Page 195 of Ripped Veil (Ripped Bratva)

“That’s convenient,” Mama snaps without any sympathy.

Neither one of them has asked me for my story. Not that I’d be able to tell them, but still.

Shouldn’t they want to know?

Shouldn’t they care?

“I am sorry,” I tell them. “I never meant to do what I did. I was just scared and… and—”

“You have to go,” Mama says, cutting me off. “You’re not welcome here anymore.”

“Here in the Sanctuary?” I ask. “Or in your house?”

“Both,” Papa intones with finality.

“People must have seen you come here,” Mama says, glancing around fretfully. “We can’t be associated with you…”

It’s what I expected. But it still hurts more than I ever could have known.

This was a mistake. I thought it would be worth the pain in order to get answers, to get closure, to seal the door on this part of my life forever. But it was wrong.

It hurt everything and explained nothing.

Mama’s right. I should leave.

I stand to do just that. But at the very same time, there’s a loud, confident knock on the door. Both my parents fly to their feet in panic.

“You can leave through the back door,” Mama says urgently. “Run!”

“Mary, Solomon,” comes the deep baritone from the threshold. “It’s okay. You don’t have to hide her. I just want to talk to our wayward sheep.”

All three of us freeze. I hear the front door creak open. Footsteps thud.

And then a man walks into the living room. He’s tall and graceful. But the first thing my eyes go to are the hideous burn scars running down his right arm.

Oh God…

“Elyssa,” Father Josiah says with a sickly-sweet smile that traps me under his gaze. “It’s been a long time. But I’m glad you’re here. It’s about time we talked… don’t you agree?”

40

Phoenix

The Warehouse

“Fuck,” I growl as I stand over Vitya’s broken body.

He’s a patchwork mess of blood and shattered limbs that bend at all the wrong angles. It’s grotesque. Haunting. An image that will be burned into my retinas forever.

But his eyes? His eyes are peaceful. They gaze up at the sky with fondness.

He was prepared for death. He was ready for it.

Matvei’s hand lands on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, brother,” he rumbles. “I know you wanted to save him, for Aurora’s sake.”

“No. No, he would never have been happy in this world,” I reply somberly. “He was too far gone. Maybe this way, he’ll find some peace.”

“And what about you?”

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