Viola's Risk (The Twin Destinies Saga Book 2) Read online

  Viola nodded and squeezed him tighter in his arms, sensing his insecurity. She knew whatever he was about to tell them was bad, but he had to know by now she wasn’t going anywhere. He was her mate and she’d already accepted him as such. To her, his past was just that, his past.

  “At first, I resisted the horrible things she wanted me to do. She started me out torturing and killing animals so I would get the hang of causing great pain and suffering. Anytime I refused, I was beaten to the point where I couldn’t move for days afterward before she’d bring me another animal and start all over again,” Dominic said and shuddered at the memories flooding his mind. They could all see the horror of his past in his eyes and written all over his face. Viola wished she could take away this pain he was suffering, but knew it would only heal after he’d gotten it all out and been forgiven for it.

  “After about a year or so, I finally gave in and started doing what she wanted me to do. I got to a point where I let the rage and hate, over what my father had done by promising me to Anna and then what she’d done by murdering them all, take over me anytime she wanted me to do such horrendous things. After it was all over she’d leave me alone, I’d cry for hours over what I’d done. When she found out about that, I was beaten for that too. She took to having me watched at all times to make sure I became emotionless to the horrors she wanted me to perform,” Dominic said and paused again in his story. Both girls had tears running down their faces, feeling his pain from his words and remembering their own pain at the hands of Anna and Patrick.

  Taking several deep breaths, Dominic cleared his throat and continued on.

  “This training went on for over a year from the first time I gave in until I became numb to everything. I didn’t feel anything about what I was doing to those animals anymore. It was just a routine which thrilled Anna to death. When she felt I was ready, she advanced my training to the next level,” Dominic said and closed his eyes. He didn’t say anything for so long that Viola became more and more worried.

  “What was the next level Dominic?” she asked, her voice soft with fear. She was afraid she already knew the answer to that question before she even asked it.

  “She brought in a person for me to torture and kill,” he whispered and both girls closed their eyes as the tears flowed down their faces.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  “I didn’t even think about it. I did what she instructed me to do and felt nothing. She’d sucked everything good out of me. I guess I’d passed her test because after that, she started having me do things for her. If she wanted information out of someone, I was the one she sent in to get it. I became her golden boy. She’d finally broken me,” Dominic said, shame in his voice.

  “You did what you had to do to survive. She would have killed you if you had not done what you did,” Cora said, understanding in her voice. Dominic’s eyes snapped up in shock at her compassion and understanding rather than horror and revulsion.

  “We know all about just surviving day by day with Anna. She’s the one who raised us,” Viola told him.

  “Yeah, I know that. Neither of you broke like I did though. Both of you stayed strong. I was weak,” Dominic’s shame infuriated Viola.

  “You were not weak. Surviving her type of hell takes a lot of strength. Your strength is just different than ours because we dealt with different aspects of her personality in what she put us through,” Viola told him, the power of her words forcing his eyes to meet hers.

  He didn’t know what to say to her statement so he continued with his story. There was a lot they still didn’t know.

  “After a couple of years of doing her bidding, extracting information from people by force or just for her entertainment, she asked me to design a piece of machinery that would extract the most pain without killing the person who was locked into it. Without argument, I designed it for her. Many people have experienced agony on this machine since then. To be honest, I’ve never thought twice about it, the numbness lingering inside of me. In fact, I haven’t felt any emotions for years until I met you. Then everything came flooding in. But I’m off topic and we’re running out of time if we’re going to make it to breakfast without rousing Thomas and Angelica’s suspicions as to what you all have been up to overnight,” he told them all with a deep sadness that Viola felt in her soul.

  “Then she came to me after being so impressed with that machine and wanted me to design a place that would drive a person insane when they were released into it. She wanted a series of rooms in a maze-like formation that went from hope for escape to completely having lost their mind permanently, by the time they reached the end. I designed it, no questions asked. At this point, I was her puppet. That is the place she was referring to when I talked to her in the prison,” Dominic said, deciding to leave out a lot of other things Anna had made him do over the years. That stuff was not relevant and he didn’t feel like reliving all of it at the moment. The pain he hadn’t felt in years was already ripping him raw inside.

  “So, her big plan for us is to introduce us to this machine you designed and then let us loose in this maze of torment you created?” Cora summed up.

  “Yeah for the most part,” Dominic said in a low voice. Cora asked the question as if it was no big deal, but he knew better. He knew if they experienced any of that, they’d be lost to all of them forever.

  “What do you mean?” Sage asked, eyeing Dominic with a careful eye.

  “She wants Cora to watch Liam go through all of it first before she’s exposed to it herself to ensure Cora goes insane with no chance of coming back. If she knew who Viola’s mate was, she’d have the same thing done to me,” Dominic said, no doubt in his voice at all.

  “So that’s what she meant when she mentioned Liam,” Sage said, his eyes widening as everything they hadn’t understood on the recording clicked into place.

  “Yeah, I know there was a lot she said to me that was in code because that’s how she works. I see you have the full picture now,” Dominic said as he made eye contact with Sage who nodded his head in response.

