Chapter twenty six
Levi belted. "What did you mean by that when you said you had no choice?"
Kel croaked. "Kree Badmus is using my mom against her will. My mom tried her best to keep me hidden, so people won't hurt her because of what I am. Kree Badmus found out. He threatened my mom that he'd kill my dad if she didn't agree. When she seemed unbothered, he then threatened to have me locked up if I didn't do his bidding. I stayed in the refinement facility for a week, as punishment for my defiance. It was the worst. I finally gave in. I had no choice. I'm sorry about everyone, but I needed to protect my dad. If I could do it all over again, I would make the same choices. I would do anything for my dad. My mom didn't raise me. My dad did. All by himself. My mom chose her career over me. I know you hate what I did. Well so do I. I was desperate. I couldn't risk confessing anything to you, in case they find out and hurt my dad."
I frowned. This wasn't how I imagined it to be. I didn't expect her story to paint her in a different light. "There's no point apologize. If you care that much, help us."
"Help you?"
"Help us set them free."
She shook her head. "I can't."
Levi folded his arms. "Why not? If you help us, we'd let you talk to Juan one last time. You can apologize and do all you want."
Kel looked at him expectantly. "Really? You'd do that. What about my dad? What if—"
"We'll protect him. I promise. I'll get my father's security team to deal with that. We just want you on our side."
Kel blinked. "You tortured me."
I rolled my eyes. "You were being difficult. You would have been unscathed, if you just obeyed."
"I wasn't sure if I could trust you."
"Well I'm not sure if I can trust you."
Levi grunted. "Untie her. We have some things we need you to do. If you double cross us, we would hurt you and your dad. I promise you."
I did as Levi said, and Levi began to input some things in her phone. "Your phone is bugged. If I hear you say anything to your mom, you are screwed. And I have someone tailing you. Any little odd thing and we'll come for you."
Kel stated. "Can you help me protect my mom? She's—"
"Don't act like she's a saint. She's an accomplice. I know some of the shady deals she's involved in. She's not Kree Badmus' right hand woman for no reason. She's just like him. He was only smart enough to use her. She abandoned you. You said so yourself. Why aren't you hellbent on avenging your father's pain? Because of her, you had to lie, betray people and lose the man you loved. Aren't you angry?"
Kel said quietly. "I am."
"Don't you want to fight back?"
"I do."
"Your mom's a criminal. Our concern is only the Radiants. But we will help to put an end to their control. We just need your help."
Determination blazed in her eyes. "I'm in."
......
I nuzzled in his arms. It was good to have him all to myself, even in this motel room that we rented. "This is the first time I've done this. Hurt someone."
He ran his fingers down my hair slowly. I closed my eyes. Him touching me felt so orgasmic. I didn't want him to stop. "I know. I'm sorry I put you through that."
I looked at him. "Have you done it before?"
He looked away. "Yes. My dad's fond of methods like this. I had to sit and watch while he got information out of people. But this is different. This is for a good cause."
I hummed. "I'm just happy she agreed. I was afraid she wouldn't."
Levi trailed his fingers down my arm. Our eyes locked. He smiled. He looked so damn handsome like this. "A person in love, is a person willing to do anything for that love. I knew she'd do anything for Juan. I made sure to use that."
"You surprise me everyday. You just prove how perceptive you are to little things. You were sure she loved him. That's surprising."
"How could I not? She looks at him the way I look at you. It's un mistaken. It's quite unfortunate how things turned out for her."
I had to ask. "If you were in her shoes, would you do the same?" A part of me knew I could do it. I wouldn't bat an eye when it came to protecting my family, and it made me worry. Was I just as bad as she was?
"I don't know. I don't think I can risk dying for my dad."
"We still need to tell everyone the truth about her, and to deal with any stray Radiants."
Levi nodded. "I'll do what I have to do to put everything in place. When we get back to the warehouse tomorrow, we're letting everyone know. They need to trust us. We have to give them that."
I sighed in relief. "It's good that we're on the same page."
"I'll just have to make sure no one misbehaves and we do her bidding. Even if we don't like it."
I peered at his face. "Are we really going to help her?"
He glowered. He said his words tightly. "We have no other choice."