It’s when he lifts his head and our eyes meet that I truly feel the horror of this moment—a moment I didn’t think would ever come. I’ve never thought about the day I’d see him again because a part of me hoped he was gone for good.
His jaw hangs crooked, thick strings of spit and blood dribbling from the corner of his mouth. But his gaze is a dark pool of vacant amusement as he stares at me. Suddenly, I’m back in the past. I’m that little girl again—the girl staring up at her dad, wondering what it is that he wants her to do with his friend. I’m the girl who ran from her father that day…which is exactly what I need to do now.
“No. No. No.” I take a hesitant step back…and another. “What the fuck is this?”
“Listen to me.” Alexius reaches for me, but I jerk away.
I point at my dad, still staring right at me. “He’s supposed to be in prison.”
“Your father got out on parole.”
“Parole?” I snap my gaze to Alexius. “That’s not possible.”
“My uncle made it possible.”
“What?” I take another step back, struggling to keep my heart from crawling out my throat. “Why would…what does your uncle have to do with my father?”
“He set up the whole thing and pulled every string to get your father out.”
“I don’t understand.” From the corner of my eye, I see Isaia get off the platform, slowly approaching. “Um…why…why would Roberto do that?”
Alexius inches closer, like he’s afraid I might run if he moves too fast. “My uncle only did this because he knows the best way to get to me is through you.”
I shake my head lightly, unable to form a coherent thought. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying you’re not just my wife, stray. You’re my weakness too, and my uncle knows it. He knows there is only one thing that would be far worse than death for me, and that’s losing you.”
The acidic taste of bile rises up my throat, leaving a rotten taste in my mouth. Nausea follows it, and I clutch the fabric of my shirt over my belly, struggling to breathe through the bitterness.
Alexius drags a hand through his hair, brushing it out of his face. “Word got to your father that you’re a Del Rossa now. A Dark Sovereign wife. He started using that to his advantage, making deals and forming alliances, saying his son-in-law is Alexius Del Rossa.”
“Oh, my God.” I suck in a breath, but the air doesn’t reach my lungs, my gaze cutting back to the man in the chair. I don’t even want to think of him as my father. It’s too close, too personal like that. I hardly recognize him. He’s older than I remember but not as skinny. Clearly, he’s been fed more in prison than he fed himself when he was free. He didn’t care for food back then, only caring about his next goddamn fix. He thought his daughter didn’t care for food either.
There’s a sharp pain in my gut, and even though we just had dinner, I can remember what it felt like having to go to sleep hungry every night. I remember clutching my tummy, hoping the hunger pangs would die and the grumbling noises would stop. I would wake up in the morning, my stomach burning with nausea and my head throbbing.
A pained whimper escapes me, and I have to plant my palm in front of my mouth. “This isn’t happening,” I mutter.
“Your father told everyone about you and me and how he has access to the Dark Sovereign through you. It’s given him a fuckton of street credit, Leandra. And the plan was for him to get close to you, blackmail you, extort you as far as he could, and then…” Alexius stops short, his throat bobbing as he swallows.
“Then what? Kidnap me. Kill me. What?”
“It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that I won’t let anyone fucking hurt you or take you from me. Roberto managed to get your father out on parole, but he fucked up by underestimating us, and we found a way through the cracks in his plan.”
Rome walks in, the collar of his black trench coat straightened to cover his neck. The confusion I feel is sickening, and I’m sure all the blood in my body has been drained.
“Rome helped us,” Alexius explains. “He knew of his father’s plans and agreed to help us so we can protect you.” He moves close and places his hands on my shoulders as if shielding me. “I need you to understand that I would much rather have put a bullet in your father’s head and end his miserable existence than put you in this position. The last thing I want is to put you through this. But I made you a promise, and that’s why he’s here. That’s why you get to decide today.”
“Decide what?” I search his face, my heart pounding like it's moments away from ripping through my chest.
He steps up close, cupping my face in both his palms, forcing me to look at him as he wipes tears from my cheeks. “We have two options here, Leandra. We have the ties to make him disappear, make sure where he’s going no one will ever find him. Or we kill him.”
My heart splits open, adrenaline flooding my veins. “Kill him? You want me to decide what happens to him?”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“You have to, Leandra.”