~Rylee~It would’ve been nice if Klaus were here with me. We’d walk hand in hand along the Old Port of Marseille. We’d probably visit Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde, Cathédrale La Major or even Château d’If at one point, and explore all the good places for lovers to see. Sadly, today is not that day.Alone, lost in the crowd of sightseers, I weaved my way down the footpath. It was a sunny day, a good day for a stroll, but for me, it was a good day to corner my treacherous sister.From Rain’s intel, Kara is currently employed by a local newspaper company here in Marseille. I wonder how she snatched a job here in France that quickly. But then again, if she has Dominguez backing her up, nothing is impossible.In my hand, I held the picture Markus showed me on my wedding day. I stared at it, lifting my gaze towards the shop across the street. A balcony filled with woven chairs and tables faces the port. Through the wide-open French doors, there’s a counter with stools occupied by a few
~Rylee~“That… That’s impossible…” I stuttered, raking my hair, and my fingers got tangled in my waves. In my stunned state, I’d forgotten that I put my hair up in a ponytail.Gritting my teeth, I gripped Kara’s biceps and dragged her like a rag doll to my rental car. I shoved her in the passenger side, slammed the door. Once I’m in the driver’s seat, I stepped on the gas and the wheels skidded on the street.“Fuck! Can you slow down!?” Kara whined, fumbling with her seatbelt. I’m breaking tons of traffic rules, but I don’t fucking care.My hotel is not that far. It took less than three minutes and I’m halting to a complete stop. I stepped out, opened the door for Kara, but she just glared at me.“Get out,” I spat. I fisted her hair when she just kept staring at me. She squealed. I forced her out, but her seatbelt was still on.“Rylee!” she cried, hissing in pain, scrambling to unbuckle her seatbelt. I didn’t let her hair go and plucked her up off her seat like an annoying weed. “Alri
~Rylee~ “What do they have over you?” I asked Kara. We are halfway into the drive to Montredon and she’d been huffing and fidgeting on her seat as though it was above a slow-burning fire. “What?” she asked, probably stunned that I was the first to break the silence in the car. Old port to Montredon is a short drive. Twenty-five to thirty minutes based on my navigation app, but the nerves are killing me. It felt like we’d been confined in this can for a lifetime instead of fifteen minutes. “Leandro Suarez,” I restate, “what does he have on you? You said he threatened you to pass a message to me.” Kara gnawed on her lower lip, eyes laser-focused on the road. “They have a video of me… a sex video,” she croaked silently. I can’t say I’m surprised. My expectation from her flew over the window long ago. In fact, I expect nothing from her anymore, but disappointment. “Sex video…” I parroted, acknowledging. “With whom?” She winced at my question. It was subtle, yet I caught it. “With s
~Rylee~They took my weapons, my phone, and every accessory I had on, even my jacket.‘Consider this my act of kindness, Rylee,’ Kara murmured. She did the frisking on me while Juaquin, Leandro, and his men watched her strip me of every means I had of escaping. ‘Since you’re my sister, I will let you keep your engagement and wedding rings,’ she said. Her boyfriend, Juaquin, made sure there was no tracker on them.‘Thanks,’ I spat. ‘That’s very kind of you, Karadine. Let’s consider all the sacrifices I made for you paid by this deed, shall we?’She grimaced at my sarcasm.They didn’t keep me in Montredon. When Kara finished her job, they dragged me to the beach, where a yacht sailed as soon as we were on board. They kept me in the engine room the entire cruise to our destination and blindfolded me as we docked. I followed willingly. There was no use in fighting, since our destination was unknown to me.In the darkness, I had no sense of time, no sense of direction. I could only focus o
~Klaus~I knew I should care. Pity my sister, who got tangled in a sick love triangle with Dominguez and her mom. I’m not sure if she’s aware of this situation. But slowly, I’m collecting how Dominguez hid her all these months.He manipulated her. The question now is how deep he sank his claw into my sister’s head. Worst, her heart. And how the fuck did my wife get entangled in all of this?My hands were trembling, nearly drawing blood with my nails against my palms.“Care to explain what the fuck is going on, Dad?” I asked, gritting my teeth. “How did you know they took ‘my wife?’” My angered timber was enough to let him know I was not happy being in the dark. Not just because I felt played, but because my wife
~Rylee~Confused, Berenice’s frown deepens. Her teeth chomped down on her lower lip. “What do you mean? Tony said I’d be safe here from Markus and Klaus.”‘Dominguez went that low?’ I thought, keenly studying her.She was young, so young I felt protective of her. I want to make Dominguez kneel before her and beg for her forgiveness. He ruined her for good. It will take a lot of work to bring back the light in her eyes. It was clouded with fear, uncertainty, and confusion. Too far from the pictures Markus showed me on my wedding day.“I am on Markus and Klaus’ side. Telling you it’s Dominguez that you should fear will be ironic, so I won’t be convincing you to believe me, Berenice,” I muttered, voice soft and friendly. “But you came here for a reason. You have questions. Ask me.”A ghost of shock traverses across her face. Swallowing hard, she cleared her throat. “Uhm… I want to know what it is that you do for them? I recently learned that you got married to Klaus. Before that-““I am
~Rylee~Grabbing Rain’s forearm, I drag her away from the cell. Her ears and nose were venting out steam when she saw Kara.Despite the sound of chaos echoing from the end of the passage, she struggled against my grip. “Let me go, Rylee,” she hissed. “I will kill that bitch!”“No,” I said firmly, “you won’t kill her.”“Why?!” she wiggled her wrist from my hold. “Have you really lost your mind? She betrayed you more than once, sold you to your enemies, and now you’re still giving her a chance to do it all over again?”I sighed, loosening my hold on her. “Go on then, kill her,” I murmured, facing her. “I don’t give a fuck about her, Rain. All I want is for this shit to be over. If she’s lucky and lives to see another day, I don’t think she’ll ever bother me again after what happened.”In my mind, I know Rain is right. I should end Kara. The possibility she’ll do what she did to me lingers in my mind like an annoying weed, but I just can’t get myself to kill her. I want to; I fucking do…
~Rylee~I felt his anger, frustration, and relief as he kissed me. His grip on my jaw was tight enough to keep me in place, his free hand curling around my waist, holding me flushed against him.His fingers smelled of the familiar rustic scent of blood; a fresh sticky mess weaved into my hair as he gripped the back of my head. My hands came up to his chest, fingers trembling at feeling his heart drumming against my palms.I never realized how much I missed him, how terrified I was of not seeing him again. All these realizations were dawning on me like a raging flood from high up the mountain, washing away the fearless facade I had put on since meeting Carradine in the cafe.A whimper tumbled past my lips as Klaus pulled away, giving me air. I stood on the tips of my toes, curving my arms around his neck, pulling his lips back down to me.Klaus sighed, kissing me tenderly. His rough approach melted as my tears rolled down my cheeks.“I’m here,” he said, pressing our foreheads together.