Page 9 of Wicked Riddles & Bitter Heartbeats (Till Death Do Us Part #1)

Chapter Six

Lilah

I take a seat at the table and wait for my father to be brought into the visiting room.

It’s been a few months since I’ve been here—at his request. He hates seeing me here.

Or, really, it’s that he hates me seeing him like this.

Though he’s told me he doesn’t regret what he did, he does feel bad for what it’s done to me.

I don’t have the heart to tell him that I have nothing but love for him and appreciation for what he did for me.

He killed people to protect me, even if those people’s threats weren’t aimed directly at me.

It was all for me. He feeds my narcissistic ego.

I’m pretty sure that’s what I am. I don’t know though…

maybe I’m just fucked up with something that doesn’t have a label.

When he comes through the door, he gives me a big smile and holds my gaze while the officer undoes the cuffs and sets him free.

The moment he’s free, he walks straight to me and pulls me into a hug.

Holding me tightly, he rocks us back and forth.

It feels so good to be in his arms. On the ride here, I wasn’t sure he’d even see me—last time I came, he asked me not to come again.

“I’ve missed you, Lils.”

“Missed you too, Daddy.”

“Okay, that’s enough!” the guard shouts. He’s a big guy. Tall and overweight, but with some muscle. I hold my father for another second before pulling away.

We sit at the table, across from one another, with the guard standing a few feet behind him. It’s just us in the room, and it’s only been the last two years that we have been able to meet in the same room. The first few years, there was glass between us and we spoke on a phone.

“How are you doing?” I ask.

He keeps smiling at me. “As good as can be. How are you?”

“Not great,” I say carefully, holding his gaze. Understanding flashes in his eyes. He knows there’s more I have to say.

My father and I always had a close connection.

Everything they said in the papers about him was wrong.

At least, the stuff to do with me. Not once did he ever touch me inappropriately, and though there were times he said some crazy things and tried to get me to do crazy things, he never harmed me.

I never knew about the people he kept in the basement.

I never knew he killed anyone. When it all came out, it was as much a shock to me as it was to everyone else.

He loved me and did everything in his power to protect me. We were as close as a father and daughter could be. Our relationship was as normal as it could be for people like us. But sometimes, I felt like we shared a brain. Similar to the way twins are said to have the same thoughts as the another.

“What’s going on? Do you need money or something?” he asks.

“No, nothing like that.” I shake my head and take a breath.

I prepared for this conversation the entire ride here.

I have to do this right if I want it to be believable.

All of his visits are recorded, and I’m going to use that to my advantage.

“I finally broke up with that guy I was dating. Remember the one who wasn’t so nice to me? ”

I blink a few times, holding his blue eyes that match mine perfectly. He has to get what I’m saying, right? We’ve always been on the same page, and though he never outright said he would take a murder charge for me—he will, right?

Yeah, he will. He’d do anything for me.

“Oh, I remember, Lils.” His tone is stern, a dark look in his eye. “I remember very well. It’s a good thing you finally left him.” He winks, and I smile in relief.

“It took a while because I was scared, but I met someone who helped me get the courage to do it. He’s so nice to me. Treats me really well, too.”

“This makes me so happy. All I have in this place are memories of us, and hope that you’re out there living your life to the fullest.” His hand shifts like he wants to reach for me, but they don’t allow that, so he presses his palms flat to the table and huffs. “I think about you all the time.”

“Me too, Daddy. Things are going to be really good now. I just know it.”

His smile is exactly as I remember it, only his face is a little thinner and the lines around his eyes a little deeper. My father is a handsome guy, but being in prison has taken a toll on him.

“You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Lilah. You know that, right?”

“Of course I do.” I reach for his hand but pull it back. Stupid rule. It’s so hard to stop from touching him. We can hug when we see each other, but that’s it. No handholding, and no hugging when he leaves. I hate it.

“I would do anything for you, just remember that. Anything. I’m sorry things turned out this way for you. I’ll do my time here on Earth and be judged in the next life for my wrongdoings.”

“I know, Daddy. I know that.”

I smile, hoping he understands that not a single part of me is angry over what he did. We never got the time to talk about it, and I wish we had. When I try to now, he changes the subject. Even when I tell him it’s okay and I want to, he puts a stop to it, so I respect his wishes, and let it go.

“Are you sure you’re okay now? There’s nothing I need to worry about?” he asks, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“Nothing. Promise. Everything is great. Atticus has made sure of it.”

“Have you spoken to your ex at all? Has he bothered you?” His words are careful, and I go along with it, hoping he gets this.

I’m not giving much, I understand that. But I can’t have it interpreted that I’m feeding him info, even though it’s what I’m doing. Which is why I’m relying on us thinking the same way. If he catches wind that my ex was murdered, he will put two and two together. He’s smart like that.

“Not since I left,” I say.

He nods slowly. “Good. I’m sure he won’t be a problem for you in the future.”

I can’t help but smile.

“Time’s up!” the guard shouts, and without waiting even a second, he walks over to slap the cuffs back on my father.

