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Ruslan leans back in his chair and raises a brow. “What did you do?”
“I killed Lu.” I state it so plainly that I can tell Ruslan doesn’t know how to take it.
“I’m sorry, say that again.” Ruslan thinks he’s misheard me, but he hasn’t.
“Lu was in London watching Santos for Julio. I imagine she was reporting back to him, and I took the liberty upon myself to end the life of the very woman who had caused Amelia and Emily an immense amount of pain. It wasn’t a quick death, I assure you. I made her suffer as much as I could before she took her last breath.”
“In her last moments, did she show any sort of remorse for the things she did?” I know he wants to tell Amelia her mother wasn’t as awful as she thought, but I can’t give him that solace.
“No, she didn’t show an ounce of remorse for anything she did. Lu was a menace, brother. I know you want to give Amelia something to preserve her mother’s memory, but you can’t. It’s like our own mother. There isn’t anything that will fix it.”
Ruslan sighs heavily and pinches the bridge of his nose. “I hate that her mother was so vile to her and Emily. I guess when I really think about it, I know there could never be anything that would repair even the slightest bit of her memory.”
“After everything she’s done, no,” I confirm, and Ruslan licks his lips. He’s going to tell Amelia her mother died, and I’m not even sure how Amelia will take the news. Truthfully, I didn’t think about it when I was killing Lu. I only cared about the pain she caused my sisters, knowing she’d damn well do it again if given the opportunity.
“I’m not surprised you went after her. I guess the circumstances were too good to pass up, and our family has plenty of resources in London.”
I nod, confirming his thoughts. “I didn’t know another time when I’d have such a good opportunity. I wasn’t going to pass it up.”
“I understand, and I don’t blame you for what you did. I would’ve done the same thing, I’m certain. In other news, when do you expect to hear from Alejandro about Santos chatting with him?”
I glance down at the watch on my wrist. “Hopefully, within the next few hours. I did take the liberty of calling Alejandro myself and letting him know Santos would be marrying me as long as he vowed to back Alejandro’s cause and not his father’s. Alejandro laughed because I think he thought it was a joke. I informed him it wasn’t and that our family would continue to support his claim, as will my future husband.”
“That was good of you. Alejandro might have killed him otherwise.” Ruslan raises both of his brows, and we both laugh.
“He probably would have.”
“Do you at least like Santos?”
What a loaded question.
“I like certain aspects about him, sure. But you and I both know I don’t have the luxury of marrying a man I’m in love with. That’s not how this works.”
“I don’t want you marrying a man who you never imagined falling in love with, either.” Ruslan’s firm in his words. “So, can you see yourself caring for Santos, or is this simply political?”
I know what my brother wants me to say. He wants me to tell him that I can see something growing between Santos and me. “I’m not killing the idea that I couldn’t be happy with him, brother. Maybe I can, but the importance of this marriage is too great for me to throw it aside. I have Santos on a leash, which will completely crucify every bit of power his father has. We need that, and Alejandro needs it too.”
“Eset.” Ruslan shakes his head. “I want you to be happy.”
“So let me do what I think is best, and then I might be happy.” I swallow hard, trying not to get upset at my brother because I can’t bear to get schooled by him right now. “I have a very busy day, so I need to get going. I love you, and I’ll speak with you later.”
I don’t give Ruslan time to say anything before I leave his office. I say hello to Amelia and Karim briefly, and then Goran and I leave their penthouse. We make our way down the elevator, and then we’re downstairs when my phone begins ringing. I don’t even look at the caller ID before I answer.
“Hello?”
“Eset.” My mother’s voice rings through the other end of the line, and I’m completely blown away. Why in the fuck would she be calling me?
“What do you want?” I keep my tone stoic, without an ounce of emotion in my voice. She doesn’t deserve to get a rise out of me, that’s for damn sure.
“It would be nice if you came over to visit me.”
Come over to visit her after everything she’s done? “Why would I go visit a woman who destroyed half of my art studio? I had hours upon hours of hard work and time invested in those pieces, and you shredded them like an angry cat and threw my pottery across the attic. You destroyed it all without even one care in the world.”
“I only did it because I was angry. You’re my little girl, Eset. I need you.”
“And that gives you the right?” At this point, I’m screaming into the phone. For the most part, I can keep my emotions in check, but she’s pissing me the fuck off so badly right now. “You should’ve thought about how much you needed me when you were destroying my life’s work.”
“I’m sorry, baby. I was so angry at your brothers for being part of your father’s demise. After taking some time to think it all over, I know you couldn’t have been involved in it. You’re too pure to stoop to such a level.”
