Page 197 of Mile High Ex's Dad
“Noise,” he says. “Panic. A way to make everyone look in the wrong direction.”
“You could have killed people.”
“Yes.”
No apology. No shame.
Just yes.
For a second, I cannot speak. This man stood beside me for years. He drank in my house. Treated my family. My best friend.
“You don’t understand what it’s like,” he says. “To watch someone you love keep bleeding for a man who doesn’t deserve her.”
“Alina never asked you to do this.”
“No,” he says bitterly. “She never asks for anything. That’s what you did to her.”
I stand.
His breathing is worse now. The fight is leaving him, but his anger is still there, ugly and alive.
“Do you know what I think? You used Alina’s pain as an excuse,” I say. “You used Ethan’s jealousy. You used Mikhail because you knew I would want to believe he was guilty.”
Maksim’s jaw clenches.
“Viktor,” Sienna whispers behind me.
I turn immediately.
She’s trying to stay upright, but she’s fading. Her eyes are unfocused, her body trembling too hard.
I leave Maksim on the floor and go to her.
“Sienna.”
I kneel beside her and gather her carefully against me. The second my arms go around her, she breaks. She starts crying in a quiet, exhausted way, like she doesn’t have the strength to sob properly.
“I thought you believed him,” she says.
“I didn’t.”
“You pointed the gun at me.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
She pulls back enough to look at me. “I thought you were going to kill me.”
The words cut through me. I touch her face gently, avoiding the bruise near her mouth. “I was aiming past you.”
She sucks in a breath. “How did you know he was lying?”
“At first I didn’t,” I admit. “But I know you, Sienna. And even if you hurt me, I’ll still forgive you. That’s how much I love you.”
A sob escapes the back of her throat and she presses her forehead against my chest. Her whole body is shaking.
For a moment, I just hold her and let her breathe. I need to get her out of here, but she needs one second to understand she is safe with me.
“What happened?” I ask.
