Angelo nodded. “Very well. Carterina will be calling you soon. The plane landed about thirty minutes ago. She is on her way home.”
Both excitement and fear rushed through Anastacia’s body. She wanted to see her baby girl so badly, but she was also nervous as hell about the talk she knew they needed to have.
Regardless, she pasted a smile on her face anyway. “Perfect. I’m going to go get my phone.” She headed for the kitchen, which was where she believed she’d left it.
“Ana,” Angelo called for her.
Anastacia stopped and turned to face him. “Yes, Angelo?”
Slowly, he advanced toward her until he stood in front of her. He reached behind her head and gathered all of her hair, bringing it to the side. Leaning forward, he kissed her forehead, then her cheek, and finally the side of her mouth.
Anastacia frowned. “Angelo,” she whispered. “If this is your way of apologizing for being an ass in the kitchen, no need. There are no hard feelings. I’m fin—”
Her words faltered when Angelo abruptly gripped her face and forcefully turned her head.
“What is this?” he growled. “It’s a fucking hickey, Ana!” He roughly pushed her away, disgust twisting his features. “Where did it come from? I know I didn’t fucking give it to you.” he shouted. “Why the fuck am I even asking you? You smell like him—”
Anastacia silenced his shouting when she harnessed every bit of strength she possessed in her body and slapped him right across the face. The force from the abrupt blow knocked him back a few steps, but he completely lost his balance when she pushed him to the floor.
“I hate you!” she screamed the words at the top of her lungs, then turned on her heel and stormed away from him.
Angelo had already recovered and was coming after her. “Get your ass back here, Anastacia!” he shouted from behind her. However, Anastacia didn’t stop. She kept walking until she reached the kitchen, and he roared, “How dare you? How dare you put your fucking hands on me after you’ve done this?”
“I’ve done nothing!” she shouted. She made it to the kitchen and snatched up her phone.
“You’re fucking, Cesare!” he bellowed.
“I’m not fucking him. I love him!”
“Goddammit, Anastacia,” he roared, getting in her face. “How can you say that shit to me? To me! You’re a fucking bitch!”
“You’re the fucking bitch!”
“So did it just start, or have you been fucking him the entire time?”
She grabbed two handfuls of her hair and screamed, “Get away from me! I swear to God if you don’t get away from me I’ll stab you in your fucking neck.”
“I wish I could kill you! I hate you so fucking much, half of the time I wish you’d just die anyway.”
“Likewise, motherfucker! So please do me a favor and drive off the nearest fucking bridge.”
“I wouldn’t give you the pleasure! You’re such a fucking hypocrite, Ana. You gave me all that shit about Cynthia and you’ve been fucking Cesare. As far as I’m concerned, we’re even.”
Anastacia shoved him with all of her might. “This is not a game, Angelo. I haven’t fucked anyone in the last six years besides you.”
“Bullshit!” he snapped, shaking with anger.
“I don’t give a shit if you believe me or not because we’re done. We’re finished. I ended it with you, so who I fuck is no longer any of your concern.”
“Fuck that shit! We’ll never be over.”
“Fuck you. I’m done with you. I don’t love you anymore—”
He gripped her face again, harder this time. “That’s bullshit,” he shouted. “No matter how many times you say it’ll never be true!”
She hit his arm with her fist until he released her, then she reared back and slapped him again . . . harder this time.
He stumbled back, but quickly regained his balance and stormed angrily toward her. “Stop fucking hitting me, Ana. I swear to God I’ll—”
“You’ll what? Hit me?” She pushed him again. “Go ahead, hit me,” she screamed, and smacked him in his face once more. “Hit me you piece of shit. Show me what kind of man you really are. Hit me.” She smacked him again. “Hit me!”
“Anastacia!”
Anastacia whipped around when she heard Cesare shout her name. “Cesare—”
“Your phone,” he cut her off.
Frowning, she looked to the counter and saw the light on her phone light up.
