Page 2 of Tangled Deceit
I narrow my eyes beneath the blindfold, trying to make sense of his words. What does he mean by "other hopes"? Just that he could use me against Luca?
He moves closer once more, and his voice loses any semblance of fatherly affection. “Don’t disappoint me, Olivia. I know you were fucking him. Tell me what I want to know, and this can be all over.”
My heart sinks as I consider just how much Titan already knows. Vin, the traitorous snake who convinced me to leave the safety of Luca’s room. He had to have been spying on us this whole time. That fucking bastard.
There’s no other way Titan would know my relationship with Luca had become something more. Well, unless there’s another defector within Luca’s ranks. At least, Titan had the decency to kill Vin. Saves Luca the trouble of doing it himself. Hell, I might have even volunteered to do the murdering once I was out of here. Though, the most important part is that Vin won’t be able to go back to Luca, pretending he was tricked and did his best to save me, while continuing to relay important details to Titan.
“Vin would have known more than me,” I say with disdain. “What would I know that he didn’tmistakenlytell you before you murdered him?”
“Vin served his purpose,” he responds, thankfully further away from me. “And it was always the plan to kill him. Traitors don’t live long in my house, even when they’re doing so to better serve me. He only lasted as long as he did because I needed more information about what you were doing with Luca and I was curious about you. The woman I thought you’d become wouldn’t have stayed in that house.”
I stay silent, refusing to give him the satisfaction of a reaction. I don’t for one second believe this man wanted to know about me because he’s worried about my wellbeing or concerned with my choices. Not when he’s brought me here tied up.
It sounds as if he sits back down in the chair before speaking again. “Olivia, dear. Please don’t fight me. We’re family. I’m your father. Don’t make me bring your mother into all of this.”
Oh, this motherfucker has some nerve. He’s also either the biggest idiot in the world or the laziest mafia boss to ever exist.
“Did you only rely on Vin to give you information?” I ask with a sneer, my anger simmering just below the surface. “I’m certain the answer to that question is ‘yes,’ because if you’d even taken five minutes to do a google search on yourwife, you’d know she died four weeks ago.”
Silence fills the room once more and this time I’m more thankful for it as I fight back tears, digging my nails into my palms. I hope like hell that my mother isn’t watching any of this play out. That she’s living her best afterlife completely oblivious of the fucked-up world that I’ve found myself in.
A few minutes later, I hear Titan get up again. Once more, he places a hand on my shoulder, offering what I assume is supposed to be a consoling touch before leaning closer. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know. How did she pass?”
The audacity of this man…
I can’t take it any longer. I can’t pretend that I don’t hate him with every fiber of my being and that the feeling doesn’t get stronger with every word he speaks.
My head slams toward the sound of his voice, and the side of my face connects somewhere with his, causing him to roar. “You little fucking bitch!”
Titan grabs my hair, holding tight to the bun I’d put it in earlier, and throws me onto the unforgiving floor. With my hands behind my back, I can’t cushion the impact. I at least try to turn my body so that I land on my shoulder instead of my face. Still, the impact jolts through me, knocking the breath out of my lungs and making me cry out.
The movements twist me into an awkward position, and my cheek stings from hitting what I believe to be a concrete floor. I start to suck in air, absorbing the pain instead of letting it take control of me, but as soon as I think I can move again, a foot makes a hard connection with my ribs.
“I was going to offer you a place at my side,” Titan seethes, spewing what I know is utter bullshit, then kicks me again, this time in my stomach, forcing my body to lurch forward. “But if you’d rather be a whore, protecting someone who’s only been using you to get to me, then I’ll accept your choice. But if you think Luca didn’t know who you were to me, you’re sorely mistaken.”
He reaches down and grabs the back of my head with one hand while jerking down the blindfold with the other. “Luca knows you’re my daughter, Olivia. He only showed you any care as a way to piss me off. You’re nothing to him and a senseless little girl if you thought otherwise.”
I swallow thickly as I stare into his familiar blue eyes, quickly noticing how deep the lines around his face have become over the years. He doesn’t blink or give any other hint that he’s lying through his teeth, and I hate even more that I wonder if his harshly spoken words could have any merit.
As much as I believe Luca cares for me now, I’m not naïve enough to pretend that there isn’t a chance he chose to only get close to me as a way to enrage his enemy.
Despite the pain, despite the fear, I meet his gaze with defiance. My voice doesn't falter as I speak, my resolve unwavering. “My refusal to do anything you ask has nothing to do with wanting to protect Luca or believing I mean anything to him.” I pause, spitting blood out of my mouth and onto the floor. “You did this,Titan. You are the reason I look at you and feel nothing. You left us. You’re the one that lied. You chose to bring me here as your prisoner and not your daughter. Whatever you think of me or whatever I am to you, it changes nothing.”
His grip on my hair tightens, trickles of pain moving from my scalp down my spine, but I manage not to even wince. Not when I know my words have hit their mark. Whatever mind fuck battle he wants to play…I’ve won this round.
His mouth forms into a hard line as he stares me down, but I’m not afraid of him. I don’t know why. It’s not even the same lack of fear I held toward Luca in the beginning.
With Luca, I’d been acting on grief and terror. With Titan, my feelings are built on fury. And if I’m meant to die here, there’s nothing I can do about that, but I won’t go down without a fight this time. A real fight and not just a calculated one based on wits and emotions.
I’m going to hold on to that hope within the darkness, and I’m going to show myfatherwhat he really is. A weak fool trying to be someone that he’ll never become—a man worth respecting or even fearing.
LUCA
Six Hours Earlier
The searing pain in my thigh is nothing compared to the adrenaline pumping through my veins and the overwhelming desire to snuff out the panic within me that can only be doused once I’ve returned to the apartment, ensuring Olivia's safety. Though, I know I can't ignore the bullet wound forever.
Blood drips behind me as I hobble into the elevator, my fingers trembling as I press the button for the fourth floor. Damon joins me just before the doors close, eyeing me with concern.