Page 49 of Thorns of Love

“Tell me,” I demanded. “There’s something else that’s on your mind.”

“Illias, I found something.” She went silent for a moment, studying me. I waited for her to continue. “Adrian left a picture behind.” I tensed at the mention of her late husband. If I could erase that whole period of her life, I would.

She took a deep breath. “The woman in his photo was in your family portrait,” she blurted out. “I think Adrian’s mother is your mother.”

SEVENTEEN

TATIANA

Illias shook his head and let out a sardonic breath.

“No, Tatiana,” he uttered. “My mother had an affair with Adrian’s father.” My shocked gasp filled the air. “It’s what got her and Adrian’s father killed. I was there that night, I saw it.”

I stared at Illias in shock. His revelation was unexpected. It would make sense why my late husband would have a picture of his father with Illias’ mother then. But my gut feeling warned there was more. Green eyes were very rare, like only 2% of the population had them, so, what were the odds that Adrian’s eyes were the same color as Illias’ mother.

“How old are you?” I asked him. I knew the irony of not knowing my husband’s age, but it wasn’t as if our courting-slash-dating was normal.

“Forty.”

Adrian would have been forty-two. Maybe Illias was right and his mother had an affair with a married man.

“What happened that night?” I asked him quietly.

Illias’ jaw clenched and his eyes darkened to black pools.

“My mother woke my brother and me up in the middle of the night, to run away with her lover. We met them in a parking lot outside Moscow. The guy had another kid, but my father knew her plans. He showed up there with his men. They killed him, then her. When it was time to kill the little boy, I begged him to spare his life.”

I swallowed a lump in my throat. “If you remembered it, so would Adrian.” In fact, I had no doubt he remembered it. He took me to that parking lot after we eloped. He left me a clue there. Except, I had no idea where it went from there. “He came after you.”

Illias nodded. “He did.”

I searched for something in my mind when a headache nearly split my temples open. Distorted images of the accident flashed, but they made no sense. None of them were connected. Faces were unrecognizable.

In the back of my skull, the headache intensified by the second. I closed my eyes, desperately searching through my memories, but it made the ache in my skull multiply tenfold.

When I opened my eyes, I found Illias watching me. The unnerving darkness and answers I wasn’t sure of lurked in his depths, frightening me.

“Why did you marry me?” I asked, shelving the memories that refused to come forward for now.

“Because you’re mine.” His voice was cold. Dark. Possessive. The tenor of his voice was calm, but there was a harshness to it.

“Not forleverage?” He remained silent and then realization fell into place. The wedding dress he had ready for me. It was tailored. It was fucking tailored. “How long did you plan on marrying me?”

Our gazes clashed. There were secrets there and something akin to carnal possession. Although as I stared at him, I watched his walls build up and his features slowly close off.

“How long, Illias?” I demanded, keeping my anger at bay.

“Since the gazebo.” My mouth dropped. It wasn’t the answer I expected.

“B-but… But that’s like seven, eight years.” I swallowed. I got to my feet and wrapped a sheet around me. “Have you been stalking me for all those years?” I narrowed my eyes on him. “That’s not healthy.”

“If you say so.”

“Jesus, it’s like I’m talking to my brothers.” A strange look passed in his eyes. It flickered and disappeared before I could decipher it.

“That’s it,” I said. “Nothing else to say?”

Without warning, he stood up. “Get some sleep.”