Chapter 48
Right on fuckin’ cue, he stirs. I saunter towards her tied up bastard of a father.
My father.
At least, he was supposed to be. The fucker adopted me just to toss me aside like garbage.
Like I meant nothin’. Him and that shit bag of a wife before she died, Amelia.
Vesper was my replacement. She was an alternative to dealing with me and my fucked-up problems. They chose her.
She’s perfect. Isn’t her fault. It’s a shame she’s paying the price for her father’s sins, but life ain’t fair.
He writhes on the floor and bellows. I waste no time. I push off the bed and stand before him like a god. And today, I will be. I’ll be his decider. He will beg me for penance and forgiveness.
I kick him straight in the stomach until he wails obscenities.
He lets out a desperate howl, and Vesper cries out from the bed.
She pulls at her restraints. Of course she doesn’t understand.
She was a pawn for a bigger purpose. Only problem is I never anticipated feeling something other than hatred for another person.
Still not sure what it is. Love? Affection?
Obsession? The pain it inflicts upon me that she has to watch me murder her father eats me from the inside out.
I’m reluctant to finish the job, and I gotta get my head screwed on straight.
“You fucker,” I growl and kick him in his smug face. Blood gushes from his brow as it rips open.
“Zain, please,” she pleads with me.
Her desperate pleading cries tug at something within me Can’t stop though.
“Quiet. I need to do this. Need to say my piece,” I grit.
I circle him like a vulture. Hungry. Spiteful.
Vengeful. “You piece of shit. This was supposed to be my life. You adopted me. Why, Pearson? You and Amelia never fuckin’ loved me,” I laugh sardonically. “What—” Vesper is too stunned to speak.
In time, songbird. Everything will slowly unravel.
“What the fuck!” he gargles through the blood, still catching his breath.
Vesper’s cries reach my ears. The soft crackle of the fireplace burns into my irises. “‘What the fuck’ is right,” I spit.
A glorious pool of blood trails on the hardwood floor. It seeps into the expensive rug in front of the fireplace, sopping up his tainted blood. His traitorous blood.
“Please, let’s talk about this. Leave my Vesper alone,” he begs, pulling on the nylon restraints and meeting my gaze with pleading eyes.
I offer a dry, mirthless laugh. “Your. Precious. Vesper.” I let out a sharp, staggered breath and enunciate each word slowly.
Then I kneel down to his level. “You molded her into your ideal daughter. Your perfect little image. Everything you ever wanted, huh?” My voice grows louder.
“What the fuck was wrong with me?” I slam my fist into my chest.
His eyes lack remorse and instead hold disdain. “Even now, I can’t look at you. You taint everything you touch. You drove your mother to suicide! I had to protect Vesper so she didn’t gain your sickness. Vesper couldn’t know you,” he barks, spitting blood.
“What?” Vesper lets out a harsh breath. “You told me Mother was sick!” she cries.
I lift my chin and hold a stoic expression. “You’re lying,” I grit.
Fisting his lapel, I drag him to his feet before slamming him into the wingback chair, practically knocking it over. I crush his bound arms behind him, pushing him back deeper into the chair. He winces and howls in agony and each pained cry brings me closer to answers.
Pearson heaves, attempting to catch his breath.
Vesper sobs harder.
He starts out softer this time, patronizing me. “We loved you, Zain but you needed help. Help we couldn’t offer. We just couldn’t do it. Do you still hear those voices? You were always suffering from delusions and episodes. You had no clue how to feel anything other than rage.”
I release him and glower. Amelia killed herself…because of me.
He sputters and continues. “We didn’t want to set you up for failure. We spoke to the Larks. Roland and Beatrice could never have children of their own. They were ecstatic to take you in, despite your problems. They thought they could fix you.”
I scoff and slam my hands on either of the armrests.
Vesper’s sobs turn eerily quiet behind me aside from her occasional sniffle.
Soon Vesper.
“Beatrice and Roland thought they could fix me,” I parrot.
“I’m not fuckin’ broken!” I gesture to Vesper, who’s a sniffling, blubbering mess.
“You have no idea how to raise a fuckin’ kid.
She was far too easy to break. To own. To destroy.
I had her wrapped around my finger. Your good little girl has fallen from grace.
” I drag out my last words slowly, cynically.
“Zain…” Her pained cry breaks my insides, but I throw up my defenses, blocking her out and focusing solely on destruction.
Hurting her stings me, but I continue, unable to stop the madness. It’s like an avalanche. Shit is insurmountable.
“I was protecting her!” he snarls.
I push off of the chair and pace. “Protecting her,” I repeat. “You protected her so well I was able to fuck her, own her, claim her. And she was fuckin’ delicious,” I draw out, adding more fuel to the fire. I want him to hurt the way he hurt me. I want him to admit he gave up on me.
“You used me.” Her strangled voice wavers.
For a moment he’s silent, and I think he may apologize. I ignore Vesper’s harsh realization, despite the inner turmoil.
“No… You—” His pupils dilate with clarity.
