by Celia Aaron
“Do you even hear yourself?” Realization hit me, and I straightened. “You believe your own lies, don’t you? You actually think you were innocent, that you could somehow sell me and keep me at the same time.”
“I just need you. My hand. He took it, and it’s all his fault. He caused every last bit of it.” He vacillated between crying and yelling, and pointed a shaking finger at Sin. “He wanted you all along, from the first moment he saw you.”
“That’s the only true thing you’ve said.” Sin stood behind me and put his hands on my shoulders. “I think it’s time for you to leave, Mr. Rousseau.”
“She’s mine.” My father snarled, more animal than man. “You can’t keep her from me. Her mother tried to take her from me once. That didn’t work out very well for her.”
“Take me from you? She never tried…” My knees went weak and I leaned against the desk for support. “Did you—was it you? What did you do to her?” My mother’s face flitted across my vision. “What did you do?”
He changed yet again, the vehemence gone and weakness in its place. “Please, Stella. I need you. Please.”
My head spun, the room flickering light to dark. “You said it was suicide. It was ruled a suicide.”
He nodded. “Yes, suicide. Come with me.”
“Liar!” I screamed and tried to get around the desk. I wanted to rip him open until the truth finally spilled out. Sin wrapped his arms around me and held me in place.
“I suggest you leave now, Mr. Rousseau. I’d love to watch her destroy you, but it may cause her pain, and I can’t have that.”
“I need you. Please, come with me. Please.” His teary plea made bile rise in my throat, and all I could see was my mother, her warm smile and sad eyes.
“I’m warning you, Mr. Rousseau.” Sin spoke quietly, hatred infusing every word.
“You killed her. You killed her, didn’t you.” It wasn’t a question, but the answer was in his bowed head. The lies were finally at an end.
“I thought we’d get more money to live. Stage it like a break-in. It didn’t work. Insurance wouldn’t pay because it was deemed a suicide, and I had debts. I’m sorry. I would never hurt you. Please—”
“I warned you.” Sin released me.
I tore around the desk and shoved my father to the ground. Dropping to my knees, I hit him as tears blurred my vision and rage lit me up like a house on fire.
“How could you? I loved you!” I hit him as he covered his face, cowering beneath my onslaught. My movements slowed as sobs rose in my chest. I kept swinging even as my arms tired and my knuckles burned. And then, after I’d worn myself out, I was done. Finished with him.
Sin lifted me to my feet and picked me up, cradling me in his arms as I cried into his chest.
“Get out.” He turned to the door and yelled. “Kim!”
She hurried through as if she’d been waiting just outside. “Have Burt or Clancy escort Mr. Rousseau to his car. Call the sheriff and make sure he is escorted to the parish line.”
“Yes, okay.” She bustled out of the room.
“The next moment I set eyes on you will be your last.” Sin backed away, holding me close.
“M-Mom.” I sobbed.
“Shh, it’s all going to be all right.”
A man walked in and helped my father to his feet. His cheeks glowed red from my fists and one eye was already starting to swell shut. The man asked no questions and hustled my father out the door and closed it behind them.
I clung to Sin, the world ripping to shreds around me as he stood firm.
“I’m sorry.” He kissed my hair. “I’m so sorry. If you want me to have him killed—”
“No. There’s been enough blood. Too much.” I calmed my breathing, taking gulps of air to stop the tremors.
“I’ll do anything to make you happy. Anything.” He was a wild, tormented creature, but everything about him soothed me, lulled me.
“I know.”
Another knock and then Kim’s voice. “He’s out of the office, sir, and the sheriff is on his way to escort him away.”
“Good.”
The door closed and another round of sobs shook me. “He took her from me. She loved me, Sin. I remember her. Her smile, her hair, the way she would sing while I played with my finger paints.” Her yellow dress with the blue checks, the time I got into her makeup and painted my lips and cheeks with her red lipstick, choosing my dress for my first school dance, playing in her garden—so many memories welled up inside me. How many more had my father stolen from me? “She’d still be alive. She’d be with me. H-he took her.”
