Chapter Twenty-Four

Larissa

I could only spend so much time looking at four walls. It was a nice room, and it had a private bathroom. Yes, it was better than the cage, I argued with my thoughts. The bed was a lot better than the floor. The brothers no longer slept in my room, but there were alarms on the doors, so I was still a prisoner.

Once, I opened the door leading out to the patio, setting off a terrible racket. Ezra had calmly closed it and did something on his phone that stopped the awful screeching that had brought everyone to the door leading out to the patio. He then told me the alarm was for my protection against the man who took me. I didn't believe him. Amon would never harm me unless I needed punishment.

I closed my eyes, hugging my middle as unwanted memories crept in.

Amon put a gun to my head. "In all things, you must obey me. I saved you from certain death, but if you don't want my help, tell me, and I will end this now."

I met his gaze, knowing exactly what he meant by ending it—I was what he would end. "I want your help," I whispered.

"Do you trust me?"

"Always."

He turned the gun away and fired. I flinched as the blast reverberated through the air.

"Good girl, and what will you do for me?"

"Kill the Morelli brothers before they kill me."

Except I was still alive. They hadn't tried to kill me—yet.

Too many thoughts were all jumbled up inside me. If I went downstairs to the library and found a book to read, I might relax more. Jude told me I could read any of them I liked, but I hadn't taken advantage of his offer. I had to do something or go crazy. The memories I was having of Amon were all twisted up. He was starting to look more and more like the bad guy.

I had just reached the bottom of the stairs when the front door opened. Caspian came in, but there was an older man with him. They were talking and didn't notice me at first. As Caspian closed the door, the man with him looked up. His eyes widened, and he took a step toward me. The man looked familiar.

"Larissa," he whispered, but I heard my name clearly.

Then I knew who he was—my father. Amon said my father abused me, that he used to beat me, and that's how I got the scars on my back. When I told him it had been Nadine who whipped me, he quickly explained how my memories were confusing me. Nadine would never hurt me unless it were to help me.

I sat down on the step, hugging a spindle as terror washed over me. I began to shake my head. "Please, don't hurt me," I begged. Maybe this was it. This time, they were going to kill me. My father was here to help them.

"Larissa, Kitten, it's me, your father. I love you."

Kitten. Yes, that's what he used to call me—his kitten. It was a trick. "Liar. Just like them. It's all lies."

I jumped to my feet and ran back up the stairs. By the time I reached my room, I was shaking from head to foot.

"Amon, where are you? Why haven't you saved me?" I whimpered as I moved to the corner of the room and sank to the floor, pulling my knees close to my chest. When the door opened, I buried my head. Oh, God, please don't let them kill me.

"That's your father, Rissa," Caspian said. "You don't know what he's been through since the car accident when he thought you were dead. Like us, he's been living in a never-ending nightmare. He loves you very much."

I shook my head. "Used to beat me. It's all lies."

Caspian walked closer, then knelt down. I could feel his warm breath brushing my arm, but I dared not look at him. I couldn't face the evil I might see.

"Your father would've never hurt you. He adored you. After your mother died, you became his whole world." When I didn't speak, he continued. "I left something on your bed. I want you to look through it. I think it might help."

I didn't look up until the door closed behind him. Only then did I glance toward the bed and see the book. Was this just another trap? I slowly came to my feet, staring at it as I walked closer. I looked toward the door in case they came storming in, but they didn't.

It was bigger than a book and a pretty pink color—an album. Something from deep inside me rose to the surface. I remembered it. My head began to pound. I reached up, rubbing my temples, willing the pain to go away.

When it eased, I moved closer, sitting on the edge of the bed. I tentatively reached out and touched the album. The memory I had was just a blur. I flipped it open, then jerked my hand back.

I stared at the writing quizzically. My name was written in bold letters: Larissa Sue Wentworth. Below that were numbers. I knew it was my date of birth. I flipped another page and stared at a man and woman holding a baby.

