Page 85 of Intolerable Bishop

Among other things, yes. I was young, and I fancied myself a rebel. I agreed to help her. Yulianna said it was best that we not communicate again after that, and until Ren showed up at Wayward, I had no idea what had become of them. I asked her if she fell in love with Neil and ran away from Christov, but she wouldn’t say. All she said was that it was better that I knew as little as possible and that I was already at risk for helping her. That is still my guess because Christov was not a nice man. I heard terrible things about him before they were married, and it only got worse afterward.

Was?

Mom nodded. He died.

How?

I don’t know. I wish I did.

I studied her face and crossed my arms. You’re still keeping something from us. What are you not telling us?

It doesn’t matter now.

Everything matters, I countered, and she pressed her lips together in annoyance. Mom, please.

Sighing, she shook her head, but I knew she’d given in. Nadia was not Ren’s aunt. She was Yuliana’s attendant in Russia. When Yulianna ran, Nadia, or rather, Frida, came with her.

“Jesus.” I covered my eyes. You expect us to keep quiet that Ren’s real name is Lilya, her biological father is most likely Christov, that you knew her mom, and now her aunt wasn’t her aunt? She already feels like she’s been lied to her whole life. She thinks she just watched her aunt die in front of her, and it’s all her fault. I have no idea how she would take that news.

My mom shook her head, her eyes sad as shadows of the past lingered in her eyes. Do you want my honest opinion?

Yes, Blake signed.

What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her. If she’s coming to terms with her Aunt Nadia dying, then let the woman rest in peace, and Ren’s memory remains intact. There had to be reasons for maintaining a cover. Besides, despite what they say about the truth setting you free…it’s a lie in our world. The truth just gets you killed.

My mom gripped our shoulders and then took the letter from Blake. We watched as she put the note and picture back in the book before walking to her office door. She quietly held it open and didn’t look at us, effectively dismissing us and any further conversation on the topic. Grabbing my phone off her desk, we walked to the door. Mom gave us each a kiss on the cheek before we stepped out. She closed the door, and the lock clicked into place.

I blinked as I stared at the wood. My mom had never blatantly dismissed either of us and had certainly never locked us out of a room.

“That’s weird,” Blake said, mirroring my worry.

“Something is still off. It could be Lawrence’s visit or about Ren, but either way, we need to find out what.”

“Agreed. And if Yulianna ran away from her marriage and the Ivankov family had the most reason for revenge, then why is it that the men Ren saw the night her mother was killed were Mikhailovs? None of it makes sense.”

I rubbed at my chin, trying to connect all the dots. I loved puzzles but this one was making even my head hurt.

JULY 17 – MONDAY 10:41 PM

Ren

My second round of training today hadn’t gone much better than the first, but to add more fun to the mix, Liam sat at the picnic table, eating peanuts and glaring at me. No matter what Theo said, Liam was not happy about me being involved in their relationship. From the death stare, I would say he was planning to kill me off, and that put me in the strangest position of being happy that Nash was here.

I decided to take an extra long shower after we ate dinner, but now it was time to head out and face the awkwardness. Opening the door, I found Liam sitting on the couch, but there was no sign of Nash. Great.

It felt like the beginning of a horror movie as his head slowly turned in my direction. If it spun all the way around, I was going to end up looking like a cartoon character running through a wall. I would rather deal with the men chasing me.

“Where’s Nash?” I sat down at the table, keeping distance between us.

“On the phone,” Liam said, and I decided to address the elephant in the room.

“This is weird, isn’t it,” I asked.

“It wasn’t until you made it that way.”

“So you’re blaming me? Theo doesn’t have a mind of his own anymore? You aren’t in control of your reactions or emotions? Is that what you’re insinuating?”

Liam scooted forward on the couch, his elbows on his knees as he stared at me. “I think you’re far smarter, manipulative, and more dangerous than any of the guys realize.”