DEMI
"What was that?" Anna lashes out the minute Ashton leaves. She chucks the rag on the table and folds her hands across her shoulder with a stern look on her face. "What was all that about, Demi? Why would you say sothing so insensitive to him despite knowing everything he’s going through?
"Stay out of it, Anna." I move to stow the dress in her bedroom but she follows .
"What exactly is going on with you, Demi? You’re being weird! Ashton was literally worried sick about you when you went missing shortly after returning to Danvarr. I thought you agreed to let bygones be bygones, to forgive and move on with your life and leave. Why are you back with this grudge and quest for revenge?"
I blank out her worried face as I pull the dress out of the box. What the hell was Skylar thinking when she got this dress? There’s no way I am going to Ashton’s birthday party half-naked.
"I am talking to you, Demi."
I roll my eyes before turning to Anna. "Fine. You want to know where I was after I returned to Danvarr? Take a wild guess, Anna. I was stripped of all forms of communication. I was locked in a room in a very big mansion and tied to a bedpost. I couldn’t even speak because I had a gag over my mouth."
I huffed out a breath. "I tried so hard to forgive that family and everything they have done to hurt . I tried to be the bigger person and take the high road but what did I get? They snatched from the airport and tied up like a petty criminal in their mansion just to force to stop exposing them. How many more cris can I forgive? When will they learn, Anna?"
When Anna tries to console , I move away from her. My eyes sting with tears because of the frustration I am feeling over Ashal’s condition and my inability to tell Anna the truth. I wish I could confide in her without jeopardizing my plans. I am sick of acting this way even with her.
"I didn’t know that and I am deeply sorry that happened to you." She replies.
I turn around so she doesn’t see the tears threatening to fall. "I think it was for the best. I was starting to believe that family deserved to be spared but clearly, they’re irredeemable. They’ll only continue to hurt more people. Soone has to clip their wings and remind them that they’re not invincible."
Anna wheels around to face her. "Demi, you had nothing to do with Ashal’s condition, right? I agree that Brett Rollins’ family isn’t a model one but we already established that you are going to let the law run its course. Look dead in the eyes and tell Ashal’s condition is all Liam and you had nothing to do with it."
There’s sothing in Anna’s eyes that simultaneously communicates fear and a warning. She is afraid that I may not be the woman she defended to Asher and she’s subtly warning that things may not remain the sa between us if I have soiled my hands by hurting Ashal.
"And if I had sothing to do with it? I ask her brazenly, and stupidly. "What then, huh?"
Her hands slip from my shoulders. She edges backward with a pained expression. "Demi, please! Cut it out. I can clearly see how much you’re hurting. Why are you putting up this act even in front of ? Don’t you trust anymore or did Liam threaten you to secrecy?"
The timing couldn’t have been worse for a single tear to flow down my cheek. Before I can swipe it off, Anna beats to it. She pulls into her arms.
"I’m not going to force you to share if you don’t want to. I just want you to know that you’re not alone. No matter how stuck you might feel, I’ll always be here for you." She pats my back gently and when she hears my sniffles, her arms tighten around . "Don’t cry. I’m sure you have a good reason for shutting out and I am sure that whatever Liam’s doing, it won’t break you. You’ve been through hell and back. Everything will be okay."
I press my eyes shut and try to see that future. It used to seem so close even while I was in the Rollins mansion. Now that I am out and free from the marriage bond, I can’t even picture it anymore. Every day, things seem to take a turn for the worst in my life. Nothing’s gone right for in a very long while.
I pull back and keep my head low. "I wasn’t lying. Ashal got hurt because of . Liam was trying to prove a point."
"You can’t bla yourself for his willful actions." She counters . "Don’t let him get into your head like that. I’m sure he’s trying to absolve himself of the bla by making you the culprit." She gnashes her teeth. "I can’t believe he turned on you like that. He was literally like a big brother. I trusted his intentions were noble but all this ti it’s been a lie? He was basically using you to fulfil his selfish revenge."
I stare at Anna deadpan. "Sotis to fight the devil, you might have to beco one. There’s no other way to deal with pompous billionaires that treat the rest of the world as their doormat. Maybe Liam hasn’t lost his way. Maybe he’s only doing all that’s necessary to put an end to the toxicity of the Rollins’ clan and after that, he’d be back to the guy we used to know. Have you thought about it like that?"
She only stares at with a perplexed expression. Of course, I don’t believe that Liam is putting on a show just to have his revenge. I won’t be making any excuses for him or any other corrupt billionaire.
I am only stating this because I need to convince myself that I am not going to run into the sa pitfalls as them, and that when I am done giving everyone what they deserve, I’ll still be able to look myself in the mirror.
