Page 84 of Merciless

"It doesn't matter. Not knowing is safer,” I plead.

He takes a step back, his eyes burning into me again.

"Your medical records true?" he asks, making my blood run cold.

"Yes. I can't… I can't have—" My voice cracks, and this time, I’m unable to stay strong and my gaze drops.

I hate that I’m weak. I hate that they’re beating me down. But I only have so much strength to give.

"I need you to tell Letty,” he says, his voice softening the second her name rolls off his tongue. “Because you are going to apologize to her, and you are going to tell her the truth."

"Okay," I agree, thinking about his girl. Scarlet Hunter is… well, she’s beautiful, smart, funny. And not only that, she was lucky enough to get out of the Creek before it swallowed her and her siblings’ lives whole like it has ours.

Shock covers Kane’s face when I glance back up at him and I hate it. Does he really think I’m this cold-hearted monster who doesn’t care?

Don’t answer that.

"Believe it or not, Kane. I never actually wanted to hurt you, or her."

"I'll believe it when I see it,” he snaps, before turning his back on me and stalking away. Just before he disappears, he declares, "We need to talk," over his shoulder.

"I'll be right up."

The slamming of the door at the top of the stairs echoes through the silence.

“You know, you could have apologized,” Reid mutters.

“Yeah, and you could be nicer. We don’t always get what we want, do we?” I hiss as he wraps his giant hand around my upper arm and hauls me out of the chair.

“Is what you said true?” he demands.

“Yes,” I admit honestly.

“So all of this is Victor, and not you and Mav playing games?”

I can’t help but laugh.

“Jesus, are you really that insecure that you think we’d scheme up something like this to try and knock you from your pedestal? You really think a lot of yourself, huh? Believe it or not, not everyone’s lives revolve around you.”

He stutters over a response, making me want to fist-pump the air for tripping him up.

“I will find out the truth. Every last bit of it.”

“Oh, I’m looking forward to it,” I sneer as he throws me in my cell and slams the door before I crash onto the bed.

“Control freak,” I scream, despite the fact I know he can’t hear me.

21

MAVERICK

I lie on my bed staring at the photograph on my nightstand of me and Alana the day we said our vows.

It’s been three years.

It’s nothing really. But when I look back, all I can see is how young she looks.

She’d just turned eighteen.