Page 66 of Darkest Game

“Yeah. She’s my wife. Jack Finnigan forced us to marry. That was Jack’s wife, Elaine. She went after you to get to me and Irina. She hates us.”

“For what?”

I lower my voice. “For killing Jack.”

Her eyes practically bug out of her head. “Why would you do that?”

“Because he was going to hurt her, Mom. He was going to rape her. I… I had to stop it.”

“So, you saved her.” Her eyes soften. “You’re a hero then.”

I scoff. “I’m no fucking hero, trust me. I just knew I had to save her. But now Mikhail Novikoff and Nico Bernardi are coming after me. They’re married to Irina’s sisters. They think I hurt Irina. I did… I did initially take her because Jack asked me to.”

“Oh, Liam. What have you gotten yourself into?”

“I never tell you these things because I know you worry. I always wanted to keep you out of it. I never expected Elaine to go after you. I’m sorry for that.”

“I’m just glad that you’re ok. So… you and Irina? How long have you been… married?”

“Just a few days. She went back home with to be with her family. I can’t keep her with me.”

“Why not?”

“Because her family wants me dead. And neither of us wanted to be married.”

“But you’re fighting for her. I’ve never seen you more scared than when you picked her up in your arms. When you saw that she was hurt. You might not have wanted this marriage, Liam, but it’s clear to me that you care for the girl. For your… wife. God, I’m still not used to saying that.”

“I know. I’m sorry for keeping this from you. I was hoping to fix it all but everything keeps getting worse. And now Irina is hurt… Fuck.” I slam my hands against the chair. It makes a few people nearby look at me with concern. Mom gives them a smile and a hand wave that says ‘don’t worry.’

“Liam.” She wraps her arm around me like she did when I was a kid. “Liam. It will be ok.”

“I did this to her. She wanted to protect you, Ma. She had never even met you and she wanted to protect you. She wanted to sacrifice herself to save you. I mean, who does that? I never would have even thought to do something like that before I met her. I was always… selfish. Even keeping things from you were selfish. I told myself I was doing it to spare you. To not make you worry. But I also did it because I never wanted you to judge me. I never wanted to make you ashamed of me. I’m a fucking selfish man and I’m somehow married to a woman who’s the most selfless being I’ve ever met.”

“Oh, Liam.”

“She was kept in a kennel, Ma.”

Her eyes tighten. “What?”

“When I first brought her to Jack. He made her stay in a kennel. A dog kennel. He had these two dogs in another kennel. They were being treated horribly. But Irina wanted to protect them. She even tried to barter with me for them, saying that she would go along with marrying me if it meant saving the dogs. How many people have you met who would give themselves over to be hurt just to spare the lives of two dogs?”

“Not many people.” She smiles, tears in her eyes. “You really care for her. You might have only known her for a short time but you care for her. Deeply. I can see it on your face and hear it in your voice.”

“I can’t care for her. She needs to go back to her family.”

“What do you want?”

“I don’t want to be killed by her family for keeping her.”

She clucks her tongue. “No. I mean, what do you want for you and Irina?”

“Ma…”

“Come on. Tell me.”

I sigh. “I want… I want to keep her. I want to save her. Protect her. I want her to be mine but she can’t be.”

“Why not? Other than her family hates you?”