An impatient knock on the door draws our attention. Whoever is behind it seems to be in need of urgent attention. Anna and I exchange glances.
"Are you expecting soone?" I ask her. She shakes her head from side to side before heading for the door. I grab her arm, stopping her. Since I suspect that whoever is behind the door is likely here for , I choose to get it myself. My eyes almost double in size when I check the peephole. I swing the door open and gasp in surprise.
"Madeline?"
***
"Madeline, how’d you find ? What..." I trail off as she brushes past , wringing her hands worriedly. She even ignores the seat Anna offers her after they exchange cursory pleasantries.
"I can’t find him." She belts out. "I can’t find Ashal. I know he’s missing, Demi. He stopped by my new house to see ...to see my sister I an. She’s carrying his child." She winces at the irony of the last bit and avoids my eyes. "Liv wasn’t happy to see him. She had been telling about her new friend that had promised to help her get back at the Rollins family for everything she went through because of them. While Ashal was at our place, she pretended to entertain him. I think she drugged him. He was knocked out cold after a few sips of his drink."
"Okay, sit down Madeline."
But she yanks her hand free when I attempt to steer her to the couch. Pacing, she bites her lower lip. "You have to believe . I don’t know where she took him! She made dash to the pharmacy to get drugs claiming Ashal was having an episode or sothing. I stupidly believed her but before I could return, he was gone and she wouldn’t give a proper excuse. I know Ashal wouldn’t have left like that. At the very least, he would have returned my calls. I’ve even been to his office but there’s no word from him. I feel it in my gut that my sister isn’t telling everything."
"Calm down, Maddi. Have a seat, please."
She halts and whips her head to . "Why are you being so calm about this? The ink on your divorce papers haven’t even properly dried yet and you’re all cold turkey about everything that concerns them?"
I tilt my head with an air of amusent. "And you? I distinctly recall you vehently trying to prove that Ashal was a monster holding your dear sister hostage. You spoke of him with so much venom but here you are after almost knocking down my friend’s door, worrying for the sa man because you’re in love with him!"
She doesn’t bother to argue it.
"I guess a lot has changed." I add before pointing to the couch again. "Now, you can either sit down or leave. Your choice." I plunk down on the couch, cross my legs and wait for her to make a decision. Finally, she sinks into the couch.
I listen intently as she recounts the story again as clearly as she rembers it.
"And why are you convinced Ashal’s in so kind of danger and not just broken up with you?"
She pauses for a bit. "He just...wouldn’t leave like that." She insists.
Given her state, I have already deduced that telling her the truth will only make her restless and that could lead to more problems with Skylar’s temper.
"Ashal is fine, Madeline. I spoke with him yesterday in fact. He’s family is in dire straits right now as everyone knows. Are you really alard that he’s not prioritizing relationships that could potentially cause more damage to his family’s reputation? If the dia gets wind of his marriage to your sister and whatever relationship you and him now share, think of the headlines. What would happen to the quiet life your family just found? Do you want that blown up? Maybe Ashal knows leaving you is for the best."
She struggles to accept my words. I reach forward and rub her knees in circles. "You have to get it together, Maddi. I’ll speak to him and get him to call you back if that helps. In the anti, go back ho and stop looking for him. The last thing he needs is more attention."
"You promise to get him to return my calls?"
"I promise."
She leaps to her feet. "I’m counting on you to keep your word. I just want to know he’s fine."
I say nothing as she leaves. I cradle my head in my hands, montarily lost in despair when Anna walks up to .
"I don’t care what your reason for shutting out is. I just have one thing to say. You are not going to win against Liam."
I stare up at her in shock. "What?"
"You heard loud and clear. You are going to lose this war to him, Demi." She takes a seat next to and grabs my hands. "That’s because he has sothing you don’t. His strength lies in numbers! He’s got spies everywhere to tell him every move his targets are making. He rubs minds together with his team and they collaborate to execute their plans. You? You’re under the illusion that you can top that. You need your own army, Demi. That’s the only way you stand a fighting chance against Liam and his lackeys."
Her eyes implore to consider it. I can’t deny that she makes a strong point. It’s too much for to take everything on myself. I don’t even believe I can pull it off myself and God knows now is not the ti to play hit or miss with Ashton’s life. I want him safe. I want him happy and he can’t be if his brother is hard or his family is targeted by people who are no saints themselves.
I ease into Anna’s hug and dry my eyes. I know just what to do.
***
"Thank you for sharing everything with us." Mrs. Regan quips. "I’ve been worried about you, Demi. Since I shared that secret about your mother, I’ve found myself staying up at night, wondering if I only made your life worse and what consequences would follow if you misused that information. I’m glad you’ve chosen the right path all by yourself."
