AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Silent tears fell down Tina’s cheek as she listened to Sienna, but she didn’t say anything. Sienna didn’t need her to as long as she had her attention.
“In one way you picked the best possible drug dealer. Yeah, it sucked that he was our classmate, but it was a good thing that he was there on a scholarship,” Sienna told her. “It also worked in our favor that he had two younger brothers. After I took care of the body and cleaned up the room, making sure there was no trace of what had happened, I went to his family and pointed out that they have two young kids to look after. I set up a trust fund for them that would pay for their college and then some after they were done. Do you know how hard it was to look those parents in the eyes and tell them that their son was dead? It was horrible, but I did it. I did it for you.”
Sienna took a deep breath, forcing the heavy memory to stay away. She couldn’t afford to trigger a meltdown. She wasn’t proud of what she had done, but maybe her past actions could help save her now.
“His brothers are both at college now. One is studying to be a doctor and the other a teacher. They’re different and better people than their brother was,” Sienna told her. “I kept tabs on them to convince myself that what we did wasn’t all that bad. Chances were that they wouldn’t be able to go to college and would either do some crappy job or turn to crime. It doesn’t matter because as far as I can tell, they’re happy. The teacher one got engaged a few months ago.”
Tina met Sienna’s eyes in the mirror, the emotion in them was indescribable. It could’ve been relief or guilt, or both. Sienna got a feeling that she was getting through to her. At least she wasn’t completely avoiding her and pretending to ignore her.
“You’re a Ryder,” Sienna whispered, putting as much strength and conviction into it as she could muster. “Help me and I promise that you’ll never have to beg for scraps. Dalia Aghayan was your biological aunt and she asked me to look after you. She didn’t know that I never stopped. Join me in the Aghayan business and I’ll give you your share. We’ll work together as equal partners. What do you say?”
Sienna turned on her chair to look at Tina, expectantly waiting for her answer. Tina’s mouth opened and closed like as if she was a fish, but no words came out. She tried again, clearing her throat first, then taking a deep breath. Sienna braced herself for her answer, hoping that Lyle didn’t put out all the fire that used to be a signature mark of her old friend.
A knock on the door interrupted them and Tina’s head jerked in its direction. Whatever she was about to say was lost as was any chance Sienna might’ve had.
“Are you done yet?” Brian asked through the door. “The Remingtons are starting to get impatient.”
“We’ll be out in a moment,” Tina replied, her voice shaky and weak.
Sienna sighed in defeat, resigning herself that her friend was a watered-down person of what she used to be. With her hair pulled up and makeup so different than what Adrianna used to put on her, Sienna couldn’t recognize herself in the mirror. It was as if a stranger was staring at her, wearing the long white wedding dress. Alone, she couldn’t do anything to get herself and the Berti sisters out of this messy situation fairly unhurt. As far as she knew, Arlene could've bled out by now. She did seem to be losing a lot of blood. Brian could've hit an important artery.
Pushing her chair back, Sienna got up, determined to at least try to save her allies if not herself. Remingtons weren’t known to keep their word, but no matter what would happen, at least she would know that she did everything in her power to save Arlene and her sister.
Tina fixed the long dress as she walked behind her. Brian opened the door and Sienna had to resist an urge to punch the annoying smirk off his face. He offered her his arm and she suppressed a shudder when she hooked hers through his. No person ever disgusted her as much as he did in that very moment.
“I hope you don’t mind that I’ll be walking you to the altar,” Brian whispered and chuckled when he saw her pale expression.
“Why?” Sienna asked through gritted teeth. “Why do this? Why betray the Carringtons? They love you like a family. You grew up with them, you’re one of them. Why do all this? And why me?”
Brian’s head turned to her, his narrowed eyes full of anger and hate that she never noticed before. He was always composed, showing no signs of emotion. It was a mask he carried well, one that he didn’t need anymore, and he threw it away, giving her an insight of his true angry self.
“I fucking hate them,” he hissed with more venom than she expected. “Yes, I grew up with them, but they were always quick to point out I was less than them. Especially, Jaxon. That fucking useless prick always wore the Carrington badge and acted as if the rest of us were nothing. Less than nothing. They gave me the bare minimum of what I deserved and if I rose too high, they made sure to put me back in my place. They’re a disease that needs to be wiped out. I’ll make sure to take care of every single one of them and do my best to help the Remingtons destroy them.”
“And me? What did I do to you?” Sienna asked, her lip trembling.
“You used me and then you threw me away like a piece of trash,” he growled. “You belittled me, insulted me, and disposed of me as soon as you were done with me, taking away from me everything you could. You left me empty.”
Sienna rolled her eyes and smirked, trying not to show him just how rattled she was. “Liar. You betrayed me even before that. Remember the bombing? There must’ve been something else that brought you to hate me. Let me guess… You were jealous that I fucked everyone else except you. That I fucked with all the Carrington heirs, but I didn’t even notice you until you became my bodyguard and even then, I barely had any recollection of seeing you before.”
Brian’s grip on her arm tightened enough to send the flaring pain through her, but she pushed through it, further antagonizing him.
“I fucked you only because I was hot for Jaxon. You were nothing. All you were good for was to spice up the intense sexual chemistry I have with Jaxon. I couldn’t wait for you to get out of my bed,” Sienna said with an insufferable smile.
Brian’s face turned red, and his chest heaved as he was taking deep but shaky breaths. The fire in his eyes raged uncontrollably, but she could see the hurt behind it. Her smile grew wider with satisfaction that she hit her mark. He dug his fingers into her arm hard enough to leave bruises. His rapid breathing caused him to spit at her with every exhale. He was a clear image of a rabid dog if she ever saw one.
“What’s the hold up?” Lyle’s voice came down the hallway, preventing Brian from acting on his wild impulses. Tina stood behind, still holding her dress.
“We’re coming,” Brian replied to Lyle through gritted teeth, then pushed Sienna down the corridor without giving himself a chance to regain his composure.
Marrying Kyle was horrible enough, but to have Brian give her away made the whole ordeal even worse. She made a mental note to make sure his death would be slow and torturous. He wouldn’t leave this world without suffering that would break the strongest of men. He deserved that and much more, and she would be happy to give him that when the time came, and it would come. Even if she got married to Kyle now, she would never submit to him. She would keep her head low and bide her time until the moment was right. When she would strike, she would take them all down in one precise blow. Once she was done with them, there’d be no one left, and the world would be a better place for it.
Here Comes the BridebyRichard Wagnerstarted playing, giving the cue to the guests to stand up. Somewhere along the way, Tina left her side and took the position of her maid of honor, while Kyle’s best man was his brother. If Sienna thought that things couldn’t be worse, she was wrong, because it was Mr. Remington who would officiate the wedding.
A wave of nausea swept over her, and she fought to stay on her feet. It was thanks to Brian’s hold on her that she didn’t faint or lose her footing. He kept a steady pace, bringing her closer to her worst nightmare.
From the corner of her eye, Sienna saw that they had cleaned up Arlene’s blood and hurriedly patched up her leg but would still need more attention to avoid long-term consequences. The Berti sisters were seated on the side with a Remington thug on each side. Their eyes were red and their pupils significantly less dilated than before. They were sobering up, their high slowly replaced by pain and fear.
Refusing to give the Remingtons the satisfaction of looking afraid, Sienna kept her head high and aimed her eyes straight forward. She kept repeating in her head that they’d pay for this. Every single one of them. It became like a mantra.
