AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I can see the suspicion and anger on my father's face. "Is that an order?" he asks.
Theo gives him a smile that could charm the hell out of anyone. "Not at all. Just a suggestion. We're all civilized people here, no?”
My father glares at him for a moment, but then he relents, taking his seat with a nod. Violet sits down beside him, and I slip in across from them, with the guys on both sides.
"You'd better have a damn good reason why I shouldn't have you taken out right now, Emmerico," my father says, his voice low and dangerous. He glances at Liam and Tristan, and his expression softens a little... but not much. "It's bad enough you two reached out again after we turned you down once already. Butyou..." He rounds on Theo. "You've got some nerve showing your face around here.”
"And if that doesn't tell you how serious this situation is, nothing will," Theo replies without missing a beat. “This thing with Lucas is becoming untenable. But before we get into that..." He holds up a hand to stop any potential objections. "I think it's about time we give the floor to your daughter, wouldn't you say? She's the one in the middle of this, after all.”
My mother looks ready to pull her hair out.She still thinks Theo's crazy,I realize, and that hurts more than I thought it would. Somehow Lucas managed to turn them all against me, despite the lack of evidence.Now I'm sitting here in the middle of what feels like a war zone, on the opposite side of the table from my parents, my supposed allies. And it's all his fault.
I turn to my father. "Dad, I know what you think about him. But you have to trust me on this, and listen well, because I'm only going to say this once." I lean forward, holding their gazes with mine, and that's when I notice the uncertainty that's weighing on all of them, the dawning realization that there may be more to the story than they thought. I seize on that doubt, conjuring up the most persuasive tone I can muster."Lucas is the one who attacked me. It wasn't Theo. It wasn't anybody else.He shot me, and then he tried to do it again.” My voice catches in my chest; Tristan takes my hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze, while Liam puts a hand on my hip to steady me. Across the table, my mother sucks in a breath.
"You want to know the real reason Theo is back in London?" I persist. "It's because Lucas ran me and Tristan down on the highway, dragged me into his car, andforcedme back to his apartment." My voice is getting louder, more forceful, as the memories come flooding back to me. "He removed the lock from the door. He sealed off the windows. He was planning to keep me there until he could take over from Victor Emmerico, and after that..." I shrug, shaking my head. "I guess it didn't matter what he was planning to do to me after that. He lit up the apartment when I ran. I barely made it out of there alive.”
Slowly, I raise my eyes to look at each of them again, and there's so much guilt and horror in my mother's eyes I think I might break down into tears. She and my father sit in stunned silence, no longer sure what to say."It's true," I add softly. "I know how it sounds, and believe me, I wish it weren't. But I'm telling you: Theo is innocent in this. And if Lucas was willing to keep his ownwifeprisoner to solidify his hold on the city..." I lean forward, my shoulders tense. "Then think what he'll do once he's in full control. The man has no limits. He's a ruthless, psychotic, amoral monster. And he's seizing power right out from under us.”
I sit back and lapse into silence, forcing myself not to fidget as the tension at the table builds. Even Theo is staring at me as if he can't quite believe what he just heard. It's Tristan who breaks the silence."It's true," he says. "Every word." He lifts his shirt enough to expose the dark bruises that cover his side. "This? This was from the car crash. Lucas was ready to kill us.”
Liam nods. "And he has more than just his own men at his disposal. We have reason to believe he has the DiMarco family in his pocket. A few of their men ambushed me and your daughter in Bath, and you’d better believe they’re not going to stop there.”
The silence returns, and I can see the gears turning in my parents' heads. I'm pressed to keep myself from gripping the table in anticipation. Just when I can't bear it any longer, Violet speaks up, her eyes on the table in front of her. "The last time I saw you, sis," she says, slowly and deliberately, "I told you I didn't know what to believe anymore." She lifts her head, locking eyes with me. "But I was wrong. I do know what to believe. You may be a pain in the ass sometimes, Vivian, but you're not crazy. And if Lucas really kidnapped you, kept you from talking to us... then I'm done buying into any more of his lies.”
"Violet..." My mother starts.
My sister turns to her. "What reason could she possibly have to lie, Mum? Huh? Vivian has never wanted to run this city. She's been clear on that for years. She's innocent in this, and. if she tells us Theo is, too, then we have to believe her." She turns back to me and nods.
I bite my lip and look away, blinking back the tears that threaten to spill over. I'm not used to seeing my big sister so protective, not of me. But then, I've never been in this kind of trouble before.
"You've got a good head on your shoulders," Tristan tells her.
Violet examines her fingernails. "That makes one of us," she says, but when she glances at me, I see the teasing gleam in her eyes.
Dad, who's been silent this whole time, finally speaks, his attention all on Theo. "What about you, Emmerico?" he asks. "You've been awfully quiet. Don't you want to make your case?”
Theo's smile is calm and composed. "There's no case to make, Mr. Dalton. Vivian has told you everything. If you don't believe her, I have no reason to think you would believe me." He leans forward, steepling his fingers. "The only question is... whodoyou believe?”
My father pinches the bridge of his nose, then sighs. “I… believe my daughter when she tells me someone took her against her will," he says at last."And I already have reason to suspect the alliance is on the verge of falling apart. Do I believeLucasis the one behind it...?" He narrows his eyes, once more every inch the calculating businessman I remember from my childhood. "Yes," he says finally. "I think I do. If I wanted the city in shambles so I could pick up the pieces, this is exactly how I would do it: solidify my claim and then take a wrecking ball to the alliance the second Victor steps down." He nods slowly. "There's a war coming.”
"The war is here," Theo says. “All we can do now is decide our next move.”
"'Our'?" Mum asks, still clearly incredulous.
"We're stronger together than we are working on our own," Liam points out. "Wasn't that kind of the whole point of the Dalton-Emmerico alliance?”
"I'm all for working together," Tristan says. "I just don't want to be part of a suicide pact.”
"No one said anything about running into the fire," my father says, puffing up a bit.
"But if Lucas is really dismantling our hold on the city, we need to circle the wagons," I finish for him, glancing at the guys. "And that means getting in touch with Victor.”
"What?" Violet stares at me, flabbergasted. "Are you sure that's a good idea?”
"No, she's right," Liam says. "If he finds out his precious successor is responsible for this, he'll be pissed. Rightfully so.Maybe even enough to depose Lucas before he can do any more damage.”
Theo nods, a low hum coming from deep in his chest. "He won't be happy to see me," he says, "but then again, neither will Lucas. We'll need to find neutral ground, somewhere he can't send his men after us.”
"I know a place," I say, crossing my arms.