  “She’s not getting her hands on Liam. There’s no way I will allow that to happen,” Cora said with such fierceness that Viola was shocked. Although she shouldn’t be, considering that’s how she’d react if they were talking about Dominic.

  “We won’t let that happen, Cora. Don’t worry. I’m sure Thomas already has Liam and both of you girls being protected as we speak,” Sage tried to reassure them even though he wasn’t feeling at all reassured.

  Dominic kept his mouth shut. He knew what Sage had already figured out, Anna had contingencies in place just in case Dominic didn’t carry out her instructions. There was always someone who was trained and conditioned to do her bidding without asking questions. This situation was much more dire than either of the girls were realizing.

  Sage also decided it was best not to alert either of the girls to just how serious the situation was. His mind was already planning on how to stop Anna from moving forward with her plans, which started even before she made her huge prison break. The clock was ticking and it was ticking a lot faster than either male felt comfortable with.

  “Okay, I’ve got to get a shower and so does Cora before breakfast, which it’s almost time for. How about we meet back here after breakfast and come up with a plan to stop her before she sets her plans into motion?” Viola said, shifting in Dominic’s lap as she got ready to stand up.

  “That sounds like a plan to me,” Cora said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Any chance to thwart Anna was a chance neither girl was willing to pass up.

  Sage and Dominic stood and nodded their heads in agreement. They said quick goodbyes and Dominic gave Viola the kiss of her life, before the two men left her room to get themselves ready for the upcoming meal. What the girls didn’t know was the two guys were off to plan their own strategy to stop Anna that in no way included either of them.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Just as Cora was finishing getting dressed in one
of Viola’s outfits, there was a knock at the door. Since Viola was in the shower, Cora shook out her long wet hair and went to answer it. Liam was standing on the other side looking exhausted.

  “Hey,” Cora said, feeling horrible about where they’d left things the night before, knowing his exhaustion came from her pushing him away and him not sleeping all night because of it.

  “Hey,” Liam said back, his voice low and tired.

  “Wanna come in?” Cora asked.

  “Are you still mad at me?” Liam got straight to the point.

  “I’m not at all happy that you didn’t back me up, but no, I’m not mad at you,” Cora said and reached her hand up to stroke his face.

  “I talked to Sage a few minutes ago. I know what you did last night and how he helped you. I wish you hadn’t done that,” Liam said, looking deep into her eyes.

  “Come in here, the open doorway is not the place for this discussion,” Cora said, looking up and down the hallway for anyone who might overhear their conversation. She grabbed his hand and pulled him into the room, then closed the door behind them.

  “I knew you would try to get your hands on that recording, but I didn’t believe you actually would be able to do it. Getting Sage’s help, that was a miracle on Viola’s part. Still, you shouldn’t have done that,” Liam said, repeating his last statement again.

  “Why shouldn’t I have done that Liam? Why don’t we have a right to know what she’s got planned for us? Did you know she has plans for you too, not just Vi and I?” Cora demanded, anger flowing through her at Liam’s reprimand.

  “We’re not going to let anything that was on that recording happen Cora, you need to trust us. The fact you had to go sneaking behind everyone’s backs to listen to it just shows the rest of us that you don’t trust us. You don’t trust me,” Liam stated, hurt in his voice.

  “You should know better than that by now. You should also know that neither Viola nor I, like or tolerate things being kept from us. If you can’t just be open with everything, then where’s all of your trust in us? We’re supposed to be the ones saving the world according to the prophecy, but we can’t be trusted with what Anna’s got planned for us? These are our lives. Yes, we got our hands on that recording with Sage’s help and listened to it last night. Dominic put everything into perspective that was on it and we aren’t flipping out or running in fear over it. We’re going to stand and fight her. So much for all of your faith in us being strong,” Cora said and turned her back to Liam, stalking across the room.

  “She’s right Liam,” Viola said, making her presence known. Cora didn’t know how long her sister had been standing in the doorway to the bathroom, but she was grateful to have the backup.

  “No, neither of you are right. Both of you need to learn to trust in the rest of us to protect you and have your backs when you’re in danger. You two need to learn that you can’t run into every dangerous situation head-on because at some point, it will get you killed before you even have the opportunity to fulfill your part in the prophecy and then where does that leave the world? Where does that leave all of the innocents who are depending on you even if they don’t realize it? You need to learn how to let others fight some battles for you so you are around to fight that fight,” Liam yelled at them, frustration and fear making his exhaustion stand out even more.

  When he was done, he slumped into one of the chairs in the sitting area and waited for one of the girls to say something. He was trying his best to get them to see reason, but was afraid he wasn’t even making a dent in their stubborn pride.

