Her fist came up, smashing my chin. “I want your blood.”
I smirked and pinned her to the floor, straddling her as I leaned down and whispered, “Am I not bleeding enough?”
“You lied to me.” She didn’t blink, just stared into me like she could see all my darkness, all my truth. “You should have trusted me.”
“They were going to kill you!” I thundered, angry at her, angry at myself. “So, don’t tell me what the hell I should have done!”
“Not that!” She swallowed and broke eye contact, and her voice grew hollow. “You should have told me you were Valerian. Not last week, not last year, but the day I forced my friendship on you. I wish you would have told me; I wish you would have shared that burden, and that’s the problem. You say you love me, but you won’t share yourself with me. Your secrets will always be the canyon between our hearts.” She shoved at me, then throat punched me.
Coughing and gasping, I sucked in a few short, painful breaths and fell away from her. “Violet…” My voice was hoarse, sore. I coughed again. “Wait…”
“What?” She held up her hands again, fingers curled like talons, as though she was going to go for an eyeball gouge next. Great. “You have more excuses to make? More lies to spew? When you love someone, it’s either all or nothing—so I guess we’re the latter.”
“No.” My vision blurred as I gasped for more air. “That’s not true.”
She landed a left hook to my cheek, and because I was struggling for air, her aim was perfect as it sent me to my knees.
“How many more secrets are you keeping?” She yelled. I’d never seen her look so beautiful or terrifying as my blood caked her knuckles, as sweat ran down her perfect chest.
I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to stand only to have her put her foot on my bloody back, shoving me back down.
My fight was gone. If she wanted to kill me, at least she’d feel vindicated.
“In the Russian mafia, after they break you,” I flinched past the burning pain in my back and on my cheek. “The boss will typically give that woman to one of his higher-ups.”
You could hear a pin drop in the gym.
“So, you’re right, I did this to us, without realizing what would happen, by keeping you, I claimed you as mine, by keeping you from them, I damned you to a future with me.”
“Did you know?” Her voice shook. “That any of this would happen?”
“Not until it was too late,” I admitted, going still beneath her foot.
“Why isn’t she killing him?” Maksim whispered loud enough for most of us to hear. If I wasn’t bleeding out, I’d probably manage a solid eye-roll, but this moment felt tense, important like Vi was making a life-changing decision, and any movement on my behalf would shatter her resolve.
She started getting out of the ring then looked over her shoulder. “As Breaker Campisi, would you have married me? Eventually?”
The truth hurt. It burned down to my very soul as I slowly shook my head. “No, Violet. I love you with everything in me, but I took a vow, my blood for yours, remember? I promised your father. I could only give you my body as Breaker—as Valerian, you own my fucking soul.”
A tear slid down her cheek; she quickly wiped it away, her anger back.
“Ballsy,” Junior muttered. “Telling her the truth and literally pounding that last nail into your coffin—”
“—up top,” Maksim held up his hand for a high five, “You know because it’s literally his funeral? Too soon?”
I groaned and moved to a sitting position as I watched indecision flash across her face. Sometimes life gives you moments, moments where you see something in someone else, something they’re trying to hide, something that bursts through the smokescreens and demands to be noticed. This was our moment. All along, she’d asked me to fight her.
What she really meant was fight for me.
Fight for us.
So, with a cocky grin, I moved to my feet and leaned over the ring. “One more night, Vi.” She stilled. “You promised.”
She was quiet and then offered a cruel smile that made me want to immediately hide behind something. “Sure, Valerian. You know the garage code, 666. If you can make it into the house without dying, I’ll give you one last night and then this?” A solitary tear slid down her cheek. “Is done.”
“Fine.” I lied.
“Fine.” She flipped me off, and then all that was left was my blood, some of Ash’s blood, I think a missing tooth—not mine.
And a very beaten down heart that still refused to stop beating her name
They were silent, all of them, my cousins, my family, as Violet left the basement.
I fell to my knees and watched, wishing she would turn back around and say we could try again, but who was I kidding? I had known this would be the outcome.