Chapter 42
Logan
“Solitaire?” Serena asks slowly. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Crouching in front of her, I run my hand through my hair.
“Take everything I say very seriously, Serena. It’s going to sound ridiculous, I know, but it’s all true.
I haven’t lost my mind. Yet.” I try for a smirk, but she’s not buying it, so I continue.
“It’s a Secret Society that operates globally but is split up into areas, sectors, and cities.
There are tens of thousands of members, and no one really knows who is in unless you are part of the city Society.
I’m part of the Grove City Society, and Rue belongs to the Coe Bay one. ”
“Rue?” she hisses, her eyes finding her friend. “You?”
“Yes. I wanted to tell you, but there are rules, strict ones, that we have to abide by. The clue is in the secret bit. No one outside is supposed to know.”
“Then why are you telling me?” Her voice goes shrill, and panic sets in. She struggles to breathe, dropping her legs and placing her hand on her chest. Eyes wide, they find mine, and I see that this is real anxiety, and she’s scared.
She chokes and splutters, her hand waving around as Rue drops in front of her and grabs her hands. “Focus, Serena. Everything you know about Logan and me is real. This isn’t a big deal. It’s just another layer to things you know about the people you care about. Who care about you.”
Crawling closer to Serena, I give her the space she needs while also being near in case she needs me. Rue is good with her; she knows what she’s doing. I’m still learning. Panic, fear, and anxiety, these are not things I’m used to dealing with, but it runs deep in Serena, so I need to learn.
Fast.
I take in everything Rue says to her, learn the words, the cadence of her tone, and her relaxed manner so I can be the one who soothes her when she needs me.
Serena’s breathing calms, and she gulps back a few choking breaths before she exhales slowly. “I don’t understand any of this,” she gasps. “What does any of this have to do with me or what happened last night?”
“Quentin, your uncle, is part of the Society, Serena,” I say when Rue shuffles over to allow me closer to her now. “He is my boss, for all intents and purposes. He is the Head of the Grove City Society.”
“What?” Her shock is genuine, so if I had any doubts she already knew and was keeping it from me, they’re gone.
I dislike that I had that niggling doubt, but after Shelley, after every other woman I can remember, that insecurity is there.
But I needn’t have worried with Serena. She is everything I dreamed of and more.
“Quen?” she splutters. “Are you fucking joking?”
Shaking my head, I give her a sad smile. “No, I’m not joking, baby girl.”
“That explains so much,” she mutters, giving Rue a mutinous glare. “You knew.”
“Yes and no. As Logan said, very little is known about the different sectors. I’m from Coe Bay, as you know.
I was born there, grew up there; Macy, Suz, and Tiff are from there and are my childhood friends.
They don’t know about any of this, obviously.
My parents are…well, they are pretty important in the Society. ”
I choke back my scoff. “Downplay it, why don’t you? Serena, they’re about as high up as regular humans go.”
“Meaning?” she asks, confused. “There are irregular humans? Robots? Androids? Does the Society have that technology?”
I can’t tell if she’s joking or not, so I choose to ignore her comment. “There is a Don. He sits above Viktor and Francesca. Only they know who he is, and they would die before revealing his identity to anyone.”
“Ooh,” she breathes. “This is like the mafia, then?”
“Sort of, not exactly,” I say.
“But you can kill people and have them cleaned up.”
Okay, well, she has me there. “Yes, but it’s not as bad as it sounds.”
“Isn’t it? You killed John, and you had him cleaned up, and you don’t seem at all bothered about the cops, or being caught, or anything!” Serena’s hysteria is getting louder, and with Rose downstairs, I need to shush her before all of us get into a pile of shit we can’t get out of.
“Serena, love. Listen to me. This is hush-hush. We shouldn’t have told you any of this, but I said I didn’t want secrets between us, and now there isn’t. Yes, cleaning up is part of the Society business, but most things we do are illegal.”
“But you’re a lawyer!”
“I know, but that has nothing to do with anything.” I’m losing her. For once in my life, I don’t have the right things to say. If I had to, I could talk my way out of the Minotaur’s Maze, but this is…I’m floundering like a fish out of water.
“Have you killed before?” she asks, attempting to lower her voice at least.
“Yes, and I would again to protect you.”
“So you’re a killer? I’m in love with a killer?”
Narrowing my eyes, I pick up what she laid down. “You’re in love with me?”
“How many?” she grits out, ignoring me.
“Many. That’s neither here nor there unless it’s a deal breaker for you? Is it?” Asking her that gives me a spike of absolute, unadulterated fear. If she rejects me now, I will have no choice but to lock her up until she loves me again. I’m not losing her. Never, and certainly not over this.
Her fearful gaze meets mine. She stares deep into my eyes, showing me her soul. “No,” she whispers. “No, it’s not a deal breaker. What you did to John…you saved me.”
“And I will do it as many times as I have to in order to keep you protected and safe.”
She lowers her eyes and bites her bottom lip. I know it hits her right in her sweet spot. She wants to be cared for and kept safe. She needs it. She needs me.
“Serena,” Rue interrupts our moment with a sharp tone of reality. “Can you keep this a secret?”
“Why can’t I join?”
It’s a fair question and one that neither Rue nor I want to answer.
“Am I not good enough for your little club?” she hisses.
“Oh, you are,” I mutter. “But there’s no simple pathway to recruitment. Francesca wants you in, but there are things you need to be prepared to do. It’s not a simple case of joining and then sitting back and reaping the benefits for nothing. Does that make sense?”
“So what do I have to do?”
“Make a sacrifice.”
Part of me is glad that Rue said it and not me. The other half is cursing myself for being a coward.
“What kind of sacrifice?” Serena whispers.
“That’s kind of the problem. Only Solitaire will tell you when it’s enough.”
“Oh.” Her face falls.
“Usually, we come to you when we think you’re ready to be a member. It’s a process. You get on our radar, and we watch you.”
“Back to Quen,” she says, shaking her head as if to clear it. “He’s not my uncle.”
Frowning at her words, I’m about to ask what she means when she blurts out three words, I never thought I would hear.
“He’s my dad.”