Red Leather (Book 2)

Chapter 37

I was torn, torn between wanting to kill her a second time and wanting to ask how Nathan was recovering.

Finally, after a long moment of silence, she began to speak. "Nathan's under intensive care. The doctors say he's going to make it, but the cuts you had caused were deep. Very deep."

I gave her a searing look. Would dare she come here and rub that into my face? Aurora must have kept Nathan inside her loft, unconscious and bleeding and ready for taking, before she escaped. My loathing increased. "Nathan and I are meant to be together."

She blinked, not at all fazed by me. "I want answers, Renee. I want to know why you killed all of those people. Why you feel the need to slaughter everyone in your path."

"Is that what you're really here for? To patronize me?" I leaned forward, smirking. "I thought you'd want to swap notes on exactly how good Nathan is in bed. He's mind blowing, you know. Maybe that's why you've kept him around for as long as you have."

That struck a nerve. I watched as Jessabel clenched her jaw, before smoothing out her features once more. Her next question was quiet, so quiet that I almost missed it. "Why Nathan, Rhea? Why did you want him, of all people? I've read Genesis – every single page of it. And yet you never really mentioned why it was him you picked. Why Nathan, when you could have had any other boy in the world?"

There was nothing left to hide, nothing left that hadn't already been exposed. My life, and everything about it, had been exposed to the entire world.

I gave her the truth. The bold, harsh truth. "Because he was yours." And I wanted to be you. So badly that it hurt.

Jessabel left shortly after that, and I was back to waiting. Always, always waiting. Now that they had caged me in this place, there was never anything else to do but wait. For good news, for bad news, for dinner, and for the final verdict.

I would be having none of it. This wasn't part of my plan.

Even through the metal bars, I could sense his presence. I relished the sound of his footsteps as he was steered to my booth, my hands tightening into fists as he made his way forward.

"Daddy," I breathed.

My heart rate increased as I studied the face of my Daddy – the face I had missed for too long. His opinion meant more to me than anything else in the world. What did he think of me now, now that I'm no longer the sheltered girl he thought I was? Did he still love me?

Of course he did. Daddy loved me unconditionally.

Daddy had to love me unconditionally.

The first thing I noticed was his beard. The Daddy I had left behind routinely shaved, and never had a prickle of hair on his cheek. His lovely green eyes were bloodshot, and currently unreadable. Desperation and anxiety crept over me once more.

"Daddy," I tried again, moistening my cracked lips. "Daddy, say something. Please."

Say anything. Anything at all that will make me feel better.

All he did was stare. Soon I became alarmed, to the point where I was gripping the bars to get as close to him as possible. If I could just hug him once more, to have him say that he loved me...

"What I want to know, Renee," he spoke out of the blue, startling me. Usually he was so predictable. Now I didn't now what to think. "Is if you really are the monster everybody believes you to be."

My stomach dropped, and shattered all over the floor. No.

"Daddy-"

"Stop." Never had a word been spoken so firmly. "I want to know the truth. Are all of those things true? When we moved from Clareview to Alistair, in my attempt to shield you from harm, had you been the one causing those horrible deaths? Are you, or are you not, the lovely daughter I thought I had raised?"