She gasped, ran over to her phone, and answered it. “Hello? Hello, baby? Its mama, is everything okay?”
Silence.
Pulling the phone away from her ear, she looked at the screen. Why isn’t she saying anything? “Carterina? Baby girl, are you there?”
“No, pet, she is not.”
The feeling came immediately and rendered her motionless. Everything around her turned pitch black and she immediately disappeared into his world. The room around her resembled the room he would put her in to punish her. It was dark, cold, and the only thing she could hear was the sound of his voice.
“Si–Silas,” she whispered, even as her body began to shake. That ever-present leash began to tug at her neck, letting her know that she still didn’t make any decisions when it came to her own life; she didn’t have a say, nor any control over anything. She was still his. He owned her, controlled her. She was still his … pet.
“It’s so good to hear your voice, pet. How long has it been?”
Her hands began to shake, and tears clouded her eyes. “Twenty-two years, Silas. That’s how long.”
“That’s too long, pet. I’ve missed you.”
She didn’t say a word.
“How have you been? I’d love to hear you speak, dear.”
How has she been? How has she been? Was he out of his mind? Of course. Of course he was out of his mind. The man was Silas Steele for fuck’s sake!
“Why would you ask me that?” she cried. “Why would you ask me that!”
“Because I want to know, pet,” he answered calmly.
“You took my daughter from me, that’s how I’ve been. You beat me until you killed our son. You made me give my baby to a stranger. You’ve been tormenting me for the last twenty-three years!”
“Lies, Anastacia,” he said sharply. “I let you be until you turned my brother against me, using your feminine wiles on him. Committing adultery with my brother was low, yet I have not yelled at you. I just wanted to call and check on our kids, and have a civil discussion with my wife.”
Anastacia shook her head. “Do not call me that. I am not your wife.”
“You are my wife, and you have been for twenty-four years.”
“I asked you for a divorce. I told you I didn’t love you. When are you going to just get it and leave me alone?”
“Easy, pet. Lower your tone. Let’s keep this civil, avoid any unwanted ugliness. I’ve called to check on you and my kids, that’s all.”
“How are you calling me right now? How did you get my number?”
“I have your number every time you get a new phone. I just didn’t have a reason to call you until now.”
“What do you want?” she screeched.
“I thought I requested that you lower your tone. You know how I get when you raise your voice at me. Let’s avoid the dramatics and calm ourselves, love.”
“I am not your love,” she spat. “I’m hanging up!”
“I’d advise you against that, dear. I don’t quite understand why you are being so testy. I let them go.”
“You kidnapped my daughter—”
“Our daughter!” he roared.
Anastacia flinched and shut her mouth as his enraged face flashed through her mind. Yes, it was true. Even after all these years, there was a part of her that still feared Silas Steele.
“I cannot kidnap what is mine!” he shouted. “She is ours, she came from the both of us. I was there the night she and her brother were conceived, pet.”
“Yes you were, Silas.�
� She clenched her jaw as tears spilled from her eyes. “You were there when our twins were conceived. You were also there when I was seven months pregnant with them and you beat me. The night you killed our son, and nearly killed me and our daughter. The night you obliterated any love I had ever felt for you! What kind of fucking father are you? What kind of father have you been to her? You handed her off to Robert, remember? He raised her!”
“Don’t act like you’re a better parent then me, Anastacia.”
“I am better than you—”
“I gave you a choice. A choice! And you chose your fucking pride over raising our kids together!”
“Did you actually think I was going to let my children see the way you treated me? Did you think I was going to stay with you after you hurt me? After you locked me up in that room for days with no food, water, or decent way to relieve myself. You’re out of your fucking mind!”
“So your solution was to stab me three times, then run away with my children? My blood, my family.”
“Yes! I would have done anything to get my kids away from you. They already had to live with the curse of your DNA, I would never have made them endure living with you.”
“You ungrateful bitch! After all I’ve done for you. After all I’ve done to protect you. I’ve killed to protect you, to protect my daughter, my son, and this is how you treat me.”
