“Go to her. Tell her everything, but mark my words, she’ll never believe you. Her father will never come for her.”
Her words cause my chest to tighten with anxiety. I don’t know why. I never truly wanted to hurt Arabella. Pandora has just confirmed her husband is alive. Now, I want him to come out of hiding. But even as I think it, I know it’s a lie because I ended up falling for the beauty who was merely a pawn in my game.
“I don’t necessarily need her to believe me,” I inform the woman before me. “I just need her to have a life free from the darkness.” My admission has her dark brow arching.
“You’d be surprised what my daughter is capable of. Personally, I think you’d make a good couple. She’s a deviant, and you, Mr. Donati, are now a cold-blooded killer. Surely, you can see it’s a match made in heaven.”
Shaking my head, I shrug at her words, but I do believe them because Arabella was made for me. I turn to leave before I call over my shoulder, “When that man you married returns, he’ll pay for his sins. When I find him, your daughter will be an orphan.”
She doesn’t run even though she knows what’s coming. She just waits for it, and when I pull the trigger, I hear the slump of her body.
“She will never forgive you,” Pandora speaks with finality before I walk out, leaving both bodies for cleanup. You can take the man out of the organization, but you can never cleanse the violence from his blood.
34
Arabella
I haven’t seen Elian since he dropped me off at home. He didn’t even explain what was happening. All he told me was to stay indoors. Our goodbye wasn’t confirmed, and even though he hasn’t contacted me today, I’m nervous about what’s coming. It’s as if a storm is about to hit, and I’m caught in the center of it.
“Hi.” A girl grins at me with a wide smile and perfect teeth. She’s dressed in the academy’s uniform, but I’ve never seen her before. Granted, the place is massive, so she most probably is a student and I’ve just never met her.
I don’t want to be rude, so I greet, “Hi.”
“You’re Arabella, right?” she says. Lowering her voice, she continues before I can respond. “I’m Evette,” she informs me, although I’m still unsure as to why she’s introducing herself.
“Nice to meet you. Is there something you wanted?” I shrug my blazer off and throw it along with my backpack into the car before shutting the door.
She’s close, like really close to me because I can feel her beside me. “I have a note from your dad,” she tells me, causing my stomach to drop to my feet like a lead weight.
Spinning around, I stare at her in confusion. “What?”
Instead of responding, she hands me an envelope. It’s not big, but it’s thick, as if something has been folded a few times before being shoved into it. Sealed shut, I can’t even glimpse what’s inside to make sure she’s not bullshitting me.
“Are you playing some fucked-up game?”
“Arabella,” my name is called before the strange girl can say anything more, and I turn to find Elian stalking up to us, urgency painted across his expression. His gaze lands on the girl. A hint of something flashes in his eyes—recognition perhaps—before he turns toward me. “Are you okay?” he asks me, and I realize I must still have shock painted across my expression.
“Yeah. I guess.” My response to Elian is whispered, and I glance over to ask the girl who she is or why she had this, but she’s already disappeared into the crowd of students. “That was fucking strange.”
“What?” Elian questions. I wish he could just wrap me in his arms right now, but we can’t do that since we’re on school property. And even though he’s standing at my car right now, it doesn’t look as if anything is going on because he’s kept his distance.
“She said she had a message from my father and then handed me this,” I tell him, glancing at the envelope in my hands once more. There isn’t anything written on the front nor the back, which begs the question—was she just some psycho from back home?
“If you want me to get rid of—”
“No, it’s okay,” I interrupt him, needing some space to clear my head. I shouldn’t even be near him. After the cabin, we didn’t say anything more. Even though the weekend was romantic, I knew it was his way of putting distance between us. “I’ll talk to you later.” I don’t look at him again before sliding into the driver’s seat and starting the engine. But as I’m pulling out of the lot, I notice Elian’s rage-filled expression as I leave him behind.
I’m not sure how I manage to get home. Even though the drive is short, I’m not focused on anything other than the girl and the envelope. After I’ve parked, I’m out of the car, heading into the house with my belongings, and make a beeline for my bedroom.
Things in Black Mountain have been amazing. I’ve had time to focus on school, and I’ve also become attached to Elian. I shouldn’t have, but each day I’m with him I feel myself falling. My emotions are all over the place when I finally sit on my bed and rip open the envelope before pulling out the thick letter.
Unfolding it, I take in the familiar handwriting, and my heart stutters. A lump forms in my throat when I read the first two words, “Dear Princess,” and my eyes prickle with tears. Setting the letter down, I attempt to breathe through the pain lancing my chest. It’s been almost four months, yet it feels like yesterday when my mother told me dad was gone. That he died.
The moment replays in my mind, over and over again. So real. It was so real, I never questioned it. I
