Page 135

“And no, I’m not disappointed in you. Do I prefer my best friend not to risk her career with my heartbreaker of a brother? Yes, I do, because I don’t want you to get hurt. Do I love you and Rex? Yes, I do. Do I wish Rex could settle down, and if he did, would I be happy with him being with someone I’d love to call a sister? Yes, I do.”

Sister.My eyes prickle and my nose burns. I hold everyone at arm’s length, but Lana has never held that against me.

I’d love to have her as a sister too.

“Th-Thank you,” I whisper, my voice hoarse.

Then, she turns toward me and smiles—a gentle, kind smile I know from her.

“I envy you, to be honest. Even if the person who has you in knots is Rex, who drives me nuts on the best days, to feel so much you’ll risk everything for? That’s something, you know? Not everyone has that. You’re one of my best friends and I love you just as you are, Olivia—shy, quiet, loyal, the bestTwelfth Nightactress I’ve ever seen.”

A half snort, half giggle tumbles out of my lips.

She winks. “I don’t have your answers. I know you don’t expect them from me. Just remember, I’m always here for you, and I’ll never leave.”

I burst into tears again and throw my arms around her shoulders.

I’ll never leave.

That’s it, isn’t it? The people I love have left or are going to leave me. My twin, my parents, and now…Rex.

“I love him so much, Lana. But he has issues—I can’t fix him. We only have this trip left before life catches up to us.”

Lana heaves out a sad sigh. “Then, in that case, make the best of the time you have left. Live with no regrets.”

Carpe diem.

Mia’s words rattle inside my mind, but this time, the cadence is different—it’s softer, quieter.

My voice.

Carpe diem.Live for myself.

Chapter Forty-One

“Jacques will meet Breeat the side entrance an hour into the gala tomorrow. We have her costume ready. It should be easy for her to blend in as waitstaff on site.” Elias’s gravelly voice, along with some background noises, comes through the line.

The man disappeared soon after we docked at Port Hercules in Monte Carlo, Monaco, this morning.

And now, with the sun sitting low on the horizon, washing the coastline in gold, I’m standing at the pier, leaning against my custom vintage motorbike, as I get my instructions for Bree’s extraction. Dread and anticipation pulse inside me. The moment I’ve been waiting for. Will I finally get the atonement I was seeking? Will I finally be able to let the past go?

Elias murmurs, “Your job is to keep the crowd’s attention on you so Bree can get to the meetup point.”

To this day, the mobster still won’t tell me the extent of her involvement with The Association.

He adds, “I won’t be attending the gala—too many eyes on me—but I’ll be nearby. Does everything make sense?”

“Yes.” I wince as an ache throbs in my head. Damn headaches join the blackouts now. “Are you ever going to tell me what’s going on? I have so many damn questions.”

He chuckles. “I know you do, and I suppose I owe you answers.” A heavy exhale comes across the line. “Bree has something I need to get to a ledger.”

“A ledger even the Elias Kent is interested in? I thought you held the biggest black book out there.”

“This one has The Association contacts in it. I want it.”

“That’s it? You want a ledger, and that’s why we’re all risking our lives right now?”

A few beats of silence.