Chapter 3
I feel Mia’s gaze on me, burning me from within. When I look at her, she whips her head away so fast, causing my insides to crumble. It’s clear what she means by that gesture. I am okay with her shutting me out. Maybe she will stay away and not try to save what’s impossible to salvage.
Her hair clip catches my attention as it shines under the chandelier’s bright light. My hand automatically brushes the one I stole from her, tucked in the pocket of my jeans––my lucky charm, the only bridge I have to keep her close.
Bailey shoots up from her seat and jumps straight into my arms. I catch her with ease, a genuine smile curving the corners of my lips.
“I missed you,” she says, sounding relieved.
“Missed you too.” Guilt punches me in the chest with swift precision. While I would do anything for my friends and family, there was always something more with Bailey. She’s the sister I never had.
Dane jerks a chin at me in greeting. Next to him is Abigail, who takes me in with a raised brow and pursed lips, a clear sign she’s still mad at me.
I sweep my gaze to Celine, who glances between Kaden and me. My eyes lock with Kaden’s.
“Look who decided to come back,” he snickers.
“There wasn’t much of a choice.”
“Then you should have stayed the fuck away if you don’t want to be here with your family.”
“That was the plan, but apparently, you couldn’t let it go.”
While I don’t feel physical pain, I am not exempt from the emotional kind. I’ve been tipping from one extreme to the other, and trying to control those two sides leaves me destitute.
“Blake, please take a seat.”
I nod at Cassandra and take the seat next to Mia.
The moment I sit down, her sweet scent of amber and orange blossom hits my nostrils. Fisting my hands at my sides, I regret coming back with a vengeance.
Eight weeks. That’s how long I got to experience freedom without the clutches of the Family. Yet here I am, back again to protect them at whatever cost. I don’t need their friendship to do that. That has been tarnished, and nothing could restitch it.
“Why didn’t you tell us, Ma’am?” Celine asks her mother.
“Because I wasn’t sure he’d return.”
I wasn’t either. I came back for one reason: to ensure Mia’s safety.
“We have been worried sick,” Celine says, her midnight blue eyes boring into mine.
“I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself.”
She squints at me. I won’t pretend anymore. I am what I am: half human and half experiment.
“You’re going to move back in, living together on campus,” Cassandra says, brooking no argument.
“Cheers to the happy family,” I say, my voice ringing with sarcasm as I hold up an invisible glass.
“I can’t believe your fucking nerve,” Kaden says, and I lean back, crossing my arms.
“Let’s get one thing straight. I came back for one reason—to fulfill my duty. I am not here for forgiveness or our fake friendship.”
“Fake?” Abigail screeches, her doll-like features twisting in hurt.
Dane glares at me so hard it wouldn’t surprise me if he shot a fireball my way. Kaden jumps up, slamming his palms on the table.
“And whose fault was that?”
“Enough,” Cassandra says, ending our bickering.
A member of the estate staff serves me a plate of food, and I offer a thank you. The salmon on a bed of steamed vegetables looks scrumptious. This is the best meal I have had since I left, and I’m going to enjoy it.
Silence falls around the table. Only the cutlery grazing on the plates sticks out in the tension-choked air.
I feel the chains again wrapping invisible cuffs around my wrists and ankles. It is what it fucking is. Once I help Cassandra eliminate whatever threat looms, I will vanish again.
Mia takes small bites. Everything about her is delicate and feminine. My hands tremble with the urge to indulge in her. I’ve always wanted what I shouldn’t.
“I want to talk to you about some more changes,” Cassandra says, patting her mouth with the linen napkin. “To avoid a future battle for power, I’ve decided that you will take the surname Arison when you marry.”
They all look at each other, and Cassandra continues, “This is the only big change I will make in my time as matriarch.”
“So that means we can’t take our partner’s name?” Abigail asks, looking at Cassandra, then at Dane.
“No.”
