Page 188 of Sinful Lies

“You swore you’d never tell a soul about my past.”

“I lied.”

His eyes darkened as he stepped closer. “You told me youlovedme.”

“I do,” I breathed out.

He laughed, but it wasn’t real—it was empty, bitter, like he couldn’t even believe the words coming out of my mouth.

“You really are a better liar than I gave you credit for, Miss Whitenhouse.”

He stepped closer, his chest pressing into the barrel of the gun now, and I swear to God, I could feel his heartbeat against it.

He didn’t care. He wasn’t scared.

But I was.

“You’re going to tell me, Jade.Now. Why are you doing this?”

The question shattered me, cracked the last mask I’d been holding on to.

And I screamed, a raw, jagged sound that felt like it tore me apart. “Because you killed my sister!”

Then confusion flashed in his eyes. “What?”

“Nine years ago. Lake Kendrick, Boston.”

He took a step back, his hand running through his hair.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

I lowered the gun, my hand trembling, and tucked it into the waistband of my pants at the small of my back.

My breath hitched as the memories clawed their way to the surface.

“The Cyrus Project.”

“The Cyrus Project? That’s—” He stopped mid-sentence, his words cutting off as realization flickered in his eyes.

The Cyrus Project, the key to the ache in my chest.

“You sent men to plant mines,” I said, my voice breaking. “Because Lucius Cyrus stole that project from you. You wanted to ruin him, ruin everything... but you ruined me instead.”

His silence stretched, suffocating and heavy.

“My sister…” My throat tightened, the pain clawing up my chest, making it impossible to breathe. “She and her boyfriend had a fight that day. She called me crying, told me to come find her at the lake, and I—” My voice cracked as tears blurred my vision. “I went to her. I tried to bring her home, but they stepped onyourmines.”

“Jade—”

I shook my head, stumbling back. “The sirens from the police spooked us. She stepped back, and the ground—” A sob ripped through me, jagged and uncontrollable. “It exploded. She was right in front of me, Angelo. One second she was there, and then… she wasn’t. She was gone, and I?—”

My knees buckled, and I hit the floor, gasping for air, my hands clawing at my chest. “She b-burned alive. She d-died because ofyou.”

His footsteps thundered toward me, and then his arms were around me, pulling me against him no matter how hard I pushed.

“Don’t touch me! Don’t—” My voice cracked as the fight left me, replaced by the unbearable weight of grief. “You k-killed her, Angelo. You killed my sister. And when y-you did, you killed me too.”

The room felt too small, his arms too strong, the air too thick to breathe.

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