AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He’s dead, isn’t he?” she asked, her voice small.
“He left me with no choice. I’m sorry, baby. I couldn’t let him hurt you or anyone else like that again.”
I pulled her into my arms, terrified she would push me away and tell me she hated me, but she let out a sob and flung herself around my neck. I held her tightly, burying my face in her hair and letting her cry.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you now. I’ll keep you safe, I swear it.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Three Weeks Later: Kaja
––––––––
ISTOOD AT THE FLOOR-to-ceiling window of Leo’s living room, gazing out across the London skyline. I’d never get over the view. Gone were the towering trees that had hemmed me in my whole life, and now it was a whole ocean of lights that greeted me. It held so much possibility, this city where anything could happen.
I loved it here.
My bruises had faded, and the swelling across my face had finally gone down. My cuts had all healed, though there were still angry, red scars across the insides of my thighs where my father and his men had cut me. I hoped, one day, they would fade to mere ghosts of lines, but they were a permanent reminder of what sort of man my father had been. I mourned for him in my own private way. I cried in the shower or late at night when Leo was asleep. I knew I shouldn’t cry for a man who had treated me the way he had, but he’d still been my dad, and I felt that loss.
Things were still far from perfect in either the Cornell or the Wynter households, but they had calmed down somewhat.
Jayden Wynter was still planning an attack on the Gilligans to get revenge for his own father’s death, but he’d been convinced to take his time instead of rushing in, hot-headed. I could sense the friction between Jay and the Cornells, however. If Jay was able to take down the Gilligans alone, he would hold the largest piece of London, making him the king of the city, but he wouldn’t be able to do that without the help of the Cornells.
Leo and Tam had received a second letter from some mysterious person claiming they knew who had killed Harvey Cornell. So far, they’d been unsuccessful in finding out who was sending them, but both were prepared for the next one to be asking for money. Whether the person did know the truth or not was something they still didn’t know, but money could be traced, so if it came to that, they were sure they’d be able to track down the sender as well.
Hallie and Layla had both taken me under their wing. I enjoyed spending time with them, shopping on Oxford Street and drinking in bars in Soho. It was a life I’d never dreamed I’d get to live, but my favourite place was right here in the penthouse with Leo.
I sensed Leo’s presence behind me, and he slipped his arms around my waist and ducked to place a kiss to the spot where my shoulder met my neck. A shiver of pleasure ran through me. He knew it always gave me goosebumps.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“Admiring the view.”
“Hmm, that’s funny, ’cause I was doing the same thing.”
I knew he was talking about me and not the lights of the city.
