“You gave me something incredible, Knox. I don’t even know how to thank you for all these nights. You gave me something Inever thought I’d have, and for that, I’m endlessly grateful. Now, please, leave with Valery and keep yourself safe. Keep living for me, please.”
She spoke with tears streaming down her face and my heart tore open in my chest.
“Come with me,” I dared to say. I swear I didn’t even know why I made that offer, knowing it just made everything worse. “Come with me, Serenity. We can run away together, far from here.”
She shook her head, refusing.
“No. I don’t want to run. I have no reason to run.”
“Why?” I pressed. “Why are you giving up? Why don’t you fight for your life? Foryou… forus?”
She smiled softly, sliding her hand under my shirt and placing her palm right over my heart, on the Venus tattoo.
“Because you belong to someone else and… I wish I could have belonged to just one person. I don’t want to fight and I have no reason to run. If I had a real reason, even just one, I’d give myself a chance to live. But I’m tired, and I just want to let go. Please don’t try to change my mind. Stay alive and go back to the one you really love, Knox, please.”
This time, she sealed her words with a kiss, then pulled away from me and locked herself in the bathroom so she wouldn’t have to watch me leave.
Frustration chewed me up inside, but this was all on me. Tomorrow I’d end the lies. I’d tell her everything, fight to fix the heart I’d broken so badly she’d stopped wanting to live. I’d been a monster, and I knew it. Now I wouldn’t stop until I gave her a reason to want lifeandme again.
After a minute of staring the door down, I finally left and got in the car where Valery was waiting for me. She drove through the night, always checking the rearview, sizing me up even though I’m sure she already knew the truth. We turned down a dark road and a car up ahead flashed its headlights. That’s when Ipulled off my mask and showed Valery exactly who I was.
“Pull over, Valery,” I said calmly.
My tone left no room for argument and she did as I said. Our car stopped just as the one with Krash and Kalash inside stopped alongside us.
Valery and I got out.
“Why did you trick her all those nights?” she demanded, her face closed off.
“Because I do what I want, Valery. She’s my wife. I don’t owe you an explanation.”
She gave me a look with pure hate in her eyes.
“You really think she’ll forgive you when she finds out you lied? You fucked her every night while making her believe you never would. You’re sick, Konflict.”
“Maybe. But I would’ve never let another man touch her. She’s mine.”
“Now what? You don’t want to kill her anymore? Or are you just going to fuck her and pretend it never happened so you can put a bullet in her head? I won’t let you hurt her. I’ll tell her everything.”
I moved closer, my glare threatening. Krash got out of the other car right away and stepped between us, protecting his girl.
“Easy, man. Don’t be stupid.”
“Krash, take your girl far from the Korven Estate. Fuck her all night and keep her through morning too. I want no contact with my wife until I tell her myself everything.” Then I stared at Valery, coldly. “If you say a single word to Serenity, Krash won’t be able to protect you from my anger.”
I walked to the other car and told Kalash to take me back to my villa.
The night was brutally short. I didn’t sleep at all until morning. As soon as the first ray of sunlight appeared, I was up, showered, and out the door, heading straight for the Korven Estate. Shesaid she’d be waiting in the living room, ready to give me her life. What she didn’t know was that I was ready to lay down mine. I’d do whatever it took for her forgiveness.
I received a call from Dr. Kalvin as I neared the house.
“Konflict, I wanted to share the results from the tests I did on Serenity after her drowning.” Dr. Kalvin said as soon as I picked up.
“Alright. Is everything okay? Any complications?”
“No, no complications. She’s perfectly healthy. The drowning didn’t do any damage, probably because she wasn’t under too long. But, the toxicology tests showed traces of substances that could have caused her collapse.”
I froze and stopped walking.