Sin rocked me back and forth, trying to ease the ache that could never fully be erased. “Shh, I’ve got you.”
I cried for the parents I’d lost as he held me close, his strong arms cradling me until my tears finally subsided. He kissed my hair.
I leaned back to look up at him. “Thank you.”
“I’m sorry.” His face softened, and his tenderness made my tears threaten again.
I cleared my throat to try and stave off another crying fit. “Is all this going to be a p-problem with your staff or anything?”
He laughed, a deep rumble in his chest. “After what they’ve heard about Judge Montagnet, my eccentricities seem rather run-of-the-mill, I’m afraid.”
“I hate that man.”
“We’ll get him.” He dropped a reassuring kiss on my lips. “We’ll get them all.”
One stormy afternoon, Sin, Lucius, and I climbed the stairs to the third floor. Renee had interrupted our strategy session with Lucius to let us know that Rebecca was back—the real Rebecca.
I followed Renee, both Sin and Lucius on my heels. We moved quickly. Catching Rebecca lucid was like trying to see a shooting star. Spotted rarely, and only briefly before burning out.
Though I’d witnessed her change for Renee briefly, I couldn’t imagine her as anything other spiteful toward me. My trepidation grew as we approached. But when I walked in with Sin and Lucius, she smiled without a hint of malice.
“Boys.” Rebecca motioned them over, her joy like a mirror to her past when she was young and full of life.
I hid my surprise and stepped aside so Sin and Lucius could go to her bedside.
“Mom?” Sin hurried to her, Lucius on his heels.
“Sit. Let’s talk before I go back under. Hurry. We don’t have much time.” Rebecca patted the bed.
They sat as I hovered at the door.
“Stella? Come here. Let me look at you.” I walked over, Renee at my elbow.
“See? It’s her. It’s my Rebecca.” Renee dabbed at her eyes.
“Rebecca.” I nodded in greeting, still unsure if I was going to get a kind word or a kick in the teeth.
“You are beautiful. Almost the spitting image of my sister, Cora. And I hear you have her spirit, as well.” The woman in front of me wasn’t the same one who’d run into the dead of night screaming, or who had told me with glee about the trials. She was warm, friendly—a total stranger.
“Thank you.” I didn’t know what else to say.
“Renee, leave us for this part. I know how it upsets you.” She reached out and squeezed Renee’s hand before letting it go.
“I’ll be just down the hall.” Tears rolled down Renee’s cheeks, joy mixing with sorrow.
Once Renee was gone, Rebecca turned back to me. “The final trial is more of a mental test than anything else. Stella—”
“Is it true?” Sin asked. “That you want me to end the Acquisition?”
She took his hand. “Yes. I’ve never wanted anything more in my life. If I had any strength left, I’d do it myself. We don’t belong. The Vinemonts were never meant to be a part of this.” She shook her head, her white hair flowing around her shoulders. “We were poor sharecroppers. Your great-great-great grandfather unknowingly saved the life of the Sovereign, who repaid him by adding us to this disgraceful club. Don’t you see? It’s not in our blood. We don’t belong here.”
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�But you always said we were better, that we were above everyone else—”
“Forget what I said.” Her tone turned desperate, and her bottom lip shook. “Forget everything I ever told you. Forget everything I’ve done to you.” She ran her fingers over the scars she’d cut into the back of his hand. “But remember what I tell you now. The final trial will force Stella to sacrifice something she loves.” She turned to me again. “Child, what do you love? Tell us.”
“I-I love Teddy and Sin and Lucius. I love Renee, Farns, and Laura.”
“Is there anyone else they could try and take from you?”
“Dmitri.” Lucius glanced at me. “And the rest of them. The flaming hair guy and the blonde.”
“Yes, them too.”
Lightning crackled through the sky, and the boom of thunder shook the house.
Rebecca leaned back, her eyes beginning to dim. “So many to choose from. So many. I’m afraid I’ll be no help. But Cal is the worst of them all. He will make it hurt. He will try to turn you into something you’re not.” She held her hand out to me.
