The Heiress' Revenge

Chapter 176: A Kiss

Melissa’s POV

The warehouse was dark and cold, and it smelled like dust and rust and old things that had been forgotten.

Asher was tied to a chair in the corner.

His hands were behind his back.

His feet were tied to the legs, and his mouth was covered with tape.

His face was wet with tears.

His eyes were wide with fear he was shaking. His whole body was shaking as he looked at me like I was someone who had mercy.

I looked away

I couldn’t look at him, not because I felt sorry for him but because his eyes reminded me of Dante and Ariana of everything they had that I didn’t have, everything they had stolen from me.

Angelo was pacing back and forth.

Back and forth.

His footsteps echoed on the concrete floor.

He looked nervous

"We shouldn’t be here," he said. His voice was low. Tense. "This was a mistake. We should let him go. We should disappear. We should—"

"Stop," I said with a sharp voice. "Stop pacing and stop talking. I make the decisions now, not you."

Angelo stopped and looked at me. His eyes were scared. "Melissa, listen to me. This is crazy. Kidnapping a child? Holding him hostage? This is not what we agreed. This is not—"

"This is exactly what we agreed," I interrupted. "I told you I would do whatever it takes. I told you I would burn their world down. I told you I would make them pay, and you agreed. You said you would help me. You said you would follow my lead."

Angelo ran his hand through his hair. His face was twisted with worry. "I didn’t think you meant this. I didn’t think you would actually—"

"You didn’t think?" I laughed. It was a bitter sound. Hollow. "That’s your problem, Angelo. You never think; you just react and follow. You just do what you’re told. That’s why you’re here, and that’s why I love you."

Angelo’s jaw tightened.

His hands clenched into fists. "I’m here because I love you too. . I helped you escape from prison. I helped you get away. I helped you take the boy, and now you’re talking about killing him?"

I walked toward him.

My heels clicked on the concrete.

"You love me?" I asked with my voice soft now. Dangerous. "You love me, Angelo? Then prove it. Prove it by standing by me. Prove it by trusting me. Prove it by not questioning me."

Angelo’s face softened just a little and enough. "I do love you, you know I do, but this... this is too much. This is a child, Melissa. An innocent child. He didn’t do anything to you, and he didn’t do anything to anyone."

I looked at Asher.

"He is not innocent," I said, my voice was cold. "He is their son, and I want to hurt them. I want to destroy them. I want to take everything from them the way they took everything from me."

Angelo stepped back."You’re not talking about money anymore. You’re not talking about running away."

I grabbed his face. I forced him to look at me. "I don’t care what it is, I don’t care what you call it. I don’t care what anyone thinks. Dante and Ariana took everything from me, and now I’m going to take everything from them."

I let go of his face and walked to Asher.

He flinched when I came close.

He tried to move his chair back, but couldn’t.

I crouched down in front of him, looking into his eyes.

His tear-filled, terrified, pathetic eyes.

"You know," I said, "your parents think they’ve won. They think they can just go back to their perfect little lives and forget about me, but they’re wrong. They’ll never be safe, not as long as I’m alive, not as long as I’m breathing."

Asher whimpered behind the tape.

Tears poured down his cheeks.

Snot ran from his nose.

He looked disgusting, just like his pathetic mother

I stood up. I turned to Angelo. "We’re going to threaten them. A huge sum of money, enough to start a new life, to disappear, and after they pay, we’re going to kill him."

Angelo’s face went white. "What? No. No, Melissa. That wasn’t part of the plan. You said money. You said we would take the money and run. You said—"

"The plan changed." My voice was flat. "I want to hurt them, I want them to suffer, I want them to live the rest of their lives knowing that their son is dead because of them, because of what they did to me."

Angelo stepped toward me. His hands were reaching for me. Pleading. "Melissa, please. Please don’t do this. This boy is innocent."

I slapped his hands away. "I don’t care what he deserves; I don’t care about him. I care about myself. About what I want and need."

"And what do you need? What could possibly be worth the life of a child?"

I looked at Asher.

"I need them to hurt like I said," I said. "I

I walked to Angelo and put my hands on his face, pulling him close.

I kissed him.

His lips were soft.

Hesitant.

He didn’t kiss me back at first; he was fighting it.

But I didn’t stop, I pressed harder and pulled him closer

And finally, he kissed me back.

When I pulled away, his eyes were different.

"I make the decisions," I said. "Not you, and you agreed to follow me. You agreed to stand by me. You agreed to do whatever it takes."

Angelo nodded slowly. "I agreed."

"Then we do this. We threaten them. We take the money, and then we kill the boy. Together."

He nods, "Together."