The Fortunates (Unfortunates #2) (20 page)

He slips off the desk and crouches beside me. “What’s wrong, Nine?”

“Stop calling me that.” I push out of my chair and stand up.

I’m cracking under the pressure—under
his
pressure. Is he pressuring me? I don’t know. It feels like it. Maybe he isn’t. Maybe I’m just overreacting.

He frowns. “You don’t like it?”

I lift my hand to pinch the bridge of my nose, but it trembles uncontrollably halfway, so clenching it, I drop it back to my side. What is happening to me? Now isn’t the time to spiral out of control. I can’t let Vince break me.

I won’t.

I swallow the lump in my throat and look away. “I don’t want to be Nine anymore. I want to be more like you. I
need
to be more like you. Nine the Unfortunate can’t do what needs to be done…but Anna the Fortunate can.”

I feel his eyes on me. I know he’s judging me. I know he’s wondering if this rebellion is too much for me or if all of this planning I’ve done has stressed me out.

It hasn’t. The only time I don’t think about me is when I force myself to think about others.

He straightens his legs and stands tall. “Is there something wrong?”

I pout. “Kaden…”

Shaking his head, he extends his hand to me and I close my mouth.

“Come on. I want to show you something.”

I quirk an eyebrow. “You want to show me something?”

He nods earnestly, so I slip my hand into his. Tears well in my eyes at his gentle touch. His skin is soft, much softer than I remember. He tugs me along behind him and escorts me out of the room. I don’t make eye contact or engage in small talk as he leads me out of the house and through the town. I’m lost in my own thoughts, not paying attention to the people that mosey around me. I’m sure they stare and whisper at us, but I’m too focused on myself to really notice. All I can think about is my hand in his. On occasion, he strokes it with his thumb. He hasn’t realised I’m not wearing my engagement ring. What am I going to say when he finally does realise? The thought simultaneously squeezes my stomach and my heart.

Kade escorts me out to a field away from prying eyes and straining ears. He glances sideways at me when we approach a large rug on the ground, adorned with a white wicker basket and tall wine glasses. I sit on the soft rug, tucking my legs underneath me. Kade sits beside me and I steal a glance at him as he reaches for the basket and pulls it open. I can see the strain on his face, the tremendous strength he’s using to force himself to be into this…this “date.” I’m not blind, though. I see through his façade. Underneath his fake happy expression, I see his tired, heavy eyes and the slight downturn in the corners of his lips. I appreciate the effort he’s gone to to make me happy. He knows something is wrong, but he hasn’t questioned me. He hasn’t demanded answers. He thinks it’s him so he’s trying to fix it…like a real husband would.

“Are you hungry?” he asks, fishing through the basket.

I shake my head, my stomach turning at the thought of eating when I’m already filled to the brim with stress. “No. Not really.”

He retrieves a bottle of wine and holds it up. “Wine, then?”

Not wanting to turn him down again, I nod. “Please.”

I glance around us as silence falls. He’s picked the most perfect spot for a picnic. I tip my head back and look up the massive tree that casts shade over us. This is a dream come true. To relax under the shade of a tree, surrounded by grass and weeds that aren’t as obnoxious as some would believe. I hate that this dream of mine is tainted by stress…

“You’re not wearing your ring,” Kade points out, pouring wine into a glass.

My heart stops and tears immediately well in my eyes. I knew he’d notice. I peer down at my hand and it trembles uncontrollably. I close it into a fist and rest it in my lap, covering it with my other hand. “Uh…”

He fills the glass to halfway and hands it to me. Clenching my teeth, I shake my head. Kade grunts in frustration and drinks the whole glass of wine himself in one large gulp. He clicks his tongue and stares out at the field in front of us.

“If yesterday wasn’t what you wanted—”

“No,” I cut in, reaching forward and placing my hand on his knee. I can’t bear the thought of him thinking my mood is because of him. “It’s not yesterday. It’s not you. I just…” I swallow hard. “There’s something…I…”

He tips his head to the side and I slump my shoulders. I can’t tell him. Vince was right. It will break his heart.