“Why that name?” Hunter asks.
“Because not only would we create an irrevocable unity—six families truly becoming one—but we would also correct a longstanding wrongdoing. Despite all the arranged marriages and business dealings, the founding families never truly trusted one another. They were constantly in competition, always trying to outdo each other.
“Clara Arison, the only woman among them, became the most powerful. She refused to marry because she would have forfeited her position to her husband by doing so. When she died, her name and influence disappeared with her. However, she had devised a set of rules—trust, respect, togetherness. But greed and thirst for power corrupted the future generations, shattering her vision.”
“I don’t give a damn about carrying that asshole’s name,” Kaden says, taking Celine’s hand and interlacing their fingers on the table.
“Fuck it. Fine,” Dane says, and Abigail caresses his cheek, eyes brimming with adoration.
“Unity, that’s a work in progress at the moment,” Hunter says, looking around the table.
“You will all serve the Family, continuing the legacy under one name, ending the century-old competition.”
A reverent silence falls around us. Cassandra has a point, and deep down, we all want to be free of the connection to our fathers’ names. A clean slate, a fresh beginning—it sounds almost too good.
When dinner ends, I remain seated. Before the group leaves, they steal glances at me and then at Cassandra.
“They’ll think I have a favorite as a matriarch.”
I chuckle. “I’m nobody’s favorite. Just a secret weapon.”
“Don’t diminish our connection.”
“The matriarch role looks good on you.”
She smiles, shaking her head at me. “Something I never wanted, yet it is what it is.”
“You’re doing better than I imagined.”
“Our demons won’t disappear, Blake. We’ll just have to live with them. Accept our pasts and overcome what we went through by moving forward. I am glad you’re back.”
I open my mouth to rebut her, but she cuts me off by adding, “You believe you don’t have a place at the table. I just gave you one. Now, it’s up to you if you want it to be temporary or permanent. But as long as you’re here, I want you to experience some normalcy. Enjoy college.”
“That is not why I came back.”
“War is coming. Enjoy the small break.”
She calls for Samuel, who appears immediately, but with his back to me, I can’t see what he gives her. Side by side, we walk outside, and then she hands me the keys to my McLaren.
“Thank you.”
“Now, go back to the house and get settled in.”
“Fine, Cassandra. I hope you know what you’re doing by bringing me back,” I say, and I get into my black sports car.
The engine purrs under me, a growly and powerful beast roaring with its hundreds of horsepower. The leather seat sucks me in, and satisfaction pumps my blood as I wrap my fingers around the wheel. I’ve missed this car. Driving away, I turn on the music, the deep bass sounds engulfing me, but the drive to campus is short—too short.
The security guy sees me and opens the gates. Once I park in front of the house, I lean my head against the headrest, needing a moment. While they don’t deserve my loyalty after accusing me of being a traitor and a mole, I’ll only stop caring about them once I’m dead.
Stepping inside, I follow the raised voices coming from the living room and ready myself for the unwelcome greeting. Without Cassandra as the buffer, they won’t go easy on me.
I should go to my room, shower, and try to sleep. But the moment I pass the living room, Kaden grips my neck and pushes me into the wall. Anger and disappointment war in his eyes. “You fucking asshole.”
“I won’t tell you twice. Get your hands off me or I’ll make you.”
“Bring it on. You want to fight, let’s fight,” he snarls.
Celine stands up from the couch, and he releases me.
“Tonight is girls’ night out. And none of us want to come back and find a single scratch on your bodies,” she says.
Mia still avoids my glance, and it shouldn’t bother me, but it fucking does. Ever since she crashed into my life, all I wanted was for her to stop looking at me. I can’t stand it now that my wish has become a reality.
Abigail approaches me. “Don’t go to sleep. We need to talk.”
Bailey kisses my cheek. “Let it out, Blake.”
I don’t intend to hide that part of me ever again.