I took it, the skin thin, and the bones frail.
“Don’t let it happen to him. Please. Don’t let him turn into this.” She looked down at her withered body beneath the covers. “I couldn’t bear it if I’d doomed him to live this way. He’s a good boy. They’re all good boys. Please help them.”
“I’ll try. I promise. I don’t want anyone else to suffer ever again in the Acquisition. We have plans. We—”
She snatched her hand away. “What are you doing in here?”
Sin’s face fell, and Lucius stood.
“You two just let anyone in my room?” Her voice cut through the air, shrill and poisonous. “Servants and riffraff from the street?”
“Mother, please.”
“Get out!” She turned her face away, staring out the window as the rain hammered against the glass.
Sin sighed and rose. We trudged back down the stairs, silence enveloping us like a too-warm blanket.
“After that exciting interlude, I’m calling it a night.” Lucius gave us a two-finger salute and strode toward his side of the house.
I stroked Sin’s cheek, but his gaze was far away, likely in the past. “Hey. It’s going to be okay.”
He blinked and kissed my palm. “I know. As long as I have you, it will be.” Striking off toward his room, he pulled me behind him.
When we got there, he shut the door and locked it. Pushing me down onto the bed, he went for my neck, his teeth sliding over my pulse.
I stared up at the canvas I’d done of the first trial, the dark vines swallowing me whole. “You never told me what you did with the North Star. My painting.”
“I know what the North Star is, and I sold it. Why do you insist on wearing so many clothes?” He yanked my top over my head.
I laughed as he kissed my chest. “I’m wearing a t-shirt and jeans.”
“That’s the problem. Nothing is preferable.”
“You want me to walk around the house naked for Teddy and Lucius to see?”
He bit my breast, and I yelped. “No. But in my room, or your room, or any room with just the two of us, is nude really too much to ask?” His tongue grazed my nipple.
“Stop trying to distract me. What about the North Star? Why did you sell it?”
He sucked my nipple into his mouth and swirled his tongue around the hard tip. I raked my fingers across his scalp as he kneaded my other breast.
He switched to the other nipple, licking and sucking until I was panting.
Kissing to my lips, he continued, “I sold it to a very high end collector. It’s on prominent display in his Manhattan home. I hated to part with it, but I had to sell it to launch your career. Last I checked…” He nipped at my lower lip. “You were still the talk of the art scene, your mystery only enhancing your reputation.”
“You did that for me?” I stroked my fingers through his hair, wondering at the softness that lived at the very heart of him.
He kissed me, hard and possessive, before gazing down at me with an intensity that belonged only to him. “I would do anything for you.”
I laced my fingers behind his neck. “Do you think we can do it?” Doubt flittered around my mind, worry as well. “All of it, like we planned?”
“Of course. Lucius has already moved our money.” He got to his knees and yanked my pants down before tossing them to the floor. He stripped his shirt and pants off, his muscles rippling. “We’ve stockpiled everything we need for the coronation ceremony. Teddy will be safely stashed at our compound in Brazil. All we have to do—”
“Is win the final trial.” I finished for him, the words far easier than the deed.
“And we will.” He sank back on top of me, his weight keeping me grounded.
“What if we don’t? What if—”
“Shh.” He stroked my hair. “Everything will fall into place. If anyone so much as talks to Dmitri, or Teddy, or Alex, or anyone you love, we’ll know.”
“Knowing won’t stop me from having to hurt them.” The whispered truth roared in my ears.
“I could win it. I could give myself to Cal—”
“No.” He gritted his teeth. “We’ll win without it. I won’t give you away. Not to anyone, but especially not to him. There’s no point discussing it.”
“I’d do it. To save Teddy, I would.”
“I know you would. I can’t let you. I couldn’t stand it. He would do horrible things, and I would know. Every night, I would know you were being tormented because I wasn’t strong enough to save you.”
“Even so, I’d do it.”
