“That’s dangerous. Are you willing to put her in that kind of danger? She’s your daughter.”
“She is a pawn. A player on the board I can move where I need to. If that means spreading her legs to gain political and financial backing for our future goals, then so be it. If it means letting the Jap slit her throat as she spies on him, then so be it.”
Fuck!
My stomach churns. What am I going to do? My father legitimately no longer cares about my safety. My throat constricts with the thought.
He is going to ask me to spy on Kai. Will Kai believe me when I tell him I don’t want to?
“Now what about the other matter? How is it going with gaining the loyalty of the others?” Father asks.
“It’s trickier than anticipated. It seems Killian has a lot of loyal followers. They are reluctant to even discuss a situation in which Killian would no longer be around.”
“Keep working on it. If that’s all,” My father’s voice moves closer to the door.
I scramble back, falling on my ass. Pushing up, I run as fast as I can down the hall, slipping into my parents' bedroom.
When the door closes, I rest my forehead on the cool door.
I need to call Kai.
“What are you doing? You need to leave.”
“Mother,” I gasp, spinning to find my mother standing at the end of the bed in a long nightgown.
Bruises cover her exposed skin, but her eyes look clear.
My father always told me my mother could no longer handle life. That she lived her life either drunk or drugged. He made me believe she hated me. Resented me for ruining her life.
The woman looking back at me now isn’t angry. She’s sad.
“You shouldn’t be sneaking around. If he catches you, he will punish you,” she hisses at me, pulling me toward the balcony door.
“I know. I wasn’t trying to sneak,” I lie.
She shakes her head. “Your father’s dangerous, Cliona. You need to keep your head down and hope to God whoever he sells you to is kinder than he is.”
I grip her hand, looking at her closely.
She’s not the mother I remember. It looks like she has aged thirty years instead of five.
“What do you mean?”
She gives me a sad smile. “Baby girl, I failed to give him the heir he needed. Now I’m only good for one thing. To take his anger out on. I do that for you. So that he leaves you be, but if you stay? If you get caught here, he will beat you too. You need to push this arranged marriage along.”
“What will you do? How will you get out?”
She lets out a heavy sigh. “It’s too late for me. I’ve lost my son and daughter to the psychotic bastard I married all due to my womb not being able to carry another child. Go now, child. Forget about me. Once you’re gone and I no longer need to protect you, I’ll make my move.”
Son?I think, but I brush it off. Obviously, she is not as clear as I thought.
I pull her in, hugging her tight. “I’m sorry, Mother. I love you.”
She gives me a weak smile. “I love you too. Now over the rail and through the backdoor. Don’t come back to this room again. He will hurt you if he finds you here.”
Swinging my leg over, I make my way off of their patio. Looking back, I search for her, but she is already gone.
She didn’t abandon me. She was forced to keep away.