Maddox, her son reaches forward to squeeze my hands. "I’m so sorry you’ve been going through so much all alone. I promise to help as much as I can, however I can."
Katherine is still reeling with shock at the revelation regarding her closest friend.
"Kat?" Her mother calls softly. She rears her head up and registers the full room; , Madeline and my uncle on Zoom call. Anna would have been here but she had to dress up like and derail the n Liam and Skylar instructed to keep tabs on . This eting would have been busted otherwise.
"I’m sorry, everyone." Kat apologizes. "I’m just still trying to take all of this in." She expels a deep breath. "Ok. Ok. I’m good. My best friend isn’t as sweet as I thought she was. It’s clear as day from that video. She literally had her own brother beaten to a bloody pulp and is on a mission to eliminate her siblings from the face of the earth. Wow. That’s one ssed up family tree."
I check my new phone. Ashton still hasn’t replied any of my ssages. The number might be unknown to him but I bet he’ll know it’s if he reads the ssages. When I try to call him, I realize he already blocked .
"What’s wrong, Demi?" Uncle Marcel asks, seeing my pale face.
"I think Ashton blocked my number."
"Oh no. How will you get this evidence to him now? He has to know the truth."
Madeline turns to with a grim look. "I bet he’ll listen to . I can go and show it to him the damn video myself."
"Never mind..."
"Ashal..." Her voice breaks as she forces the emotion down her throat. Tears shimr in her eyes when she refocuses them on . "That video...Look what they did to him. He was almost unrecognizable, Demi. He’s hurt and he’s suffering. I’ll do whatever it takes to move this plan along before they do worse things to him. Please, if that video is all it’ll take to get Ashton on our side, let take it to him."
I close a reassuring hand over hers. "I thought about it. Ashton is not very stable at the mont. The truth might make him act impulsively and ruin our chance to take our enemies by surprise. I think we should hold off on telling him the truth for now."
"So, you’re just going to go along with their plan and be the scapegoat?" Madeline fus.
"I’ve endured worse things. This should be a cakewalk." I lie smoothly.
It’s killing that Ashton had to resort to blocking . It’s hurts deeply that he might actually hate and never fully trust again even when this is all over. However, I can’t be selfish and think about all that now. So things are more important than what he currently feels in his heart for .
"What’s the ga plan here?" Maddox asks.
I give everyone a glance. "I really don’t know. Personally, I had planned to show Ashton the videos to prove my innocence and hoped that he would co up with a plan to save his brother and expose Liam simultaneously. Anna made realize that that wouldn’t be enough. I’m counting on you all to help end this for good. Yes, the Rollins family have done so terrible things to a lot of people including . I don’t object to them paying for their cris but Liam milking people’s pain in the na of executing revenge just doesn’t sit well with , especially since he’s taking the law into his own hands. We have to stop him and Skylar."
Everyone bobs their heads.
"Everyone has a weak point." I continue. "If we can find theirs, I think we can stop them. As far as I know, Liam blas the Rollins family for his mother’s death. I think sothing in that story might help us distract him from his ill intent. We can reverse engineer his pain the way I did mine and make him realize this isn’t the way. There’s also his father whose validation Liam lives for. We can find a way to work that angle to get him to call son to order." I heave a breath. "Then there’s Skylar. I literally know nothing about her. I don’t know what we could possibly do to stop her..."
"Maybe I do."
We all turn to Kat simultaneously.
She coyly tucks a stray hair behind her ears. "It’s like you said, everyone has a weak point. I think I know Skylar’s."
"What?" I sit up straight. "What’s hers?"
"Not what, who." She corrects , leaning forward. "She likes everyone to believe she’s a loner in the world but that’s not entirely true. I happened to have stumbled on a bunch of postcards sent to her by a mysterious person. The weirdest thing about them wasn’t the fact that they all ca from one country or that there was one for every single month. The weirdest thing was Skylar’s reaction when she walked in on rifling through them and smiling at the heart shape she had drawn all over them with red lipstick. It was evident she was deeply attached to whover sent them."
"Who were they from?" I ask.
"There wasn’t a na on any of the cards, just a signature. I bet that person ans a lot to Skylar. She definitely treasured the cards. If we uncover the identity of the sender, Skylar won’t see it coming. Maybe she’ll listen to us then and stop her madness."
"Do you rember the country it ca from or what the signature looked like?" Uncle Marcel asks Kat.
"I do. I’ll just write them down."
Maddox passes his sister a pen and a napkin to scribble on. While she does, a huge ball of relief floods my chest. There’s no way I could have figured all this myself. Anna was right after all. A good team is always better than one. I recline in my seat as one thought clouds my mind.
Who sends Skylar the postcards?
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