“I lost it.”

He quirks an eyebrow. He doesn’t believe me for a second. “You lost it?”

I nod as tears bubble over and drip onto my cheeks. I’m lying, he knows it, and it makes me feel horrible.

“No need to cry,” he says. He tries hard to pass his voice off as kind, but I hear its cold undertones. He’s fishing for the truth. I know he is. “It’s a good thing I have these.”

Kaden digs around in his pocket and pulls out two beautiful gold rings. One is thick and one is thin and they’re a perfect match. They’re simple and beautiful and…I drop my face into my hands as my ribcage rips open and my heart bleeds. I give up. I’m not cut out for deceit.

“Is there something you want to tell me?” His voice is satisfied, pleased he was able to crack me without breaking a sweat.

“I didn’t lose the ring.” I sob, shaking my head.

“I know.” He touches my forearm. “Where is it?”

I shake my head again. I don’t have the heart to tell him. What will he say? What will he do? Telling him is exactly want Vince wants. He wants the reaction, he wants the retaliation. I can’t give Vince what he wants. Despite my refusal, he wraps his arms around me and pulls me close, swallowing me up in his large arms.

He plants a kiss on the top of my head. “You can tell me anything.”

I wait until my body stops forcibly sucking air into my lungs, making it difficult to talk. I think of everything—
anything
—but Vince and the way he slapped my skin and squeezed my throat. Lifting my head, I focus on the green blades of grass that dance in the breeze and listen to the sound of Kade’s heart, beating against my ear.

“Early this morning…” I swipe at my nose. “I…he…he took my ring.”

“Who took it?”

My lips tremble, my nostrils flare as I try desperately to withhold the tears. My stomach turns violently and I gag at the thought of speaking his name. “Your brother.”

He tenses around me. “Was this at breakfast? Where was John?”

“It was before breakfast…way before. It was dark and I couldn’t see. If I knew…if John had told me…if I didn’t…” I lower my face again, allowing the sobs to constrict my chest and shake my shoulders. “He was there. I thought it was you.”

Kade’s fingers twitch against waist. “He was where?”

“In your room. He…” I bite my lip and taste my tears. I don’t want to say it.

“Tell me he didn’t.”

I nod.
He did.
“I shouldn’t have gone there. John said you’d be back, but you weren’t. I tried to run. I tried to get away, but he put a gun to my head.” The words rush out of me, a mess of words through cries and clenched teeth. “The letter you received didn’t come from the city. Vince forged it. He plotted everything.”

I bunch Kade’s shirt in my fist and press it against my face. I expect him to leave, to go on a rampage and tear down buildings, demanding revenge. What I don’t expect is him to hold me closer, cradling me gently in his arms. He shushes me while planting erratic kisses on the top of my head, giving me all of the comfort I thought he’d deny me.

“What do you want me to do?” he asks. “Tell me what you want.”

Under me, he bounces his knee ever so slightly, pert with impatience. I want to unleash Kade on Vince. I want to watch blood drain from his body as Vince begs his brother not to hurt him.

But that’s the easy way out. What I want more than anything is to see his eyes curve in surprise when he realises it’s not his brother that has come for revenge.

It’s me.

When I’m through with him, he’ll wish it was his brother. Kade’s punishment will be a hell of a lot more humane than mine.

“I’ve thought long and hard about it,” I say, sniffling. “I’ve weighed every option, fantasised about his death a million and one different ways…”

“And what did you decide?”

I tilt my head back far enough to finally look Kaden in the eyes. “I want him alive…I want to see the panic on his face as I crush him under my heel.” I sniffle. “Then I’ll rip his heart from his chest.” I turn in to Kade, clenching his shirt in my fists. “Promise you’ll leave him for me.”

His dark, angry eyes scan over my face. His jaw ticks, his teeth gritting together. His black stare flicks between mine and with a hard swallow, he presses his lips to my forehead. “He’s yours.”

