Chapter 248

Chapter 248 Book 3 Chapter 83 ~WILLOW~

“My tummy is already showing, and it’s only been a few days,” I whisper. “How long will the baggy clothes be able to hide it?”

“I’m not sure,” Caroline whispers back.

We were trying to be as quiet as possible; we didn’t need anyone hearing this and reporting it to my birth mother.

I missed Dante every single day that went by. I knew I did the right thing by leaving, but that didn’t make it easier. I wanted to see him, but even if I decided that I wanted to go back, there was no way that my birth mother would let me leave this place. I was trapped here for a long time.

They were convinced that Cassius was waiting for the right time to attack. I didn’t even know what this man looked like. There were no pictures of him; I don’t think they had even seen him. They just knew that he was waiting to kill us.

I sighed as my thoughts went straight back to Dante.

He was probably happy now that I was gone. He would be able to live his life more peacefully. He would no longer have to worry about hurting my feelings.

This is what I wanted. It’s why I left so that he could be happy again.

I push thoughts of him out of my head. I started thinking about Cassius and how we would defeat him without harming Clarissa and Autumn.

I’ve been training for a few days now, and I haven’t seen much improvement. I was nowhere close to my sisters and their advancement.

I notice a few of the women looking at something on their phones. They were all glued to the screen like it was something important.

“What’s happening there?” I ask Winter. “What are they looking at?”

She looks over at them. “I’m not sure. I’ll go see.”

Caroline and I wait for her to return.

“I’m sure it’s nothing important.” She dismisses it.

The women all look over at me after Winter said something to them.

I could see them whispering in front of me. It was obvious that they didn’t want me to know what they were talking about. I didn’t like when anyone kept secrets from me.

Winter looks at me then, and I can see the worry in her eyes. She quickly tries to hide it from me, and it only makes me feel more curious than before.

She walks over to us, and instead of speaking to me, she pulls Caroline to the side and starts discussing with her. What were they keeping from me?

“I can see you.” I wave at them. “I know you’re trying to keep something from me. Just tell me what’s going on.”

They look at each other.

“What’s going on?” I ask Caroline a second time. “What are the two of you keeping from me? Please tell me. Why does everyone seem to know something that clearly involves me?”

They look a bit nervous to tell me. The longer they took to say anything, the more anxious I got.

“You’re scaring me,” I admit. “Did one of you finally come face to face with Cassius? Or did he threaten you guys over the phone?”

Winter shook her head. “No. That’s not what we’re talking about. This has nothing to do with Cassius.”

“Then tell me.” I insist. “What’s happening?”

“It’s about your husband.” Caroline finally answers me.

I freeze at her words.

My husband?

What about Dante?

“Did something happen to him?” I demand. “Is he looking for me?”

For some reason, I felt excited at the thought of Dante searching for me.

“No, he isn’t looking for you.” She sighs. “He’s kind of busy doing something else.”

I pause. Doing something else? A million thoughts flashed through my mind at those words. Was he already seeing someone else? That’s not likely; he was too crazy about my sister to start seeing someone else the second I left.

“Let me see.”

They hesitate once more.

“I don’t think this is something you should see, Willow,” Winter tells me. “I don’t even think it’s a good idea that we are discussing this right now. It’s just a distraction, and it’s the last thing you need right now. You already have too much to deal with.”

I grab the phone from her and stare blankly at the video in front of me.

“What is this madness?” I demanded when I could find my voice again.

“The fighting ring. He’s doing a fight every night for one week.” Winter explains. “This is already his fifth night. He has two more left.”

My eyes widen, “this doesn’t make any sense. Dante never loses his fight unless he wants to, and he’s losing this one. He looks awful!”

My heart hurts at his condition. What the hell was he doing to himself? Why was he just letting that man beat him like that?

“He’s lost all other four matches.” She informs me. “And he’s going to lose the fifth. Maybe he’s finally facing stronger opponents.”

No.

That couldn’t be it. There has to be more to this.

“I’m telling you. He never loses a fight unless it’s intentional!” I exclaim. I was beginning to panic.

He was about to do this same thing to himself tomorrow night as well.

“I’ve heard the opponent gets stronger each night,” Caroline whispers. “It’s only going to get worse from tonight.”

“I can’t let this happen,” I whisper. “I need to get there. I need to stop him before he does something stupid!”

“What?” Winter demands. “You can’t leave here, Willow. It’s unsafe, and our mother will never allow it!”

“I must!” I insist. “Please. You need to let me go. I need to see Dante! I have to stop him!”