Page 78 of Dead to Me

“You invited me to watch you marry him.”

China's face fell.

“I wanted my sister back.”

“You wanted absolution.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

I stepped close enough to smell her perfume.

“You wanted me smiling in those wedding pictures so every time you looked at them, you could tell yourself that Milan forgave you.”

China shook her head.

“You wanted me standing beside you so you could stop feeling guilty about climbing into my life.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Neither was six years.”

She slapped me. The sound echoed in the room. My head jerked to the side.

My cheek burned. China stared at her hand.

I slowly turned back to face her. She looked terrified.

“Milan, I..I”

I swung and hit her even harder. China stumbled back and crashed into the table. Champagne glasses fell over. One broke on the floor. China grabbed the table’s edge. Blood showed at the corner of her mouth.

I smiled.

“You have wanted to do that for six years, haven’t you?” she asked.

“Longer.”

She lunged at me. I didn’t see that coming. China hit me around the waist and slammed me into the wall. The back of my head hit hard enough to blur my vision. She grabbed my hair. I grabbed hers.

For a few seconds, we fought just like we did when we were kids. Then China drove her elbow into my ribs. Pain shot through the same spot Malcolm had hit earlier. I lost my grip. China pushed me away.

“You killed him!”

She came at me again. I caught her wrist.

“You didn’t have to kill him!”

“He sent me to prison!”

“So did I!”

She blurted out the words. We both froze. China stared at me. I gave her a slow smile.

“You get it now.”

She shook her head.