I almost crashed Knox's car. Twice.

It's a miracle that I made it to my house in one piece and an even bigger miracle that I manage to ring the doorbell with a straight face. Moments ago I was hysterical, sobbing and shaking and feeling as though the world fell out beneath me. Then I had to pull it together when the familiar sight of my neighbourhood came into view. The last thing I need is to be asked what's wrong or I'll blurt out everything I've just learned in the past hour.

My father. A rapist.

The thought makes me flinch in defiance because an enormous part of me refuses to believe it. It just can't be true. And who the hell am I going to believe—the man who raised me, taught me how to ride a bike, kissed my scraped palms and bruises, allowed me to have an education, turned a blind eye to my drunken college nights with nothing more than an amused smile, or the man I've been married to for three months who is still such a damn mystery?

He admitted I was always a pawn in his game. He's used me from the beginning. This could be another one of his tactics for all I know. Anything to get back at my father. Made Men have no limits to what they'll do for their own benefit and I've always known that. So who am I to trust Knox Marino over my own father?

Right?

But I saw the anguish on his face. In his eyes, and the way they glazed over, as he told me about what happened all those years ago. The pain that pulled his features tight had been genuine and almost unbearable to look at. Could he really fake a reaction like that? Deep down I knew he couldn't. He barely expressed emotions and tonight was the most I've seen from him. I know that counts for something no matter how much I don't want it to.

The door swings open and my sister crashes into me with a squeal a second later. Her familiar scent engulfs me and I hug her back. So tight. I almost start crying right then because even after everything I've learned, her hugs make me feel like I'll be okay.

"God, I missed you," I whisper into her hair and kiss the crown of her head.

"I'm so glad you're home," she returns with a sniffle that cracks my chest. She pulls back to look at me with her wide doe eyes. "Wait—why are you here? Is everything okay?"

She's too perceptive for her own good. I pull together what I hope is a believable smile and ruffle her hair.

"Of course. Don't tell me you don't want me here."

"You're crazy. I almost stole Father's car to drive over to you more times than I'm willing to admit."

The mention of him makes me falter but I push it out of the way and force a laugh.

"You should have done it. I'd like to see you break the rules for once."

"You just returned and you are already being a bad influence." A familiar scolding voice draws my gaze up to Carlotta, who approaches me with outstretched arms and unshed tears in her eyes. "Oh, bimba. Welcome home."

Her words split most of my restraint and heavy tears trek down my cheeks. I meet her halfway and walk into her hug, crying softly into her shoulder. Carlotta is the closest thing I have to a mother now. I wish my mom could be here because I don't know what to do, what to think, and I know she would have known what to say.

"I'm so sorry for the way I left things," I apologize in a hoarse voice.

She shushes me and strokes my hair, only making me more emotional. "Stop apologizing over and over. It was a difficult time for you. But now you are okay, sì?"

No. Far from it. But I nod instead because I don't know what to say. Who can I even trust anymore?

I pull back and clear my throat, shifting nervously. "Where...where's Father?"

"He's in his study. I don't think he will mind you interrupting him. Go!"

Alessa and Carlotta usher me away excitedly. They're both so...normal. Happy. No signs of Father mistreating them but then what did I expect? He's always been so good to us. I'd be a fool to believe Knox's story...wouldn't I?

I head to Father's study on shaky legs. I don't know what to expect. Part of me wants to see proof that Knox is telling the truth so I can stop going out of my mind and part of me wants to see my same old dad who I've never known to hurt anyone. I feel like I'm being pulled apart at the seams with no clear answer in sight.

I can hear him talking in his study. At first I contemplate knocking but then I'm hit with the insane urge to test him. To just barge in and anger him and watch for some kind of twisted reaction. If what Knox is saying is true then clearly Father has to have a bad side hidden somewhere, right? And if I can unleash it then maybe I'll be one step closer to the truth.

I swing the door open and hold my breath when I spot him. Father has a phone to his ear and he glances up. His expression betrays nothing but surprise, relief, and pure happiness. I can't tell if I'm disappointed or relieved.

"Principessa!" He immediately ends his call and rises from his seat, walking over to me with a laugh. "Oh, vita mia, you're home."

I stiffen when he pulls me into a hug. Frustration burns my throat. I feel like I'm home. There's too much familiarity in his touch and it feels like I'm home. I almost throw up, repulsed that my brain can't catch up to my heart. This is wrong, right?

"Maria?" Father looks down at me with furrowed brows. "Are you okay? Are you still upset with me?"

I stare into his eyes, so much like mine.

All I knew were his eyes.

Knox's words bounce around in my head. Haunted and pained. I saw the way he struggled to look at me when he'd said that. How must he have felt having to see my father's eyes every time he looked at me and be reminded of that moment?

No! That would mean what he said was true. You don't know that yet.

"Why does my husband hate you?" I ask Father bluntly.

