Page 118 of Viper

“Did they though? You still remained innocent. Naïve to the ways of the world. To the way your father worked. How he ran his business, the things he did to keep it.”

“I was a child.”

“But even as an adult, you remained naïve. Or should I say, you chose willful ignorance,” Fallon says. “It’s easier than addressing the fact that you helped him hide his crimes, so don’t blame yourself.”

“I don’t,” I say, even though I do exactly that. Blame myself because I did lie to myself. Turn a blind eye. Refuse to acknowledge anything around me, much less how it affected me. I walk through life numb and robotic because it’s easier, like he said. Easier than admitting that I am trapped by powerful men, forced to do their bidding.

I still am.

I grind my jaw, knowing Fallon is watching me, knowing my inner struggle.

Because he led me here.

“Tell me, Delilah, do you think a part of Cora’s innocence was taken when her mother and father died?”

“She was orphaned,” I say. “They died in a car accident. That’s different.”

“Yes. The accident. So tragic.” He chuckles. “Are you aware of what Caroline did?”

“If you mean she betrayed my father on a business deal, then yes,” I say. “Everyone knows that.”

Fallon locks his eyes with mine. “Naivety is deadly.”

I swallow, not sure what to make of his expression. It’s dark, but he’s so calculated with everything he does, I’m not sure of what he wants me to see. He’s taken this conversation in so many directions my head feels clogged with too many words and too much subtext.

“Deadly and dangerous,” Fallon says. “As is a lack of control. Yesterday proved that you allow your emotions to control you. This must stop.”

Instead of responding, I reach for my wineglass and take a sip. The dark, rosy notes hit my tongue, and I take another.

“It is crucial that you keep your emotions in check,” Fallon says. “You have only a week before your return.”

The glass rattles as it hits the table. “You mean…” My voice trails off. Why didn’t the men tell me? Maybe they couldn’t.

My stomach dips, the rich cake turning sour and heavy.

I’m going back. To Rune. I’ll have to face him. Lie to him. Pretend I don’t know what he does at that lodge.

Pretend I don’t know about Cora.

The reality of what I’m expected to do crashes into me, and my heart picks up pace. My face flushes. Needles prick at my fingertips. I take a deep breath, but it doesn’t help.

“Breathe,” Fallon says. “Drink water.”

With a shaky hand, I pick up the tall water glass and take a sip, but the fingers of panic wrap around my neck and squeeze, making it too hard to swallow.

“I don’t need to tell you that when you return, it will be difficult,” Fallon says. “You will be questioned, doubted, and will have to prove to Rune that you are loyal to him.”

I nod, but can’t seem to make any words form.

If I fail, I’m dead. We all know it.

“I believe you will succeed. There is too much at stake.” He pats my hand. My gaze darts to where he touched me, and I pull my hands to my lap, swiping my thumb over the skin to remove the slithering sensation. “It is vital that when you meet with the Snyder Group to go over the contract, you ensure you receive an invitation to join them at the lodge.”

It takes a second for his words to sink in, and when they do, my head snaps in his direction. I stare dumbly at him, my mind whirling. All the fragments of information I’ve been told over the last few weeks fall into place.

The hotel chain. Snyder. The deal. The weapons. The night at the club.

They planned this.