Severance (Entangled Series Book 2) Read online

  SEVERANCE

  (ENTANGLED SERIES #2)

  C.M. RADCLIFF

  Copyright © 2020 C.M. RADCLIFF

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, events, places, brands, media and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission from the author, except for the use of quotations in a book review.

  Due to the graphic nature of this novel, it is not intended for anyone under the age of eighteen.

  Cover Design: Opulent Designs

  Editor: Ellie McLove of My Brother’s Editor

  PROLOGUE

  Dahlia

  Lying on my back, my vision is blurry and my surroundings are out of focus as my eyes adjust to the blinding lights in the room. Rubbing my eyes, the fuzziness slowly dissipates and the ceiling that I’m staring at is all too familiar.

  The room isn’t clean like it once was. It’s dusty and dingy with chunks of drywall hanging from large jagged cracks in the walls. The bed beneath me is lumpy and falling apart after years of use and the years that have passed.

  Underneath the thick layer of filth is the room where I spent many long hours.

  It’s the room which brought Kai and I together. It tied the knot that left us connected for the rest of our lives.

  Through the unspeakable things we were forced to endure, we were bound together.

  But, like all things in life, the good and the bad coexist. The unbreakable bond that we shared came with a cost.

  My life.

  I had to leave the girl that I once was behind and I was forever changed because of this place and these people.

  I became someone entirely different, but my soul would always be tethered to Kai’s.

  Despite it all, I wouldn’t change a single part of it. Every moment in our lives brought us together. No one knows my soul like Kai does.

  He’s my weakness and it’s a force that’s stronger than me. I was done fighting against us and it was time to fight for us.

  ◆◆◆

  Slowly sitting up, my eyelids droop as my mind becomes fuzzy. I’m caught in a temporary haze as a whooshing sound rings in my ears.

  I’ve done my fair share of drugs so I know that I was given something.

  Luca’s face flashes into my mind.

  “Welcome home, princess…”

  He laughed in my face as I stared at the farm in shock and as I turned away from him, something pricked the side of my neck.

  A warm, tingling sensation quickly spread through my body as I drifted off into the dark abyss.

  And here I was… Luca brought me back to where it all started.

  But, why?

  Much to my surprise, I’m lying freely on the bed, with no ropes or chains holding me down. As I gain my balance and sit upright, the door slowly creaks open. I squint my eyes against the bright light as I make out the large, burly man in the doorway, inhaling sharply as we make eye contact.

  “Well, well, well.” Stan smirks as he walks farther into the room. “Look at how grown up our little princess is now.”

  When did Stan get here?

  I only remember Luca…

  My throat is like sandpaper as I swallow hard. “Where is Luca?” I croak.

  Stan chuckles as he stops in front of me. “You would rather him be here than me?”

  My face remains stoic as I narrow my eyes at him. I give him nothing. I have no words for him.

  I would rather them both be here at the same time. They deserved to see each other die.

  “Where Luca is doesn’t concern you,” Stan barks. The corners of his lips slowly curl upward into a sinister grin. “If I were you, I’d be more worried about your boy.”

  All color drains from my face as my body stills. Clutching the filthy comforter on the bed, my heart pounds against my rib cage as I stare at Stan.

  Kai…

  Stan laughs out loud and shakes his head. “He thought he was untouchable with Luca being his father. But blood doesn’t mean shit in this world.” He pauses as his face grows stone cold and his black, dead eyes bore holes into mine. “He’s just as much of a liability as you are now…”

  Kai

  The wooden door is solid, but I can’t feel my skin as it splits with every thud against the hard surface. Lights inside slowly flicker on as I pound my fist harder on the door. Blood trickles down my arm and drips onto the ground, staining Aliana’s front porch.

  Light floods the darkness around me as the porch light above flashes on and the front door is ripped open. With my fist mid-air, I abruptly stop short before hitting Aliana in the face.

  I shouldn’t have stopped.

  I’d never hit a woman, but this bitch deserves a beat down. She doesn’t even equate to a woman anymore.

  She’s nothing more than a piece of shit with an expiration date.

  “What the hell do you want, Kai?” Aliana clips in an icy tone. Her eyes are hardened as she glares at me.

  She falters, but only for a fraction of a second. Her jaw clenches as she swallows nervously and quickly glances around. It’s so subtle, only a trained eye could pick it up. Her eyes only leave mine for a moment before darting back to meet my gaze. She thinks she’s skilled, like she has me fooled. Without missing a beat, she keeps up the façade, looking pissed off and wondering why I’m here.

  Grabbing both sides of the doorway, I grip the wood in my hands tightly as the blood drains from my knuckles. Leaning forward, I get in her face and look down at her. Internally, I’m shaking as the rage boils inside. I channel the anger and the rage and bury the fear deep beneath it.

  I fucking knew this would happen…

  We weren’t invincible when we were kids and we sure as hell aren’t now.

  I stare at her in bewilderment. “Where the fuck is she?” I demand harshly.

