Chapter 44 Evie #2
My heart rate picked up, and I knew I had to get the words out. It would be word vomit. A mess, but he had to know. Suddenly I understood why Aiden had been so hesitant. I understood what it felt like to say one sentence that could unravel your entire life.
“Rook, I’m not your sister. Not biologically, I mean. They told me about our parents, and why they worked with the Order. It was me. They were protecting me because I was illegally adopted.”
Rook stopped, freezing with his back to me.
“I’m sorry,” I said, quieter now. “I didn’t know.”
Rook let out a slow breath, his head tilting back like he was absorbing the weight of it. His jaw flexed, but he didn’t speak. Not right away.
My stomach twisted. Maybe it did matter to him. Maybe he—
But then he let out a sharp, incredulous laugh. “That’s what they told you?”
“Yes.”
“And why am I supposed to believe them?”
“Because that’s why all this is happening.
I was digging into why our parents worked with the Order at all.
I never felt like it made sense. Our parents weren’t .
. . like us, with the criminal activities and all,” I said, forcing a sad grin.
“They didn’t like that, and when they brought me here, he told me why.
Our parents wanted another kid, but couldn’t have one themselves after you.
They adopted me, but it was illegal and our parents couldn’t do it alone.
The Order agreed to help them in exchange for their servitude and then .
. .” I took a deep breath, hating each word. “Then they wanted my servitude.”
Rook’s head dropped, his shoulders shaking. I should have expected it, but I was still surprised to realize he was laughing.
“This is funny to you?”
“Them thinking you’re going to be of servitude to anyone? Yeah, it’s fucking hilarious. I’ve fought tooth and nail to keep you helping us and even then, it still includes bribes. This cult thinks they can walk in and tell you what to do? That you would fall for it? Please, I would love to see it.”
“Rook, this isn’t funny. They think I owe them something.”
“Do you think you owe them something?”
“Not at all.”
“Then what’s the problem? They can’t take anything from us.
And we both know you’re not helping them.
I mean, let’s not tell them we plan to kill them off and not help them before we get Aiden back, but it’s not an issue, Evie.
As soon as we know Aiden’s okay, we will take care of them. Just like we take care of everything.”
I stopped again. “But I told you I’m not your sister, Rook, and you seem to be glossing right over that part.”
“Because you are my sister, and I don’t give a damn what they told you,” he said, the words not even a thought, only his truth.
“No. I’m not. We are not blood related.”
He stopped, too, turning to face me, anger etched in his furrowed eyebrows. “That doesn’t matter to me. You’re my family. I don’t care how you came to be my family.”
“Are you not seeing the big issue here? You shouldn’t have saved me, Rook. You could have had your parents, but you saved me. Your family is gone because of me and all this time I haven’t even been your sister.”
My lungs felt too tight, the walls closing in like the universe itself had turned against me.
I’m not Rook’s sister.
I’m not who I thought I was.
The memories hit like a landslide—my mom brushing my hair, my dad calling me “kiddo,” Rook throwing an arm over my shoulder in high school, telling some asshole, “Don’t even think about looking at my sister—”
Sister.
And all of it was a lie.
I stumbled, my fingers clutching at the doorframe to steady myself.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said, as if we weren’t talking about the fact that we weren’t actually related.
“Yes, it does. You’re not listening—I’m not your sister.”
“Stop!” he yelled, somewhere between anger and exhaustion.
“You are. In every way that matters, you are. And even if I had known this information ten years ago, I would have done the same thing. You are my sister, Evie. You are my family. You always will be. Our parents didn’t want us to think any other way.
I made the right choice saving you, and they would agree.
All our parents ever drilled into me is that I protect you, keep you close, keep you safe.
Since the day you came home, I’ve been told I’m your big brother.
Does one sentence erase twenty-two years of that?
I didn’t know why they told me that, but I guess we do now.
It would have been nice to know someone was truly going to be coming to collect one day. ”
Tears dripped down my face, but I didn’t wipe them away, the blood coating my hands making me think twice.
“But your family . . .” I said, the words drowned by more tears.
“Our family. Evie, you cannot spiral into this. They were our parents, and we both lost them that day. I didn’t lose any more than you did.
They protected you because you are their daughter.
We do not question blood and we never have.
Aiden is my family—our family—we would die for each other.
That’s all family is, and that’s what our parents did for you. No—for us.”
I took another ragged breath, letting him help me to my feet.
“Are you going to throw this in their face or mine?” he asked. “Are you going to tell them they can say what they want, but we’re a team? Or are you going to agree and help them?”
My lip curled, disgusted at the thought of what they would want me to do. “Not a chance.”
“Why?” he asked, like he already knew the answer.
I understood what he was getting at. “Because they aren’t my family. The one still in there bleeding out.”
“Exactly, and are you going to go kill the people who hurt our family?”
He flipped his knife, extending the handle to me.
“You going to be there with me?” I asked.
“Until the day I die. And don’t think this changes anything with you and Aiden. I’m still pissed he went behind my back and fell in love with my little sister.”
“He hasn’t said he loves me, so I think you are safe on that front.”
“I swear, if you are that na?ve, Evie, we are going to have a thousand more issues to address.”
“I am not na?ve.”
“Then don’t act like he didn’t risk everything to be with you.
The fact that he’s taking this seriously is the only reason I have a shred of calm right now.
And the same goes for you—if you’re screwing around and not taking this seriously, we’re going to have serious problems, because that will make all our lives a hell of a lot harder. ”
“I am taking it seriously. Which was why I was so upset when you acted like an asshole about it. I thought you would tell me to leave. Are you and him okay now?”
“Aiden and I are fine. I mean, mostly. Speaking of, are you still having an identity crisis, or can we go get him?”
I nodded, moving with him as he kept going.
He paused once, glancing down at his phone.
“I swear, this fucking group chat haunts my dreams with how much people are texting, but I let them know to get their asses over here and no one says a damn word.”
“Is that what we’ve been waiting on?”
Rook snorted. “I mean, that and your little meltdown. I thought it might help if I could get you out of there and bring in the guys to stop whoever it was, but apparently we are on our own this time.”
“Oh great, love that plan,” I said, sarcasm dripping as I tried to think of any way we could get Aiden out with Jack, Zack, and two bodyguards there.
We pushed through another set of doors and swept the space with our eyes, searching for any sign of Aiden or the Order members. The place was cavernous and half lit, every dark corner a possible threat.
“I always wondered why we didn’t look alike,” I said, a hiccuping laugh bubbling out of me.
“I just thought I was blessed with all the beautiful genes in the family. I’ve always felt a little bad I used them all up, but someone had to be the ugly duckling.”
“I’m about to put this knife in you.”
He grinned, kicking at another door. “There’s my deadly little sister. Which is good, because I need her. I’d like to remind you they have Aiden and he is currently in pain and bleeding because of these assholes.”
The rage hit me like a wall. “You’re doing this on purpose.”
“I am. Blood or not, Evie, we have one very important thing in common.”
“And what’s that?” I asked, testing the next set of doors in front of us.
“We can be fucking ruthless, and I have no doubt that every single one of them is going to regret having any sway in us being raised that way. Kill them, Evie. Nobody is going to live. They are never coming after us again.”
I nodded, knowing he was right. They played a part in who we were.
My hands curled into fists. They thought they could take everything from me. Rewrite my life, tell me who I belonged to, make me their puppet. Kill my parents and later hunt me down to collect what they thought was owed to them.
No.
No, they made a mistake. There was a flaw in their plan—me.
They wanted me to be their little soldier when I grew up and never considered I wouldn’t go along with it. Now, we were the flaw in their plan, and we could make sure it never happened again.