He peered down at me, disbelief in his eyes. “How did I ever manage to catch you?”
“If I remember correctly, you didn’t play fair.”
He smirked.
“Just tell me we’ll be okay, that Teddy will be okay.” I pulled him closer and rubbed my cheek against his stubble.
“We’ll get through it. Together. The same way we’ve done each trial.” He kissed to my mouth.
“I’m scared.”
“I know.” He kissed my forehead. “But they’re the ones who should be afraid.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
STELLA
“STELLA!” SIN’S VOICE HISSED in my ear, and I shot up from his bed. “They’ve sent a car. The trial’s today. Fucking Cal surprised us.” He dropped a kiss on my lips. “This changes nothing.”
“They’re coming.” Lucius stood in the doorway, peering down the hall.
“Hurry to your room. Get ready. I’ll meet you downstairs.” He kissed me again quickly and pulled his sheet free, wrapping it around me.
I rose, clutched the sheet closed at my chest, and hurried away with Lucius.
“What’s going on?”
“Just more fucking dickishness by Cal.” Lucius’ back was tight, his pace hellish as we turned the corners toward my room.
“Get in your bed, quick. Cal wants to surprise you himself. I held him off with coffee. Go.” Lucius pushed my bedroom door open. I slipped through and jumped into my bed as he closed the door. The sheet slipped off and I kicked it down beneath my blankets.
My heart raced, and I glanced to the dresser. I hated the thought of Cal catching me naked. The hall was quiet, so I slipped out of bed and pulled my drawer open. Then I heard footsteps.
Fuck. I crept back to my bed empty-handed and slid under the sheets. Feigning sleep with my eyes barely open, I turned my head toward the door and lay on my back.
I breathed long and steadily, completely at odds with the frantic beat of my heart. When the door handle turned, I clutched my pillow. It opened farther and Cal peeked in, a large grin spreading across his face as he “caught” me sleeping.
Lucius peered at me over Cal’s shoulder, his face pinched. Cal opened the door the rest of the way and eased toward my bed. Chill bumps broke out across my skin, and I wanted to curl up into a defensive ball. Instead, I closed my eyes so he wouldn’t realize I w
as awake.
The bed shifted, and his hand brushed the hair from my face.
“Stella.” His voice was soft, with a hint of merriment.
I opened my eyes and tried to shrink away from him, but he closed his fist in my hair.
“That’s no way to greet the day.” He tsked and let his gaze slither down my neck to my bare shoulders. “Sleeping nude?”
I pulled the blanket to my chin. “Why are you here?”
“Today’s your big day. The final trial. Excited?” He rested his hand at my throat.
I didn’t answer, silently willing him away.
It didn’t work. He leaned closer. “I thought you’d at least try and convince Sin to let me have you.” He wrapped his fingers around the blanket and pulled it down.
I resisted, trying to keep myself covered. When he pulled my hair so hard I thought it might rip out, I let go. He shoved the blanket away and surveyed my body. I crossed my arms over my breasts. He pulled them away and pinned my hands to my sides. I was helpless, the same way I’d been so many times at the hands of these people. I wouldn’t let my fear win. Hatred burned brighter.
“It doesn’t matter now. It’s too late. The last trial is here.” His malicious eyes took in all of me. “Still, I have a few tricks up my sleeve.” He let one hand go, and I moved to cover myself.
He slapped me, my cheek stinging as the crack shocked the still air. “Don’t fucking move.”
I lowered my hand back to my side, humiliation burning and rising to the surface, painting my skin red.
“Better.” He trailed his hands around my breasts and down to my waist and then lower. He smirked and ran his fingers across my pussy as I clenched my legs shut. “Red like I thought.” He met me eyes again. “As I was saying, I have a trick or two left. Your stepbrother has been kind enough to let me have you for a week before he takes delivery.”
I fought the instinct to hit him as he took my nipple in his mouth. He groaned and bit down on it as I tried to keep breathing.
“Lucius?” Sophia’s voice carried down the hallway.