Page 29 of Reign of a Billionaire

My sister had been enough for me. Father certainly never attempted to save us from Sofia Volkov. Then my twin was taken. He didn’t swoop in to save her, and I couldn’t forgive him for it. Fuck, I couldn’t even forgive myself.

Memories twisted in my chest as I made my way out of my bedroom. Mother had a separate wing where she handled business and personal matters. I rarely ventured there, but now, I had to get answers. She couldn’t leave me in the dark. Not anymore. Not this time.

As I made my way deeper into the castle, the sound of thunder rumbled in the sky, almost as if announcing impending doom. This side of the estate was adorned in riches, all of the corridors filled with paintings of strangers. There wasn’t a single portrait of our family to be found.

As I turned the corner and came up to the door of my mother’s suite, I closed my eyes for a moment. My breaths were even despite my erratic heartbeat.

I sensed there were big things at play, and I didn’t have the luxury of ignoring it. I’d done enough ignoring to last me the rest of my life.No more.

Thunder crackled outside, almost as though the skies agreed with me. Or maybe they were warning me to run back to my side of the castle.

My palms sweating, I raised my hand but froze mid-air, hearing the voices inside.

“It had to be an inside job.” I recognized the accented voice of Perez Cortes booming through the phone speaker. “I’ve killed every man who knew about our shipment to ensure no traitor was left breathing. I expect you to do the same.”

“I’ll have the bodyguards killed,” my mother replied. Just like that. Perez, just like my mother, didn’t value human life.

“But not just them.” Perez’s voice clearly signaled no room for negotiation. “I expect your daughter to be part of that body count. Ghost is snooping around her, and I don’t believe in coincidences.”

Who was he talking about? A ghost?

“She doesn’t know?—”

Perez interrupted whatever Mother had been about to say. “It’s an auction block, Marabella contract, or death for your daughter. Take your pick, Sofia.”

There was a long pause while I stood in stunned shock, staring at the mahogany door. Had it really come to this? Me on the auction block? Perez, his Marabella arrangements, and his idea of high-prized girls being auctioned off should—would—be burned to ashes.

And who was this ghost they spoke about?

I let out a sardonic breath. Perez Cortes was threatening me, and I was worrying about a ghost.

“She’s my daughter,” Mother said again. “You will not touch her.” I swallowed, hearing the protectiveness in her voice. Ishould feel relieved, but somehow it made the hair on my body stand. It only meant that Mother had a different plan. “I protected her from my husband”—Ivan Petrov was the shittiest husband a woman could have. He was cruel and evil, and thankfully not my problem—“and I’ll protect her from you.”

He laughed. “You really should have put a leash on that one a long time ago.”

“Fuck you.” The fury in Mother’s voice was impossible to miss. “Only I decide her fate.”

Bitterness thickened on my tongue. She was sparing me torture at the hands of others, but not her own. Punishment would come. It always did.

“She’s dangerous, and you know it.” There was another long pause before Perez spoke again. “And with Murphy’s death, he’s no longer around to protect her. From you or from me.”

He’s dead.

The statement ricocheted like a broken record. It shouldn’t be a surprise. When you lived among evil, it tended to catch up to you.

Why didn’t I feel sorrow? Pain? All I could focus on was that something was wrong. It wasn’t just this fucked-up business relationship. It wasn’t the death of a father I barely knew. It went a lot deeper than all this.

“Yes, she’s a danger to you, but not to me,” Mother hissed. “So you better watch the fuck out.”

“Then get her in line, Sofia.”Click.The line ended, the silence deafening before something thudded against the wall and the door opened. I stood there, our gazes locking, my hand still mid-air.

“What are you doing here?”

“I want to know what’s going on,” I demanded.

Mother stepped aside, opening the door wider. “Come in.”

Slightly surprised but hiding it behind a calm façade, I walked past her, still barefoot, the door shutting behind me silently. Then she started pacing back and forth until she came to a stop in front of the window.