Chapter Sixty-six: Weaponized Innocence (Trigger Warning)

Lillianna’s Point of View

I waited until they grew complacent, thinking that I would simply drink until I passed out. However, Marek and Andrei didn’t know me outside of work or the file they’d read on me. They didn’t know I could drink an entire bottle of alcohol with little to no effect. I had an unusal high tolerance level for hard liquor and could handle my drink more so than men twice my size.

I swiftly took out the men parked outside, sent to watch me by the Brzezinski family. The terror in Andrei and Marek's eyes as they realized their fate was priceless. They never saw it coming as I moved with ruthless precision, taking them out one by one without hesitation or mercy. Fuck them for underestimating me. How dare they underestimate me.

With great effort, I dragged Andrei and Marek’s lifeless bodies out of the vehicle, making sure no one saw me. After discreetly disposing of them, I hopped into their car with only a small bag. I knew I could never return to that apartment again.

I drove until I reached Rei Draven’s home. I parked the car I had stolen a few houses down and broke in. Rei's security system was ineffective against someone like me. I almost felt bad for her. Almost.

There were no eyes on me at the moment, so I took my time going through each room of the house to understand better the family that lived there. The boys' rooms were messy, with socks strategically hidden throughout, almost as if in defiance of something. I wondered what Grace had forbidden to provoke such a silly response. I knew from watching her with Onyx and Salem that she was firm but fair. They didn't like the word "no," though. That much we had in common.

Shiloh's room was quite interesting. Everything was in its place, very orderly, and very controlled. Not much of her personality showed through here. She had a stack of books on her shelf, most of which were popular, but there were some dystopian titles. Inside her bedside drawer was a picture of Greg Ravenscroft that had been printed off the internet. In cursive writing, the word "daddy" was written underneath it. I crumpled the paper up and threw it in the garbage. That kid had no idea how I had saved her from that disgusting man.

Greg Ravenscroft appeared desirable on paper and in person. The man was charming and gorgeous. He was smitten with Rei without knowing who she truly was when I recommended him to Aamon as a possible match for his step-sister. Little did I know just how nefarious the man truly was.

Rei thought he was having affairs when he was gone late at night. In a sense, Greg was, but not in the way that Rei thought he was. Her husband liked his prey young, vulnerable, and innocent. Only after following him did it make sense why Rei intrigued him. His conquests weren’t always willing partners, and they were young.

I was a victim, too, just like this, when I was young. The scars never go away; they only fester beneath the surface. But I learned how to turn what was taken from me to my advantage. Sex became a twisted game for me, using it as a tool and a weapon in my way.

But with Xavier, things were different. When we were together, I felt completely present, and the sex had a deeper meaning. I experienced emotions like never before, and for the first time, I believed I could finally trust someone completely.

I had never confided in anyone about my past; what would be the point? I would just be reliving the experience all over again, opening up old wounds that had never fully healed. I simply chose one day to rise, use my body as a weapon and live. I didn’t look back. The past was gone; it had shaped me, but it didn’t own me. I wouldn’t let it.

Greg actively sought a newer, more affluent version of his wife, one who could shield him from the consequences of his twisted vices. If Greg Ravenscroft had not ended things, I’m sure that Kazimierz Brzezinski would have disposed of the trash himself. I did it for him, and that is probably why I was able to have some freedom in the organization. It was an unspoken agreement because he knew I had indirectly shielded his great-grandchildren and their mother from a monster.

I wondered for a moment if it would have changed how Xavier saw me if he knew why I had done what I did. I’ll never forget the judgement in his eyes when my best friend and lover realized I had murdered Greg Ravenscroft and his new wife when she wouldn’t get out of my way. I made her death quick and painless because the woman was clearly stupid and didn’t know any better. But Greg, oh, how I relished in his suffering as he begged for mercy that I never granted him. A thirst for revenge burned within me, and wickedness overtook me as I savoured every moment of his suffering. I didn’t have to bury the body. I just burned what was left because there wasn’t much when I was done with him.

The kid would never understand, but she didn’t need to. That was my gift to Shiloh Ravenscroft. Even though she looked exactly like the woman I hated with every fibre of my being, I could differentiate between the two. That child deserved to live, to grow up safe and sheltered. Something I’d never had.

Rei Draven, or Rei Brzezinski, had grown up protected and cared for. Although she had endured a traumatic event in her young life, Rei was too young to remember her mother being murdered before her eyes. She only knew that people who had been paid to pose as her parents had created a good life for her.

I laughed to myself, thinking about that. Rei didn’t even know that these people weren’t her birth parents. I understood why everyone needed to protect her from the world's dangers. She exuded kindness and happiness and was a genuinely sweet person. But she’d taken the heart of the only man I had ever felt safe with and loved. He wouldn’t let her go now that she loved him back. That was unforgivable, and for that, Rei had to die.

I didn’t have much time to explore the house and learn how to get in and out of it unnoticed, as I had turned off the security system. I would need to turn it back on before Rei returned home. I looked around the room carefully trying to decide what would be the clue I left behind for Xavier that I had been here. Rei wouldn’t understand, but I would make sure he did. Although I would not directly hurt my former lover, I did want to cause him pain. If I couldn’t have him, then no one could. I would destroy him to the point where Xavier would, in turn, ruin himself all on his own.