Chapter 120

Killian:

“Killian, bring her over.” Liana said, shaking her head at me. “She doesn’t know what happened, nor does she…”

“I doubt that she would want to listen. Plus, she did give you a chance to speak, it was you who chose to refuse it.” I said, stopping her. I was tired of hearing nonsense today. And I knew that we had delayed this enough. “You had your chance and you chose to allow the Italian to speak for you. Now, considering the fact that she has resented you, I doubt that I should be giving you a chance to speak, should I?” 

“She did not resent. I am her mother, my daughter…”

“You lost your daughter the second you chose to betray the family.” I said, glaring daggers at the woman that I once considered a mother to me. To think that I believed that she would never betray us, and to think that I thought that I knew her. 

“Your punishment would be the least brutal. I am going to value the nights that you stayed up late by my mother’s side when I was sick.” I said, walking toward her with the poison that I had for her. I knew that it would be eating her from the inside and one by one, she would be feeling her limbs paralyzing before her internal organs died down. Her heart would be the last to stop beating and being her age, I knew that she would last a day or two. It was what I needed to get the answers that I had in mind.

“Killian, do not…” she said, watching as I walked toward her. I wanted the men to watch, and though Nikolai was overdue, his torn limbs, which were getting infected by now, smelled, and I knew that if not me, his fever would be killing him soon enough.

Elton, however, I was going to enjoy what I was to do to him. 

I stood behind her before raising her head back, forcing the liquid inside her mouth before closing it, making sure that she swallowed. She whimpered, she tried fighting it off, but I was not going to be giving her a chance against it. My heart ached, and I had to admit, I didn’t expect to find myself dealing with this. The woman was still considered my mother in my eyes and to know that I had to find it in myself to end her life, now that was something that pained me. I didn’t even know how my father and Lyov felt. All three of them grew up together. Forty years was not a small amount of time, and that was something that I knew very well. I was thirty-one, and the woman was in this house a lot longer than even before mom arrived.

She coughed once I let her go, trying to catch her breath and I looked at my father who nodded in assurance. I knew that it was going to be taking a lot longer to heal from this. It wasn’t as if she just died, that would have been a shock, but she would have been known for who she was and not this.

“You fucking prick.” She said, shaking her head as she knew what was to come. I didn’t respond before taking a step toward her as I placed the empty vail on top of the table in front of her. I pulled a second one out, smirking as I placed it on top of the chair that her daughter was sitting on. 

“This is the antidote. You have three options, either you answer my questions, or you try getting it yourself. If you manage to do either one of them, you are going to be free, and I will pretend that nothing ever happened.” I said, and her eyes widened in surprise. Elton looked at me and shook his head, his heart racing as he saw the knives that Vladimir was either sharpening or the metal pieces that Viktor was burning in the flame. Both he and Nikolai were going to be paying for everything that they did, and I was going to be sure that I forgot what the word lenient meant in this situation. 

“Knowing you, I doubt that you would be setting me free.” She said, and I smiled. My smile was devious and cold, and I knew that she could easily read through it. The one thing that she didn’t seem to know was the fact that she didn’t really have a chance in this one. The woman was either going to be willing to accept what I said, or she was to be given the antidote only to be given a different poison. This one was the most gentle on her system. And I knew that if she was smart, she would know that.

“Indeed, I did not plan on doing so, but by setting you free I did not necessarily mean out of here.” I said, smirking at her. “You are going to answer every question that I ask. Or I am going to be forcing the antidote inside your mouth before giving you a stronger poison. I am going to be sure to kill you inside before I do it outside, and even if I am to paralyze your whole body, keeping your heart and tongue working, I will do so, Liana. Therefore, I do suggest that you be helpful enough with answering.”

Her heart raced, and I could see her visibly gulping before she looked at Elton who shook his head. I knew that she was going to be more than willing to throw him in fire right now. After everything that she has done for him, to save her own life, I knew that I just had to trigger him enough to light up the fire between them. The woman was not going to like where I was going to be taking her, but I knew that she was the one who dragged that upon herself. 

“First question, who are you?” I asked, and she looked away from me. “And I expect a direct answer. Not the one that I know, but I am asking, who the fucking hell are you?”

She took a deep breath, looking away from me for a second before her next words took me, my father, Vladimir, Lyov, and Viktor off guard. Her eyes hardened, and I knew that she was well aware that this was the last thing that we expected. Especially when we had known her for all our lives.

“Liana Bernardi, sister of your famous Luca Bernardi…”