Page 38 of Keeping My Enemies Closer: Pt. 2

“I want to hear what she has to say for herself, Kasimir,” I repeated.“I want to be there.”

He didn’t say anything for a really long time, making things uncomfortable as I tried not to squirm under that unrelenting stare of his.Even if his eyes weren’t two different colors, Kasimir’s confidence was enough to make anyone second-guess themselves.

After what felt like hours, he finally said, “That is not a decision that I can make myself.I will have to run it by Viktor and Aurora, and if Aurora says no, then that’s it.Viktor will not go against her wishes, no matter who speaks on your behalf, Zoya.”

Hope bloomed in my chest.“But if she says that it’s okay?”

Kasimir looked like he’d rather cut off his own arm than say whatever he was going to say.“If Aurora says that it’s okay, then...then I’ll allow it.”

I let out a deep sigh of relief, though I was aware that this might come back to bite me in the ass.However, right now, it was what I wanted, and while it was true that I might not be able to stomach the torture part of it all, I did want to see Marcelle suffer.I wanted to see her cry and beg for her life.She deserved to go through what she had put me and my mother through, and I didn’t feel bad about that.I didn’t feel bad about giving her a taste of her own medicine.

“I can handle it, Kasimir,” I assured him.“I promise.”

“I don’t think that you can,” he replied bluntly.“Nevertheless, since I understand the need for revenge very well, I’m not going to stand in the way of you getting yours,lepestok.”

“She deserves to suffer,” I remarked quietly.

Cocking his head, he said, “I hope you still feel that way after you’ve witness someone at their most desperate.I hope you still feel that way when her tear-stained face is looking up at you, begging you not to kill her.”

“She didn’t care when we were doing it,” I pointed out.

“She didn’t care because she hadn’t been there to witness it,” he countered.“She didn’t have to force herself to forget that you and your mother were human beings.Unlike you, she gets to go to sleep at night without the wails of desperation in her ears.”

“I don’t care,” I told him, refusing to let him talk me out of this.“If it wasn’t for her, none of this would ever have happened.If it wasn’t for her, then my mother would still be alive.”

After a few seconds he said, “Fine, but I want to make one thing very clear, Zoya.”

“What’s that?”

“No one will think less of you if you end up changing your mind,” he replied sternly.“Do not take on more than you can handle when you’ve got me to do the heavy lifting, baby.”

“While I appreciate that, I want to do this, Kasimir,” I repeated.“If I...if I’m a part of it, then maybe I’ll be able to forgive myself one day.If I get revenge for my mother, then maybe I won’t feel so goddamn sad every day.”

Kasimir reached out, then yanked me into his arms, his warmth soothing me in a way that shouldn’t be possible when you considered the topic that we were discussing.Nonetheless, I felt comfortable and safe in his arms, and I wasn’t going to overthink it like usual.

No...tonight, I was just going to enjoy it.