Page 195 of Blackwood

Then the expression on her face hardens like ice snapping beneath the weight of fury. She turns fast on Tex.

“And you,” her voice turns lethal. “You told me you lost her.” She steps in closer and gets straight into his face. “You told me she was gone. That you couldn’t find her. That every search was a dead fucking end.”

Her voice cuts like a blade, her hand shaking as she points toward me. “Which I can see now was a complete lie.”

My stomach drops. The SUVs at the funeral. The constant fear from Mama. The whisper-warnings about staying hidden from someone.

My pulse races. “Tex?”

He doesn’t meet my eyes. Just runs a hand down his face like he already knows he’s been caught.

“What is she talking about?” I press. “What does she mean you lost me?”

“Bella…” he starts, but Irina slices right through.

“Your mother,” she says, eyes blazing, “was everything to me. We ruled The Revenants together before that name meant what it does now. She was like a sister. Fierce. Wild. Brilliant.”

Irina’s voice drops lower, more bitter. “She danced at The Obsidian. Before she knew what it really was. Before she understood who Roman Russo really was.”

I glance at her. “The club owner?”

Irina’s gaze hardens, the chill of it cutting through the air. “He’s a monster,” she says evenly. “Head of the Italian Mafia here in New York. Owns The Obsidian, buried beneath his luxury hotel, NOX.”

She pauses, almost savoring the word. “And below that lies his kingdom. The casino. His sick little playground where he and his Italian brutes convince themselves they own this city.”

She takes in a deep breath.

“We all went to school together,” she says finally, her voice quieter now. “Daniel. Roman. Me. Izzy.”

The name falls like a confession.

“He always had a thing for her,” Irina continues, a faint ache threading through her words. “Hired her to dance at his club. And she… she loved him. God, she loved him.”

For a heartbeat, she closes her eyes—just once, like the memory still cuts deep. “But he was already promised to an heiress back in Rome,” she says, the warmth fading from her tone. “Old money. Old power. A marriage that would fortify the Russo empire.”

Irina exhales slowly. “And when your mother found out she was pregnant with his child…”

Her voice falters.

“She ran,” she whispers. “Left me a note saying she was sorry. That she had to disappear before Roman could get to her. That she was terrified he’d take you from her.”

Her voice finally cracks. “She died in that hospital giving birth to you.”

No one moves. No one breathes.

“I sent James,” she whispers, nodding toward Tex, “to find you. To bring you back to me.To raise you. To keep you safe from that monster.”

She looks at me and then at Lex, who hasn’t moved an inch from my side. And then back to me. “You were supposed to be mine to protect.”

I turn to Tex slowly. My voice is barely audible. “Is that true?”

He finally looks at me. “I found you when you were three,” he says, his tone low and heavy. “You were at a Razorback game with Henry and Jack. I watched you from a few rows back. You were laughing, wearing this cheerleading outfit and dancing like the world had never hurt you.”

His voice thickens. “You were happy,Bells.”

He glances at Irina. “I told Irina that I was having trouble finding you. That the trail was cold. But it wasn’t. I just… I couldn’t do it.”

“You couldn’t dowhat?” I whisper.