The Lies That Define Us Part 33

"I'm sure he was in your childlike eyes," Blaise crossed one foot over his knee, "but he wasn't the man you believe him to be. Your father was a gambler, in debt a quarter of a million dollars, and he was also a liar and a cheat. Much like yourself."

"Shut up. I'm none of those things." I pulled against my bindings, and my shoulders screamed in protest. I wanted to break my binds and lunge at the man that sat with a smirk on his face. I wanted to wrap my hands around his neck and watch the light leave from his eyes. Maybe he was right, and I was like him, because I knew I'd take pleasure in his death.

"That's enough, Scarlett. I'm speaking. Felix?" he prompted. "Gag her."

I glared at him, wis.h.i.+ng I had the power to burn him with my gaze alone.

"I hate you," I told him, "and I will never be yours."

Felix wrapped the piece of fabric around my mouth, tying it behind my head. I didn't fight him. If I did, he'd only hurt me, and my body was in enough pain. I didn't want to be completely disabled. If I could find a way to get out, I would.

Blaise continued on like nothing had happened.

"Soon after Scarlett came into my possession, I knew I wanted her to marry my son when she was older. They're almost the same age, you see," he spoke to Liam. "But Scarlett...she put up a fight. She wouldn't submit to anything I told her as I tried to groom her into a member of the family."

"What are you? The Mob?" Liam interrupted.

Blaise tilted his head, regarding Liam. "I'm bigger than the Mob."

Liam's eyes widened in surprise as if he had only realized exactly what we were dealing with.

"When Scarlett became too defiant, I knew I had to show there was nothing she could go back to."

I closed my eyes, feeling sick to my stomach with the knowledge of what was to come.

"My men and I took her back to her home where I had her tied to a chair just like this one." He pointed at me.

"Oh G.o.d," I sobbed against the gag so it came out sounding more like, "Ohgad."

"And then," he stood and his s.h.i.+ny black shoes clapped against the floor as he sauntered behind Liam, "I sat both of her parents in front of her just like you are now. And I had two of my men, like these guys, press their guns to their heads." He made a gun symbol with his hand and shoved the tip of his finger against the back of Liam's head. "Then, when I told them to, they pulled the trigger. Boom!" He let his hand fall. "I thought that seeing her parents murdered right in front of her would be enough to break her-that being covered in their blood and little pieces of their skull would finally crack that thick one of hers." He grabbed Liam's chin and forced his head back so he was looking up at him. "But it wasn't enough. She failed the biggest test of all and ended up here with you. We've been watching you, and I can only hope that your death will be enough to finally break her."

I saw his Adam's apple bob and then in a crystal clear, steady voice, Liam said, "Then do it. Kill me. She's a Tiger, that one, and I can promise you not even my death will be enough to break her. I know she looks small, but that girl... she's more of a fighter than you. You hide behind your fancy suit and your minions," I heard Liam chuckle on the last word, "you're nothing but a coward pretending to be a G.o.d."

Blaise grabbed Liam's hair in his fist and shoved him upright again. Liam didn't make a sound, but I knew it must've hurt.

"I should kill you right now, just for saying that, but I'm not done talking."

"You really like to hear yourself talk, don't you?" Liam antagonized him.

Blaise snarled, his top lip curling up. Before I could blink, he slapped his hand across Liam's face and then grabbed his neck, squeezing.

I fought against my bounds and screamed into the gag.

Liam. Oh G.o.d, Liam!

Liam's face turned red with lack of oxygen and a vein in his forehead stood out. His eyes slid to me, like if he was dying I was the last thing he wanted to see before he left the Earth.

I tugged on my binds and my arms screamed in protest.

The red started to leave his face, replaced by purple, and panic seized my chest in a vice.

I was crying harder than I'd ever cried before, and thanks to the gag I began to choke.

Blaise finally let go and Liam inhaled a lungful of air. It rasped down his throat and he winced like it was painful to breathe.

Blaise made his way to me and wiped the tears from one of my cheeks. "You can't run from me. I'll always follow. And this," he leaned back so I could see Liam slumped forward in his chair struggling to breathe, "is what happens when you disobey me." Tugging on his pants legs, he squatted in front of me and tilted his head to the side. "Did you really think I'd be so careless, Scarlett? Were you nave enough to think I'd actually begun to trust you? That I'd trust you enough not to have you guarded twenty-four-seven? Or that I'd leave money where you could find it?" He made a clucking sound with his tongue. "You're dumber than I thought. I don't often underestimate people, but I was wrong with you." He steepled his fingers and brought them to his lips. Spreading his hands wide, he said, "It was all a test. One you failed."

I closed my eyes, defeat making my shoulders sag.

I should've known.

I should've f.u.c.king known.

"One you failed again, and again, and again. You could've come home at any time, but you didn't, because of him." He pointed at Liam like I didn't know whom he was referring to.

Blaise, who was normally so calm, suddenly lost it.

"I gave you everything. A home. A family. A life." His face grew red and spit flew into my face. "You had it all with me, and you threw it away." He grabbed my face in a rough grip and forced me to look at him. "n.o.body throws my kindness back in my face like you did and lives. No one."

If I hadn't been gagged I would've told him to do it-to kill me and get it over with.

We both knew I wasn't making it out of there alive.

