Page 96 of Veiled Vows

“You remember that?” His brows reach his hairline. “I…wow.”

“Of course I do. You don’t talk about her much, but I remember what you’ve shared. She was important to you. The most important.”

“Jasmine, I don’t know what to say.”

“Is it weird?” I stop walking and turn to face him as my heart picks up its pace. “It’s weird, isn’t it? And creepy considering what we did to Seth and what we’re about to do to Santino.”

“Jasmine, Jasmine hush.” He moves forward and cups my face with his other hand, his fingers trembling slightly. “Sure, it’s a little weird but very on par with us, don’t you think? It’s more than I deserve.”

“Don’t do that,” I say softly. “Don’t put down what you deserve. I get to decide that, okay? And you’re right.” It’s hard not to laugh. “We are kind of weird, aren’t we?”

“Murder for dates, crazy family feuds, assassinations, and a muddled history…yeah, we are.” Ren leans forward and very lightly kisses my lip. “So this is very sweet.”

“Okay. Come on, one last surprise.”

Santino is exactly where I left him, bound and tied up like a Christmas turkey in the middle of the park. He’s on his knees with fury blazing like fire in his eyes, but anything he wants to say is denied by the gag wrapped tight around his head. He’s been here for three days under the watchful eye of armed guardswho have, under my orders, refused to let him sleep. He’s knelt there with no choice but to stay awake and defecate himself, and I hope the humiliation of it is killing him.

It’s still a mercy compared to what he’s put Ren through.

“He hasn’t slept,” I say softly as we approach. “Part of me was a little worried that you weren’t going to wake up, and I told him he was going to kneel there until you did. No matter how long it took.”

“I’m a little disappointed I woke up so soon,” Ren replies, his voice tight. “Though it would never be enough time.”

“No,” I agree. “It wouldn’t.”

We stop a few feet away. With a flick of my wrist, the watchful guards in the shadows melt away to a farther perimeter, giving us the privacy we need. I walk forward, glaring at Santino, but his attention is focused on Ren behind me. I’m not gentle as I remove the gag, and as soon as it’s free, Santino starts coughing.

“Roman,” he gasps. “You’re alive!”

“Don’t,” Ren barks out tightly. “Don’t even try it.”

“Try what? Surely you see what’s happening here. She’s turned you against me, she made me think you were a traitor and I did what I had to do, but that doesn’t mean I love you any less!”

His pathetic attempts to twist the story are laughable, but in such a sad way. Santino, once the head of the great Gatti family now sits in the dirt surrounded by his own mess, trying to weave some terrible story to save his own life. It’s pathetic. He’s pathetic. My stomach churns just looking at him because how can a man so small be the cause of so much pain for so many years?

“How do you want to do it?” I walk slowly back to Ren. “Kill him slowly? Poison? Fire? Drown him in the lake? Could bury him alive if you like.”

“Me?” Ren looks at me with open surprise, resembling a puppy momentarily. Maybe it’s the way he hugs one arm to theside of his body to protect his shoulder, or the slight gaunt look he developed during his starving days in Santino’s captivity. It makes my chest ache to look at him, and I suddenly want to bundle him up in my arms.

“Who else?”

“He’s…he’s caused you and your family so much pain for decades, Jasmine. He’s the root of everything. He’s even the one that worked with Alto, and after what happened to your father, your mother?—”

“Ren, stop.” I gently take his hand, ending his rambling. “I love that you look at things that way, and I’ll be honest, I did consider it. But this is your kill. For you and your mother, and all the work you did and the pain you went through to get to this moment. I’ve had my closure with killing Alto, and the rest will come from watching you find some peace. So please.” Softly squeezing his knuckles, I smile. “So tell me what you need and I will get it for you.”

Ren’s visible surprise is a little heartbreaking, and each second we spend together dissipates the anger I feel that he lied to me. It’s an interesting clash of emotions when you understand why someone did something that caused you pain. But the longer we stand here, the more it becomes clear that holding onto something like that is pointless. Life can change so fast. Too fast.

Once Santino is gone, our lives can really begin.

“Are you sure?” Ren’s eyes search mine as if he’s looking for a hidden meaning, a secret or something else, but he finds nothing but honesty in mine.

“I’m sure.”

“Can I have your gun?”

Sliding it from the holster, I hand it over and step back. Ren stares down at it for a few long seconds and then he approaches Santino.

“You’re going to choose that bitch over me?” Santino spits, wavering slightly where he kneels.

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