I grin triumphantly. “I did,” I snap, “and I’ll show you exactly how much she loved it.” My eyes darken as I approach Vesper. She starts her hysterics, but it doesn’t faze me. I tamp it down. I know despite it all, she loves it. No one else can make her feel alive the way I do.
Pearson shouts profanities from the chair, but I ignore him. I climb on top of Vesper’s plush bed and rip open my black dress shirt. The buttons ping wildly onto the hard floor in all directions. Then, I rip open the zipper of my slacks. I’m already hard as a fuckin’
rock. Easy when it comes to her. I always crave her. Gonna show him how low his daughter has fallen. Adrenaline courses through my veins, how long I’ve waited…
“Stop! You can’t!” he shouts, toppling over from his seat. He face-plants onto the floor.
As if this fucker could stop me. His words fall on deaf ears. I ruck her dress up her thighs roughly, ripping the seam. My demons hum in delight at getting to take her in this dress. The color of sin. Fitting as fuck.
She struggles and fights like I’ve never seen from her. Vesper’s tears fuel my filthy, depraved desires. She thrashes, and I cup her cheeks to force her bloodshot eyes on me. Her cheeks are red and puffy, hair clings to her blotchy skin. Pearson begs and pleads.
Feelings I don’t understand pour into me. “Remember when I told you you’re gonna hate me, songbird?” I whisper. She nods and sniffles, seemingly giving up. Her body shakes beneath me. “That time is now.” And with that, I thrust into her with a guttural growl.
“She’s your sister!” he frantically screams like a madman.
Pearson’s words drive into me like a knife.
I still my movements inside of Vesper for a brief moment.
Her piercing green eyes peer into my soul.
Instead of being her savior, I’m her fuckin’ demise.
The words flood from his mouth, and I can’t compute what he’s telling me. She’s…my…my…fucking sister? My…sister?
No.
“You fuckin’ lie,” I snarl, keeping my eyes on her so I don’t go animalistic and lose control. Gotta keep it together.
Vesper’s gone still, paralyzed at his admission.He begs, crying ugly tears of disgust and betrayal.
“You have the same mother. We kept it from you both. She was a useless druggy. We raised Vesper in a sheltered life for many reasons. We didn’t want her to grow the darkness inside that you harbor.
Your mother had it. It’s infectious. Like a disease.
”Tears fall down her face, and she snaps her eyes closed, blocking out the trauma.
“Are you even my real father? Is that why you didn’t want me going to Grimshaw? !” she asks in a hollow, broke tone.
I pull out of her. We both need the fuckin’ truth. This useless waste of air has lied to us both. She can’t be my sister. He’s fuckin’ with my mind. Won’t let him.
Pearson is quiet for a moment, contemplating his choice of words.
“No, but I like to think I love you like a real father loves his little girl. We adopted you, Vesper. We had adopted Zain initially, but…he proved too much, so we offered him to the Larks. When we found out your mother had you shortly after, we decided to adopt you. We were desperate to hide the truth from you.”
He pauses a moment. “Yes, that is one of the many reasons why I was reluctant to enroll you in Grimshaw. We didn’t want you to know what a fucked-up upbringing you came from. You’re better than that.”
She trembles beneath me, quiet tears trailing down her cheeks. “Who are my real parents?” she asks in a pained whisper.
I hold back the silent rage thundering inside of my chest.
Pearson wiggles on the floor. “Emma Riley and Zen,” he offers reluctantly. “I don’t know Zain’s father, nor their last names. Emma was a broken, drug-addicted mess. She had multiple partners.”
My anger refuses to extinguish. The more words that erupt from his mouth, the deeper the hole he digs. This is what I wanted, isn’t it? His destruction at the cost of her. Didn’t take into account he’d drop such a fuckin’ bomb. Seems he keeps getting the upper hand. Not for long.
My eyes search her face. Wave after wave of emotion washes over her before she settles on bitter fury and vengeance.
“Don’t. Stop,” she pants breathlessly with a dark undercurrent of reprisal. Her tear-streaked eyes burn into me with a sadistic, fevered impulse.
My eyes widen. She isn’t thinking straight. She’s asking me to fuck her? She’s not of sound mind. Still, can’t make myself give a fuck. Her rage for me will come soon enough, but right now I need to unleash the beast. We can fall into the throes of bliss together.
Vesper’s mouth opens into an O of pleasure when I inch back inside. She’s processing his words but desperate to reach the pinnacle, to block everything out. I’m more than fuckin’ happy to provide. She should be furious, disgusted, repulsed. A plethora of emotions filter though my fucked-up mind.
Pearson gasps in disbelief as he watches his little girl be violated by her brother. The best punishment I could ever deliver. “Vesper…” he cries out.
I slowly start moving again. “Mine…” I growl. Doesn’t matter, she's my sister. My arms shake beside her.
Her eyes twinkle with tears and uncertainty, but she’s no longer yelling at me or Pearson. She’s in shock at his admission. She’s gonna despise me in the end, but I knew it would come to this.
I can’t stop. Can’t stop this darkness inside of me. Can’t stop needing her. Can’t live without her. It makes sense why I could never let her go.
She’s my sister. My blood. Her sweet, tangy blood is linked with mine. We. Are. One.