Page 253 of Mine Again
Her next words come out flat, drained. “Hale told me Sebastian’s prize money was one hundred million dollars for marrying me.”
My chest seizes. Rage floods hot and vicious through my veins.
Fucking Hale.
My Isa is priceless… I want to wring his neck. And I will.
Isa lets out a hollow laugh that twists something sharp inside me.
“No wonder Sebastian was so cheerful on the entire trip. I took it for excitement about our future together. But in reality, he was dreaming about what he could do with that kind of money. He never actually cared about me.”
Her whole body is shaking now. “He never let me out of his sight until the chapel. It makes sense now. He was so close to the finish line, he couldn’t risk losing his hundred-mil casino chip.”
Her words choke, but she forces them out. “He organized every single detail of that wedding meticulously. I thought it was sweet. But he was just preparing for the grand finale Hale would use against you. And it all needed to be legitimate in case anyone ever questioned it.”
She buries her face in her hands, shoulders trembling.
“Looking back, there were so many red flags. But I ignored them and twisted them into what I wanted to believe. I was such an idiot.”
She thinks she was blind, but Hale had stacked the board against her. There was no way she could have realized what was going on. Shame tightens her face as she turns toward the window, and I catch her chin gently, guiding her eyes back to me.
“You’re not an idiot. You’re my beautiful, brilliantfarfalla.” I press a kiss to her forehead. “Yes, you only saw what you wanted and shaped the rest to fit your story, but that doesn’t make you stupid. It makes you human.”
My voice hardens. “Hale and Sebastian played you, and I want to tear them apart for it. I only wish Sebastian were still alive so I could end him myself. Let’s hope the Russians made his death slow and painful.”
Her lips tremble, and I press her closer.
“But it’s over now. Sebastian got what he deserved. One less parasite on this earth.” I let the sentence hang, then add, “And Hale will pay for every sin. He’ll regret the day he ever laid eyes on you. I swear it.”
I let her cry against me until the tears taper off and her breaths grow steadier while I contemplate ways to torture Hale.
“So how did you do it? Dart-blowing tube or gun?” she asks eventually, steering us back to safer ground.
The trace of mirth in her question makes me smile into her hair. “Tranquilizer gun.”
She tilts her head, teasing. “Did you knock everyone out?”
Dark satisfaction curls in my chest.
“Yes, every last one. Sadly, there were only six. And they weren’t dead, but at the time? I almost wished they were. Seeing you in a wedding dress, walking down the aisle to someone who wasn’t me… it made me murderous.”
Her gaze softens, guilt flashing in her eyes. She opens her mouth to speak, but I press a finger to her lips and shake my head.
“It’s in the past,farfalla. You’remywife now. That’s all that matters.”
She doesn’t respond right away, and I can tell her thoughts are spinning.
Finally she murmurs, “But I didn’t say ‘I do’. So, really, it can’t be legit.”
“You signed the papers. They were filed. It’s official.”
She tilts her head up, frowning.
“Hmm, I need more details. The part where you knocked everybody out… wouldn’t Hale have been watching a live feed? Wouldn’t the officiant report something? Someone would have noticed.”
I fix her with an unimpressed look. “Isabella Caruso, you are talking to the Venom. Even in my rage, I wasn’t careless.”
Her eyes flash with both exasperation and curiosity. “Go on, then.”
