Chapter 69 Remi
REMI
brIAR
No, no, no, no, no, no, no….
Not like this.
Please, god, not like this.
Of all the ways he could have found out about her, this is, without question, the worst possible one.
Koen reappears in the doorway, his eyes on the floor. His expression is unreadable, but not empty. He stops a few feet from me, and his gaze slowly lifts, and he just… shatters everything inside of me with a single look.
He knows.
“It’s not true.” He steps forward, shaking his head. “Tell me it’s not true, Briar. Whose kid is that?”
Tears stream down my face, and I know he can see the truth written in my eyes. The guilt.
Koen shakes his head. “Tell me she’s not mine. Tell me you haven’t been hiding my daughter from me this whole time.”
The way his voice breaks…
There’s so much to say—so much to explain—but it’s too hard to put it into words, and I can’t stop fucking crying.
“She’s mine?”
It’s a simple question, but I can’t breathe; the words stay caught in my throat.
“Briar, I swear to god if you lie to me right now…” Koen’s tone sharpens and I look away, unable to look him in the eye.
“She’s mine,” I say quietly. “My secret. My beautiful little secret.” I look up at him. “And she’s yours, too.”
His jaw flexes. Once. A small, controlled movement, and then he nods, a single, tight dip of his chin.
“I’m sorry.” I regret the words as soon as I say them—because they’re not enough... not nearly enough. But I am… I am so sorry.
“Don’t.” His words are quiet, and I can sense the storm brewing behind his eyes.
I press my lips back together as I try to pretend everything inside of me isn’t falling apart.
“What’s her name?”
I take a sharp intake of breath.
His eyes slide back to mine. “What’s. Her. Name?” His question is raw and desperate, like he’s never needed to know anything more. “My daughter?”
“Remi,” I say quietly.
He exhales—just once, staring at the ground again. Silence fills the air between us long enough that I gather up the nerve to ask the one question I need an answer to.
“Where is she?”
“She’s here.”
His answer doesn’t put my mind at ease.
“Is she… okay?”
Koen’s chin lifts, and his gaze finds mine, and I almost feel guilty for having to ask.
“She’s safe.”
I nod my head, falling silent. The ropes holding my wrists bite into my skin, and I shift. The chain clinks above, and I feel the weight of his eyes on me.
“That's why you ran.” I look up to find myself caught in the wild intensity of his gaze. Watching as he works it out—works it all out.
“That’s why you ran from me at the warehouse—and again when I found you at Wonderland. You’ve been pushing me away this entire time. You really hate me that much?”
“I don’t hate you.” I stare at him, eyes wide with surprise.
He scoffs.
“I don’t. I don’t hate you... I was going to tell you—”
“Don’t.” Koen’s eyes narrow into slits and he glares at me.
“You were going to tell me?” His laugh is cold and cruel.
“You had weeks to tell me… Years!” He throws up his hands.
“But you didn’t.” The anger and rage inside of him rises back up to the surface.
“But you know what you did do?” He steps closer, his eyes darkening.
“You got me to trust you, all while you were lying to me. And then you betrayed me.”
“I—I can explain—”
“Stop.” He holds up a hand, cutting me off.
“I didn’t know if I could trust you!” I rush out.
“You’re working for Giovanni.”
“No, I’m not! I—”
“You set Liam up.”
I’m shaking my head, my lip quivering under his sharp glare, and I feel the mental wall slide back up between us like a sheet of solid steel.
“It’s complicated.”
“Uncomplicate it,” he orders, biting out every syllable, reaching the limits of his restraint.
“I didn’t—I didn’t want to! I had to keep her safe! I told you I didn’t have a choice!”
He sniffs. “Safe from me.” He steps forward, his hand shooting out, and I feel his grip tighten around my throat. “There’s always a choice. You chose to sell out Liam. You chose to betray me. You chose to keep my child a secret.”
He stares down at me. Rage and raw fury blazing in his eyes.
“Your choices Briar. And every choice bears a consequence. And this is yours.” He releases me, and my breath quickens, on the verge of hyperventilating when he turns, stalking back toward the hallway. Leaving me here.
No.
“Koen.” I barely get his name out, a choked whisper on my lips. He’s so far away but he freezes just before he hits the threshold.
“I’m sorry.”
He doesn’t turn, doesn’t look at me, before he says, “You’re not sorry, Briar Rose, but you will be.”