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“Why’s that?” His icy stare pinned me where I stood. Even so, I wouldn’t give up.
“Because you’re not your father.”
He jerked back, as if I had physically hit him.
“Call him, Kaviathin. Ryzen’s not going to stop, and I won’t live my life that way. I’m so sick and tired of being afraid of the monsters. The monsters need to be afraid of me this time. Call Delove.” I held my breath, hoping, praying that Kaviathin would do as I asked. I was out of options.
He sighed and pulled out his phone, dialed a number and held it to his ear. “It’s me. Come to Covington Palace. We need to talk.”
And with that, he walked inside and shut the door, leaving me standing there in the freezing cold. I faced the railing and exhaled sharply. This had been a risky gamble, and I was about to find out if it was going to pay off or if they were going to kill me. I waited for what felt like an eternity, my fingers going numb as snow started to fall.
The door slid open and Delove walked out, his face devoid of any type of emotion, Kaviathin behind him. I stared at him, a part of me hating him to his core for what he had done. He was related to Voledetti, but worked for the FBI. That meant that everything had been a sham since the day I had met him. How long had he been covering for the Mafia? Probably since the day he had joined the force. I didn’t know why I hadn’t figured it out earlier. All the evidence I had given him that had disappeared, all the delays and dead ends… he’d never had any intention of catching the bad guys, because the bad guys were his family. The entire time, he’d known he wasn’t going to help me. But now wasn’t the time to play the blame game.
“Tell me what your plan is.” Delove stepped forward, his hands stuffed in his pockets.
“We make it look as if Cian didn’t survive. You put him in witness protection, anywhere but near me. Ryzen will come for me again. But this time, I’ll be ready, and you’re going to help me.”
He shook his head and sighed. “Nova, that’s a lot of red tape to get around.”
“I don’t care.” I didn’t raise my voice, didn’t even blink an eye. “You make it happen. You owe me this.”
He stared at the ground, his chest rising and falling. It was a devil’s bargain, his cooperation for my silence. But it had to be made.
“OK.” He rubbed his hands over his face. “OK, let’s go over logistics.”
Two hours later, we were back at the hospital, minus Kaviathin, with a plan in place. I walked into Cian’s room and rushed towards him as he leaned over, trying to put on his pants.
“What are you doing? You’re going to rip your stitches.” I gripped his hands and shoved him gently back on the bed.
His head whipped to Delove and then back to me. “You were gone, and I was worried. What’s going on, little star?” He searched my face, his grip growing tighter. “No secrets, remember?”
I told him everything as I paced in front of his hospital bed, from meeting with Kaviathin behind his back, to figuring out Delove was related to him. Cousins, as it turned out. I thought Cian was going to rip his head off, and Cian almost did when he realized Delove was the reason the whole operation had been botched and that I had been trapped on Ryzen’s island because of it.
Cian had refused at first. Said there was no way in hell that he was going to let any of this happen. But we both knew this was the only way. He had to go into hiding and appear dead. Ryzen would be watching and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. And I would give it to him. He just wouldn’t know that it was all a trap for him.
It took some time, but Cian finally agreed. On one condition. That I had twenty-four-hour protection. Someone was to always be watching me, but not where Ryzen could see.
And so the game began that night.
Present Day
The crunch of tires on gravel outside caught my attention, and I nodded at Orin and then towards the front door.
“I just need to know one thing, Ryzen.” I stood and paced in front of him. “Why?”
“Why what?” he scoffed.
“All of this…” I shook my head. “Why did you do this to Cian? All those years of trying to ruin him, trying to torment him. I need to know why.”
He stared up at the ceiling, as if he was thinking, an evil grin spreading across his face. “Because I could.” He emphasized each word, not an ounce of empathy in his tone. “You walked right into my life and fucked everything up. And when I realized you were the most important thing in the world to him, that’s when I knew I could kill two birds with one stone. I wanted to see the look on his face when he had nothing left and you were dead and buried. Because you both are weak and pathetic.”
Damn, he really was a sick son of a bitch. My hand trembled, the weight of the gun heavy. I wanted nothing more in that moment than to hurt him. To inflict so much pain on him that it would leave him weeping and begging for mercy that I would never give. But Dr. Loomis had been right. Tainting my hands with his blood would not give me what I needed. And I knew now that revenge would not bring me peace.
But on the other hand, he had to pay for what he had done to Cian. Cian deserved that justice, and it was about to be handed to him in the only way I thought fair.
Orin came in, Delove trailing behind him.
“Oh, you called the FBI? Fine, arrest me.” Ryzen snorted. “Lock me up and throw away the key. I’ll get out one day, Nova. And I’ll be coming for you and Blackwood. I’ll never stop. Ever.” He relaxed in his restraints, looking pleased with his attempt to instill fear in me.
