Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 89925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 450(@200wpm)___ 360(@250wpm)___ 300(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 450(@200wpm)___ 360(@250wpm)___ 300(@300wpm)
“That still doesn’t—”
“The girl was your father’s sister.”
Silence hangs heavily in the air. The truth grips my chest with a painful ferocity I didn’t expect. Drake and Dante’s father killed my aunt.
“The problem is that she wanted to die. I found her diary months later; your father had been with her since she was too young to fight back. She fell in love with Malcolm and confessed everything. Hamish knew, and he told Malcolm if the truth ever came out they’d both be put in prison. As time went on, your father’s needs only intensified.” She spits the word needs, and I don’t blame her.
“And you still left us with him?”
“I made a mistake. I wasn’t there when you—”
I can’t listen to her anymore. My body is vibrating with rage as I rear back, and my fist connects with her jaw.
“You’re dead to me,” I tell her. Turning to face Drake, I shake my head. “I don’t want anything more to do with her. Kill her if you want to. I’m done.”
Without a backward glance, I head back to Drake’s room. Throwing my body on the bed, I allow my tears to fall free. I allow my pain and sadness to overtake me, and I finally cry. It feels like I’m purging the pain from my body. I grip the pillow, holding it close to me as I sob so hard my whole body is wracked, shaking and trembling.
It’s finally over.
EPILOGUE
Caia
Six months later
Months have gone by since we were freed from the past. My stomach is slowly swelling with every day that passes. I never thought I’d be pregnant after the horrors I faced, but either Drake's or River’s baby is growing inside me. We didn’t need to find out who the father is because we’re in this together.
The sun is shining through the large bay windows. I glance out to the garden to find River and Drake sparring in the heat. They’re both shirtless because of the hot summer weather. River’s wearing gray sweatpants as he punches the mitts Drake has bound to his hands. Both bodies glisten with sweat, and I find myself intoxicated at the sight.
The house is quiet. I enjoy time alone inside. After Dante, Harper, and Rayne decided they were going to travel to Europe for a few months, we threw a goodbye party and burned down the Savage Mansion.
Drake suggested we move into the cabin for a few months, which seems to be doing us all some good. I recall the time I spent here when they’d saved me from Thanos. It was the first time I’d seen Drake after four long years.
He was everything I remembered. Cold, savage, and still as handsome as the moment I’d realized I was in love with him. For years, I prayed for him to find me, and when he finally did, my life took a turn once more. He offered me strength in his own way.
I think if River wasn’t there, he’d still be locked up in the guilt he lived with for so long. He may not have shown it, but it certainly danced in his eyes, like a flame. I watched in awe as each day passed and he allowed me in. He opened his life to me, but it was only when he finally let me into his heart did I really get to know Drake Savage.
He may have killed and maimed in the past — some of it I still don’t know — but I choose not to. I told him it wasn’t important. If he wanted to go back there, to relive it while he confessed, I’d listen, but the man I love is not a monster.
River glances at me through the window, offering a wink as he and his best friend swap mitts. This time, Drake is punching, and I watch with a grin as the two most handsome men I’ve ever laid eyes on workout while I sip my apple juice.
It took some time for me to come to terms with killing my father, but I knew I’d finally set myself, along with my sister, free. She’s finally allowing herself to be happy. Her love for Dante is strong, and he gives her what she needs.
I never knew my sister was into both men and women, but watching her with Rayne and Dante, it’s clear she’s finally found a family she can love. We’ll always love each other, but she needs to be happy on her own now.
I always promised myself I’d free her. And I did. And in the process, I freed us all from the monsters that didn’t just hide under our beds, they lurked within the homes we grew up in, within the lives we thought we were safe in.
My hand gently lands on my stomach, circling the small bump just visible through the tank top I’m wearing. At least I know our baby will grow up in a safe, loving home.