Forever (Betrothed 7)

“I’m pretty good…”

Still not interested. “This conversation’s over.”

“You got a lady?”

I shook my head. “No. I just don’t want a dirty prisoner to suck my cock.”

She finished her bagel and chewed the last bites. “Fine. You’re missing out, but whatever.”

I found that unlikely. I pulled away from the cage and headed to the stairs.

“Where are you going?”

I turned back to her. “You’re the prisoner here. I’m not.”

“Well, do you want to play a game or something?”

She was locked in a cage, and if her brother didn’t come for her, she would be dead. Did she not fully comprehend the situation? I walked back. “I don’t think you understand how serious this is.”

She stared at me with those eyes identical to Damien’s and didn’t show a hint of emotion. While they were clearly related, they really didn’t look much alike. She was much more feminine, much softer. “There’s nothing I can do inside these bars. Why worry about something you can’t change?” She pulled her knees to her chest and crossed her arms over her body. “I just don’t understand why this is happening. Damien is in love with Anna—like, real love—and you’re trying to get in the way of that. And he really loves me, would do anything for me, and you’re getting in the way of that too. I know my father favors me over Damien, not because I’m better, but because I look just like my mother, whom he lost. So, he’s gonna lose me too. Do you understand what you’re doing to an entire family? All for what?”

I listened to every word of her speech, watched her full lips move as she spoke the words. Her eyes were like a screen where a film projected, showing her emotions through every scene, every act. For a man who was unable to feel anything, I actually felt something…whatever it was. “Damien is the one who decided to interfere in a marriage. He has to pay the consequences.”

“Marriages fall apart every day. The divorce rate is fifty percent for a reason. Get over it. Does that mean Liam is the one who took Anna? Is that what this is about?”

I didn’t see the harm in answering. “Yes.”

She shook her head slightly. “So, he thinks if he kills Damien, Anna will somehow fall in love with him again? Why do you guys think keeping women as prisoners is the only way to get stuff done? She’ll never love him, she’ll never submit, and this is all an colossal waste of time. Killing Damien doesn’t solve the problem.”

I actually agreed with her, but I would never admit it. Liam was determined to win back the woman he was continually unfaithful to, which was idiotic and boring. I couldn’t care less who he loved, who he fucked.

“So why are you involved in this? Unless you’re getting a fat check?”

I debated telling her the truth, but then I remembered I had nothing to hide. I didn’t owe this woman anything, and her opinion was irrelevant. “Revenge.”

“And what did Damien do to you?”

“He didn’t pay me, like everyone else. And then he turned my own brother against me, defied me in front of my crew.”

She tilted her head slightly then rubbed her fingers across her bottom lip. “Let me get this straight. You’re going to kill his sister, potentially let the woman he loves be raped by a crazy-ass guy, kill him when he turns himself in to save his family…over something like that? Seems petty to me.”

Her response angered me, but I realized I shouldn’t care what she thought. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“Did he owe you money?”

“Yes.”

“Why? All you guys are so rich. Why would you need to borrow money from each other?”

I didn’t give her the details. “Doesn’t matter. I don’t like your brother, and I want him to pay.”

She shook her head in disappointment. “That’s sad. To live your life that way, to hold on to the past like that…must be exhausting. I choose to let things go, to find happiness wherever I can, not look for opportunities to get back at people I don’t like or even think about.”

Even when she wasn’t trying to kill me, she annoyed me.

“What’s your name?”

“What does it matter?”

She shrugged. “I’m stuck in this house with you. Just seems weird I don’t know your name.”

My name wasn’t important. It was my title that contained my identity. It may not mean anything to her, but it was still powerful. “I’m the Skull King.”

Her expression remained blank, as if that didn’t mean a damn thing to her. Then the corners of her lips rose toward the ceiling, and she did her best to suppress the smile that crept into her features. When she could no longer hide it, she cupped her face with her hand and suppressed the laugh she couldn’t control. “I’m sorry…”