  Aliana flinches.

  I don’t fucking care.

  “She’s not here,” she jibes, rolling her eyes. “Did you check the return counter at WhoresRUs?”

  Pushing off the doorway, I plow into Aliana and shove her back into the house. The door slams shut behind us as I wrap my hands around her slender neck. Her frightful eyes are wide and her face begins to turn a nice shade of red. In a frenzy, she claws at my hands, drawing blood as she digs her manicured nails into my skin.

  Her attempt to escape my grip is feeble and it only feeds the raging beast inside me.

  Squeezing tighter, I slam her back against the kitchen wall and pin her against it with my weight. “You’re going to tell me everything that I want to know.”

  She nods, as much as my hands allow and a small tear spills from the corner of her eye.

  Fucking cunt.

  I tighten my grip.

  She doesn’t get to cry right now.

  My hands clamp her airway closed like a vise grip, making it impossible for her to breathe. Her movements become slower and disorganized as her brain is becoming oxygen deprived.

  It won’t take much to kill her. All I need to do is tighten my grip and crush the bones in her throat, starving her body of the oxygen it needs to survive.

  It won’t take much more pressure and it’s lights out for her.

  Aliana’s eyes start to roll back in her head as her body grows lax against mine. Dropping my hands, I take a step back and release her. She falls hard onto the ground, gasping for air. Her shoulders shake as she clutches her chest and struggles to catch her breath over s
ilent sobs.

  Clenching my fists, I stare down at Aliana, feeling the rage slowly taking over me.

  “She isn’t here, is she?”

  Aliana glances up at me with red, tear-filled eyes. Her bottom lip quivers, and I’m sure it’s not from sadness. She swallows hard and lightly shakes her head.

  I don’t know what answer I wanted. I shouldn’t even need answers, because there shouldn’t even be any questions to ask.

  I failed her… again.

  Spinning on my heel, I storm out of the foyer, leaving Aliana on the floor alone.

  ◆◆◆

  “GODDAMMIT!”

  My voice echoes like thunder throughout the house as I slam my bloody fists onto the marble countertop. Leaning on the counter, I hang my head and squeeze my eyes shut.

  Where the fuck is Dahlia?

  Feet shuffle across the tile floor as Aliana gingerly walks in and sits down at the island in the kitchen.

  Picking my head up, my gaze is hard and ice cold as it penetrates her emotionless eyes. She wears her mask well, appearing unaffected. Deep down, she’s terrified because she knows the truth.

  She knows that I’ll kill her without a second thought.

  She knows she means nothing to me.

  And that will either work in both of our favors… or not.

  “I tracked her phone here. Where is it and where is she?” I demand.

  Aliana sighs and folds her hands on the counter. “It’s in the trash, Kai. I destroyed it already.”

  Stepping back from the counter, I cross my arms over my chest, narrowing my eyes at her. “Why did you have it?”

  She shrugs and leans back, mirroring my actions and crosses her arms over her chest.

  Slamming my palms back onto the counter, I lean across, scowling at her. “Why the fuck did you have Dahlia’s phone?”

  The bitch has the audacity to lean forward and get in my face. “Because I do what your daddy says.”

  In a flash, I’m on the opposite side of the island with Aliana’s head pulled back and a steak knife pressed underneath her jaw.

  Her hand slips, knocking her phone from the counter as she gasps loudly and the blade bites her flesh as she swallows hard.

  She’s compromised, under my hold, and she knows it.

  “Tell me what the fuck is going on,” I whisper harshly in her ear.

  “There’s nothing to tell.” She sneers. “What’s done is done and there’s nothing you can do.”

  What the fuck has been done?

  Applying more pressure, the sharp knife breaks through the skin covering her throat. “If I were you, I’d start fucking talking, unless you want to bleed out on the floor like a stuck pig.”

  Aliana scoffs. “You won’t do it, not when I hold the answers to all of your questions.”

  She’s calling my fucking bluff.

  And she’s goddamn right. I can’t kill her until she tells me what’s going on.

  “Your daddy won’t be too happy about it either.”

  I don’t move the knife and I don’t loosen my grip. Instead, I tighten my fist. “He’s behind all of this?”

  “You’re the one who fucked up, Kai, and because of that, the whore pays.”

  Gripping her hair tighter, I pull her head back even farther. “Why her?”

  Aliana scoffs as she rolls her eyes. “Because you ruined everything for her.”

  “Cut the shit, Aliana. You were a distraction and I owed it to your father. I never wanted to marry you.”

  She chuckles lightly, her throat brushing against the knife. “And you were only a coverup for Luca and me.”

  What the fuck?

  Narrowing my eyes, I get closer to her face as she smirks. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry, baby,” she coos. “Your daddy knows the right ways to make me come.”

  I bark out a laugh. “You and Luca are fucking? Really?”

  “What’s so fucking funny about that?” Aliana clips. “It’s more than just that, but no one can know. Not yet at least.”

  Shaking my head, I laugh lightly. “You’re fucking pathetic, you know that, right?”

