Nemesis (War Angel Academy #2) - S.J. West Page 0,3
what he’s planning, but he won’t tell me exactly what he intends to do with the baby after it’s born.”
“Mother doesn’t seem to know either, or she’s not willing to trust me with the information. I’m not sure which is true.”
“Protect my son.” Rose’s grip on my hand is so tight it starts to go numb from the loss of blood. “My life doesn’t matter but his life means everything to me. Promise me, Caleb. Promise me you’ll do whatever it takes to keep my baby safe.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes to protect him. You have my word.”
Rose loosens her grip and closes her eyes again. We sit in mutual silence. When you’re with someone you love, words filling the air between you isn’t always necessary. They can even be cumbersome sometimes.
The double doors to my sister’s suite suddenly bang open drawing both of our attentions.
Levi and then our mother stroll into the room without the courtesy of announcing their arrival.
“And how is our expectant mother-to-be doing this morning?” Levi asks. He saunters over to the other side of Rose’s bed with his head held high. The ever-present arrogant expression on his face makes me want to reach over and scratch it off.
“Can’t you see how she’s doing, you bastard?” The venom in my voice would make anyone else cringe, but Levi simply laughs it off.
“Feeling a tad on the rebellious side today, Caleb?” Levi snickers. With a look of amusement still on his face, he slides his sinister gaze away from me to Rose. “How is my son doing this morning?”
“He’s not your son!” Rose attempts to sit up straighter against the mound of pillows propping her up, but she’s too weak to put up much of a fight. “He’s my son, and you can’t have him!”
“Huh . . .” Levi smiles. “The two of you are so adorable when your righteous indignation kicks in. It’s so ridiculously pathetic. It would be funny if it weren’t so annoying.” With a roll of his eyes, Levi returns his attention to me. “Now, why don’t you be a good little minion and scuttle off for a little while, Caleb? I need to check on the progress of the baby.”
“Come on,” my mother says as she aggressively tugs on my arm with an iron grip. I know she won’t let me go until I’ve followed Levi’s orders.
“I’ll come back afterwards,” I promise Rose, kissing her hand before I let it go.
With her eyes, my sister implores me not to leave her alone with Levi, but we both know there’s no delaying the inevitable. When his visits first began, I tried to fight back, but all that got me was a series of broken bones. Rose pleaded with me to simply do what he ordered, and to prevent her from becoming even more hysterical, I agreed to abide by her wishes.
As I make my way to the door, I yank my arm from my mother’s grasp and storm out of the bedroom. I walk over to the fireplace in the adjacent living room and grip the white marble mantle while staring at the red-orange flames flickering across the crackling wood. I close my eyes and do my best to calm my breathing. Above all else, I need to stay strong for Rose and her unborn child. They’re well-being is more important than my need to have a temper tantrum. When I hear the first of Rose’s screams, I tighten my grip on the mantle and grind my teeth together out of frustration.
“I really wish she wouldn’t do that every-single-time,” my mother says heartlessly as she sits down on the white couch facing the fireplace. “It’s getting quite old.”
I open my eyes and spin around to face her.
“You are some piece of work, you know that?” I ask. “You don’t care about us. You never have. We’ve always been a way to a means, but I still don’t know what you gained from our mission on Laed-i. What did he promise you? What was your prize for using us?”
My mother’s smile is almost benevolent, but I know from experience that she doesn’t have a compassionate bone in her body. In fact, I’m not even sure she has a heart anymore much less a soul.
“All in good time, my son. All in good time.” Her thin lips curve into a smile that only promises satisfaction for herself.
Rose screams again, but this time it sounds different. This time, it sounds like the coming of death.