by Penelope Sky
I rose from my throne and took my time walking down the stairs, knowing when I got there, I’d probably get a good punch to the face. I reached the last step and stared him down, unapologetic even though I was remorseful for everything I’d done.
He stared at me for a while before he spoke. “I’m not going to take a free pass from you—because my sister can’t be bought. You’ll take every euro for the next few months just as you promised.”
I had no idea what to say to that. It was disappointing, that he betrayed everything he believed in because he was so enraged by what I’d done to his sister. Our situation was even worse than I anticipated.
“First, my father.” He held up his forefinger. “Me.” He held up another. “Annabella.” A third. “Then my sister…” He held up his fourth finger before he dropped his hand. “You came into my life and fucked with everything I care about—everyone I care about.” He stepped closer to me. “So, I’ll stop paying you because you’re dead.”
I’d dismissed everyone from the room because this conversation needed to be private, so no one would know what I’d offer him. “I’m not the same person anymore, Damien.” That woman had softened me, changed me, made me into a compassionate man who wanted to protect innocent people, not persecute them.
“I don’t care.” His lips were pressed tightly together, and his skin was stretched tight because he was so tense, so angry. “I don’t care if you’re the new fucking Pope. You’ll pay for what you did to my family.”
“I love her.” I couldn’t believe I’d just said that to another man besides my brother, wore my heart on my sleeve to my enemy. “I never meant to hurt her—”
“You didn’t hurt her.” He stepped closer. “You fucking destroyed her. She’s the strongest and most fearless person I know, and now she’s dead inside. She doesn’t laugh. She doesn’t smile. Her spunk, her passion, everything is gone.” He pushed me in the chest. “Because of you.”
I stepped back and didn’t retaliate.
“And I’m going to kill you for that.”
“Don’t underestimate her,” I whispered. “A woman like that doesn’t let anyone defeat her.”
He didn’t react to the compliment, staying cold.
“I fell in love with her, Damien. And I would do anything to take it back.”
That meant nothing to him.
“I’ll apologize. I’ll pay reparations. I’ll do anything to make this right—”
“You can never make this right.” He shook his head. “Unless you’re dead.”
“You know she loves me…”
“No, she doesn’t,” he said immediately. “She feels nothing—like I already said.” He turned away. “I’m coming for you, Heath. You still have time to run if you want to keep breathing.”
I took a deep breath, overwhelmed by the mess I’d made. “Damien.”
He turned back around, his eyes sinister.
“I can give you what you want.”
He stilled, unsure what that meant.
“The one thing you want more than anything—I can give it to you.”
He completely turned my way, pivoting his body so his stance mirrored mine. He was either tempted by the offer or simply curious about what I had to say.
“I’ll give you all of Italy. Completely your terrain. No competitors. No taxes.” I offered something no one ever had, and I would pay dearly for it. I would have to shut down all my other clients, and there would definitely be backlash for it, possibly my resignation, but I had to put out this fire.
He cocked his head slightly, his eyes narrowing as he slowly took in the offer. He took a few steps toward me.
It was working. “It’s yours—for a truce.”
His expression didn’t change, his shoulders squared. He was a strong man but on the leaner side, missing the thirty pounds of muscle that I had. He came closer to me again, his eyes cold. “No.”
All my hope died.
“I can’t be bought, Heath. My family is more important than all the money in the world, and I would much rather be dead than shake your hand in the form of a truce. You’ll pay for what you’ve done to us—with your life.”
Fourteen
Catalina
I stared at the board and considered my next move. Now that I never threw a game, I almost always won. My father was a great player, but since he taught me everything he knew, he really stood no chance against me. I grabbed my piece and moved it.
“Something wrong, sweetheart?” He already knew what move he was going to make, so he quickly grabbed his pawn and relocated it.
“No.” I stared at the board again. “Why?”
“You seem lifeless.”
“Lifeless…that’s a bit harsh.” I examined the board as I considered how to beat him in the least number of moves.
“I’ve known you since you were born, sweetheart. I know when something’s off.”
I made my move then looked at him. “Damien told me about your kidnapping…”
“You’re upset about that?” he asked incredulously. “That was like a year ago.”
“Still upsets me.”
“Well, everything turned out fine. My only grievance was missing my favorite show.”
He was just like Damien, making a joke out of the most serious situations. “You weren’t hurt?”
“No.” He examined the board. “When the men came to my apartment and told me to cooperate, I listened. I know my son will move mountains for me. I never lost my faith.” He made his move.
I must have been too distracted by the conversation because I moved my piece and set myself up for failure.
And he demolished me. “Checkmate.”
“Damn…you got me.”
“And that’s how I know something is wrong.” He grabbed the pieces and returned them to the start.
A slow smile spread across my lips.
