Another pause. Then, quietly, “Anything.”
That broke me. Just a little.
Because I left Salvatore. Not because I didn’t love him—but because my father told me Reagan was better for the business. Salvatore was just a lawyer before—no power, no name. My father told me he would kill Salvatore if I chose him. So I agreed with my father, thinking it was better for Titanis… and for myself. That Salvatore couldn’t provide for me. And I believed that. I convinced myself I loved Reagan. And what did I get?
Betrayal.
Blood.
Prison.
Salvatore arranged a meet. A safehouse on the outskirts of Montana. He didn’t ask questions. Just opened the door, pulled me inside, and hugged me like I hadn’t vanished off the face of the earth.
Like I was still someone worth saving.
***
I patched into the Titanis ghost channel that night.
A secure satellite line only my father and I knew existed. It took three passwords, one retinal scan, and my mother’s old wedding ring for biometric access.
His face flickered onto the screen.
“Danica?”
“Dad, listen. You need to disappear. Reagan is coming for you—he’s taking over Titanis from the inside—”
He sighed. “Sweetheart, I know you’re upset, but Reagan loves you. This—this paranoia isn’t you. Come home, we’ll fix this—”
Three shots.
Loud, deafening. My heart stopped.
I screamed his name. The screen shook. Blood sprayed across his collar. And then… Silence.
And then… His body collapsed backward, eyes open. Staring. Dead.
A hand reached into the camera view.
Reagan.
Smiling like the devil had finally taken off his halo.
“Well. That was loud.”
I choked, frozen. “You… you killed him.”
“I warned you, didn’t I?” His voice dropped to a cruel whisper. “Come home, Danica. Before I lose my patience.”
And then she appeared behind him. Dulcie. Wearing one of my ruby necklaces like a trophy, sipping wine like it was her blood ritual.
“Oh Dani Bestie,” she purred into the mic. “Just because you escaped your cage doesn’t mean you’re free to roam. We just went out for a quick dinner… with Daddy. You broke the rules.”
She leaned closer to the screen, eyes gleaming.
“His eyes are still open, you know. Very dramatic.”
I screamed and threw the laptop across the room.
Salvatore caught it midair before it hit the floor. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the last frozen frame of Reagan and Dulcie, grinning like wolves.
“…I’m going to kill them,” he said flatly.