I Want Revenge
I didn’t answer.
He turned away from me, running both hands through his hair. “Goddammit.”
“I shouldn’t have come here,” I said quietly. “But Jo said… Rowan, I didn’t know who else to go to. I…am not thinking straight from the fear and I just…I wanted to ask for your help.”
“You did the right thing.” His voice came quickly. “You always should. Remi—”
“I thought I was protecting them,” I said. “By staying quiet. By staying away.”
“You were. You are a good mother Remi.”
I blinked.
He walked back over, slo
Okwer this time. “Even after everything I did to you. Even after all the ways I hurt you… you still came to me for help. Why?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “Habit?”
He gave a humorless chuckle. “That’s a dangerous habit.”
I wrapped my arms around myself. “There was someone downstairs. Elena?”
“My great aunt.”
“She… helped me. I think she’s the only one in your entire family who doesn’t want me dead.”
“Elena’s blunt, but she sees through bullshit.”
“Your mother was there too.”
He stiffened. “Did she say anything?”
“Enough.”
His eyes darkened. “You want me to talk to her?”
“No. I want you to listen. Because there’s something else.”
He waited.
“I think it’s time I stop hiding. From everything. From stop being a coward and hiding in the past.”
Rowan stepped closer. “You mean that?”
I nodded. “But I need your help. And not… not romantic help. I need security. I need to protect my children. Whatever’s going on—this isn’t just about the past anymore. They are coming for me based on the present.”
He nodded once, serious now. “You’ll have it. I’ll pull everyone off everything else.”
I exhaled.
For the first time in hours, I felt like I could breathe.
“Thank you,” I said.
He nodded. “There’s a conference room two doors down. Stay here. I’ll call my top security. We’ll handle this right.”
As he turned to go, I caught his arm. “Rowan.”
He looked back at me.
“I mean it. No cameras. No press. Nothing public. This isn’t about your image. It’s about my kids.”
He held my gaze, something gentle flickering behind his eyes. “I know, Remi.”
The sincerity in his voice undid me. My throat tightened. Tears blurred my vision before I could blink them away.
“I’m scared,” I whispered, voice breaking.
Instantly, Rowan’s hands were on my shoulders, pulling me close. “Hey, hey—look at me. I won’t let anything happen to them. Or you.”
I hated how comforting his voice was. How much I needed it. “They almost took Larry, Laura…oh my God, it's now it's crashing into me,” I choked out, the tears spilling freely now. “They’re just babies, Rowan. They are my baby. I can’t—”
“Shh,” he murmured, wrapping his arms fully around me. “I know. We’ll get to the bottom of it. They won’t touch them again. Ever.”
My shoulders shook, months—years—of bottled-up fears tumbling out uncontrollably. “It’s like everything I love gets ripped away. Claire… Larry and Laura almost—”
“Remi, listen to me,” Rowan whispered into my hair. “I’m right here. I’m not leaving your side this time. I swear to you.”
I held onto his shirt, fingers clinging desperately. For a moment, the only thing real was his heartbeat, strong and steady beneath my cheek.
He rubbed my back gently until my breathing slowed. “Better?”
“A little,” I admitted, pulling away and wiping my face, embarrassed. “Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said softly. “Not to me. Not for this.”
I nodded, suddenly exhausted, every bone in my body heavy with fatigue.
He watched me closely, hesitant. “Remi, what do you think about moving in with me?”
I stared at him, stunned into silence. “What?”
He ran a hand through his hair, uncertain. “Hear me out. My place is secure. Gated. Cameras everywhere. No press coming to disturb you. No intruders. I know it’s not ideal, given our… past, but your safety—and theirs—is more important.”
“You’re serious,” I breathed.
He held my gaze steadily. “Completely.”
“I… Rowan your home hold alot of memories for me. And the kids—”
“They’ll be safe there. You’ll be safe, I also moved out a while ago, I have another home, clean and free from any memories of whatever I did to you,” he insisted gently. “I’m not asking you to forgive me, or to trust me completely. But let me do this. Let me protect my family.”
My heart stuttered. Family. The word felt impossibly fragile on his lips.
I looked away.
I didn’t say yes.
Didn’t say no either.
I just stood there, arms folded tightly, like I could hold myself together if I tried hard enough.
He stepped forward again, slower this time. “Remi. I know what I’m asking.”
“No,” I said quietly. “You don’t.”
His eyes flicked over my face, searching. “I promise you—nothing will happen to you. Or them. Not while I’m breathing.”
I flinched at that. Not because I didn’t want to believe him. But because… I almost did.
“You can’t fix everything with a promise,” I murmured. “You don’t get to say family like it hasn’t been shattered already.”
“I know,” he said. No excuses. No defensiveness. Just those two words. And somehow, it made my chest ache even more.
I wrapped my arms tighter around myself. “She’s done too much.”
He didn’t ask who.
I didn’t need to say her name.
Still, I did.
“Gigi.”
His jaw flexed. A flicker of something dangerous passed through his eyes, but he kept his voice calm.
I shook my head, the sting in my throat creeping up again. “She is like a bane to my existence. She is just too much,” I whispered. “And now she is coming for mg kids.”
His hands curled into fists at his sides.
I met his gaze fully this time. “I don’t just want safety anymore, Rowan.”
Silence.
Then I said it, barely above a breath.
“I want revenge.”
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