Page 189 of Scandalous Contract

“Is that why you left me?”

I swallowed hard. I hadn’t even realized what I’d said until it was too late. I didn’t answer. My mouth opened, but the words never came. I looked at him, but his eyes stayed on the road, hands gripping the wheel so tightly his knuckles had gone white. I turned away, staring out the window, heart pounding in my throat.

“How do you know where we’re going?” I asked, needing something to focus on. Anything but the way his silence felt like punishment I deserved.

“I found Hudson.”

My head snapped around. “Youwhat?”

“I said I found him.”

“How?” My voice cracked. “How did you find him, Julian?”

“If I tell you,” he said without flinching. “It’ll make you an accessory to a crime.”

I went quiet. Not because I was scared, but because I understood. I’d never hated a man the way I hated Hudson in that moment.

“I want him dead,” I whispered, staring straight ahead. “I’m willing to kill him myself.”

Julian glanced at me, just for a second.

“This is on me. I should’ve killed him a long time ago,” he said. “I’ll get my hands dirty so you don’t have to. Tonight, we’ll get your baby back and... that’s it. We’ll get her back.”

He drove like a bat out of hell. I hadn’t even realized I was holding my breath until we reached our destination. We didn’t have the key to the lock, but Julian had these huge clipper-looking things.

The lock was no match for them. The door on the storage unit rolled open. Julian stepped in first. I followed right behind him, my heart in my throat, my entire body trembling. I didn’t know what I expected to find, but nothing could’ve prepared me for the moment I saw her.

India.

I couldn’t move at first. I just stood there, staring at her like my brain hadn’t caught up to the fact that she was alive and breathing. Then she moved, her head following the noise.

“Who’s there?” She shouted. “Let me go, you bastard! And you better not hurt my mom.”

She was alive and well.Thank you, God!Julian didn’t waste a second. He rushed forward and started untying her, ripping the tape off. The second her arms were free, she tore the blindfold off, and when her eyes landed on me, she screamed my name.

“Mom!”

She threw herself into my arms, and I caught her, holding her tightly. My knees buckled under her weight, both of us crumbling to the cold floor, locked together in a tangle of limbs and sobs. She was crying so hard, I couldn’t understand a damn thing she was saying. Her words spilled out fast and frantically.

“India, baby, slow down. Breathe. I’m here. You’re safe now.”

She hiccupped through the tears, gripping my shirt like she thought I might vanish.

“Tell me what happened, sweetie.”

“Hudson... he called me... asked if I wanted to help him... help him get you back. I said yes. I thought... I thought he was a good guy. I felt bad, Mom, after what I said about you and Julian. I just wanted to fix it. I didn’t know, God, I didn’t know what type of person he really was.”

I smoothed her hair back from her face, whispering that it was okay, that none of this was her fault.

“What happened next, sweetie?”

“He came to get me and brought me a Sprite. I was supposed to tell him all the stuff you liked, and I told him to pay attention this time and not just do what he wanted to do. He agreed. I checked the sprite, the way you always told me to. I swear it wasn’t open, Mom. I checked it. But after I drank it, everything went fuzzy. I woke up here. And he was standing over me, saying all this sick stuff about Dad and you and how you’re not even my mom.”

My arms froze around her.

“He said Dad was abusive. Said you didn’t even want me. That dad tricked you into adopting me. He said I was the child of Dad’s mistress, and they were gonna take me and leave you with nothing. Why would he say that, ma? Why would he say you weren’t my real mom?”

Her eyes locked on mine, brimming with a thousand broken questions.