Corrupted Chaos (Tarnished Empire)(97)

Cade didn’t flinch, nor did his face turn to the side. I wish I could say he didn’t lean into it, but I swear that man saw it coming from a mile away and wanted the pain of it.

“Again, Harley Quinn, and make it hurt this time.”

The noise I made as I reared back was animalistic. Tearing this man apart would be a job well done by me, I figured. No one should be subjected to the type of pain I felt when I wasn’t with him, to him coming back into my life and trying to lay claim to certain parts of me. “If you want the devil from me, you’re going to get it.”

He lifted an eyebrow, so damn cocky in his desire to ruin me. No part of me was right then. All the normal, calm parts of me disbursed and twisted. I was an algorithm ruined, I truly was glitching, falling apart, disassembling into nonsense, causing destruction as I did so. My hand didn’t just meet his face this time, but the muscle I put behind it did too.

One slap, two slaps, and probably ten more. Cade let me wail on him until I tired.

I shoved him back and screamed, “I hate you. You’ve ruined me. You’ve ruined everything.”

“Any more anger, dollface?” He smirked, nestling into my neck like this was normal, loving behavior between us.

“There’s something wrong with you. I really think you need help,” I warned him. He needed someone to tell him.

“Maybe. But there’s something wrong with everybody.” His hands went from the counter to my hips. “If you want me to, I can find the problem in anyone for you. Nobody’s perfect.”

“Don’t come here and call me those names, like we have something, like you think the last month didn’t happen.”

“Oh, it happened,” he ground out. “I had to live through it without the person I love in my life. The person who makes my heart beat.”

“How can you say that after you told me you would let me go and let me be with someone else?”

“I still counted the days, the hours, the minutes, the seconds without you.” He admitted it as if that made everything better.

The tears that streamed down my face were ugly reminders that I couldn’t bottle up my feelings with him. “How could you leave me after that night? We . . . I thought you loved me, or at least liked me enough to stay. I fell in love with you, Cade. I fucking bled for you, showed you the inside of me and didn’t shine it up at all. I gave you every raw part of me, only for you to leave the very next day.”

“Izzy, I’m trying to protect you.” He shook his head, his own dark eyes glistening. “I thought it was right.”

“And now?”

“Well, now I’m sure.”

“Sure of what?” I asked even though it didn’t matter.

“Sure that I’ve changed the world enough. I’m sure that every family knows who you are.” He dragged a finger over the bracelet and I looked down to see UNTOUCHABLE etched on the gold now. “You’re safe, that you’re an Untouchable, and that you’re getting the best life you can.”

“What does that even mean?” I threw up my hands in frustration. “I was safe with you here!”

“No.” He shook his head. “How can you think that? You know my family. You know people will always be out to get me. They kidnapped you, Izzy. They—” He took a shaky breath and then paced away from me, only to pace back again. “You could have died there. That would have been on me.”

“No, it wouldn’t have! I hacked their files. Me. Not you.” I hit my chest in frustration, trying to make him understand.

“I should have been watching you! I should have protected you. Don’t you see?” He dragged one of his tattooed hands down his face, and I saw the pain there, the fear. “I could have lost you.”

“That wouldn’t have been your fault, Cade.” I didn’t know why I was consoling him, but I had to. He looked broken, tired, and just as depressed as me.

He pulled at his thick dark hair. “It would have been my fault, dollface. I was so consumed with you that I let my guard down. I let shit slip through the cracks. I wasn’t going to let that happen again. This country has made changes since then.”

I glanced at the television. We all saw the news. “You created a lot of havoc.”

“They should be happy I didn’t create more. And I had to leave you for a while to make sure that in that time, you were safe. I visited every family in the world that’s important. I’ve had conversations with them all. I’ve hacked every one of their bank accounts just to show them exactly what I’m capable of, to show them your value to me. They all know now.”

“Know what?” I asked with a hand on my hip.

“You’re mine. And if they even breathe an ounce of foul air in your direction, I will burn their country to the ground.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me you were doing that, Cade? Why make me believe you’d left? Why cut me off?” He needed a better excuse than wanting to protect me.

“Tell you?” He shrugged. “Until I was sure I could solidify your safety, Izzy, I couldn’t have you clouding my judgment. I love you too much. You were better off without me around and I needed my full attention on the priority, keeping you safe.”

I was furious he couldn’t have just shared his plan with me, so I shrugged and went for the jugular. “Maybe I still am better off. I don’t want a man who’s in and out of my life. It’s not like we ever established you would be. We were just having fun—”