Page 111 of Shattered Souls
He chuckles, the sound like ice pellets hitting my skin. “Why, darling wife, you delivered her straight into my awaiting arms.”
What? No…
He smirks, cold, dark eyes gleaming with triumph as he leans in as though to share a secret. I remain carefully still, his face taking up all of my vision as he whispers, “Yousold her to me.”
No…
“Although, sold is probably the wrong word since that money has conveniently found its way back into my accounts.”
“No.”
He grins. “Yes.”
Reaching out, he twists a strand of my hair around his finger. “My stupid, simple wife.” His soothing tone is at odds with his demeaning words. “David has been working for me this entire time. He played you. Had you wrapped around his finger so you’d confide all your secrets to him.” He tugs on my hair, making me gasp. “I’ve known about her since the beginning.” If it’s possible, his already menacing expression turns deadly. “When David informed me of your plan to get rid of her before my release, I made some plans of my own.
“David was the one who arranged for the cell phone to be delivered to your house after he gave you that ridiculous Craigslist message to post. He’s the one you were communicating with.” He chuckles humorlessly. “You didn’t even question how someone obtained your address from that, did you? All you saw were dollar signs and a chance to screw me over.”
“No.” My voice cracks, the sound muffled by the shattering of my heart. “No,” I repeat, shaking my head. “He loved me.”
Lips pushed out, my husband tilts his head, giving me a look of faux sympathy. “No, wife. He was obeying my orders the entire time. Since the very beginning. Every late-night chat, every bouquet of flowers, everyfuckwas done on my say so.”
The room spins. “Then why kill him?”
Tutting like I should have figured out the answer by now, he gives me an assessing look. “He had outlived his usefulness to me.” He shakes his head, muttering to himself, “Can’t even be trusted to look after achild.” Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he focuses back on me with a dark, piercing stare that chills me to the bones. “I’m beyond ready to begin my new life.”
“N-new life?”
“Not that ridiculous Europe plan you foolishly believed in.” He cackles scathingly. One side of his lips lifts. “No. I’m finallyabout to get everything I ever wanted. I’ve waitedyearsfor this.” He sneers. “Put up with being married to you. Rotted in a prison cell. I’mowedthis. Ideserveit.”
Riley.
He’s talking abouther.
That stupid fucking bitch! Why is she always ruining my life?! Of course, this is all about her!
My limbs shake with restrained fury. “You won’t get away with this!” A shrill laugh pierces the air. “I won’t let you!”
“Oh, I know,” he purrs, far too at ease. “You’ve made that perfectly clear.” The hairs along my arms stand on end as he steps closer, eliminating the space between us. Menace pours from him, and I stumble backward. My foot catches on David, and I trip, hitting the ground with anoomph.
“Bertram.” With one arm outstretched in front of me, I shuffle backward on my ass. Like an ominous shadow, Bertram follows, his steps silent on the carpet as he stalks me until my back hits the wall.
I’m shaking so badly I can’t get to my feet as he stands over me. My heart is lodged in my throat, terror paralyzing me as he slowly lowers to a crouch. There’s nothing in his eyes as he stares at me. It’s like looking into oblivion—nothing but desolation and death.
“Y-you can’t do this! P-people will question my absence.”
“Will they? You made sure to tell enough of your girlfriends that we would be going to Europe. Unfortunately, work commitments have kept me here, but my darling wife needed a break after all the stress of the last few years, and the loving husband that I am, I told you to go alone and enjoy yourself.” He waves a dismissive hand. “Eventually, I can tell people you loved it so much that you decided to move there permanently. The distance put a strain on our marriage, and ultimately, wedecided to go our separate ways. Although, by then, I doubt anyone will really care. We will all have moved on, after all.”
Reaching out, he touches the tip of his finger to my cheek. It’s only then that I realize I’m crying. Coating his finger in my tears, he rubs it into his skin like he wants to preserve it. Remind himself of this moment. “I’ll have my new family. The one I’ve wanted for years. Since the first time I saw her hiding out at the back table of the bar you were waitressing in.”
My gasp gets stuck in the back of my throat, and I begin to choke. “Why?”
Tilting his head, he continues staring at me in that uncanny, utterly terrifying way. Like I’m an ant he’s debating whether to crush.
“You’ve served your purpose. Now you’re just a problem standing in my way, and I’m done with obstacles.”
Strong fingers wrap around my neck, squeezing. I gasp, but there’s no air. Bucking, I claw at his arm, his hand, as I stare pleadingly into those dead, uncaring eyes.
Black dots appear in my vision as I wonder what I did to deserve an end like this. My limbs grow heavy, and my energy drains out as my eyesight narrows to a tunnel before everything goes black—forever.
