Page 98 of The Taste of Deceit

“Katie,” I choke out. “I wasn’t supposed to know.”

“But you did.” She looks up at me, her face soaked with tears. “You fucking did.”

Every word feels like another knife.

“You let me believe a lie.” Her voice cracks so violently I barely recognize it. “You sat there with me. You laughed with me. You let me talk about him, and you knew.”

“I couldn’t tell you.”

“You didn’t even try!”

“I wanted to.”

“When?”

She shakes her head so hard strands of hair stick to her wet cheeks.

“When were you going to tell me, Sarah? Next week? Next month? After I married him? After I had his fucking babies?”

Each question hits harder than the last because I don’t have an answer.

“I couldn’t,” I whisper.

“You could.”

She pounds a fist against the floor.

“You chose him.”

The words knock the air out of my lungs.

“Katie...”

“You chose him over me.”

She stares at me for a second before pushing herself off the floor. She’s shaking so hard she has to steady herself against the bed.

“I’m a fucking prisoner, Sarah.” She lets out a broken laugh, tears still streaming down her face. “Do you understand that? I can’t leave.”

“What are you talking about?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

She looks at me like I should already know the answer.

“Someone could kill me.” Her voice cracks again. “One of Michael’s enemies. Do you understand that?”

The room feels impossibly small.

“I can’t just pack a bag and leave.” She shakes her head. “I don’t get to decide that anymore.”

“Katie...”

“I’m trapped.” She presses a trembling hand against her chest like she can’t catch her breath. “I’m stuck here with him.”

The weight of what she’s saying crashes over me. When Luca told me the truth, I chose to stay. Katie never got that choice.

She sinks down onto the edge of the bed, staring at the floor.

“I was going to marry him.”