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That’s our cue to leave. Nico only has to look at Camila before she and Lukas make a hasty exit. Adrian walks out next and then I do as well, leaving the couple to their fight. I feel fucking ill at the thought that they’ll have to be separated.
Nico could be killed. If anything happened to him, Aurora would be devastated. I’d never forgive myself.
I’m heading up to my bedroom when Adrian appears out of nowhere. His green eyes are dimmer than usual.
“We need to talk, chipmunk. Let’s take a walk.”
I’m immediately worried. The last thing we need right now is more bad news.
“Okay,” I agree, following him as he leads me out of the house.
We walk for a couple minutes in the compound until we stop at a bench in the courtyard.
“Come on, Adrian. Say what’s on your mind. You’ve never been one to beat around the bush,” I prompt, taking a seat beside him.
“Right.” He exhales softly. “I’m just not sure you’re going to like what I have to say.”
“Give it to me straight. I’m a big girl. Is this about me turning you down back there? Please don’t tell me you’re about to confess your undying love to me,” I say on a groan.
He laughs. “Chill out, Luce. You’re not my type. I can’t handle all your crazy.”
I punch him in the arm for that comment. “So what is it? You’ve been acting weird all morning. Just come out and say it.”
“Fine. I think you should marry Volkov.”
Out of everything I expected him to say, this was absolutely not on my list. My lips part and I turn to look at him, sure I must have been hearing wrong.
“Adrian, are you high?”
If it was anyone else, I’d be inclined to believe I heard right. But Adrian hates Ivan. If he had a chance to launch a hate campaign against the Russians, he would.
He laughs at the question. “No. But damn, I miss getting high. It’s been a minute since I smoked.”
I give him an annoyed look at that. “Dude, start making sense.”
“You heard me right, Luce. I want you to marry Volkov.”
“Why?”
“Because…” He trails off, clears his throat before starting up again. “Have I ever told you how my mother died?”
“No,” I reply.
I’ve actually always been curious, though. I remember his mom dying a couple of years after mine died. And then I remember him leaving soon after. He said his father was sending him away.
“Well, she was murdered. We found her body in an abandoned cellar. She was tortured for days and then left for dead,” he says bitterly. “I had to see her body. My father practically dragged me to that fucking morgue and told me to look and see what they’d done to her.”
I place a hand over my mouth. “That’s… I’m so sorry you had to go through that, Adrian.”
“Yeah. Awful, isn’t it? Which is why I need you to understand that the only thing I’ve been living for since that day is revenge. I have to find the man who did that to her. I have to know why she had to suffer so much before her death.”
I exhale softly. “What does that have to do with Ivan Volkov and my marriage to him?”
A muscle tightens in Adrian’s jaw.
“Because I have reason to believe that Volkov was responsible,” he replies, and my heart skips a beat at the pronouncement. Adrian continues. “I’ve always known it wassomeone in the Bratva. Someone high up that was able to cover his tracks. It wasn’t until recently that I realized Ivan is the only man who fits the bill. He was already working for the Bratva when my mother died.”
I don’t want to believe what he’s saying. I don’t want to believe that Ivan could be responsible for something so horrifying. But I also have no idea who he really is. And no clue what he’s capable of.
