Page 41 of Crossed By the Stars
“Je t'aime mon fils. All I want is your happiness, but this…it fills me with fear. Not just forÉclairbut for you,”Paparesponded, the pain in his voice clear.
I was afraid for me as well. Afraid that I’d lose one of the halves of my heart no matter what I did. We said goodbye and hung up. For the first time in a long time, I felt worse after the call than before.
I shoved my phone into my pocket, looking down into Jada’s tired eyes. She was trying to hide her emotions, but I could see how close she was to tears.
“What did my father do to your aunt?” she demanded.
My heart fell. I didn’t want to tell her.I didn’t want the past to cloud the present or our future, but there was no escaping it. We were Armauds and Moris. But I had to believe the universe had brought Jada and me together for a reason. They’d carved us into existence and slid us together as if we belonged. Maybe it was to somehow right the wrong that had been done. To perhaps heal some of us, even if not all of us could be saved.
Jada
SOLACE
“Are you the warm sun I can raise my face toward?
And worship without fear of being scorched?”
Performed by Imelda May
Written by May / Sternberg / Vito
I was hungry but nauseated andexhaustedbut wired when I came awake in Dax’s apartment. I hadn’t been asleep long—a handful of minutes. I was restless because of the pain digging through me and the smell of my own body. I needed to get up. Do something. I needed to make sure the staff atForce de la Violettewas safe in case they came after me there.
The door was cracked open, and I could hear Dax’s deep voice speaking in French. Even through my muffled hearing, I could tell he was upset. I dragged myself from the bed, each move its own kind of torture. When I finally was on my feet, I had to stop and steady myself. The shallow breaths I was forced to take because of the bruised ribs only added to the dizziness I felt.
I slowly made my way out of his bedroom and into the short hall. I’d never been in Dax’s San Francisco apartment before. Whenever he was in town, we met on neutral ground with Dawson and Violet in attendance like chaperones. The apartment was everything I’d come to expect of him. Classically beautiful. Simple lines and soft colors. Soothing.
Dax’s words about his aunt were a sucker punch to my already weak stomach and chest. God... What had my father done to Élodie Armaud? The years of our parents keeping us apart suddenly became clear.Otosan’swords about Dax never agreeing to marry me made even more sense. He was responsible for her death.
Dax heard my pained gasp and was on his feet and standing before me with sorrow radiating from him in a heartbeat. He hung up with his father and then stared at me with uncertainty in his eyes.
When I asked him what my father had done, he didn’t answer.
“I asked you to let me know if you got up,” he said instead.
“I can walk, Armaud. My legs aren’t broken.”
“You’ve had no food, are loaded up on pain meds, and have equilibrium issues. There’s no reason to push your luck and fall again.”
As if joined in battle on Dax’s side instead of mine, my stomach growled. The thought of food was unpleasant, but my body was demanding some kind of sustenance.
“Sit. I’ll make you some scrambled eggs and toast,” he said.
I snorted. “You’re going to cook? Trying to poison me and finish off what theKyodainastarted?”
He held me by the arm and helped me to the couch with slow, arduous steps.
Once I was settled there with a wince and shooting pain through my ribs, he headed for the kitchen.
“You’re avoiding the conversation,” I growled.
“We’ll talk, but food first,” he replied with a tone I couldn’t read—maybe despair or heartache or regret.
I stared out the sliding glass door at the back of an enormous security guard blocking a stunning view of the Golden Gate Bridge.
“Do you know if Rana checked theVioletteoffices before she quit?” I asked him. The pain of her leaving me settled somewhere along the sharp ache of my ribcage. Even though I’d been telling myself nothing would stop theKyodaina, I was still furious at Rana for the bomb happening on her watch. I was even more furious at her for walking away.
“Cillian has Reinard staff combing through it as we speak. They’re increasing the security.”
