Chapter 55 THE ENVELOPE

Chapter 55 THE ENVELOPE
The drive back to the estate was oddly quiet. Victor hadn't said a word since they left Blackstone's office. His hands remained firmly wrapped around the steering wheel, his knuckles pale and tensed and his expression unreadable. 

Kira could see his anger written all over his face and it made her stomach twist. She sat in the passenger seat, clutching the sealed envelope against her chest like her life depended on it. She could see her mother's handwriting boldly visible across the front.

Kira.

Just her name. It felt so strange seeing it written by the woman she had spent years believing had abandoned her.  Her breath was unstable as it hung between fear and anticipation. Kira wanted to tear the envelope open immediately. Her mind racing at what the envelope could contain to have made Victor so angry at the office. She wanted to know what Elena had been hiding, what Victor had done, and why her mother had left her behind.

Every time her fingers moved toward the seal, she caught his reflection in the window and it made her sick to her stomach. Something about his silence frightened her more than his anger.

"Whatever Blackstone told you, don't believe everything you hear." Victor said, without looking at her. His voice was rough and filled with anger and she could feel it.

Kira didn’t look at him. "Why?" She asked in what sounded more like a whisper, eyes on the window as the trees blur past.

"Because dead people can't defend themselves," Victor said and turned to her, his eyes were burning with rage but his voice stayed low and gentle.

She turned, and the trembling in her fingers stopped. "Neither can I if you keep deciding what I'm allowed to know,” She said it without blinking.

Victor's jaw tightened. He looked at her for a long moment, then let out a slow breath. "I am trying to protect you, Kira!” 

“From what?" she asked through my teeth her fist tightening around the envelope. He didn't answer. He turned his eyes back to the road like she hadn't spoken. She let the silence sit between them the rest of the way home.

—

When they finally arrived at the estate, Kira waited until Victor stepped out of the car before she got out. The afternoon sun burned her skin. The envelope was all she was thinking of.

She ignored Vanessa, who sat at the dinner table watching her with a smirk. Kira climbed the stairs and disappeared into her bedroom.

The moment the door closed behind her, she locked it. She rested her back against it and stood there. Her heart was racing. She waited a few more seconds — for Victor's voice, for Rex, for anyone. Nothing. The house felt quiet.

She looked down at the envelope in her hands. It was the last thing Elena had left for her. A sharp pain moved through her chest. She sat on the edge of the bed and carefully broke the seal. Her hands trembled as she pulled the contents out and laid them on the mattress.

A folded letter and a small flash drive. Her breath caught as she unfolded the letter. The handwriting brought tears to her eyes. She had forgotten how much she missed her mother's handwriting. Her eyes brushed over the first three words…

My dearest Kira,
Her vision blurred with tears. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and continued reading.

By the time you get to read this, I'm already gone. I'm sorry for the lies. I'm sorry for abandoning you. But I had no choice. Victor is a monster. He killed me, Kira. Not with a knife or a gun. He killed me slowly. With poison, manipulation and fear.

Kira's fingers tightened on the paper. She thought of the years. The years alone. The months with Victor. The things she had never said out loud. She looked back down at the crumpled paper in her hands, wet with tears, and kept reading.

I gathered evidence. I hid it where he'll never find it. The flash drive contains everything you need to know. Financial records. Medical reports. Witness statements. Use it to destroy him. But be careful. He's more cunning and manipulative than you think.

Kira's eyes moved to the mattress.. the small black flash drive. Her hand shook as she picked it up. It was lighter than the weight she felt it carried. She closed her hand around the drive. She read the last line that broke her..

I love you Kira. I always have.
Mom

She pressed the letter against her chest. Her shoulders shook. She didn't make a sound. The tears came hot and fast, soaking into the paper in her hands. Her mother had loved her. She hadn't left her willingly. She closed her eyes and lay back on the bed. Listening to everything around her then she heard a knock. She turned pale. 

"Kira?" She heard Victor's voice on the other side of the door. "Open the door." He didn't sound like he was asking. She looked at the letter in her hands and the flash drive on the mattress. Her heart pounding very fast as she shoved both under her pillow…