Damien stepped into the dining room. “Who won?”
I nodded to my dad.
“She was distracted,” Dad explained. “Hopefully, she learned her lesson.”
Damien stood with his hands in his pockets, watching our father for a moment before he turned to me. “Can I talk to you for a sec?”
“Sure.”
After Dad finished setting up the board, he rose from his chair. “It’s time for my nap anyway…” He grabbed a few snacks off the table and took them to his room.
Damien fell into the chair across from me.
“Yes?” I propped my chin on my closed hand, resting it right on the knuckles.
He relaxed in the chair, his hands somewhere under the table. He stared at the board for a while before he looked at me. “I want your help with something.”
“I’m all yours.” I grabbed the first pawn and moved it.
He raised an eyebrow. “We’re playing?”
“Unless you don’t want your sister to kick your ass…”
He gave me a slight glare before he grabbed his piece and moved it. “It’s a lot to ask, and I understand if your answer is no.”
“This doesn’t sound good…” I eyed the board and considered my next move. “What is it?”
“I’m gonna take down Heath, and I think you’re the best way to do that.”
Now, I ignored the game altogether and met his look.
“He’s never alone. And when he is alone, his house is impenetrable. I need to lure him out—alone.”
I didn’t know how I felt about the request because I didn’t feel anything at all.
“It’s your chance to get retribution for what he did—and show me your loyalty.”
I hadn’t shown my own family loyalty at all. “What do you want me to do?”
“Is that a yes?” he asked quietly.
“Yes.” I turned back to the board and moved my piece.
He was quiet for a while. “I thought you might be hesitant.”
“Not at all.” I raised my head and met his look. “He lied to me from the beginning. He chose to hurt me in
stead of doing the right thing. He chose himself over me. He’s selfish…and worthless. I don’t owe him anything.”
Damien gave me a look of approval. “I’m glad to hear that.”
“So, what do you want me to do?”
He grabbed a piece and moved it. “I want you to ask him to come to your apartment to talk. I’ll be there—and take him out.”
“You’re going to kill him?” I asked, my voice changing slightly.
“No.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“He put you in a cage. I’m going to do the same to him.”
I saw the rage in his eyes as I stared at him. “He didn’t mistreat me while I was in there—”
“But he mistreated you the second he fucked you.”
My eyes dropped to the board. “He may not come.”
“Why wouldn’t he?” he asked. “He offered to outlaw every other drug dealer in the country and give me an undisputed monopoly if I declared a truce. Trust me, if you call, he’ll come.”
“But he might be suspicious.”
“That’s fine. Won’t change anything.”
I considered my next move while thinking about the plan Damien had just laid out.
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
I looked at him again, thinking about my father, my brother, and myself. Heath was poison, poison that would kill us all if he wasn’t dealt with. “Yes.”
I stood at my kitchen counter and stared at the screen of my phone. Heath’s name stared back at me. When’d he originally put it into my phone, I didn’t know his name, so he listed it under Skull King. I’d changed it later.
I hit the button and held it to my ear.
It rang only once.
He picked up instantly, just as he’d promised. But he didn’t say anything.
I was quiet, listening to the subtle sounds of movement in the background, like he was doing something in his kitchen. “Are you there?”
His deep voice came back to me instantly. “Wasn’t sure if you meant to call me.”
“I don’t do anything unless I mean to do it.” It was hard just to hear his voice, to imagine that voice ordering his men to slaughter my father while my brother had to listen over the line.
“Then how can I help you?” His voice quieted, turning restrained, like there was much more he wanted to say, but he forced himself to keep his mouth shut.
I wasn’t sure if I could sound convincing when I was this angry, but I tried anyway. “I want to talk…”
He was quiet. “I’m listening.”
“I want to talk in person.”
“You know where to find me.”
“I want you to come here.”
He was quiet again, this time longer. “You always let yourself into my home whenever you want to speak to me.”
“That was when we were together. We aren’t together anymore, Heath. I don’t have your new codes anyway.”
“You do,” he responded. “I never changed them.”
So, I could have had Damien ambush him there. “Well, I’d rather you come here.”
He didn’t say anything. The silence went on so long it seemed like he’d disconnected the call. “You’re setting me up.”
My heart skipped a beat when he figured it out, outsmarting me without even trying. “No…” My own response wasn’t believable, even to me.
“Baby, you’re smart—but not smarter than the Skull King.”
I looked at Damien, giving him a defeated expression. My plan had backfired, and now he knew he could never trust me. I was no longer useful.
“But I’ll still come—if you give me something.”
I stilled at his words, staring at my front door.
“I’ll hand myself over…if you let me hold you.”
I couldn’t believe the request, couldn’t believe he even wanted to touch me after what I’d just conspired to do.
