Page 182 of Beautiful Venom
What happened to Preston now?
I’m about to call Jude, but then I see the texts.
Jude
Where the fuck are you, man? This is an emergency.
Violet has been kidnapped from the hospital under the guise of a medical transfer.
My brother and your father are behind this. I don’t know what the fuck they want, but my brother’s driver mentioned a trip to the lab. I’m guessing they’re using Violet against Dahlia. I’ll see what I can do from my end.
Update: I still can’t locate her.
My fist tightens against the steering wheel, and I hit the Start button. My body flattens against the leather as I speed to where I left Dahlia on the bridge.
The trip.
The strange behavior.
The way she was holding on to me the whole day.
Now, I see why it all felt so weird.
The moment I reach the bridge and find it empty, the realization hits me across the face.
This entire day, Dahlia has been saying goodbye.
31
DAHLIA
Ishould’ve kissed him one final time.
Hell, I should’ve fucked him.
I should’ve taken something of him with me. Maybe if I had, it wouldn’t hurt this bad.
Maybe it wouldn’t feel as if I’d ripped my heart out and left it in the palm of Kane’s hand.
But I couldn’t possibly think of anything during this entire trip. I wanted more time with him, even if it was a couple of hours.
Minutes.
Seconds.
That’s why I came up with this stupid idea of visiting my old hometown.
I only wished to delay the inevitable, but I ended up with the best down-memory-lane trip of my life. Having Kane beside me, his hand wrapped possessively around my waist, has made it more enjoyable and less of a tearjerker.
Until now, that is.
I sit in an old, empty cathedral, hidden in the corner, staring numbly at the large crucifix on the altar and hoping my heart doesn’t break to pieces and leave me hollow.
Wait. It’s too late for that.
My fingers shake and my vision blurs.
“Hey.” I talk to the crucifix, tears flowing down my face. “Can you make it stop? No? Why not? You took my parents away and Vi, too. Now, Kane? Is my life a joke to you? Am I not allowed any form of happiness? No matter what I would’ve done differently, it would’ve ended this way, wouldn’t it? Why? Just tell me why!”