"You're nothing but a worthless c.u.n.t." His fingers dug into my cheek painfully.

He let go and shoved my head back, which sent me toppling over in the chair. I grunted from the impact and my head slammed against the floor. Dots flashed across my eyes, and I struggled to keep clarity.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

Blaise's shoes appeared in my line of vision.

"Kill them," he ordered, "and clean up this mess."

One last tear leaked from the corner of my eye.

I'm sorry.

Pop.

I'm so sorry.

Pop.

And then, there was nothing.

Liam.

Pain held me prisoner.

My body felt like it was held down by a f.u.c.king elephant sitting on my chest, and the effort to open my eyes was too much.

Why do I feel like this?

Did I drink too much?

What the f.u.c.k happened?

An annoying, incessant beeping a.s.saulted my ears. It was so piercing, like a f.u.c.king alarm or something. I tried to lift my arm to turn it off, but I couldn't move.

I heard voices coming from somewhere, but they were too low for me to distinguish where it was coming from.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Why wouldn't anyone turn off that f.u.c.king alarm? It was annoying as h.e.l.l.

Beep. Beeeep. Beeeep.

The sound sped up, and with it I felt like a bucket of ice water had been poured over my head.

Everything that had happened came rus.h.i.+ng back to me and my eyes flew open. It hurt like h.e.l.l to open my eyes, like they'd been glued shut or something. There was even some kind of substance stuck to my lashes, so every time I blinked it blurred my vision.

"Ari?" I tried to ask, but my voice came out sounding more like a croak. "Ari?" I forced the word out again and my heart sped up even more.

Is Ari okay? Where is she? Is she dead?

"Ari?" My voice cracked. "Ari? Ari? Ari?"

The beeping speed up to what I a.s.sumed was dangerous levels because suddenly a group of nurses and doctors came rus.h.i.+ng into my room.

I grasped the bed sheets in my hands like I was going to push them off and they rushed forward, two of them restraining me.

I wanted to yell and shove them off of me, but I didn't have the strength for that. Instead, my body collapsed against the pillows behind my back and I pleaded with them, "Ari? Ari? Ari?" It was the only word I could get out, and my voice was so raspy and distorted that it sounded more like air leaving my lungs than a name, so I kept repeating it, hoping they'd figure it out. "Ari? Ari?"

Despite the amount of pain my body was in, it paled in comparison to her safety. If I am here, does that mean she is too? Or is she dead? Or had Blaise changed his mind and taken her with him?

I picked at the IV in my arm trying to get it out. None of those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds were doing anything but yelling at me, and I had to find her.

"Sir, sir, you have to stop that." One nurse grabbed my right arm and another held down my left. I kicked my legs, trying to get away despite my body quickly growing exhausted.

I heard someone shout, "Sedate him!"

"No," I pleaded with them. "Ari." My voice cracked again and my words became gibberish.

I felt something cold hit my veins, and in seconds, my eyes grew heavy.

"Ari, Ari, Ari-"

Ari.

When I opened my eyes again, I wasn't alone.

Raymond sat beside my bed.

Raymond, as in the guy that was Blaise's right-hand man.

My mom and dad sat on the couch on the other side of me.

My heart rate picked up again like it had the last time. "Get out," I mouthed to them. "He did this."

My mom stood and came over to me, smoothing her fingers over my cheek the way she had when I was little and sick in bed. Tears pooled in her eyes.

"We thought we'd lost you too." She broke out into sobs and my dad stood, gathering her into his arms. He held her to his chest and peered down at me with this look of sadness and wonder, like he was surprised to see me alive.

"You have to get out," I mouthed again.

My dad shook his head. "It's not what you think. Let him explain." He nodded at Raymond.

What the f.u.c.k is going on? What don't I know?

Raymond stood beside my bed. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and plain t-s.h.i.+rt now with a gun in a holster beside his hip. He pulled out a thin black wallet-type-thing from his pocket and flipped it open.

"My name is Brian McCann. I'm with the F.B.I."

My eyes widened.

"We've been trying to take down Sebastian Arnett-better known as Blaise-for some time now, but he's very well-protected. We decided the only way to do that was for someone to infiltrate his security. I've spent years working my way into his inner circle, enough to become one of his most trusted colleagues. All the while, I've been gathering information to take him down. He's extremely crafty, though, and knows how to cover his tracks. It's why he's been able to undermine the law for so long."

"Wha...What...?"

"What happened?" he asked for me.

I nodded.

"I shot Felix and Blaise shot you before I could disable him. I should've taken him out first, but his gun was still holstered so I didn't think he'd be a problem. I ended up shooting him in the arm and leg to disable him until backup could arrive. You then became my priority. The shot he got off landed in your shoulder, but it was near a major artery. You're lucky it missed it, and your lung. But there was a lot of blood, so I applied pressure and waited for the medics to arrive." He nodded to my right shoulder. It was then that I realized it was now in a sling, unlike before...

"Yeah," he said, like he could read my thoughts, "the doctors taped you down good after your...episode," he chuckled, "and you'll have to wear the sling for a while. But you're lucky to be alive, so I don't think it's too much of a trade. And you'll have a pretty cool scar."

I didn't care about my shoulder. Or a scar. Or even being alive.

All I cared about was knowing if Ari was okay.