I jumped up and backed into the corner as my heart pounded. I knew the man and woman were my parents, and I was the baby. The man was older now. The same one who came inside the house earlier. The man and woman in the picture looked happy.

I closed my eyes as more memories attempted to intrude. I couldn't stop them. Rubbing my temples didn't work this time. They came back anyway.

She died of a disease. I remember that. Was that when he started to abuse me? Maybe.

I stared at the book. Could it be another trick?

But I did remember the album. I eased back over to the bed and sat down again. I turned the page. There were more pictures, more memories. A tear slid down my cheek, and I absently brushed it away.

I remembered the princess dress and tiara my father bought for my birthday one year. I vaguely remembered my mother saying he was spoiling me, but my father only laughed and said a princess needs her tiara and fancy pink dress, along with the wand that sparkled whenever I moved it. Then he'd looked at me and called me his little princess. I'd immediately argued that I wasn't his princess. I was his kitten.

No, no, this couldn't be happening. I scooted back until I was against the headboard, but I could still see the pictures.

My mother always smiled, but then her smile seemed to fade away, and she started to look as if she was in a lot of pain and very tired. She began to wear a scarf to cover the loss of her beautiful blonde hair. The last picture of her was me snuggled next to her in bed. I started to turn the page but stopped when I noticed she had tears in her eyes.

Sadness washed over me. I knew she'd died not long after the picture was taken. Would things have been different if she'd lived? I didn't know. I turned the page.

I held a blue first-place ribbon I'd won. A feeling of pride swept over me. What had it been for? Some silly race, I thought. I hadn't been very old. Maybe twelve. My hair was in pigtails, and I had braces on my teeth. I remembered hating the metal wires in my mouth.

With each page I turned, I got a little older.

I was riding a horse. The Morelli brothers were with me. Jude was laughing. I remembered that day. I was trying to make my horse move, but it had to be the laziest horse out of all of them. The brothers teased me that day and told me I was not a cowgirl. Then they took pity on me. Caspian came over and took my reins, making the horse walk beside his.

I grabbed my head as the pounding got worse.

No, this couldn't be happening. This was all a test.

I was afraid I was about to fail. I took a deep breath and moved away from the album. Don't look at anything else inside it, I told myself. It was as if the album kept calling me, though.

The pain inside my head was almost unbearable now. I found myself walking back toward the album, and turned another page.

When there was a knock on my door, I jumped up from the bed and back into my corner. The knocking began again.

"Go away."

"It's time for dinner," Jude told me.

I knew I was pushing my luck, but it didn't stop me. "I'm not hungry. I want to be left alone. Please." It was so much easier talking when there was a closed door between us. I would've never dared to speak to Amon like that. It was either no, Amon, or yes, Amon, but never disrespectful. If I had, he would've beaten me. But not the brothers. They hadn't even offered to strike me, even after I tried twice to kill Jude.

What was happening? I was so confused. I felt as if my world was spinning around and around.

My feet moved toward the bed as if they had a mind of their own. I sat down again and then turned to the next page. When the room began to grow dark, I switched on the light.

In the next picture, I was with the brothers again. We were at the park, and I was sitting on a swing, and Caspian was pushing me. I remembered that day. I was fourteen. I suddenly felt as if I would pass out as the memories poured out.

"Hey, Rissa, you'll be in high school after this summer," Ezra said.

"A grown woman," Jude piped up, and I giggled, but noticed Caspian's frown.

"Why are you angry?" I asked.

"I'm not. Just remember, if anyone says or does anything to hurt you, come tell us, and we'll put a stop to it," he vowed.

I laughed. "The three musketeers saving my virtue."

He slowly shook his head, and I remembered the tingles of pleasure that wrapped around me.

"No, we're the four musketeers. We'll always have each other's backs. We're one, and no one will ever come between us."

I reached up and touched my necklace with the hearts. I knew he was right. We had an unbreakable bond.

I grabbed the chains on the swing when Ezra pushed me higher and higher until I felt as if I was flying.

He was right. No one would dare break us apart.

We were one.