Page 106 of Reckoning

Though they’re equally as culpable, I can’t bring myself to blame her. She’s twenty one. Barely old enough to understand what she was getting into. But Roman, Roman must have known. He wasn’t stupid. He would have understood the risks and yet he let her do it anyway. He sent her off, like a sacrificial lamb all in pursuit of his so-called revenge.

My anger stirs and I can’t lay here, I can’t let this go.

I get up, out of the bed, making some excuse about needing to get work done, and though it’s not a lie, we both know that’s not where I’m going.

She gives me a look full of hurt. Like she thinks I’m running from her. Like she thinks I’m disgusted by her. Part of me wants to reassure her but I’m too riled up, too fucking furious. I yank on my clothes, storm out of the house letting the door slam behind me.

The ride over does nothing to calm that rage. If anything it festers. It grows.

As I pull up to the great white house, I don’t give a shit that I’m churning up the gravel, that I’m making one hell of a mess. I only just manage to kick the stand down on the bike in my haste to find the man.

The front door slams open as I barge my way in. A maid comes rushing and she shrieks when she lays eyes on me. I guess, with my helmet on, I must look like a murderer here to finish the job Darius started more than a year ago.

When I get to his office I don’t stop to register that there are voices, that he’s not alone, I just smash my way in, cross the room, and grab him by the throat, hurling him out of his fancy chair and I slam him into the wall.

“What the fuck?” Roman gasps.

I slam my fists into him, one after another, turning his pretty face into a purple mess.

From behind someone grabs me yanking me back and I swing wildly before I register who it is. That it’s the Governor.

“Calm down.” Someone else says behind me. Like those words have ever, in the history of the world, ever actually calmed somebody down.

“What the fuck is going on?” Roman gasps, grabbing his nose that is bleeding profusely.

I pull of my helmet, tossing it onto the fancy arse couch. “You piece of shit.” I snarl. “You knew what he was, you knew what he was like and you let her do it anyway.”

He stills, meeting my gaze but it’s not him who speaks.

“She wouldn’t listen.” Ben says. “I tried to warn her, even after…” He falls silent glancing at Roman with a look that says it all.

“After what?” Roman asks before I can.

Ben slumps, sinking back into the chair that he was no doubt sat in moments ago before I burst in. “Otto did something, he assaulted her, before Darius made his move and staged our deaths.”

“What?” Roman snarls.

I clench my fists, taking a step closer to him. So Ben knew, he fucking knew and he just let her continue?

“She’d been on a date.” Ben explains. “I could see it from the look on her face. But she wouldn’t listen. She just kept saying that it was necessary. And then you and Rose sorted everything, we found out about Lara and I figured she’d never have to see him again, that we’d make him pay and then that would be that.”

“Fuck.” Roman growls, burying his face in his hands.

I stare between the pair of them, ignoring the man stood the other side of the desk from me, the man witnessing all of this.

“She did it for you.” I state fixing my gaze on Roman. “She sacrificed herself for you.”

He shakes his head, “I never wanted her to do it, I tried to stop her.”

“Clearly not hard enough.” I snap back.

“She wasn’t sleeping with him.” Ben says. “At least…”

“Not until he was raping her.” I finish that sentence and see how much he winces. How much all of them do, even the Governor, who still hasn’t spoken a god damn word.

“How is she?” Roman asks. His right eye has swollen up, his jaw’s got a nasty bruise and yet still it doesn’t feel like I’ve hurt him enough.

“She’s been better.” I state.