Chapter 122

Killian:

Everyone in the house stood as I walked out with Liana, Elton, and Nikolai being dragged out.

Liana was barely able to keep her head up, and being merciful, I chose to have Viktor drag her on a chair. The woman was still Natasha’s mother, and thinking about it, she was also Eleanor’s aunt. That was a detail that I didn’t know how to mention to her just yet.

But considering that the woman was going to die, she was to be exposed as the dirty traitor that was living amongst us all along. I didn’t even know how much she planned against us, and how much effort she put into it. However, at this point, it didn’t matter. She was to die, and I was going to be sure that everyone knew what it was to betray our family. And no matter how close the family member was, they were going to know what their fate was to be.

Natasha stood beside Eleanor, and I had to admit, the last thing that I wanted was for them to see this. I knew that Eleanor had Katerina to take care of, and she didn’t need to be dealing with such emotions, no matter how much they might be satisfying to others; I knew that there were high chances of them not being as satisfying to her. It was the way that she was and I liked it that she didn’t try being something that she wasn’t to simply satisfy me. 

Her good heart was a reminder of my own humanity, and I liked the idea of holding onto it and not letting it go.

I looked at Natasha for a second, silently asking her to leave. She shook her head in response and looked at her mother who I knew was fighting to keep her eyes open as her body started giving out on her. It was only a matter of time before she took her last breath.

Her eyes met Nikolai’s, and though the man couldn’t talk, his eyes said it all, and she nodded in response, letting him know that she understood his apology. Whether or not she forgave him was unknown to me, but I knew that they broke more in her than anyone would have. The weight that she lost after Nikolai was noted, and I didn’t know how she was going to be dealing with her mother’s pain.

And I didn’t even know how I was going to be explaining to them that the two of them were cousins. Liana being a Bernardi meant that Natasha was too, and being Luca’s sister, it only meant that she was an Alpha blood. How she had masked her and her daughter’s scent throughout all this time, I didn’t understand; but I knew that now, I was going to have to deal with it no matter what was going to happen.

The pack members walked out of the house, toward the garden, following as the traitors and enemy were dragged out of the house. They couldn’t even walk if they tried, and grabbing Elton by his hair, dragging him on the floor was even more pleasurable. The one thing that I regretted was the fact that I knew that the maids were going to have more work to do to remove the blood stains. But I was going to be sure to pay them well for it.

“We are gathered to show off the traitors that have lived among us for all those years.” I said, looking around. “As many have heard, Liana has done her own part in betraying the family to the point where she brought the enemy inside the house, watching as he tried to kill my wife.”

Mom put her hand on Natasha’s shoulder, and I knew that she wanted to take her inside. Natasha shook her head, not wanting to. She kept her eyes on them, watching as they struggled to look at everyone. “But we cannot blame an enemy, nor could we call them traitors.”

Natasha and Eleanor frowned in confusion as I looked at Liana while I stated the sentence, and though it pained me, I knew that she was going to have to accept it the way that it was. It wasn’t something that I wanted her to go through. No matter the consequence, I wanted her to be happy. I wanted her to live in peace, and that wasn’t something that I was going to be able to offer her now that she was going to hear the truth. Her inner peace and everything that she knew was going to crumble. Especially considering the pain that she had to endure because of the Bernardi family. 

To think that it was Liana who sent Luca to the secret garden that day…

“Liana Bernardi, sister of Luca Bernardi.” I said, and both Eleanor and Natasha looked at one another then at me. Natasha shook her head, clearly refusing to believe what I just said, and as painful as it was, I knew that we were going to have to deal with it.

“The woman seeped inside the family like some plague. Her brother had her coming here to break the family from the inside. What he failed to understand was the fact that no one could play an Ivanov, and though he didn’t get to learn it from us. His sister got her due, for the two of them.

“Nikolai, the bastard who was brought over by his father after his mother refused to keep him. She left him at our front door one day. Mom and Aunt Lena took him in, raising him as her own by my and Vladimir's side. His father betrayed the family by stealing, making businesses out of our backs, and even trying to kill my father. We still didn’t blame him for his father’s treason. We treated him as an Ivanov. Little did we know, he got his traitor genes from his father.” I said, glaring at the man before turning to Elton. 

I looked at Eleanor for a second, and she nodded in assurance as I took a deep breath.

“Where do I begin with the Bernardi?” I asked, glaring at the man. “A coward, a fucker, and a failure enemy.”

“The man not only took advantage of my wife, time and time, he had her kidnapped, and had she not been strong; I don’t know what more terror he could have let her live through.” I said, grabbing him by his hair to make him look at her. “You are to kneel in front of your queen as I kill you. Because believe me, she is a blessing for you to see while you take your last breath.”

I put my fingers inside his eyes, popping his eyeballs, and he screamed out in pain before I pulled my fingers out. Eleanor looked away, and I leaned in to his ears. “But you don’t deserve to be blessed, do you?”

I grabbed my knife and nodded at Vladimir to take his. Liana’s heart slowed and her eyes widened as her body dropped, and I watched as she took her last breath before slaughtering the Italian. Vladimir did the same with Nikolai and we took a step back, watching as their bodies fell to the ground.

“Our Ivanov blood was tainted by traitors.” I said, looking at my family members. “But it is time for us to clean it up. And we will start by cleaning this mess up, and being kind enough, I am going to give them graves. Their stories would be told for centuries. And they are to be reminders of what is to happen to those who betrayed the family. But, in honor of the woman who raised us, and the mother of the woman that I call my sister, Liana’s story is to be buried with her. IF I hear ONE word out of your mouths on the topic, if I see a look of sympathy, disgust, or disrespect toward Natasha Ivanov; I give you my fucking word, you won’t live to see the second after, am I making myself clear?”

I looked at Natasha for a second and she smiled and nodded. I nodded back at her before looking at the rest of the family.

“It is time for us to close this chapter of our lives.” I said, looking around. “For we have other things to deal with.”

I looked at my wife for a second, watching as she crossed her arms over her chest. “But first, it is time for me and my wife to go on our honeymoon. We are to tend to things here before heading off, and I am sure that it would be a start of something good…”