Page 54 of Breaking Rosalind
“I’m coming, alright? I’ll be at the alley beside your club. Please... I’ll do anything you want. Just release her.”
I hang up, my triumph over Rosalind turning sour at the reminder that little Miranda lost her parents at the tender age of four. Earlier, I tried to delve for more details, but she fell silent.
When I return to the room, Miranda is drinking a milkshake topped with whipped cream, nuts and a chocolate-coated wafer.
“Having a good time, love?” I ask.
She gives me an eager nod. “Was that Rosa?”
I lower myself in the seat beside her. “Yeah. She was pretty scared.”
She scoffs. “I would have liked to hear that.”
“Can I ask you a serious question?” I pause, watching her freeze mid sip. “How would you describe your relationship with Rosalind?”
Miranda’s face pinches.
“What is it?”
She shakes her head.
“Does she hurt you?” I ask.
“Nothing like that,” Miranda mutters. “I just hate her.”
“Why?”
She glances away. “You won’t understand, because you’re her boyfriend. It’s obvious how much you love my sister.”
Any other time, my jaw would drop and my eyes would bulge out of my head at that foul accusation, but I keep my poker face.
“Is that what you think?” I ask.
“Why else would you try so hard to impress me?” She raises her straw to her lips.
I hold back the laugh bubbling up in my chest. What little Miranda sees is the extent of my determination to recapture her sister. But if love means wanting to choke a woman until the light leaves her eyes and fuck her until she bleeds, then consider me smitten.
Miranda’s phone buzzes with a text from Rosalind:
Ten minutes away.
Turning back to Miranda, I offer her what I hope is a gentle smile. “Drink up, love. I have a hot date with your sister.”
TWENTY-ONE
ROSALIND
I lean forward in the front seat of the car, my stomach twisting into painful knots. If this traffic doesn’t clear, then everything I sacrificed for Miranda will go to ruin. I didn’t save her from one predator so she could end up in the clutches of another.
Britt reaches across and squeezes my shoulder. “I don’t like this plan.”
“What choice do I have?” I ask, my voice tight.
“But exchanging yourself for him?—”
“Britt.” I clench my teeth. “Please.”
She sighs. “Alright, alright. The moment I get Miranda, I’ll exit the alley and drive straight to you-know-where. The part of the plan I’m struggling with is where you say you’ll join us, but won’t tell me how you’ll escape.”