“I owe you nothing—”
“Oh, you don’t think so? Who did your Robbie called when you and Cecilia needed to be protected? Who do you think it was that stopped the Stone’s from going for your riches, for your life, for Cecilia? You think that little pint-sized army of yours intimidated them. No. It was me! And I didn’t even need a fucking army to back me up. You should be honored to be my wife. You should be honored to bear my children, and have my love. They would have killed you long ago if I didn’t kill them first, trust me, pet.”
Both disturbed and confused, Anastacia pinched the bridge of her nose with a shaky hand. “It’s Carterina …”
“What?”
“Her name,” she whispered. Her voice shook as she fought not to breakdown and cry. “Her name is not Cecilia, Silas. Her name is Carterina.”
“I will not call her that.”
“It is her name—”
“You call my daughter the name of a whore.”
“She was not a whore!” Anastacia screamed. “She was my mother. My mother. Her name is Carterina and you will call her that. I am her mother. I want her name to be Carterina. Not Cecilia, Carterina! Just call her the fucking name, Silas.”
Her chest rose and fell rapidly with her angry breaths as she waited for him to scream at her for ordering him to do something. Closing her eyes, she fought not to pass out from the now severe pain in her side. Her pain pills had completely worn out, and the rapid movement of her lungs only worsened the throbbing pain of her wound.
After another minute, Silas took a deep breath and sighed. “I’ve gone about this all wrong again, haven’t I?”
She didn’t say a word. Don’t listen to his apology, Anastacia, it’s all bullshit. That’s all it has ever been.
“You have a right to be upset with me. Aziz explained to me the severity of what I did. I should have been a better husband to you, a better father to Cec—Carterina … and Gabriel. But as usual, I fucked up. I’m sorry, pet. I just get so upset because I love you so much, but I promise you I’ve changed. I’m not the same man I was when we first met. I was sick then, and I’m better now. I let them go, pet, all three of them.”
Anastacia hadn’t heard half of the words he’d said to her. Everything else was tuned out the moment he said Carterina … and Gabriel. Why would he say that? Why would he say that if not to hurt her?
Anastacia immediately began to weep. “Why do you say such things to me, Silas? You claim to love me, yet you speak my son’s name as if I still don’t hurt, as if I still do not mourn the loss of my baby.”
“Anastacia, I—”
“I am a mother, Silas. I carried him within my womb. You will never know such a feeling, such a connection as the one a woman has with her children. I felt him kick me, I spoke to him, watched him and his sister move within my belly, and heard his heartbeat. You killed him, then speak of him as if he were still alive to … what? Hurt me more than you already have?”
“Anastacia, he lives.” He paused, apparently allowing what he had said to sink in, and the words replayed in her mind over and over again. “Our son lives and breathes, pet. I have set him free so that he may be with you, and his sister. I have done this for us, for our family. I will show you that I have changed. Does this make you happy, pet?”
Does this make you happy, pet?
Anastacia shook her head and wiped the tears from her face. “No, Silas,” she answered. “It doesn’t make me happy.”
She didn’t believe him. Once again, he had shown her how cruel of a man he truly was.
“Do not ever call me again, Silas Steele. We are not family. I don’t love you, and I haven’t loved you for twenty-three years. I want my divorce. And if I ever see you again, I will kill you. Obviously you haven’t seen my army in a long time, it’s not so pint-sized anymore. I owe that to your old friend Shadow.” Shadow Walker, formally Shadow Steele. The man who helped Anastacia escape Silas, and the man who is now head of all things security within her empire. He had just made it to America the day Carterina was taken. Shadow was like her big brother, and she loved him dearly. “I’m ending the call now, Sil—”
“Not so fast, pet. Just a couple things before you go.” He cleared his throat. “Divorce or not, you and I will always be married in the eyes of God. I know you think I am lying to you, but I assure I am not. You of all people, my wife, know I do not lie. Such a practice is sinful. I have enough sin in my life without adding breaking a commandment to it. Gabriel lives, and so does Robbie—”
“That’s it,” she cut him off. She’d had enough of his cruelty. “Good-bye, Silas.”
