ARIAIt took less than a few minutes to leave Talia’s house and get into the car. Caspian’s driving was reckless, which was very unlike him. And I did nothing to stop him. No, I clutched the seat belt and snapped it around my body, then readied myself for the anger that would spew out of me when we got to Ivan. That bastard had done more than his own fair share of evil deeds against me. My fingers were almost shaking with anticipation. That was until Caspian pulled into an empty parking lot, parked the car and asked me to stay inside the car. “I won't be doing that.” Opening the car door, I stepped out of the car before he could stop me. “Aria, get back here.” I heard his voice behind me, but I was already heading toward the large metal door of the building in front of us. “That's exactly what I won't be doing. I've looked forward to getting this man, you won't be keeping me in the car while I miss the action.” “That's exactly why you need to stay in the car. We're not sure if
ARIAI had seen Talia burst into tears more times than I could count. Matter of fact, she had the ability to cry on command, the tears spilling out just at the perfect moment she wanted them to.I'd never seen her with her shoulder shaking, her head bent, and looking so fucking scared. That, more than anything was what calmed the fire inside me. “What the hell are you talking about, Talia. Who beat you?” She kept crying, shaking her head, shrinking away from us into the seat. I shook my head as I watched her, frustrated and irritated. Caspian tapped her shoulder, and I could see the tightly coiled anger in his eyes as he forced her head up with her hair. “Listen to me, Talia. You killed those cats, I don't care if these men kill you, but we need to know why they would ask you to kill those cats, and leave them where you did.” That was exactly my thoughts. I felt no pity for the woman shaking on the couch. Talia’s face was all bruised up like a bad apple. Whoever had gotten to
CASPIAN “Talia.” I could see how I must have reacted on Aria’s face. Her eyes narrowed. Her lips became flat, and she glared at me. “That can't be right. Talia doesn't have the stomach to do a thing like that.” I would have thought so too, just until I saw the video Reed had shared with me. “She does. We're not sure who killed the cat, but she's the one who laid it out like on Reed’s porch.” There were only so many ways to be angry. I had thought I had exhausted my reserves, but just repeating the words to Aria, had the anger rushing back. What sort of human being had the stomach to perform such a horrendous act? Aria’s fingers cupped her stomach and she gulped, then bent and retched. “That's not possible. That can't be possible.” Turning away, she ran into the bathroom and puked out the content of her stomach. Brushing my fingers across her forehead, I held back her hair. When she was done, I cleaned her up, and took her to the bed. But she wouldn't lie still. He
CHAPTER 187ARIAThe house was quiet when Caspian came in. He dropped his keys in the bowl by the stairs and a second later, I heard Lark from the living room. They were out in the storage room where Lark was trying to make a floating boat from straws. "Dad! It didn’t float right! I told you it can't!” Dad? Since when was Caspian dad? I'd never heard them call him that. I hurried to the doorway just in time to see Caspian drop his bag on the floor, and kneel beside Lark, both of them staring down at a bowl of water. The sad looking straw boat they'd been working on together had half sank into the water. Caspian ruffled Lark’s hair. “We’ll fix it. I'm sure we can get it to work.” Caspian was patient. He had always been patient with the kids even when he didn't have to be. I watched him sit on the floor, saw Lark’s excitement, and Caspian nodding along, as though all his ideas made perfect sense. “I'll tape the bottom so the water doesn't find a way inside the boat. What do yo
ARIAThe air smelled different at Caspian’s house.Maybe it was because I got used to the cold, clean, sterile air of the hospital, but it felt like the world had been changed while I was gone. It felt like everyone was waiting for me to make the wrong move. I had nothing to say still, I couldn't believe I'd lived three years believing one thing only to…Stepping out of the car carefully, I held the car door to hold myself steady, the other hand holding the hospital bag they had insisted I take.I still had a white wristband I hadn't managed to tear off yet. The house door opened before I reached it."Mom!"Nylah and Lark ran towards me almost like they would knock me down. Lark reached me first, throwing his arms around my waist, his head buried into my stomach. Nylah was there a second later, wrapping her arms around my legs with a soft cry. I held them, dropping to my knees, my hands shaking as I wrapped it around their backs. I inhaled them in, my relief filling my eyes with
ARIA The hospital room smelled like bleach. I expected a nurse had cleaned up while I was sleeping. The white lights digging into my eyes made the world feel flat, but in my hands was my phone which seemed to survive the crash. I scrolled through it, checking in on what was happening in the world. There were no new posts on Zara’s social media handle, so I dropped the phone. But it rang and I carried it to see Vivienne’s name on the phone screen. I answered slowly. "Hello?" "Why didn’t you tell me Ivan was alive?" Her voice was dangerous, already mid-accusation. I sat up too fast, the pain pulling at my side. "You didn’t know?" "Clearly not," she snapped. Stricken by guilt, I blinked, because none of it added up. I had assumed Markus would tell her. He worked for her after all, unless she was lying. "How did you find out then?" I asked. "I have my sources." That meant nothing. She had everyone on her payroll. I sighed. "I was going to tell you. Soon." After a se