Chapter 8

Anastasia frowned. "I don't know how your family works, but I'm your brother's wife," she hissed and created space between them.

Robb smiled. He arranged her hair and tucked strands of her baby hair behind her ear. Smiling warmly, he stood up and left the room.

Anastasia came down from the bed the moment Robb left the room. She studied her environment first.

Properly shutting the door, she moved towards the vanity table and searched for an open space.

She opened the drawers. Her hand made through the files she found, and her face dropped in disappointment when she read through them and they didn't involve suspicious affairs.

She hesitantly stood straight and felt the surface of the table, searching for the fingerprint spot Jamie used last night.

Jamie walked into the room. He shook his head casually when he saw her. He silently walked further into the room and sat on his couch.

Anastasia stood straight. Her expression crumbled into defeat when she felt his presence behind her.

Jamie relaxed on his couch. "Go on," his voice came out oddly comforting.

Guilt covered Anastasia. She turned to face him. "It was nothing."

Jamie said nothing. He simply fixed his eyes on her and allowed his endless grey orbs to swallow her.

Anastasia began to play with her fingers. "I thought you left already. Also, I had no idea where you spent the night. I wanted to take a look at our marriage documents again," she lied smoothly.

Jamie flickered those steel grey eyes towards her direction. "I see." He hesitated, then added reluctantly. "Nothing goes on in here without my contest. Mind what you do,"

"I did nothing wrong," Anastasia defended herself immediately. "I just wanted to see what was signed without my concert."

She rolled her eyes, to hide the invisible sting of his words. "Also, I couldn't help it. I'm a bit too curious."

Dark, mysterious, piercing. Jaime's eyes saw through her soul, and straight into her. His eyes stripped past layers of elaborate lies to reach the ugly truth underneath.

Jamie grimmed. "What did your mother tell you?"

Anastasia stiffened. Her hand formed a defensive fist. "She told me about the marriage, and why she never informed me earlier."

Jaime leveled her with a glare. "And?"

Anastasia's hand sneaked up behind her. She slowly gripped the gun she had seen in the drawers. "My conversation with my mother shouldn't concern you."

Jamie wiggled one of his brows suspiciously. He stood up and moved towards her. Anastasia's grip tightened around the gun, the closer he came.

Jamie paused three steps away. "Now, we shouldn't build our foundation on lies, should we?" his voice came out lazily.

Anastasia's frown. She tried so hard not to, but it wasn't working. She created space between herself and Jamie. "I don't know what you talk about." she hissed, her voice low and even.

Jamie's voice was oddly comforting as he spoke, "Go on." Just like the last time, he urged her to continue.

This time, his words were laced with an undercurrent of tension, and Anastasia's guilt-ridden conscience pricked at her.

Anastasia picked up the gun. She pointed it at him and took two steps back. Jamie's gaze rested on her, his expression unreadable.

"What did your mother tell you?" he asked again, his voice low and even.

Anastasia's hand tightened around the gun, her grip betraying her growing unease. "She told me about the marriage and why she never informed me earlier." She took in a breath of courage. "You killed my father."

The words left Anastasia's lips before she would stop it. She gasped in shock, while Jamie remained calm with calculating eyes.

"Who told you that?" He questioned.

Anastasia's eyes watered. "You don't deny it?" Jamie's emotionless face caught her off guard.

Jaime smiled lightly. "You_"

Anastasia cut him off. She pointed the gun she held on his face, her hands trembling. She took a step forward and pressed the gun on his forehead.

Anastasia's voice trembled with rage and grief. "You killed my father," she repeated, the gun pressed against Jamie's forehead.

Jamie's expression remained calm, but his eyes flashed with a hint of surprise. "Who told you that?" he asked again, his voice even.

Anastasia's eyes welled up with tears. "My mother," she spat out, her voice venomous. "She told me everything."

Jamie's gaze never wavered. "I see," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "And you believe her?"

Anastasia's hands trembled, but she kept the gun steady. "Why would she lie to me?" she hissed.

Jamie's face turned blank. "I don't know your mother as much as you do, do I?" His voice pierced through her heart.

Anastasia's eyes narrowed. "You're lying," she spat out.

Jamie's expression turned cold. "Am I?" he asked, his voice dripping with menace. "Then why are you hesitating?"

Anastasia's grip on the gun faltered, her mind raced with different thoughts.

Jamie stepped closer to her. He gripped her waist, and pulled her closer to himself. Anastasia gasped.

"Do it," Jamie permitted, staring straight into her eyes.

Anastasia's eyes locked onto Jamie's, her grip on the gun trembling. She felt his warm breath on her skin, his gaze piercing through her soul. She knew she had to do it, and had to pull the trigger. But her finger hesitated, her mind racing with doubts.

Jamie's eyes seemed to bore into her very being, as if he knew her deepest fears. "Do it," he whispered, his voice low and husky.

With a surge of adrenaline, Anastasia's finger tightened around the trigger. She felt Jamie's grip on her waist tighten, his eyes flashing with a hint of raw emotions.

"Do it," he urged again, his voice dripping with anticipation.

Anastasia's heart raced, her mind screaming with conflicting emotions. But something in Jamie's eyes drew her in, made her want to surrender to him completely.

With a swift motion, Anastasia pulled the trigger. The sound of the gunshot echoed through the room, followed by a deafening silence.