Chapter Eighteen

Kade

A cool breeze blew, but it wasn’t enough to ease the angry, prickling heat that crept over his skin. He was mad at himself and furious at Vince. He was even frustrated at her for not staying in bed—not that he’d ever mention it. A sharp pang of guilt washed over him, making him grimace. If he hadn’t left…if he ignored the letter…Vince wouldn’t have had the chance to hurt her.

How could I be so stupid? Falling for a fake letter?

Chewing the tip of an apple stem, Kade dragged his stare from the fence in the distance to his wife, who grazed her palm across the tops of the grass. On occasion, she’d lift her gaze from the ground and watch him instead. He felt her concern, her worry. It emanated from her small body in intense waves. How could he fail her? First day as a married couple and he let her down. A swirling feeling manifested in the pit of his stomach. He hadn’t felt it in a while. The last time he did…Kade swallowed hard, tossing the apple stem away.

The feeling he felt only came about when he knew he’d failed someone. He felt it all the time growing up with Vince. Kade was often punished for being weak, leaving Vince to finish the appalling task, whatever it was. His father thought the shed was punishment enough, but it wasn’t the shed that broke him. It was coming out and seeing a piece of his brother’s soul die each time. How quickly his innocence turned to insolence. His love to rage. By the time Vince was fifteen his humanity was gone, swallowed up by the abyss of privilege, hate, and prejudice.

And it was all my fault…

“Are you thinking about it?”

He jolted back to the present, banishing his childhood trauma to the back of his mind. Her face was close to his, the tips of their noses almost touching. Kade drowned in her swimming eyes, allowing himself to feel the remorse that beat against his chest.

“I’m sorry…” he muttered, unable to choke back his own emotion.

Tears wet his eyes and dampened his eyelashes. He tried to look away from her, but she grabbed his face in her slender hands and held him in place.

“It’s not your fault.”

He scoffed, pulling his face from her hands. “Isn’t it? Maybe not directly, but you follow the string back far enough and you’ll find it tied to me.”

“Kaden…” she whispered, touching his hand. “The string attached to you is tangled with others. You aren’t at fault here.”

Anna shifted on the red rug he laid down specifically for their simple picnic. She tucked her long, slender legs underneath herself and tapped her thighs. He frowned. Sleep? There was no way his brain would power down long enough for him to get some rest.

He started to shake his head when Anna tilted her head to the side, her face mimicking the hurt she felt deep down.

“Please…”

How could he say no to her? How could he turn down her invitation to rest against her legs when she seemed so desperate? He decided he would lie down, but he wouldn’t sleep. Turning around, Kade slowly lowered himself onto his back. Anna guided his head into her lap and stroked his hair once he was comfortable. He glanced up at the thick, healthy branches of the tree. He couldn’t remember the last time he relaxed under a tree—or if he even did at all. It was…serene.

Much to his surprise, Anna began to hum a light, lovely tune. It wasn’t a song he’d heard before and as it floated into his ears, it ripped him open from the inside out, exposing all of his nerves and all of his emotions. How could a single hum be so moving?

“The song,” he interrupted, stopping her hum. “Where’d you hear it?”

Anna toyed with his hair, twisting strands between her fingers. “It’s the hymn they hum to the babies and young children in the camps. There are no words…just the melody.”

“Does it have a title?”

She hums in thought. “No. I suppose it doesn’t.”

“It’s beautiful.” Kade closed his eyes.

She continued to hum. He wasn’t lying when he said it was beautiful. His ears had never received such a spectacular sound. It was solemn, heartbreaking, and uplifting all at once.

Much to Kaden’s dismay, he found himself drifting into his own head, falling farther from reality and farther into dreamland. He didn’t want to sleep. He wanted to keep his eyes on his wife twenty-four seven, but the lower she hummed, the deeper he fell. Before he completely dropped off the edge into the abyss of his mind, he saw Vince. Kade flinched at his smile.

How could he do it?