I offer her a nod, and I notice what Mia is wearing. My nostrils flare at the tight dress accentuating her sinful body.
Rein yourself in. She was never yours and never will be.
Alone with the guys, Kaden stomps toward the basement, followed by Hunter.
“What the fuck is your problem?” I ask Dane, who hasn’t stopped glaring at me.
“My fucking problem is that Abigail was overcome worrying about you. She cried herself to sleep, thinking it was her fault. You should have fucking stayed, not disappeared when it was convenient for you.”
“Dane, don’t make me hurt you.”
“Let’s see if you can.”
Fine. These assholes think they can take me down. I’ll show them they can’t.
Once in the gym, Kaden is the first to hop into the boxing ring.
I peer at my battered knuckles. I can still feel the bones crunching and all the blood I drew from my opponents. Yet, when I look at my former brother and best friend, the need to protect him is still there. But if I show any weakness, he’ll think he can get through me. I know Kaden. He was mad that I used Celine for my plan to take Felix and Caleb down. He needed time to process it, but my leaving was something he didn’t see coming.
I enter the ring, cracking my neck.
Kaden says nothing as he lunges at me. I avoid his right hook flying past my ear and punch him straight in his stomach.
He stumbles back but recovers quickly.
“You held back, asshole,” he spits.
“Yes, but I won’t anymore. You’re a good fighter, but I fucking destroy good fighters. Your ego is too big for that. Get out of the ring before I hurt you.”
He comes at me in a flash, raining punches until he finds an opening and jabs me in the chin. And then the fight is on. We don’t stop until I have him on the mat. His face is a bit bruised, but he also got in a few punches on his own.
“Celine won’t like this,” I tsk.
“Fuck you.”
He rolls us over, and I sigh when we’re back on our feet. I love to fight, but not against them. The story of my life––doing things I don’t want for the greater good.
“You’re a fucking disappointment,” he says, hitting me again, and in the next moment, I send him flying back.
“Stay down this time,” I snarl.
Hunter comes next and says to Kaden, “My turn.”
When Hunter helps Kaden up, I see their friendship and an unpleasant feeling hits my chest.
I haven’t fought against Hunter, and I always let my new opponents attack me a few times to learn their attack strategy. But once I figure that out, it’s the endgame for them.
“Are you even human?” he asks, awe and incredulity battling in his tone as we engage in a violent dance of kicks and punches.
No, I’m not .
Even though he’s a skilled fighter, holding his own, I knock him down.
Dane is next after helping him up. He’s reckless, and that will cost him. If he wants a lesson in humility, so be it. He comes at me, moving fast as he strikes, trying to hit me. After playing with him a few times, I’ve had enough and send him to the mat as well.
Pulling off my long-sleeved shirt, I dab at the sweat and blood on my face and chest. All three of them are watching me––a wall of unity. How times change, turning enemies into friends. Good for them.
Without a second glance, I head upstairs.
My old room looks the same as I left it, with its cold tones and black furniture. I see the frame with the pic of me and Kaden on my nightstand, face down. I cracked the glass when I slammed it down after he accused me of being a traitor. I am about to throw it in the trash when I stop myself. I’ll keep it as a reminder that my sacrifices kept his ass alive.
I am not here to get a seat at the table. I am here temporarily, and that thought sharpens my focus.
Stepping into the shower, the hot water cascades down my back. Blood trickles down my feet toward the drain, but it doesn’t wash away my pent-up anger.
After my shower, I dry off and wrap the towel around my waist. The person looking back at me from the mirror is hardened— a lone wolf. My restlessness pushes me to leave. It’s not family that keeps me in place, but obligation. I am gone once I make sure no one can ever get close to them. And this time, it’ll be forever.
I pull on a fresh pair of boxer briefs, and as soon as my head hits the pillow, the recurring image in my mind is her. Mia. The girl with silver eyes. The only girl who has ever made my heart react. Fuck. That’s not good at all.