Page 82 of Silver Sinner

Her brows twitch at the sound of my voice and her eyes dart back up to mine. "Pierce," she whispers.

"How romantic," Trik drawls and then violently gags. "Sicking. You actually care about the bitch, don't you? Do you have any idea how many men have had a run at that foul thing between her legs?"

"Then why didn't you kill me?" Layla snaps suddenly and she turns to face Trik. "If you were so disgusted, so ashamed that you got me pregnant, why didn't you just kill me back then? Why let me leave?"

"Why?" Trik darts forward and slams Layla into the bars. She grunts in pain and every muscle in me tenses. Trik cups her neck and leans in close, pressing his lips to her cheek while glaring past her to me with mocking heavy in his eyes.

I curl my aching hands into fists and wish, for the umpteenth time, that I was strong enough to pry myself free.

"Because my father was furious when he found out," Trik says. His tongue darts out and licks her ear. Layla recoils with a shudder but she has nowhere to go. "He kept spewing all this bullshit about how I was dumb and reckless and would get myself killed before he could marry me off to some bitch and fuck an heir into her."

His teeth snag on her lobe and Layla whimpers, then she grabs him by the shoulder and slams her knee up into his crotch. A strangled yelp of pain escapes him and Layla tries to get away, but he's faster. His fist slams into her face and she crumples to the ground.

"Layla!" It's like talking through a mouthful of needles, but her name rips from me as she huddles on the floor, cradling her face.

I'm going to kill him. Somehow. I'm going to tear him apart in chunks for touching her. Even if she hates me. Even if the truth keeps her from ever looking at me again, I will kill him.

"Look at you," Trik spits at me. "You're like a old lion watching a much younger, much hotter lion get ready to fuck your mate."

"You're insane if you think I'll let you touch me again," Layla mutters thickly. She lifts her face and from here I glimpse the blood rolling from her split lip.

"Don't pretend like you have a choice here," Trik replies coldly. "I have Maddie, and we all know what a good little girl you'll be for her."

Layla's defiance melts away slightly as she slowly climbs back to her feet, using the bars for support. "If you hurt her, I'll⁠—"

"What?" Trik challenges. "What the fuck are you going to do, huh? You're a fucking waitress. The only good thing about you is that you churned out a backup heir for my father because that's all he fucking cares about." Then he touches a finger to his lower lip. "Well, not all, because how fucking lucky is it that you end up making the untouchable Pierce Murphy fall in love with you?"

"Shut up," I snarl with all the strength I can muster. It only makes Trik laugh.

"It's true though! I mean, initially, we were just going to use you to blackmail him because he was so smitten, and the fucking Irish scum in this city have grown too big and too arrogant. You were going to help us cut him down to size and make us the most powerful family in the city."

Layla sends me a glance, one I expect to be filled with anger or betrayal, but her eyes glimmer with warm concern. Even now, in the face of this, she's worried about me.

"And then you stupid Irish cunts had to go and kill my cousin." Trik plants his hands on his hips and sighs.

"I've told you," I manage to spit. "I have no idea who the fuck that is."

"Ant," Trik growls out. "You broke into his friend's apartment and murdered them both. And then you burned the place down. You remember that, right? His friend Drake? Drake who was dating…" Trik swivels slowly with a grin. "Your best friend Amy! Do you know how hard it was to set that up? To get them together so we could keep tabs on you? Of course, then they got fucking greedy and it all went to shit."

Layla pales as the same realization comes to me. Ant was the third masked attacker in Layla's home, the one so high that he laughed when I shot Drake right in front of him. No wonder his last name was recognizable.

"Didn't… know he was… your cousin," I pant softly. The pressure from being hung like this is straining my chest, never allowing me enough air to breathe in.

"Would it have changed anything?" Trik asks.

"No." There's no point hiding that.

Layla glances between us while gripping onto the bar. "You… you made him date Amy?"

"Yup." Trik pops his lips together. "Romantic, right? All the times you left little Maddie alone with her and he was right there."

Layla's eyes slide to me. "You killed him?"

I nod weakly.

"Thank you," Layla murmurs, but it earns her another slap from Trik.

"The fuck, bitch? That was my fucking cousin!" Then he turns to me and grips the bars, jumping up and down on the balls of his feet. "Do you see now? Huh? Do you see? I'm taking her. I'm taking the woman you love and the kid you adore, my kid, and I'm making them disappear. You'll never see them again, not ever. No matter where you look, no matter what you do. They'll be with me. I'm gonna fuck her every night and raise little Maddie to be just as cold as me. And there's nothing you can do about it!"