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“Who?”
It wasn’t smart to fuck with her because her next move was to pull a gun from the waist of her jeans. “You know damn well who,” she seethed low.
It was that exact moment the door to the back opened and Corbin came through, looking down at a tablet. He must not have known what was going on. Her eyes were on me and not him though.
The security guard’s radio clicked on, the low rumble of others talking back and forth. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. The guard had his gun out now and trained on Pia. Fuck, I even hated her name. More so because she was shakily pointing a gun at my damn head.
Another guard quickly slipped through the door behind Corbin.
“Get him out here or I’ll shoot him,” she demanded.
I couldn’t look at Corbin. Didn’t want to see his face when he took in the room in front of him.
“Put the gun down,” the guard said.
Pia crouched slightly, putting the girl in front of her like a shield. Fuck, this was going downhill fast.
“I want to see him!” she yelled again.
“Pia?” Corbin whispered, clearly in shock.
I saw Xaiden inch out from the alcove he was in. His eyes latching on to mine. For as long as I lived, which might not be long given the current circumstances, I never wanted to see that look of fear on his face again. I gave him a tiny shake of my head, not wanting to tip Pia off to his presence. If she was enraged at seeing me, she’d flip her shit when she realized Xaiden was here too.
30
XAIDEN
No.
The floor was dropping out from beneath my feet.
Val’s life flashed before my eyes.
I could see it before anything actually happened. Pia pulling the trigger. Val going down. Blood quickly staining the floor, seeping out of Val before anyone could help him.
I didn’t know what to do. Cody was trying to rush past me, but I held him back. He was whispering his sister’s name over and over. How did Pia get the girl? Did she run away from her aunt and come looking for Cody? Or was Pia the aunt? Jesus, I was so fucking confused.
I couldn’t let Cody jeopardize himself. It was bad enough his sister was being used as a shield. Pia needed to be taken out. There was no way to do it now. Not without hurting Olivia.
Not wanting to draw more attention to Cody, I turned and put my finger over my lips to keep him quiet. The torment in his eyes, the way they pleaded with me to help, I couldn’t stay here and hope for the best.
And Corbin… Why the hell did he have to walk out here as she was drawing a gun? Before the place was no doubt put on lockdown. Now both of the men I loved were in the room. Both in danger of being hurt or worse.
This wasn’t like it was with Sasha. I wasn’t beside her when her life was taken. I had no knowledge it was even happening. For a long time I blamed myself. Here, with Val in front of me and a gun pointed at him, with Corbin’s ex-wife after him, I knew without a shadow of a doubt, it wasn’t my fault Sasha died, though I would always carry guilt with me and an entire list of what if I did this or didn’t do that. The end result was still the same. Sasha wasn’t here. Hadn’t been for decades and I’d only been living a half-life. Val and Corbin helped me live again. I’d be damned if I lost either one of them.
With careful steps, I slowly walked away from the alcove, leaving Cody behind. I hoped he stayed where he was. Pia was obviously distressed and willing to hurt anyone to get her way. She wanted Corbin and I didn’t want her near my men.
“Pia?” I heard Corbin whisper.
She swung her gaze to him but kept the gun pointed at Val. “Don’t come any closer. If you do, I’ll kill him.”
“Pia, you don’t have to do this.”
“What do you know about what I don’t have to do? You don’t know me anymore!” She was shouting at Corbin, her eyes big.
I stepped closer and her eyes latched on to me. “I know who you are too,” she seethed. “One of the cherished Dremest sons. The perfect, rich family. You wouldn’t know what it’s like to struggle. You’ve had everything handed to you.” What the hell had happened to her? From what Corbin had said, she got a nice amount of money from him in the settlement. Plus, she got the house, not to mention a new husband.
“You would think so, but I can tell you, I know about loss. I know what it’s like to bury someone I loved with every part of my being. Money can’t erase that. Money doesn’t make things better.”
