Blood Ties (Dinero de Sangre #2) - Lana Sky Page 0,23

over, and over again? Yours—” He palms the counter with both hands, leaning across it so that his face is mere inches from mine. “Ada-Maria Pavalos. She wrote about how sneaky you were. How conniving. How much time the two of you spent together, and that you followed her around like a lost puppy—”

“Because she was using me,” I rasp. “Duplicity and deception must run in the family.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Respect for her is the only reason why I haven’t slapped the taste out of your mouth,” he warns in a tone so harsh I’m left reeling. He pushes back from the cabinet, turning for the main room. “I’m thinking I might rescind my offer—”

“I might know where to look,” I rasp.

He stops over the threshold, his back to me. “If you think this is a game, I’m warning you. You don’t want to play with me.”

“I’m serious,” I say. But hell, for all I know, this guess could be a wild shot in the dark. It’s all I have. I’m not putting myself in Pia’s shoes, though.

I’m thinking like my father. If I were a man like him with a secret to hide, where would I bury it?

It’s obvious. Perhaps, too obvious. The consequences of being wrong are too dangerous to fathom, so I push all thought of failure from my mind and meet his piercing stare without flinching.

“I’m sensing you have the balls to tack a ‘but’ onto that statement,” he murmurs.

“Y-Yes,” I croak. His gaze is too intense; I have to tear my gaze away to the wall instead. Eyeing it, I find the strength to make a demand of my own. “But, I want something.”

“And what is that?”

“I want proof that my father is dead.”

He’s silent for so long I risk a glance in his direction just to make sure he’s still there.

He is, watching me with an unreadable expression. Finally, he inclines his head, running his hand along his jaw. “His smoking body cooking over an open spit wasn’t proof enough for you?”

“I want a news article,” I say, cringing. It’s been hard enough trying to get those images from my mind. “The coverage must be wall to wall. Let me see it for myself, and that’s all I’m asking for. Then, anything that I may know is yours.”

As the seconds tick by—audibly, given his watch collection—I’m sure he’ll refuse outright. Instead, he turns on his heel and reenters the room without a word.

I’m forced to follow him, catching him on the balcony, leaning casually against the railing as if he’s enjoying the view.

“And?” I demand, my voice shrill.

“Give me a day.” His tone is flat, betraying no hint of inflection. It’s reminiscent of the chilling monotone he utilized as my father’s trusted soldier doing God knows what for him day in and day out. Still, his acquiescence in this matter is something.

I’ll take it.

“Thank you,” I whisper, preparing to bolt back into that white room, regardless of if Alexi is there or not.

Before I can take a step, he turns, leveling me with the full weight of his icy stare. “You would thank the man who has your life in his hands? Don’t be so eager, Ada. Your good girl act won’t work here. I never promised I still won’t sell you, did I?”

The dread I feel is like being drenched in ice water—a million different variations of shame and betrayal washing over me, one after the other.

Then I remember that I haven’t told him anything. Either he stupidly revealed his whole plan to be a lie, or he’s merely trying to rile me.

“I’m not eager,” I counter, remaining within his orbit for a second longer despite every cell in my body urging me to run. “I’m earnest. Unlike you or my father, I am not a heartless, cruel excuse for a person, and I refuse to let you make me that way.”

Rather than seem insulted, he laughs.

“So says the woman who fucks men with the same discernment most use when picking a public bathroom stall to use. You have no integrity. No shame. No honor.”

“I have more honor than you do,” I whisper harshly. “You act so high and mighty when you fucked Alexi. You’ve killed. You lied to me. You dragged me here, and you’ve hurt me. More than my father has, mind you. So don’t you dare stare down your nose at me, Domino. You? You’re evil—”

“You shut your fucking mouth about things you don’t understand,” he warns, pulling back