He blinks. "I have lots of enemies, principessa. Many men hate me."

"But he's so vengeful. His brother too. It's all I've heard and seen while being married to him."

"Well, I am sorry you're caught in the middle. You must be miserable. I sincerely thought this union would bring forth peace but Marino is more stubborn than I anticipated."

"Do you regret giving me to him?"

"Every day. But you never know. Maybe things will look up in the future." He cups my face, smiling calmly.

"What do you mean?" I don't mean to sound as wary as I do.

"Nothing at all. Just have faith that the pieces will fall into place."

That does nothing to ease me. In fact it puts me on high alert.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Father asks, suspicion colouring his tone. "Marino let you come here?"

Shit. For some reason I don't want to draw any attention to him. I feel the need to protect him. But from what? Isn't he the enemy?

"Of course he didn't but that didn't stop me from walking out the door anyways. I'm still the rule breaker you raised."

My attempt at a joke is successful. Father chuckles heartily and kisses my forehead. I try so hard to stay relaxed and not think about what Knox described.

It's not true. It can't be. It just can't.

"Oh, I've missed you. Rest easy for the day. I will never let him hurt you."

They're words every daughter craves to hear from her father. So why don't I feel comforted?

"Can I stay in your study?" I blurt. Father looks at me oddly. "I used to hang out here when I was a kid, remember? I'm just feeling nostalgic and dreading going back."

I'm laying it on thick but it works. Father smiles again, unsuspecting. Why would he be? I'm his daughter. The guilt makes me want to throw up.

"In that case, I will take my business to my room."

He grabs his phone and kisses my forehead again on the way out. I remain smiling until the door to the study closes and then it drops, like my heart does. Because there's a reason I need to be in here.

The charm.

I swear I've seen it. It's such a faint memory I don't know if it's even real. But I have to know, even if it'll kill me in ways I will probably never recover from.

My heart is beating wildly as I go through his drawers first. I work as quietly and quickly as I can, moving around papers and documents just barely so that they're not out of place. I'm paranoid as hell, freezing and glancing at the door at every faint noise that I hear.

I find nothing at his desk, feeling equal parts frustrated and hopeful. How fucked up is it that I can't decide if I want Knox to be lying or telling the truth? I feel like my head is going to burst.

I go through the books on his large floor-to-ceiling bookshelves next. I don't know what I'm hoping to find but there's nowhere else to look. Maybe he's hidden something between pages? I take books out and sift through them one by one until I've gone through almost every paperback and hardcover. I've been in here snooping close to an hour and still, nothing.

Just when I've given up, something catches my eye. A glint of metal as I'm putting the book in my hand away. I squint and start taking out books one by one. I clear out a single row in the middle and I see it—a safe discreetly hidden away against the wall.

My heart pounds in my ears, makes it hard to breathe. I glance nervously behind me to make sure no one is coming around then look at the safe again. There's a keypad which means it requires a passcode but I don't dare attempt to punch in a set of numbers for fear of disabling it or something. I wreck my mind desperately, wondering how the hell to get in.

An insane thought occurs to me and I act on it before thinking it through. I shoot off the text with trembling fingers.

Me: How do I break into a safe that requires a passcode?

I want to throw up. How could I be doing this to my father? What if he's innocent? What does that make of me?

The buzz of my phone makes my stomach drop. I read the reply.

Knox: Send a picture.

I can't believe I'm doing this. I can't believe I'm freaking teaming up with my husband against my father to uncover something that might be a bogus lie. What if this is part of Knox's plan and I'm the stupid pawn that's actually helping him? What if I ruin my father's life who could very well be an innocent man?

Still, my gut is pushing me in a way I can't ignore. I cling onto that because it has to mean something. If not, I'd never be able to live with myself.

I send the picture but Knox's response doesn't come right away. I chew on my thumb nervously while I wait. Each minute feels like a lifetime.

I turn my phone upward when I feel the familiar buzz, finally.

Knox: Open it.

Me: I gathered that much. How?

Knox: Just open it.

What? My brows close in and I reach a tentative hand forward toward the latch, tugging. To my disbelief, it gives way and opens. Just like that.

Me: It worked. How did you know?

Knox: I know your father a lot better than you.

It's a slap in the face. This time I don't respond.

There isn't much inside but the contents do make me wary. A burner laptop. A burner phone. Some kind of hard drive. That's it. I reach inside and feel around the velvet padding. It's solid and sturdy except for one spot in the far back. I curl my fingers around the padding and peel it back with a racing pulse. There's a small box.

Part of me doesn't want to know. I almost shut the safe and run out of here. But a morbid part of me is curious and desperate to a fault so I grab the tiny thing before I lose my nerve and open it all in one breath.

My knees hit the floor. I slap a hand over my mouth to contain a sob, bile, and a scream that would probably shatter the walls.