She hung up her phone. The moment she did it began to ring again, and against her better judgment she picked it up.
“What?”
“Don’t you ever hang up on me you, bitch!”
“Wow, Silas,” she exclaimed sarcastically through her tears. “It really sounds like you’ve changed, my dear, loving husband. Leave me alone you fucking lunatic!”
“Do not shout at me. You keep up with this tantrum and I’ll have to give you something to really be upset about. Silas giveth and Silas taketh away, pet!”
“Fuck you,” she screamed. “You were a shit husband, and an even more disappointing father. Burn in hell!”
She hung up the phone again, and it immediately began to ring. Anastacia released an enraged scream and picked it up.
“Leave me alone!” she screamed.
She heard him shouting as she lifted the phone in the air and slammed it on the counter repeatedly until it was in pieces.
Two big hands resting on her shoulders startled her until she turned and saw it was Cesare. Throwing her arms around his neck, she clung to him.
“Cesare, I do not understand how he got my number.” She buried her face in his neck. “What if he has found me? He sent that man to the hospital, what if he has found me out here?”
“Shh …” he soothed, running his fingers through her hair. “Be calm, my sweet Ana. You’re shaking. You must be calm. He cannot find you here. He can’t trace you. Just relax.”
“I am in so much pain, mon amour. I can barely move.”
“Ana, you must rest. You haven’t rested all day. Let me help you to bed—”
“No,” she cried, the pain and fatigue now pushing her into a delirious state. “I must wait for my baby to return home. I have to see.”
“See what, my love?”
If Silas had lied to her or if he told her the truth. If he lied to her, then it would be the first time he ever had. Silas did not lie. Ever. He didn’t have to. Everything he did, he did unashamed and unafraid. He didn�
��t need to lie about anything.
“My son.” Anastacia looked up into his eyes. “He said that my son lives. He said my Gabriel is well, and with his sister.” She shook her head. “But it cannot be. He died at birth. Then he said that Robert is alive as well. Why would he say—”
The sounds of multiple cars pulling up in front of the house caught their attention. Not too long after the sound of doors opening and closing followed. Everything in Anastacia’s body was telling her to run outside, run outside and see. Run outside and asked Carterina if what Silas said was true.
Abruptly she broke away from Cesare and ran as fast as her tired body would allow.
“Ana!” both Cesare and Angelo called after her.
She didn’t stop because she couldn’t. She was determined to see … she had to see.
Once she made it to the front door, she quickly yanked it open and went outside. Inhaling a shaky breath, she stumbled down the steps when she saw his face and quickly looked away.
“Anastacia?”
His voice … it was the same, but he wasn’t who she needed to see. Not even the shock of him being alive stopped her from looking for her child.
“Carterina,” she called. “Carterina!”
“Mama!” Out of the back of an SUV, her baby girl jumped out and ran to her. “Mom,” she cried.
Anastacia smiled and a sob escaped her lips as she watched her precious daughter run to her, crying for her. She opened her arms just as Carterina ran into them.
“Mama. I missed you so much.”
Anastacia kissed her daughter’s hair as she hugged her protectively tight and cooed to her in French. “Shh … do not cry my baby. Mama is here.” She closed her eyes and let her tears fall freely as she held her weeping baby girl in her arms. “I’m so sorry, baby. Mama is so, so sorry. I never meant for this to happen to you. I love you so much.”
“I love you, too, Mama … I love you just as much.”
Anastacia’s heart soared when Carterina spoke the words she’d been so afraid she wouldn’t say. She didn’t even know why she’d doubted her baby in the first place. Carterina was strong, understanding, and compassionate. Anastacia should have known to expect more from her baby girl than she expected from herself.
Dangerous Beauty: Part Three: This is War Page 24