“One minute,” he whispered. “That’s how long I want to hold you. Then I’ll surrender—peacefully.”
Why would he just give up like that? “You’re tricking me.”
“No. I would never trick you, baby.”
“Really?” I asked sarcastically. “That’s not what I remember…”
He processed the insult in silence. “I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. You better uphold your end of the deal.”
“You’re the liar, Heath. Not me.”
Click.
I dropped the phone and turned to my brother.
His expression was relaxed, like he’d heard the entire conversation from where he stood. “That was easy.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and stared at the ground. “Yeah.”
“You think he’ll pull something?”
I wanted to say no, but I had to remind myself that I hardly knew this man, that the man I remembered wasn’t who he was. “I don’t know. This is the Skull King we’re talking about.”
“He knows I’m going to kill him. So why would he do this?”
I shrugged. “He said he would never hurt you—because of me. Maybe he thinks this is the only way.”
“He could run.”
I shrugged again. “I really don’t know, Damien. And we won’t know until he gets here.”
His footsteps announced his presence. His shoes made the weak floorboards creak from his heavy weight as he came closer. When he stopped altogether, the doorknob turned, as if he expected it to be unlocked without checking.
Then he came inside.
Damien stood in the living room with two of his men.
But Heath didn’t look at them. He shut the door behind himself—and only stared at me.
My arms were still crossed over my chest as I leaned against the kitchen island, staring at the blue eyes that used to watch me sleep every night. It was hard not to look at him and feel that rush of anger, feel the betrayal all over again.
He looked at me for a few seconds before he came closer.
I noticed his ring was gone.
With unblinking eyes, he stared at me as he approached, his heavy shoulders squared with tension. He stopped in front of me, gazing into my eyes as if there was nothing else he wanted more, just to look at me. He knew I’d betrayed him, conspired against him, aided Damien in completing the plan I’d originally thwarted—and he didn’t care.
I didn’t want to touch him. I was still sick to my stomach, had been sick since Damien had told me what he did. I despised myself for being so stupid, and my usual self-confidence had vanished into a well. I’d lost a piece of myself—a piece he took. I used to think I was a smart, independent woman. Now I knew the truth—I was just a stupid girl.
His hands moved to my elbows and gently tugged them down, nudging me to open up.
I sighed and dropped my arms, wanting to swat him away.
His large arm circled the small of my back, and he gently pulled me in, directed me against his hard chest.
I felt my tits press against him the way they used to.
His other arm wrapped around me, acting like the thick bar of a cage. Both arms held me tightly as he rested his chin on the top of my head. Once we were still, he released a deep breath, his chest pressing into mine as his lungs pulled in oxygen.
I was still, my hands at my sides.
“Catalina.” His deep voice commanded me, gave a wordless instruction.
I obeyed. My arms moved around his waist.
Then he squeezed me harder and held me still, his breathing so gentle, like he was about to fall asleep. He didn’t move, didn’t seem to care about the men who were about to take him away, as if having this quiet moment seemed to be worth whatever came next.
My face was against the top of his chest, smelling the scent that took weeks to get out of my apartment. The sheets were washed twice, the counters disinfected with bleach, his extra closed tossed down the trash chute. I’d sterilized the place so it was like he’d never been there. The flowers he left on the doorstep were shoved down the garbage disposal be
cause I was so angry he’d ruined something so beautiful, something my father and I shared. Now I never wanted to look at a sunflower again.
When the minute passed, he whispered to me, “I love you.” He released me, dropped his embrace like he’d been counting down the seconds in his head. Then he turned to my brother and the men waiting to take him away, somber in his expression. He held himself with a strong posture, but he was also docile at the same time, his arms by his sides.
Damien studied him for a few seconds, as if he expected a fight. He pulled out his gun and aimed it at him.
Heath didn’t flinch, stared down the barrel of the gun as if it didn’t affect him at all.
Damien nodded to the door. “After you.”
Heath turned around and walked out the door. He didn’t turn around to look at me once more. With his head bowed, he walked down the hallway, his arms swaying by his sides.
I crossed my arms over my chest and watched him go.
Damien moved out with his two men, his gun still raised. He didn’t say goodbye before he shut the door behind himself.
And then it was over.
I’d interfered with destiny when I should have kept my mouth shut. Now everything was turning out the way it was supposed to, the way it should have months ago. My heart would have been spared, so would all the humiliation.
But now it had happened…and that was all that mattered.
Fifteen
Heath
I left my ring at the house, along with a note for Balto.
Give this to the right man.
P.S. You’re still an asshole.
-Heath
He and I weren’t ones for exchanging lots of words, for explaining our feelings down to the bone. He would read between the lines and know what I’d done, and by the time he read the note, I’d already be dead.
And he wouldn’t retaliate…because he would understand that Catalina was still important to me.