Seven

Chapter 73

Half of me wants to scream. Not just any kind of scream but one of those ear piercing, voice scratching, vigour draining, long screams to help deal with the temperamental energy gnawing away at me. The other half wants to slap myself for the situation I am now faced with.

Seven sits on the leather seat opposite me sitting on my small couch. The silence growing suffocatingly thicker and thicker in the air between us.

"You wanted to talk, so talk." I goad him. He answers me with a frown as his fingers brush over his hair.

"I guess I'll start with why I left." Seven sighs reluctantly before informing me that it was his uncle Victor's plan to separate Seven and myself. He tells me that Victor had someone following me in the black sedan that had caused me so much stress all those months ago. That was how Seven knew about Tom and I kissing, because Victor's person saw it and even took photographic evidence of my intoxicated mistake. I vaguely remember that night I kissed Tom, it was also the night I had chased after the sedan so Seven's explanation adds up. He says Victor used the kissing photograph against him causing him to believe that I had been seeing Tom the entire time we were together. He apparently still believed this until my confirmation in the bathroom tonight that Tom is merely a friend. I don't admit how it hurts me to know he thought I had been cheating on him this entire time.

Seven then explains that Victor's man following me in the black sedan had taken many photographs while watching me. The most significant being one taken of me at work in the bottle store with the Russian cartel leaders son, Junior. When I object to it being a purposeful meeting Seven says he understands it could be a mere coincidence but coincidence or not the photograph proved as damning evidence for the allegations Victor held against me.

"A spy!Why on earth would he think I was a spy?!" I gape at the completely farcical idea.

"Because Lily, he thinks you were plotting some kind of revenge plan with Sergey against him. I know it sounds stupid but I've come to know my uncle is rather unstable and thinks everyone is out to get him or take away his power." Seven sighs and leans his elbows down on his knees.

"Revenge? Revenge for what? Making me a fucking server?" I've had one encounter with Victor and that was enough for me to be both terrified and content to never require another rendezvous with Seven's uncle ever again. Not if I can help it.

Seven's eyes meet mine in a steely gaze, I had half expected him to at least smile at my server joke but he doesn't. Instead Seven is very serious.

"Look, what I'm about to tell you is going to come as a bit of a shock. But I think you deserve to know the truth, about everything. I also want you to know that it is the truth, I won't lie to you and I want you to be able to hear what I have to say and know I'm only telling you this because I care about you and I know deep down you'd want to know all this, no matter how painful it might be to hear." Seven warns me and instantly my mouth goes dry and I can feel my breath scraping the insides of my dry windpipe. I don't know how to answer him so I simply give him a single nod, indicating for him to continue.

The gold on Seven's knuckles glimmers as he nervously pushes his palms to his knees to wipe the slight sweat built up. I know this because my own palms are slick and I too wipe them against my jeans as I wait for Seven to tell me what he's been wanting to talk to me about this entire time.

"Your parents weren't killed by some random in a house robbery." Seven says and I'm already thrown off by those first eleven words. I had no idea what he was going to say but I didn't expect it to be about my parents.

"Your parents were murdered in a revenge killing." He continues.

What?

"By my uncle Victor."