“Love you, Daddy. I’ll come back to visit soon.”

“You know I don’t like when you visit, Lilah,” he says as the guard yanks him away. “Love you.”

I blow him a kiss, then hold back tears as I make my way out of the correctional facility.

I saw the signs that something was wrong with my father when I was a kid, but that was the issue.

I was young and didn’t know any better. I thought he was just a silly old man.

Like Maurice in Beauty and the Beast. Only Maurice wasn’t crazy, and so I thought my father was fine, too.

Not smart to base my life off a cartoon, but what did I know?

I was an innocent little girl who loved her father with everything in her.

I still love him dearly, and I hate that we aren’t together, but it isn’t his fault that he did what he did.

There’s something wrong with his brain. Of course, no one seemed to care about that either.

Dad destroyed a lot of families, and I’m sad for them.

If the tables were reversed, I’d be angry and upset too.

But the fact is, the tables aren’t turned, and I’m living the life I was given. That’s all I can do.

When I get into the parking lot, I find Atticus in the same spot I left him in. The car is running, white smoke coming from the exhaust. It’s cold today. I pull my sweatshirt tighter as I make my way to the car.

“How did it go?” he asks as I’m putting my seatbelt on.

“Perfectly,” I say with a bright smile.

He grins, resting his hand on my thigh. “Tell me all about it, Kitten.”

“Are you sure this is okay?” I ask as I drop the pile of clothing onto the counter.

“I took you in off the street; you’re mine to take care of now,” Atticus says smugly.

I roll my eyes. The cashier rings up the clothing and when we get a total, Atticus hands her a credit card. After she bags everything, he doesn’t let me carry them.

Shopping is not how I expected to spend my afternoon today, but when he suggested it, I didn’t say no.

“Thank you for this,” I say.

“It’s saving my ass too,” he answers as we leave the store. “Going back to that house is asking for trouble.”

Atticus was thrilled when I told him I didn’t have my cell phone on me.

I’m not even sure where it is, honestly.

Maybe still in Steven’s car. Regardless, it’s a good thing it’s there and not here.

There’s nothing on it I’ll miss. It’s not like I have friends or family to check up on me.

I only had the phone so Steven could check on me, as if he’d let me out of his sight for more than the time it took him to shit.

Atticus was even happier when he found out Steven has a record of domestic violence and was arrested once from when he hit me in a mall parking garage and someone called the cops. Everything is falling into place just right. The way it’s supposed to.

“So, are you going to tell me about this trip you’re going on?” I ask once we’re in the car.

I about lost my mind when I saw the charcoal grey Lamborghini.

Beneath Atticus’s house is an underground garage with rows of cars.

Most of them are for collecting and not driving.

He pointed to each one that is drivable and let me pick which we took.

After asking him a hundred questions to make sure he wasn’t secretly Batman, I chose this one.

I’ve never been inside a car so nice before.

“Yeah, I think I will.” He smiles, turning to face me. “Just not right now.”

I groan, throwing my head back. “Why not?”

“I want all the details ironed out first. Want it to be perfect before I present it.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

He chuckles, putting on his blinker to change lanes.

“So, I wasn’t paying attention to everything you bought, but is there any chance you have a nice dress in there?”

I quirk a brow. “Maybe… why?”

I’ve learned, in the short few days we’ve been together, that as much as Atticus likes routine, he’s spontaneous and completely out of the blue with his questions.

His mind is always going and he’s eager to learn, even if it’s something as silly as my birthday or what schools I attended.

I don’t think it’s anything to do with me specifically; he just wants information. And he never forgets a thing.

“Maybe I want to take you out to dinner.”

I can’t help that my eyebrows shoot up.

“Really?” I gush. “No one has ever taken me out to a romantic dinner before.”

“Funny. Me either.” He smirks, adding, “Maybe it would be nice if you wore some sexy panties under that dress.”

“Is that so?” My stomach does a little flip.

Atticus and I have quickly fallen into comfort with one another.

I feel like I’ve known him my entire life.

The way I’m comfortable with him reminds me of the way I am with my father.

Of course, it’s much different with Atticus because I don’t want to fuck my father and I’ve thought of fucking Atticus more times than I can count. I bet his crazy ass has a big fat cock.

“Yes.”

“Hm, that’s too bad.” He looks at me questioningly. “I wasn’t going to wear any.”

“Fuck, kitty’s bringing out the claws.”

I laugh, shaking my head. Hard to believe I met this man just a few days ago.

The way we get along is refreshing. I’ve never had someone I get along with so well.

Not even Stacy, who was my friend from high school.

We were close up until all that shit happened with my father.

Then she, like everyone else in my life, abandoned me.

“Do you believe in twin flames?” I ask.

“What the fuck is that?”

“It’s said your twin flame is the other half of your soul.”

He scoffs. “Sorry to break it to you, Kitten, but I’m pretty sure I don’t have one of those.”

“Of course you do. Everyone does.”

“Well, if I do, it’s black as night.”

“Then I guess mine is too.” I take his hand, linking our fingers. “Because I’m pretty sure our souls belong together.”