Truth (Betrothed #10) - Penelope Sky Page 0,54

expected repercussions from screaming at him.”

“Getting money seems like an odd repercussion.”

“Yeah, I don’t get it either.” She propped her chin on her hand and stared across the room.

I stared at my food, starving but with no real appetite.

“Should I talk to him?” she whispered.

“I don’t know,” I said honestly. I had no idea what it meant. I’d assumed the money was lined with explosives, but it was clean. Unless he’d invented a device that couldn’t be detected, it seemed completely legitimate.

“Damien promised me he wouldn’t hurt you…and he wouldn’t go back on his promise.”

I hoped he wouldn’t. I didn’t want to fight someone with my hands tied behind my back. My phone vibrated in my pocket, so I pulled it out in case it was important. That was when I saw his name on the screen. “He just texted me.”

Her head snapped in my direction. “Oh my god, what did he say?”

I read it out loud. “‘I want to talk to you.’”

She sighed. “That’s it?”

Another message popped up. I read it. “‘At my office. Now. Come alone.’”

Catalina didn’t touch her food because it didn’t seem important anymore. “I guess that’s okay. He’s not going to shoot you at a bank…”

“I have no idea what he’s capable of.”

“Well…bring your gun.”

I set the phone down and turned to her. “What’s the point, baby? Unless you give me permission…”

She looked into my eyes and struggled with the decision. Then she shook her head. “No.”

I didn’t take offense to it.

“He won’t hurt you. He won’t go back on his word.”

I hoped she knew her brother better than I did, because right now, I couldn’t read him. That was my specialty, but I was going into this completely blind, with no insight whatsoever. I grabbed the phone and texted back. Be there in 10.

Another message popped up. I’m unarmed.

I turned to Catalina. “He just said he’s unarmed.”

She sighed in relief. “He wouldn’t say that unless he meant it… He just wants to talk.”

“About what?” I asked.

“I…I have no idea.” She shrugged. “I seriously don’t.”

The lobby was empty, as if he cleared his schedule for this. Hades must have been at home because there was no sign of his presence. There was no secretary at the front desk. I helped myself to the hallway lined with windows.

All the doors were shut—except one.

I stopped outside of it, not nervous, just full of dread. I was prepared for the unexpected, always. But this wasn’t a normal afternoon for me. Emotions were in the way of my logic. My future wife was on the line, and this was the roadblock in the way.

After a final breath, I turned the corner and stepped inside.

Instead of Damien sitting behind his desk, he sat in the middle of his couch, which faced another sofa. His office was big, with two leather armchairs facing his desk as well as a seating area. There was a decanter of scotch in the center, along with two glasses that were already filled with the liquor. He didn’t turn to look at me, his eyes on the other couch.

I moved to the couch across from him and took a seat, directly facing him.

He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, his palms together, his fingers spread apart.

I stared at him for a few seconds, and when nothing was said, I grabbed the glass and took a drink. Maybe it was poison. Whatever.

That made him snap out of his reverie. He dropped his hands and regarded me in silence, his expression no longer livid like it had been when he’d stepped into the Underground. He was relaxed, indifferent. He reached for the glass in front of him and took a drink too, like he needed the liquor in his blood to focus.

I didn’t speak because I didn’t know where to begin.

He looked me in the eye, his fingers interlocking so his hands were an enormous pile of white knuckles. “I want you to tell me what happened. I want every detail, even if you think I can’t handle it, and I want every person responsible for it.”

My eyes remained focused on his, but my mind was completely blank, unsure what he spoke of. “You’re going to need to be more specific—”

“I know she was trafficked.” His voice broke slightly, like saying those words to me caused him so much pain.

I didn’t know how he’d figured it out, especially when it had happened months ago. I’d dissolved that organization and turned it into a brothel. Unless he