Page 41 of Secret Revenge

“Travis, what are you talking about? Talk to me.” Her voice cracked on the other end of the line and I knew in that moment that although I had saved her from the physical monster, I wasstill every bit of a monster. I supposed my father was right, I was like him after all.

“It’s over, Barbara. I’m breaking up with you. You deserve better.” I ended the call before I could hear her cry and quickly blocked her line.

From that point on, I vowed to be everything my father wasn't. To right his wrongs, to protect, not harm.And I’d never let anyone get close enough for me to hurt them the way he hurt our mother. Just in case.

“I never let anyone bring Barbara up to me after that,” I told Alexi and Leo. “Not even her friends who were trying to reach me were allowed. I completely stonewalled her. I always felt very guilty about it, and in my heart, she was the only one there. I hadn’t stopped thinking about her after many years. I even managed to go to her wedding where she had returned the ring I gave her all those years ago.”

“Then…what’s the problem? Do you want her back?” Leo asked.

I frowned. “What? No. She’s married. I fell in love with someone else. A reporter currently working at the company. Emily Skye. I keep trying to tell myself that it is not true but… I am in love with her. What I felt for Barbara is nothing compared to this.”

“Why did you fall in love with her?” Alexi asked.

I couldn’t help my smile. “She is everything. When she smiles…it feels like the sun coming out. When she speaks, I can listen forever. She makes everything better. I love her passion for doing the right thing and I know she will never call my need to help people pet projects. I feel like she is who I want to be.”

“Travis, you’re nothing like your father,” Alexi said. “You never have been.”

“Yeah, and it’s time to stop letting the abusive bastard haunt you,” Leo added gruffly.

Alexi got a familiar faraway look in his eyes. “I believe you will find someone who makes you happy. In fact, I’m sure of it. You’re a better man than I was before I met Aimee, and she puts up with me anyway. And let me tell you, she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” Alexi chuckled. “Even Leo got his happily-ever-after, and she started out as a one-night stand.”

“Hey!” Leo nudged his brother in the ribs, “I am an upstanding gentleman. Gemma’s the one you need to watch out for. You never know what she’s thinking.”

“That’s why you like her. She keeps you on your toes.”

My cousins descended into teasing each other about their wives, and this time it hurt a little less. With their encouragement, I could almost begin to imagine that the same kind of happiness was possible for me. But did I dare, even for a moment, to imagine that I could make someone like Emily Skye as happy as Leo and Alexi clearly made Gemma and Aimee?.

“Travis!” Brendan’s eyes found me immediately as he walked in.

“Why are you shouting?”

“We’ve had a security breach. Our data was stolen. All of it.”

No.

“What happened?” I asked as Brendan walked over to the counter with his laptop. I prayed his answer would be anything but what I feared.

“The data was stolen from the server room and our tracker shows that it has already been accessed. We need to trace the thief. I know it’s the same person that tried to hack us before. They have the same signature. I have no idea how they got in…”

Brendan’s voice faded into the background.

No.

I already knew who it was. But it couldn’t be.

“Emily.” The word left my lips unbidden.

“What?” Brendan asked me, looking confused just as Jackson walked in.

“I already went through the security footage. I saw a woman walk in and I had her looked into. Her name is Emily Skye. She was one of the people who came in for the project. I believe you ran into her last night,” Jackson glanced at me. “You should have detained her.”

“Fuck.” Brendan looked at me. “Is this true?”

“She told me she left her purse in the server room.” I pinched the bridge of my nose, wishing I were anywhere but here. “She said the door had opened for her key card. I thought it must have been a permission glitch.”

"I thought we ran background checks on everyone?” Brendan snapped. “How did this get past us?”

“I don’t know.” Jackson looked just as lost as I was.