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Bella glanced down. She’d forgotten it was in her hands. “But I…” The rest of the words wouldn’t come.
“We can’t have the bride without a dress.” Ariana guided her away from the growing flames.
“How can my mother be the one behind this forced marriage? Behind everything? All this time I thought she was on my side. I thought she obeyed Father because she was scared, but he’s actually the one frightened of her.”
“We need to get out of here.” Ariana looked in her eyes. “The fire is right next to the door, and as far as I can tell, this the only way out.”
“Mother’s standing there.” Bella felt like someone else was using her voice. “She’s behind it all.”
“Let’s get you into the dress so you at least have something on. Believe me, it’s going to be cold in the woods, and I don’t know how long we’re going to have to run through them until we reach the other side.”
Mindlessly, Bella let Ari slip the dress over her muddy body. Her entire world was upside down. Mother had been manipulating Father all these years. He may have been the domineering one on the surface, but she’d been pulling his strings and acting like a helpless victim.
Maybe on some level she had felt like that. The church gave no agency to women. None. And Mother had grown up in the culture, just like Bella and her siblings had. It was all she knew. She did what she could to have some power in her life. She’d probably honestly shed tears when she’d begged Father to kill her parents.
Bella knew that feeling, but there was one major difference between her and her mother. Bella would never ask someone to kill her parents. Or anyone. She didn’t wish anyone dead, and she wouldn’t wish the stain of murder to burden the soul of anyone she cared about.
Ariana zipped the dress. “Are you ready? The flames are almost at the door, and your mom still hasn’t budged.”
Bella swallowed. It didn’t matter if she was ready.
They needed to leave now.
ChapterThirty-One
Damon glanced in the rearview mirror then punched the gas harder. He’d insisted on driving his Charger because it was the fastest of their cars. They didn’t have a moment to spare.
“What are you going to say if you get pulled over?” Rita asked from the backseat. Her presence was the only thing keeping him from driving recklessly. She was the only one who knew where the church was, so she had to be there.
“My father-in-law is a cop,” Damon said. He’d gotten out of more than one ticket because of his relation to Alex Mercer.
Grayson leaned over and glanced at the dashboard. “You’re going over eighty. I don’t think that’ll work.”
“Then I’ll tell them my wife and your sister are being held hostage.” Damon pressed harder on the gas and watched the speed rise even more. “There isn’t anyone else on the road. We’re in the middle of nowhere.”
“Are we close?” Grayson looked back at his wife.
“Shouldn’t be long at this speed.”
“I still don’t think you should’ve come.” Regret sounded in Grayson’s tone. “You’re in your third trimester.”
“You think I don’t know that? I wouldn’t do anything to hurt the baby, but I would also do anything for my sister. Besides, you’ll never find that church without me. Not with all the turns on that driveway. It goes for miles.”
Grayson sighed as he turned forward.
Damon hadn’t wanted to bring Rita either, but she was the only one who could lead them to Ariana and Bella. His stomach had been a mess of acidic knots since he realized the two of them were missing.
If anything happened to either of them, he’d never forgive himself.
He wasn’t sure he could live with more guilt piled on top of everything he carried. No matter what anyone said, he blamed himself for his mother’s murder. Obviously he didn’t commit the act — culpability fell solely on Cal Jones. That didn’t stop Damon from feeling like he could have done more. Sure, he’d been young, but he should’ve protected her. He knew what his dad was like.
Not that he’d ever expected him to dothat.
Ever since, Damon had always had major trust issues. It was why Ariana had a circle of friends around her and he didn’t. His friends were by default, the husbands of her friends. Even then, they weren’t close. Grayson didn’t know his dad was a serial killer. He knew Damon’s mom had been murdered, but that was as far as it went.
Damon always walked a fine line with people. If he didn’t tell them about his notorious father, then he always felt like he was lying. But once they knew, he always wondered if they were silently judging him. Or worse, if they feared him.
He couldn’t blame them if they did. Who could trust a serial killer’s offspring?
