“It’s beautiful, and you can keep it here. I wouldn’t let anything happen to it. Why did your parents have it?”
I walked around, sitting on the chair she had in the corner of the room, her back to me as she stared at the painting still. “They were art brokers. They dealt with high-end paintings mainly. They had hundreds in the house,” I said, trying to tone down the anger that was threatening to come out. It wasn’t her, it was her father that took it all away. “Sometimes, I would get so annoyed at the amount of shit they would hang on the walls, but the rest all burned up. I found two paintings left, and this was one of them. Evie has the other hidden away somewhere. There was nothing left of our home but ash.” My jaw tightened, the angry curl to my lip making her step back. I tried to stop it, but reliving it brought every ache and memory of them back. “There was nothing left of my parents but ashes.”
Her eyes went wide, but she didn’t look at me. Her focus was still glued to the painting. “Picture it. A pile of dust is all that’s left of your life and they have to dig through it to find the burned bones of your family.”
That seemed to do it. She turned back to me now, her face falling with sadness as she came over. I didn’t even have to ask before she sat on my lap. Blood was still splattered on her and her dress, but I had smeared most of it off her face.
“Rook, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“They aren’t your sins to apologize for, are they?”
“No, but I still wish it had never happened to you. There were really only two left?”
“Yes, the fire burned it all. There was nothing else.”
“How? The fire department didn’t get there fast enough?”
“No,” I said, finally meeting her eye. “They did. But fires burn hotter and faster when the person who started them uses accelerant.”
“Someone started the fire on purpose?” she asked. Her lips curled now, the disgust in her voice obvious. “The idea that someone could purposefully burn your house down with all of you inside. Of course you are angry. I would be, too. How could someone do that?”
“Someonedid it, andsomeonewas happy about it.”
“Do you know who?”
My hands tightened on her thighs, the sudden worry that she would run away making me want to hold her in place.
“Yes,” I said.
“And? Are you going to tell me who it is or what happened to him? Or is that some sort of secret, too?”
Her voice was so soft, the sadness in it making my chest tighten. “It has been a secret. One I’ve kept from you, but I think you should know.”
“Okay. That kind of freaks me out, but I’d like you to tell me more about it. You’ve kind of kept me shut out of a lot and it’s made me wonder if this would be over for you soon. Like, you didn’t want me intertwined in your life, so it was easier to take me out of it.”
“No, Rebel. I’ve been weaving you into my life, even when I didn’t want to be.”
“But you want to have me in your life now?”
“Yeah.”
“Then tell me.”
I took a deep breath, pulling her harder against me. I wasn’t sure if I would let her run away, even if she wanted to.
“I know who did it, and I know exactly what he is doing today. He is on top of the world. Nothing bad has ever happened to him. I waited for karma and nothing ever happened. He onlygot more in life. More money, more power.” I shifted her again, holding her so tight my fingers were digging into her thighs now. “It was your dad, Regan.”
I could feel her body go rigid, the way she nearly stopped breathing as she took in what I said. I almost felt bad for her until I remembered how much better her life would be without him.
Another beat of my racing heart and she was fighting against my hold.
“Do you think that’s funny, Rook? I have enough issues with my dad right now. I don’t need you making it a joke.”
“It’s not a joke. Your dad used my parents, and when they wouldn’t help him any longer, he killed them.”
“And you know this for a fact? Or are you just trying to find someone to blame?”
“For a fact.” She fought against me again, but I held on. “Stop moving, Regan. You’re not going anywhere until you understand.”