It's here. The other half of the charm.

For such a small item, it feels like the weight of the world in my pocket. I can feel it burning into my thigh like a mark I'll forever be scarred with. Seems fitting, doesn't it?

I didn't hesitate to tuck it in my pocket before I closed the safe, put the books back in their places, and ran out of the study. Then I threw up in the bathroom of my childhood bathroom and silently sobbed for what felt like hours. Alessa came by to see what was taking so long so I turned on the shower and let it run, sending her off.

She didn't say anything but watched me sombrely when I left the bathroom, dry to a fault.

Dinner is awkward. Everyone is trying to make conversation with me but my responses are cold and robotic. I'm trying so hard to act like my usual self but I can't. How can I? As long as Father sits across from me, all I can see are flashes of what Knox described and shutting myself down is the only way to keep myself from either sobbing hysterically or lunging across the table and demanding why.

I have so many questions and I know only Knox can answer them. Part of me is clinging onto a stupid morsel of hope that the charm means nothing, that it is made up and this is Knox's elaborate game, but another part of me just knows. My husband isn't the liar here.

I offer to clean the dishes when we're done but Father interrupts me, beckoning me to him. I don't want to go. I don't know what I will do if I have to be so close to him. But I force myself to move even though I can't feel my legs and ignore the odd looks I get from Alessa and Carlotta. I want to hit my own head for being so obvious, so suspicious, but I physically can't pull it together no matter how much I try.

"What's going on?" Father demands once he's lead me down the hall, away from listening ears. He puts a hand on my shoulder and I can't help it—I flinch. His frown deepens. "Mariana?"

The distrust in his gaze is a proverbial bucket of ice that drenches me back to reality. I need to stop. If I ruin everything and let this fall apart then I'll never find out the whole truth.

"It's Knox." The lie tumbles past my lips. It's my best shot because Father is so blinded by his hatred for him that he's bound to overlook my weird behaviour. "We got into a fight so I came here. I hate him and I hate being married to him."

If I had said this three months ago I would have meant it all. But the words feel wrong on my tongue. Like a lie, because they are.

Father squeezes my shoulder. "I will make this right for you. Trust me."

"Are you going to kill him?" Father's lips thin and it's the only answer I need. An instinctive surge of protectiveness like I've never known it knots my throat. I won't let that happen. "How? When? Please tell me."

He's so far gone he mistakes my reaction for eagerness, a smile curling his lips. "Soon. It's going to look like a brother's quarrel, like they took each other out from the stress of the investigation. All the evidence led to dead ends. The investigation officially closes two weeks from now, according to Cavallo's orders. It's the perfect timing for the two brothers to lose their mind at the prospect of going to jail again. Two weeks, principessa. Then I will free you."

My heart pounds in my ears. Two weeks. He's going to kill Knox and Felix in two weeks. I can't let that happen. If I warn them then I know they will retaliate and it will be my father dead in two weeks instead.

I almost throw up again. When my face crumples and tears fall, Father pulls me in for a hug I can't return.

He raped Knox's mother. He's not the man I thought he was. He is most likely going to be dead in a few days. I feel disgusted that a part of me does not want him to die. If his actions are true then he deserves it. But why did he have to be my father if he was going to love me and then leave me with the weight of his actions? Fuck him for doing this to me. Fuck Knox for dragging me into a marriage and making me a bullseye whether I wanted it or not. Fuck them both.

"I have to go home," I choke out and gingerly push him away. I can't touch him knowing what he's done. "Keep me updated on everything. Maybe I can help."

It's such a sick lie. I'm blatantly betraying my father to help my husband. To save him, in order to kill the other. I know that's the right thing to do but the little dinner I ate threatens to make a reappearance anyway.

"I will." He smiles. "We will be together again very soon, vita mia."

I look away before he sees my revulsion.

"Call me," Alessa insists in my ear, her tone unusually authoritative, no doubt recognizing that something is wrong with me.

The thought of leaving her here with Father suddenly seems like a nightmare. I need to find a way to get her out. I hug her back and nod.

I hug Carlotta and ignore her concerns as well, telling her it's just marriage problems. She pats my cheek in sympathy and my heart twists as I look at her. Has Father ever hurt her too? It doesn't seem like it but I've learned that nothing is as it seems anymore.

I need answers. And the only person who can give them to me is the man who was part of my story long before I knew him. Fate intertwined our lives in the most horrific way, making us doomed from the start. Now I know why Knox calls her a bitch—that she fucking is.

_____________________________

A/N

Told y'all she wouldn't abandon Knox!!! It's neither or as of now. She's not blindly ready to throw it all down for him but she uncovered the truth which was the whole purpose of going to her father first. She HAD to know. There's a difference in blindly following him and actually thinking for herself because she is now part of this situation whether she asked for it or not.

Please VOTE, comment and share if you liked this chapter!

Happy Reading :)