Declan lifts his head and smiles, and not a welcoming one. It has me backing up. He kicks the chair opposite him. “Come and sit down.”
I had been able to avoid him for the last few days, though I knew he was here at the house from the way his voice would travel up to my room. I knew Marcus lived here, but I’d seen Declan leave. Yet he seemed to be here more than anywhere else. I guess being Malachi’s second, he would be.
Marcus lifts his brow but doesn’t stop eating. I take a small step. Something feels off. I narrow my eyes on Declan’s amber ones, glancing sideways to see the waiter has left, so has Clara, the housekeeper. Taking a step closer, I pick up the chair. Just as I reach down, a whimper leaves my lips as he grabs my hair, so forcefully it feels like my scalp is being ripped away. My face whips to the right as he backhands me, and I taste blood.
“You don’t get to sit with us,” he growls, pushing my face to the floor, where I realise the porridge has spilled. He rubs my face in it, and I try to move away, but he’s holding me with too much force. Panic starts to crawl up my spine.
“Come on, man, I’m trying to eat here. That’s disgusting.” Marcus’ voice is drenched in disgust. Declan starts laughing above me as he lifts my head. Marcus stares straight at me, his nose crinkled up like he’s just smelled something bad, and leans away, pointing his finger at me.
“You’ve got something on your face.”
“No shit,” I hiss.
Declan’s fist lands on the side of my head, doubling my vision, and my temples start to throb. “Remember who you are talking to, bitch.”
I bite back everything I want to say as the throbbing pain travels from my temple to behind my eyes. I am pulled up by my hair as I fight the nausea taking over.
“Get back in your cage,” Declan growls as he pushes me away.
I walk into the hallway, grabbing the wall to steady myself, just as the front door opens. Malachi walks in with two men, and they all stop when they see me.
The two men’s eyes widen, before they turn their heads, not knowing where to look, but Malachi’s grow, his whole body going tight, fists clenched as the muscles in his jaw pop. I roll my shoulders back, lifting my chin, and walk past them, holding my head high.
“Lilliana.”
I turn just as my foot hits the first step, facing Malachi, my lips curled into a sneer. “This the best you’ve got?” I shake my head as I look at him. “You’re trying to break me. Try harder.”
He takes a smooth step toward me, grabbing my chin, his thumb rubbing over my lips. “Baby, baby, I don’t want to break you.” His voice wraps around me, smooth as Tennessee whiskey and just as lethal. His lips graze the corner of mine, making my eyes flutter shut as they move up my cheekbone, to my ear. “I want to fucking destroy you.”
I gasp, eyes springing open to see him smirking.
14
Lilliana
Hearing those words was like a dagger to my heart, leaving me wounded, bleeding out. The fight had drained away.
It’s been a week since I saw anyone, refusing to vacate my room, leaving me with an overwhelming sense of sadness, the same way a bird must feel while looking from its cage, into the world, at a sky so wide and vast, dreaming that someone will one day open the door yet at the same time fearing that it no longer belongs in that world. This place is becoming my sanctuary, and that’s the scariest thought of all. If I had the chance to run, would I?
I’ve withdrawn into myself, hiding in the shell that is my body. Food is no longer appealing, nor is the rising of the sun. Sadness pierces my body like a dagger, impaling me. I can’t escape. The shadowy waves wash over me, and I try to gasp for oxygen before the next one hits, as the souls of its victim’s swirl beneath, trying to grab me, to pull me close, hold me forever. After that, time bleeds together. Hours take forever to reach, other times I blink and whole days seem to have passed.
I’m craving the times when Declan would hit me, just to feel physical contact, internally begging that Malachi will come to me. Leaving me alone is the worst punishment; no one to talk to, no idea what's happening in the outside world, as if I’m becoming more and more invisible each day. Perhaps one day I’ll finally vanish.
Malachi’s words vibrate through me. He was right; he is gradually destroying me.
I hear a noise echo up the stairs to my room, and I frown as it pulls something inside of me, as I open the door. Marcus’ eyes widen when he sees me. He stands, those rich chocolate eyes seeming to see every word I won’t speak.
My feet carry me across the hall, to the Juliet balcony, where I watch as someone walks in with a guard. My heart jumps and hope flares as I see Jack. He’s here. For me. He had at last won and is now paying off his debt. I’ll be free. When I needed him the most he came through, at last realised how much I loved him. He was being the parent.
I feel my lips twitch into a smile as hope fills me like helium. I could float.
Jack looks around the place, drinking in the luxury before him. I watch as his eyes widen, that look I hate appearing, like when he discovered mine or Hayden’s hidden money. Like he has just found buried treasure; a whole pirate ship full. I flinch when I see new bruises, cuts to his lips. He looks older than his late fifties; he’s haggard, drawn, and looks like he’s lost weight.
As his eyes flick to me, his daughter, there is no emotion there, nothing at all.
My smile drops, the realisation piercing me like an arrow to the heart as I watch Prince come out of his office, his cold eyes connecting with mine, softening when he sees I’ve seen it all, a truth so brutal, so cold and cruel, it knocks the air out of me. Jack isn’t here to save me—he was never going to—he’s come for his true love: money.
The final tidal wave looms over me, washing away the last of my hope.
Marcus catches me as my body sways. It doesn’t matter how much I love them, any of them. My love couldn’t save Hayden from death, Malachi from turning into the Dark Prince, nor Jack from his addiction. Love isn’t my saviour. It had been my weakness all along.
15
Lilliana
“You okay?” I jump at the deep, raspy voice, turning to see Marcus still holding on to me, his eyes narrowed, a line between his brows. His voice is scratchy, as if he doesn’t use it a lot, but there’s a glimmer of something in his eyes, something that lessens the pain a little, giving me air to breathe.
“Yes.” I withdraw my arm, walking back toward the bedroom. I feel a tug on my arm and see Marcus in front of me, his features blurry. I watch his lips move but don’t understand what he's saying. All of it surrounds me like white noise.
Wrapping my arms around myself, I drag myself to the room. My lip starts to tremble, so I bite hard until I can taste the metallic undertones coating my tongue. Falling onto the bed, I curl into a foetal position, grabbing the pillow, my fingers holding on so tight, as if it’s my life raft. My body starts to tremble as if I'm cold. Something tight forms in my chest with a pressure that feels like it's going to break me apart as my whole body starts to shake, a sob breaking loose, echoing around the walls.