  “We don’t know how to let others fight our battles for us. It’s not right to ask that of other people who have lives and families of their own to live for. We’ve already lost too many good people in the short time we’ve been here because they were fighting to protect us. Do you think we’re okay with that at all? It kills me inside to know there are people mourning those losses right now while we’re alive and healthy. It’s not right to ask that of others, not when we’re willing and strong enough to fight our own battles. We’re not little children Liam, we’re not powerless,” Cora said, kneeling down in front of him and forcing him to meet her eyes as she poured out her heart to him.

  “We’re not worth the sacrifices they’ve made. We’re just two women who will stand up for what’s right. Their lives are not worth ours.” Viola said, moving over and sitting down in the chair across from Liam’s.

  “Their sacrifices are worth it if they keep both of you alive and safe to fulfill the prophecy. Each one of those men and women knew that going in and embraced it. They sacrificed themselves to protect you for their families and loved ones, to keep them safe because if Anna gets her way, nobody will be safe ever again. Every person here knows this and is willing to pay that price to protect those that they cherish,” Liam informed them with a passion Viola hadn’t seen from him before.

  “That may be so, but we’re still not going to sit back on the sidelines while others fight our battles for us. It’s not who we are,” Viola told him with just as much passion as he’d just displayed. He rolled his eyes and leaned back in the chair.

  “There’s no getting through to either of you is there? You’re too stubborn to see the bigger picture,” Liam ground out.

  “We see the bigger picture Liam. So far, Sage is the only one who’s even attempted to see things from our points of view. I love you, but you’ve got to start listening to me a lot better than you have been, because I’ve tried telling you over and over again, we are not defenseless or naïve. We’ve lived through hell and come out on the other side stronger because of it. We’re caring and compassionate because we understand what it’s like to be used and abused for others’ amusement. You need to understand that sitting on the sidelines is not in our make-up, we’re fighters. The more you try to hold us back, the harder we’re going to fight. That was Anna and Patrick’s biggest mistake, underestimating what we’re capable of,” Cora told Liam as she moved away from him to sit in the chair next to him.

  “We may not know what we’re fully capable of with our powers yet, but we do know what we’re capable of without them and that is an awful lot. Quit underestimating us and give us the opportunities to prove our worth. Trust in us to be smart about fighting our battles. Each of us has defeated Anna once already on our own and Cora even defeated Patrick on her own too. Who was hurt? Yes, I had a power problem and I know now I need to keep them balanced. One thing we’re quite good at is learning from our mistakes, but it’s obvious nobody around here is very good at doing that themselves,” Viola ranted at Liam before stalking back into the bathroom and slamming the door shut behind her.

  “I’d say we’re at a stalemate at this point because Viola’s right and we’re not going to back down from it,” Cora said, standing up and leaving Viola’s room with Liam still sitting in the chair looking back and forth between the two doors the twins had exited through.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Thomas and Angelica were the only ones in the dining room when Cora entered alone and took her seat at the table.

  “Where’s Liam dear?” Angelica asked, a bit surprised.

  “The last time I saw him, he was in Viola’s room where I left him,” Cora snapped and began loading her plate up with food, not bothering to wait for anyone else.

  “What was he doing in your sister’s room?” Thomas asked in an odd tone.

  “He came to talk to me because that’s where I slept last night,” Cora said before taking a bite of the biscuit she’d smeared butter and honey on.

  “Why did you sleep in Viola’s room last night?” Angelica asked, her eyebrows pulled together in confusion.

  “What’s with the twenty questions? Aren’t we here for breakfast before we start training again?” Cora asked after she swallowed. She poured herself a cup of coffee and took a sip of it before continuing to eat her food. She didn’t miss the worried look between her parents at her rude dismissal of their questions, but she didn’t muc
h care at the moment.

  Viola came in a few minutes later with Liam following close behind her. She took her seat and loaded her plate up without saying a word to anyone. Liam sat down, but only poured himself a cup of coffee and sipped at it. The dining room was quiet except for the sounds of the two girls eating when forks or knives scraped plates.

  It wasn’t until they’d finished eating that Viola finally commented on the lack of Dominic and Sage at the dining table.

  “Where are they?” she asked, placing her fork and knife down on her plate and looking at Thomas.

  “They had something to do, they’ll be back around lunch time,” Thomas stated with a hard look at both girls.

  “What did they have to do?” Cora asked, still not caring if she was being rude or pushing anyone’s buttons. Hers had been pushed way too much at this point and it was time that she started pushing back.

  “That is none of your concern,” Thomas told them, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “It is my concern since it is my mate we’re discussing. Where is he and what did he have to do with Sage that they couldn’t be here for breakfast?” Viola demanded, placing both hands on the table with a thud that rattled all of the plates, silverware and glasses.

  “What missions I send them on are not your concern and I don’t have to check in with you before issuing orders young lady,” Thomas declared, narrowing his eyes at his daughter in warning.

  “You know what, tell me, don’t tell me, I could really care less at this point. I’ll find him on my own,” Viola responded and pushed her chair back from the table, standing and exiting the room without looking back at anyone. Cora followed without hesitation. She had a sinking feeling Sage and Dominic had gone off to stop Anna without them and if that was the case, she’d wring both of their necks with her bare hands.