Chapter 61
Gemma
He frowns at the bottle, obviously confused. “Vitamins are an example of me disrespecting you?”
“Prenatal vitamins,” I say. “And yes, they are. Because your grandfather has been giving me things like this for years.
Medicines. Potions. Vitamins. I take them, even though you never
touched me until recently.”
He looks like he’s going to say something, but I’m not done.
“Do you know what your family says about me? They say that
I must not be able to have a baby with an Alpha because I’m a wolfless freak. In fact, your cousin Claire has repeatedly screamed that I’m a wolfless freak in public recently. To my face.
“The ones that don’t call me that still say that it’s the goddess protecting you by keeping me from getting pregnant with your child, because I’m not worthy. Not like Reyna would be. They all
love her.
“I let your family believe I’m infertile or a freak or unworthy so that they wouldn’t blame you for the lack of heir. I have spent every day of the last three years doing everything I can to make you look good, even if it makes me look awful.
A
20:48
“And do you know what the worst part about it is, Cassian?
“It’s not the way your family treats me. It’s not the way I have to watch women fawn all over you because they think you’re single. It’s not Reyna, or even the fact that I buried my true self for all this time, trying to be perfect for you.”
I take a shaking breath. I’ve never let loose in a tirade like this before. It’s like all the words that have been bottled up for three years are spilling out of me all at once.
“The worst part, Cassian, is that I did all that for you, because I care about you, and you never even noticed.”
He stands there, silent, and I suddenly realize the full weight of everything I said. Everything I’d confessed.
I can’t deal with it.
Instead of waiting for Cassian to react, to be cold, to tell me that it’s my duty as his wife or whatever other bullshit, I grab my purse and run from the house.
*****
Back at Zina’s, I do my best to push Cassian from my mind.
20:45
Chapter 61
The easiest way to do that was work, so I work.
14 min leff
I had the order I’d gotten to target the Smokewind Pack and Blackwell mafia family. It seems like a simple job. Get in, extract some information about their shipments, plant some spyware, get
out.
Except every time I think I’m in, I get booted out again.
I bare my teeth in frustration, my fingers flying over the keys as Zina sits down next to me at her small, round kitchen table.
“What is it?” she asks.
“I’m trying to get into the system at Blackwell Industries, but I can’t. Someone is working against me live, as we speak.”
Zina makes a face. “What? There’s no way! No one around here has the skills to go against Moonlight.”
“I didn’t think so, either, but I can’t get in!”
I want to slam my laptop in exasperation, but that would be admitting defeat. I force my fingers to move faster, force my brain to work harder.
Still, I can’t get in.
20:50
Chapter 61
14 min left
“We need this data or we’re not going to get paid,” Zina says. She
sounds worried.
“I know.” I need that money, too. I’m still looking for ways to get
the miracle drug to my mother. The one that Reyna’s mom is now getting instead for her stupid insomnia.
I have to find a way to do this.
**
Cassian
“How’s it going?” I stand behind the desk of the hacker that Liam hired. He goes by some ridiculous combination of letters and numbers that I don’t care about.
I had my people look into him, though, and his real name is Sam.
Sam’s fingers fly over the keys and he looks like he’s sweating. “Who did you say is trying to get into your system, again? Because they’re really, really good.”
“Moonlight,” I say off–handedly.
“Moonlight?! Shit!” Sam redoubles his efforts and shakes his head. “If this is Moonlight, there’s only one solution.”
Chapter 61
→
14 min left
“I don’t care what it is,” I growl. “Make sure she can’t get into my system again. Cut her off.”
Gemma
Suddenly, I’m completely booted from the system and every way
in shuts.
“What the hell?! He just hamstrung his whole system so he could close it down and keep me out!”
“What?!” Zina asks. “What are we going to do? This guy isn’t the kind of person we can afford to piss off, Gemma. We have to get that data or we’re screwed.”
I close my laptop and sigh. Then I stand.
I won’t be defeated by some loser working for Cassian. Not only will I not let my reputation take that hit, but I need that money.
“If I can’t do it from out here,” I say, “I’ll have to do it from inside the warehouse. I’m going into the den of the devil.”
