Chapter 22
“You little brat!”
“Stop! Stop! Don’t hurt him!” I cried, the searing pain in my back intensifying. Kevin and I were fighting for the only copy of Prisoner of Azkaban.
“Oh, don’t fight. Read it together,” Jina said, shaking her head as she walked away.
We huddled together under the blanket with a torch.
“It would be great if we could send Miss Milton to Azkaban,” Kevin and I giggled.
The blanket was swiftly pulled away, and terror paralyzed us as the torch illuminated the woman’s face–red with fury, a hockey stick gripped in her hand.
“Kevin! Run!” I pushed him away. She swung the hockey stick, and the next thing I heard was my bones breaking
“Mila.”
28
Killian’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts, and I looked at him.
I stopped breathing. Memories flooded my mind–noises from far away yet so close.
“What’s wrong?” He reached for my hand, and I composed myself. Killian’s hands were warm as they enveloped mine. I should feel cold, but those memories vanished the moment he touched me.
I looked back at the image. A broken neck–like she had fallen–but it seemed they weren’t ruling out homicide.
I turned to Killian. Only Kevin, Jina, and I knew about this. I had told Killian–and now, suddenly, she was dead. Gone.
I should feel relieved, right? But I couldn’t grasp it. Should I verify what happened? Who did this? Why would he do this? Was this some sort of offering of good faith?
The idea made me uncomfortable.
“Mila.”
I slid my phone toward him, looking him in the eye. “What is this?” I asked.
Jina was right. Killian Knight made me impulsive. In any other scenario, I would have stepped back, thought it over–but now, I couldn’t hold it in
anymore.
He looked down at the screen. A dark shadow passed over his face, and his eyes turned cold, unable to hide the darkness inside.
“Did you do this?” I asked.
“Personally,” he said, meeting my eyes squarely. His tone was like a sharp, cold knife stabbing into my gut.
I froze in my seat, unable to move, unsure what to do. Slowly, I gathered my phone and other belongings, stuffing them into my bag.
“You…” I carefully composed my words. “…had no right.”
I finally stood up.
“I thought I was clear,” his voice was calmybut firm, “as long as they don’t hurt you, I will be reasonable.”
1/3
Chapter 22
“That was thirteen years ago!” I turned away from him, storming out. I had reached the middle of the stairs when a hand grabbed my elbow and pulled me back. I crashed against Killian’s chest, his arms locking around me in an iron grip.
I hadn’t even heard him following me.
“Let go of me!” I struggled, but I should’ve known by now–it was impossible to escape him. A foreboding feeling rose in my chest. Had my instincts led
me astray?
“Not until you hear me!” He pinned me against the wall.
I groaned in frustration.
“Why are you defending the people who hurt you?” he asked, his frustration evident.
I stopped struggling.
“No one wants to hurt them as much as I do!” My eyes stung. I hated this–this cyclone of emotions rising in my chest. “I want them to suffer, but I don’t want their blood on my hands!”
Blood rushed to my head.
“Her blood is on my hands,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter! You did it in my-”
Choked on my words. “You took my revenge!”
I shoved him hard. “Let go of me!” I seethed, struggling against him again.
“Mila, calm down and listen to me!”
“You can’t just come into my life and take over! You can’t make decisions for me!”
I kicked his thigh–hard. His grip weakened just enough for me to punch his shoulder with all my strength. He staggered back, momentarily caught off
guard.
Breathing heavily, I took the chance and ran downstairs–only to halt as several footsteps approached.
Four men,
all dressed in black with earpieces and guns, stood in my way.
I scoffed. It was laughable how comfortable I had gotten.
“This is your plan?” I spat. “Trapping me? All that talk last night–was it just to make me trade one prison for another?”
I turned to look at him, hatred burning in my chest. But his eyes only softened in response. With a dismissive wave of his hand, the men disappeared.
“No. I only meant for them to stop you,” he said as he stepped down to my level.
“Really?” I glared. “What about the driver? He won’t report back to you on wherever I go, whatever I do?” I shook my head. “And the fact that Miss Milton was found dead just days after I told you about her–clearly, you already had people following me before I even challenged you.”
“You told me her name and profession. It wasn’t hard to find where she lived from there. Then I went myself.”
“I don’t need to know how you…” I lowered my voice. “Murdered her.” I clenched my jaw.
“You need to be clear about one thing.”
It didn’t matter what kind of lighting there was–his expression darkened as he closed in on me.
With every step he took, I found myself unable to think, unable to breathe.
2/3
16:01 Sat, 5 Jul
Chapter 22
My strength, my training, all the thoughts that could have helped me escape–they abandoned me.
Why was it him?
Why was he the one making my heart race–even in this situation?
“I am what I am,” he said, his voice low, dangerous. “That won’t change. I killed the person who hurt you. And I will eliminate anyone who dares to hurt you in the future.”
His tone was dark and threatening.
Yet when his hand brushed away the stray strands of hair from my gentle. Comforting.
I met his gaze, locked in the depths of his dark eyes.
when he cupped my face in his hands and pulled me closer–his touch was
“This is not on you,” he murmured. “I can’t bear the fact that someone left such a cruel mark on you. It’s because of you–but this is my revenge.”
His words sank deep into my bones.
I looked at him carefully.
This–this was the real him. Completely bare. Transparent.
I couldn’t believe it.
20
Jina was right.
This man is obsessed with me.
2/2