  “Fuck you, Kai!” she yells. “You’re the one on a mission to save a dead whore.”

  My body falls still and my face is impassive. I heard the words that she said, but it can’t be real.

  She isn’t dead.

  She can’t be.

  “Where did he take her?” I demand.

  “You really think I know?” she quips with the sarcasm dripping from her words.

  Blood trickles down the side of her neck as I press the blade into her skin again.

  “Where?” I growl, holding the knife firmly in place.

  Aliana swallows and her throat bobs under the blade. “The pig farm,” she whispers.

  My eyes widen as the color leaves my face. I feel the dread in the pit of my stomach as my heart pounds inside my chest.

  “Where it all started…” My voice trails off as I stare down at her.

  “Yes,” she whispers and her eyes are full of fear as they search mine.

  In one swift movement, I slide the knife across her neck, just barely nicking her skin. Blood trickles down the sides as she gasps loudly.

  Her eyes widen as I release her and she crumples to the ground. Falling onto her side, her body wracks as she clutches her throat and sobs.

  She should be lying here bleeding out, but I don’t want her blood on my hands.

  Crouching down, I lean toward Aliana and brush a piece of hair from her face. “I’m sorry it had to end this way,” I say with a sad smile. Reaching past her head, I grab her phone lying on the kitchen floor. “I always imagined that I would kill you one day, but today is not that day.”

  Staring at me in shock, her mouth falls open and she lets out a strangled sob as she tries to talk through it.

  Unlocking her phone, I don’t bother scrolling to his name and directly type in his number. The screen pops up for FaceTime and I turn the phone to her pale face as it begins to ring. Aliana’s picture goes to the top of the screen as he answers.

  “You know you’re not supposed to be calling me right now,” my father growls as his angry, flawless face appears on the screen. “Do you need a reminder of how bad girls are punished?”

  Aliana’s hands are bloody as she holds the superficial wound on her neck. She cries out as she starts to hyperventilate.

  “What the fuck?” Luca barks into the phone. “What the fuck is going on?”

  Aliana’s sobbing continues on the screen as my father lets out a string of curse words.

  “You took something of mine, so I came to take something of yours,” I whisper into the speaker, keeping the camera on Aliana’s face.

  My father’s eyes squint as he lets out a harsh laugh and smirks. “You ignorant, entitled, little fuck. You always think you know everything, but you’re fucking clueless, Kai.”

  “I know you have her.”

  Luca chuckles again and shakes his head. “Oh, Kai… when will you see how powerless you are in this world.” Luca takes a deep breath and rolls his eyes. “That bitch can easily be replaced, and honestly, you’re doing me a favor by getting rid of her. It’s a shame that you’re royally fucking Anthony over like this.”

  “You’re next,” I whisper harshly.

  My father’s eyes are sinister as he gives me a wicked grin. “If you want to play an eye for an eye, I have no problem turning the whole world blind if it means ending you.”

  “I’m done playing your games, Father.” I sneer as I grab Aliana’s hands and pull them from her throat. Luca’s eyes widen as he takes in the superficial cut and it registers that I didn’t cut her throat.

  “There is no eye for a fucking eye. There is you taking what is mine and me killing you for it.” I pause and smile at him. “And think again about me doing you a favor. Your bitch is still breathing.” I abruptly end the call and toss the phone to the floor beside Aliana. “Yo
u got off easy,” I admit, glaring at her as I stand up. “I should have killed you, but maybe that would have been too simple.”

  Straightening my clothes, I shrug at her as a tear rolls from the corner of her eye. “I’m sure he’ll be here soon, and it won’t be long before you’re dead anyway. And, as much as I’d love to stay and watch, I have better things to do and better places to be.”

  Without another word, I step over her and make my way to the front door as she begins coughing behind me. Ignoring her, I slip outside and climb back into my car. The roads are dark as I whip my car down the streets, knowing exactly where I’m going.

  I’m going back to where this all started, back to where Dahlia became my world.

  Dahlia is my ending and she’s where I’m going… even if my ending means my death.

  Dahlia

  So, this is the end of the road for me.

  I was brought here to die.

  My past finally caught up to me and they were going to finish what they had started.

  I always imagined that this day would come, the one where Luca finally tied up all his loose ends. He’s a smart, calculated man… it’s a wonder that it took him this long.

  Kai.

  He isn’t my knight in shining armor—he’s my dark prince in an Armani suit.

  Or is he?

  Kai plays a much bigger role in this than I know.

  He has to.

  My life wasn’t complicated until he came barreling back into it. I let my guard down because of him and look at where it got me… I’m where I should have died before.

  Whether it be destiny or fate, this place is where I was born and it’s only right for this to be where I die.

  ◆◆◆

  “So.” Stan’s deep voice breaks through my thoughts as he stares down at me with a sly grin on his face. “I heard you’ve been keeping yourself pretty busy over the years. Couldn’t keep your legs closed after you realized your purpose, huh?”