A Caged Songbird's Escape: Into the Arms of a Predator novel Chapter 229

The words slipped out of Slate’s mouth before he could stop himself, and even he was taken aback.

Every woman he’d ever been with, he’d grown bored of eventually. That was just how it went.

Even Elissa—at first, he saw her the same way. It was just a shame he’d never had the chance to actually be with her. Still, if he did get the chance, maybe marrying her wouldn’t be out of the question. And if he ever got tired of her? Well, there was always divorce. None of it really mattered; it was all just for convenience.

Of course, Grandma would never agree to any of this. The moment the words left his lips, Matriarch Paige Murphy looked as though she might explode, her face twisting in anger as she glared at him. “Have you completely lost your mind? Do you even know who you are? And who is she? What makes you think she’s good enough for you?”

Other than Rowan, he was her only grandson. Slate was already well past the age to settle down, but his grandmother had always doted on him, insisting that no woman was ever good enough, which was why his marriage had been postponed for so long.

And now, Slate was talking about marrying Elissa?

Forget whether Elissa was worthy—there was a more important problem. Once that man got out of prison, Elissa would be as good as dead. And then Slate would be stuck with the reputation of a man whose wife had brought him nothing but misfortune.

But Slate, stubborn as ever, wouldn’t hear any of it. “She’s perfect for me—every bit of her. Even her toes are perfect.”

The words were crude, almost embarrassing to hear. Matriarch Paige Murphy, a woman of her age, felt her face flush. “You’re absolutely hopeless!” she snapped. Lord only knew what kind of spell Elissa had cast over him.

If she’d known this would happen, she never would have brought Elissa into the family home; she should have left her to be raised elsewhere.

But Slate was undeterred, standing his ground. “I’m not marrying anyone else. It’s her or no one.”

“Don’t even think about it!”

Matriarch Paige Murphy jabbed him hard in the forehead. “I’ll be arranging a meeting with a proper young lady from a respectable family for you soon. In the meantime, I want you to keep your head down and stay out of trouble.”

She truly couldn’t understand what was so special about Elissa. Any one of those well-bred young women—pick one at random—would outshine Elissa in education, character, and family background.

But Slate was acting like he was under some kind of spell.

Slate knew exactly what kind of person he was, and he couldn’t be bothered to pretend otherwise. “If my cousin’s so capable, then let him take over. I’ve never had his brains—why should I compete?”

He couldn’t help but grumble, “Besides, what exactly happened between you and Rowan, anyway? Why are things so tense between the two of you?”

His cousin had always seemed to have it out for him, and Slate suspected it had a lot to do with their grandmother. Otherwise, carrying the Murphy name would have let him do whatever he wanted in Vistapeak City.

At this, Matriarch Paige Murphy fell silent for a long moment, then finally asked, “Do you know why your parents ended up in prison six years ago?”

“Of course.”

Slate remembered it vividly. It was the main reason he’d always been afraid of Rowan. “They were responsible for the deaths of my uncle and aunt.”

Seventeen years ago, Rowan was only thirteen when his parents both died in an accident. The police never found any evidence, and in the end, it was ruled just that—an accident.