Page 36 of Midnight Revelations

I’d always believed that Catarina spent her time in the gossip columns and never gave any attention to what was happening in the real world. She saw more than I ever realised or gave her credit for.

“What if I already let him know and this is his response?” I replied as I linked my fingers through hers.

Her back straightened and she turned to face me. “Then two can play at that game. You are young and beautiful, and now that your business has taken off, there will be plenty of men wanting to get your attention. Flirt, have fun, enjoy yourself. If he doesn’t come to his senses, then I’m sure some other dashing young man will catch your attention.”

I bumped my shoulder against hers. “When did you get so wise?” I asked.

She leaned her head on my shoulder. “I only wish I could give myself advice.”

“Sofia offered that I could stay with her for a while when I was feeling down. Maybe you should consider her offer.” I squeezed her hand. “A change of scenery might give you a different perspective.”

“I might do that. I haven’t seen Sofs in a while and I’m sure her life is filled with parties and cute students.”

I nudged her again and she grinned at me.

“Give me a hand to pack since my flight leaves in the morning. All you need to pack is a swimsuit and some yoga pants.” I stood and started to throw stuff at the bed and Catarina folded it.

“I wish you’d told me about your jewellery,” she randomly said. “I feel like the stupid one in the family now since you have your business and Sofs is at university.”

I stopped for a moment. “It started off as a hobby and progressed. By the time I was any good at it I felt like I’d gone too far to tell anyone.” I closed my eyes for a brief moment. “There are times even now that I feel like I’m an impersonator in an industry filled with talent.”

Catarina winked at me. “Considering I bought one of your necklaces without realising you designed it, you should be proud because I never buy anything that is less than spectacular.”

My lips twitched into a shy smile. “I could have just made one for you.”

She waved her hand. “Nope. It’s special because I recognised your talent before you became famous.”

I rolled my eyes at her and continued to pack. She’d lifted my mood and stopped me thinking about my train wreck of a love life. When I was packed, I zipped up my bag and put my passport and Kindle in my carry-on luggage, along with my sunglasses and purse. We were taking Papa’s jet, but I still preferred to travel light.

“Phone me when you reach London,” Catarina said.

“And you let me know when you reach the spa and are ready to be pampered.”

We had grown up together and had always been referred to as the Black sisters. For the first time I felt my life diverging from Catarina’s, like we had reached a fork in the road. Part of me was excited by that, but a bigger part of me was terrified because the future loomed in front of me, and right now, it didn’t look promising.

***

Chapter Fourteen

Ash

We were dressed in black with woollen balaclavas rolled on top of our heads to look like hats, ready to pull over our faces. There was no guarantee there wouldn’t be a trap waiting for us or cameras watching us. My pulse thudded in my ears as we left our warehouse in a ghost fleet vehicle and headed to Dad’s property where he kept his slaves.

Xavier had a rehabilitation unit ready for them, although I knew Dad was expecting me to dispatch them so they could never point the finger at him for his involvement in their incarceration and torment.

What I never understood was how he had the stomach for torture and slavery, but he couldn’t pull the trigger and get rid of the bodies. There was no way in heaven or hell that Dad felt anything for these women, so none of it made sense.

“Why would he not kill them himself?” I asked from the backseat of the Range Rover.

“Huh?” Jordan replied from over his shoulder. The maniac never let any of the rest of us drive.

“If we’re right then Dad is higher up than he ever said. Women who can’t be trained are eliminated, so why not just get rid of them without ever alerting us to their presence?”

Jordan pulled over. “Talk.”

“I don’t know any more,” I confessed. “I just feel like a puppet in a show. They must be wearing trackers as well since Dad is the king of monitoring people.”

“Fuck!” Xavier snapped. “I should have thought of that. This mess with Cas is fucking with my head.”

---