Page 69 of House of Lies

“Eyes on the fucking road, Vanya,” I growl.

“?????! You fell for her.”

I raise an eyebrow, cracking my knuckles. There’s no point in dancing around what I’m feeling anymore. Caelia managed to break from her chains, but she was not free. She landed in a hell way worse than she could have fathomed—and all because I failed to keep her safe. I could not bring myself to tell her the truth.

“Is it that obvious?”

All I know is that she’s in the middle of all this chaos, and nothing’s more important than saving and keeping her safe. I’m free-falling, and I don’t know how to stop.

“You’re trying to save the life of the woman who stabbed you. Yeah, it’s pretty obvious.”

“If she dies?—”

“Stop being a pussy, cousin. She won’t die, so you’d better think about what you will do next.”

I know he’s right, but I can’t focus on anything else. I can barely hold myself together by the time we get to the hospital.

“Listen to me, Kaz. This will get complicated. The hospital will have questions about what happened to her. She’s been beaten and shot, and God knows what other things they’ll find.” He’s trying to be gentle about this, but he doesn’t have to. They will find signs of rape. Nothing has stopped Mattia before. I’m aware of that. “So maybe let me talk to them? You’re not thinking very straight right now.”

I nod as he parks in front of the emergency entry.

I lean against the wall after the staff makes me let her go.

And collapse.

CHAPTER 46

Caelia

I wake up disoriented and confused. My head feels like it has been submerged underwater for hours, and my eyes struggle to adjust to the harsh, sterile lights as I take in my surroundings. The walls are lined with white tiles. The monotony is broken only by the colorful glow of the monitoring machines that fill the room. I am connected to one of them; the steady beeping and humming indicate that someone cares enough to monitor my vital signs. A gentle warmth emanates from the blanket pulled up to my chest, but a chilling breeze hangs in the air, causing me to shiver.

The scent in the room causes my nose to wrinkle—an amalgamation of antiseptic and blood, an unsettling, almost cloying combination that fills the air with a sense of dread. I feel trapped in a cage once more, with no escape.

Struggling to recall how I ended up here, a wave of panic rises within me. Overwhelming fear grips my chest, and a deep, sinking feeling settles in the pit of my stomach. Tears well up, blurring my vision, as I want to run and scream, but the fear keeps me paralyzed.

Tensing up, my heart races as the door opens, and Mattia walks into the room, a cup in his hand. He pauses, his gaze locking onto me as if he has seen a ghost. There must be a button to call for help, but my hand refuses to obey. I whimper, my heart pounding in my ears, and the beeping of the machines drowns out all other sounds.

“You’re safe, solnyshko.” His voice is soothing and calm. What sort of sick trick is this? I shake my head, attempting to get out of bed. “Fuck, no! You need to rest, Caelia.”

Mattia swiftly approaches my bed, and I can no longer fight him. Not after witnessing the horrors he is capable of.

“Please don’t hurt me,” I croak, my throat dry.

“I’m not who you think I am. You’re safe. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

What the hell is he talking about? He stands right beside me. Of course, he can hurt me if he feels like it. There’s no fight left in me. He stares at me, assessing his next move. He places the mug on the bedside table, drawing the chair from the corner closer to the bed. His hand rests near mine. I draw it back like it caught fire.

“What are you talking about?”

He takes a deep breath, his words hanging heavily in the air.

“My name is Kaz Mordvinov. I am not Mattia. I am not your husband.”

My mind spins, and his words make no sense to me. He may resemble my husband, and I vaguely recall Mattia mentioning the name Kazimir Mordvinov in the past, but the question made no sense then and makes even less sense now.

“I don’t ... I don’t understand.”

It’s eerie to see Mattia here, as if nothing happened, showing me glimpses of the man I gave my heart to.