Page 79 of Cup of Lies

I see a flash of a bloody knife and then Vivienne howls. Theo manages to grab hold of Vivienne to pull her off, but it’s too late.

Blood.

So much blood.

An arc of it shoots out like a water hose, splattering the bed and floor. Vivienne holds the side of her neck, but the blood gushes out between her fingers. She collapses onto her ass, head thudding hard against the wall. Ava, only a few feet away, clutches her chest with one hand and grips the knife in the other.

Bile creeps up my throat. The metallic scent of blood turns my stomach. So much carnage. Two villains slain by each other.

Ava doesn’t move, even when Theo crouches beside her. The last of her life drains away, forever staining the carpet beneath her. Vivienne, with a sickly pale face, moves her mouth as if she’s trying to speak to me.

Rather than go to her in her last moments, I remain standing, safe under Halo’s firm grip.

I don’t owe this woman anything.

Certainly not any sort of compassion.

Whatever words she murmured will go to the grave with her. I don’t care.

“This is a fucking nightmare,” Halo hisses. “I’m going to have to torch it. I’ll need a distraction.”

More gushing.

This time between my thighs, a liquid coming out of me and soaking the carpet.

“Did your water just break?” Theo asks, astonished, from his crouch.

Halo chuckles. “Ask and you shall receive. Get to the front desk and have them call for an ambulance. Theo, go with her.”

Theo wipes his bloody hand on the bedspread and then makes his way over to me. “Holy shit, babe, you’re having the baby.”

The next wave of pain makes me scream.

Caius

The four-hour drive from Dallas to Tulsa feels endless. I’m about to crawl out of my own flesh with the need to get to Romy faster.

She’s in labor.

I’m going to be a dad.

Everything with Romy has felt surreal from the moment I found her trapped beneath the floor to the first time I pushed inside her body to seeing her pregnant after months apart. It’s as if we’re flying through the air at warped speed, clinging to each other as destruction lies in our wake.

I don’t understand my intense feelings for that woman, but they’re there. I fucking love her. I need her. I can’t live without her.

Now we’re about to be an official family.

What if the child isn’t yours?

I hate that dark thoughts creep up on me when I have too much time to think. Gareth raped her. With the baby coming early, it’s possible he could be the father.

No, I’m the father.

If the kid comes out blond like my brother, I’ll still love it as my own. Just like with Kaitlyn. She’s not mine, but she’smine.

“You’re quiet,” Koyn remarks from the driver’s seat. “Becoming a father is a mindfuck. Trust me.” He chuckles. “It’s also the best damn thing in the world.”

“I don’t even have a fucking home for them,” I mutter aloud. “I’m on the run from my father and trying to take down rapisttraffickers. Having a kid right now does not bode well for the life I’m living.”

---