Page 194 of Viper

Images of Cora over the years with him—every single moment I missed because I refused to see it—and the pictures of mutilated bodies fill my head, swirling fast enough that I have to clench my teeth, breathing out slowly through my nose so I don’t pass out.

My pulse skyrockets, aware that Zane is watching me, and let the word come out as if I’m ignorant of every horrendous sin, “Daddy?”

Rune circles, coming to a stop a foot in front of me. My father looks exactly as he always does. Pressed suit, salt and pepper hair, vibrant blue eyes, but the subtle changes are there. The dark circles under his eyes. The stubble along his jaw.

But now that I know, I can see it. The underlying layer of something not quite right. Some thin veil that shrouds him, a dark, shadowy thing, turning everything about him slightly off.

A tremble starts in my shoulders, from his nearness, but he takes a step back and then gestures to Morgan.

Dr. Morgan clears his throat, and that’s when I notice the file in his hands. He opens it. “The reports show semen from four separate males was present in the vaginal cavity.”

My chest caves in as the air leaves my lungs. “You examined me?”

Morgan shifts his focus from the file to me, then he says. “Further vaginal examination reveals no vaginal tearing, so it is unclear if there was an assault or if the subject was willing. There was no evidence of semen in the anus, so it appears the patient was not sodomized.”

My chin quivers, and I look at Zane, whose cold, penetrating stare makes my skin prick.

Dr. Morgan continues, “Examination of the arms and wrists shows no signs of restraint. Faint bruising along the neck indicates choking, or possible restraint. Bite marks along the body and the old bruising on her face, along with the healed cut on the mouth, all indicate physical assault. The birth control implant remains, so it appears the intent was not to impregnate. Bloodwork and cultures all came back clear. Negative for STDs and pregnancy.”

“How fuckingdareyou,” I breathe, heat rising in my chest and face.

Rune moves so fast that I don’t have time to brace for the hit. Pain explodes across my mouth, and my head snaps back.

“He will be angry. Try to deflect.”

I squeeze my eyes shut, my mouth and cheek stinging, blood and acidic hatred flooding my tongue.

“The eyes are the windows to the soul. He will see your anger. The distaste. He will see your hatred. If he suspects you are anything other than a victim of his war, he will never trust you again.”

I will my shoulders to drop. Let my head droop. My hands shake, but it’s from rage, and I let the tears building behind my eyes fall. The pain searing through me is real. Soveryreal.

“So you spent a month fucking them?” Rune’s cold voice cuts through the room. “Is my daughter his whore now?”

I shake my head, running my tongue over my lip. Blood oozes from my nose to my mouth. It drips and hits my knee. I focus on the red as it slides over my thigh.

“You fucked them in my club!” His scream tears through the room. I shrink back, more tears falling, slipping down my chin and neck. “You embarrassed my name by forgetting who you are.”

“Convince him that you haven’t changed. Remember, you are Delilah Gavin, but you are also traumatized and angry.”

“I didn’t know,” I cry, shaking my head, then look up at him, letting him see some anger. “I just wanted a moment in my life that you didn’t control.”

He raises his hand again, and I wince. When the hit doesn’t come, I stay motionless, waiting for his next move. Rune turns to Morgan and dismisses him. He rushes away, and a minute later the door behind me buzzes and then clicks closed. Zane takes a step back, letting his shoes slide over the concretefloor. The sound grates through my head, and a needling sensation stabs at my fingertips, and I grip the armrest.

“Delilah.” My father’s finger hooks under my chin. He raises my head to meet my eyes. “Tell me his name.”

My brows knit. My heart thrashes like a wild beast.

My father is an intelligent man. You don’t achieve the level of power that he has, amass this much wealth, by being a fool. Every single thing Fallon and I went over, day after day, courses through my mind, but I come up blank.

“Who?” I ask, my voice shaking. I search his eyes and for a second he looks like my father again. “Who? Those men?”

“The big one,” he says gently. “The one who was in charge.”

Reaper.

“I don’t know,” I say. “They called each other by code names.”

He nods, encouraging me to continue. When he runs his finger over his bottom lip, pain sears through me, and that desperation for my old life steals my breath.