?’

‘How much did I havestolen?’ I correct. There’s no point in beating around the bush, so I get straight to it, studying his reaction carefully. ‘Two hundred and forty million.’

He shrugs like it’s mere pocket change. ‘Some lost more, so better get in line. Although I have to warn you, you’ll be waiting a long time. I don’t have a clue where your money is.’

I suck in a sharp breath through my nose. It took a week to get my visitor request granted. And for what? So this arsehole can play with me?

‘Well, that’s unfortunate, isn’t it? Because I’m sure a little ...cooperationwould be useful, if I were to, say’ – I tip my head, eyes dropping over his crumpled clothes – ‘have a word with the prison governor about getting you some ... additional home comforts.’

He rests his forearms on the table and leans over eagerly. ‘You can do that for me?’

‘Mr Thorne. I’m a resourceful man with friends in high places. I can do just about anything.’

He nods, his eyes narrowing like he’s mentally compiling a list.

I smirk internally. Some better bed sheets, magazines, a cuddly fucking teddy bear. If it makes him give me what I need, then I can make it happen.

‘Do you know what they took? When they bashed in our front door?’ He doesn’t wait for me to answer. ‘Everything,’ he hisses. ‘They took bloody everything. Even my dead wife’s clothes. They ransacked the shit out of my house! They weren’t theirs to take. My daughter wanted to keep them, to remember her mother. They restrained her when she tried to stop them.’

My blood boils and I bite back my grimace at the image of Aurora seeing all of that. Of themtouchingher.

‘Give me the officers’ names. I’ll make sure they’re fully investigated if they used unnecessary force.’

George sits back in his chair, shaking his head. ‘What’s the point? It’s not going to undo the damage, is it? It’s not going to erase that memory from my daughter’s head.’

My jaw clenches. He’s right.

‘I’m worried about her. She’s too trusting. Too naïve.’