Chapter 23
Dash
“ I didn ’ t sign her up for this!” Greg Michelson slaps down half a dozen gossip magazines on his desk. It used to be unusual to have my face on one of these. Kings rule, but we don ’ t seek the spotlight. We ’ re above that. But a small bribe was all it took to get my face, with a group of models taking turns kissing me on the cover. I have made it a point to “ hook up” with a new girl every time Dad requires me to leave school and attend a business function.
Despite months of pretending to date, Mila still wants me to sleep in her bed instead of on her floor. She saw right through my act. She ’ s always been smarter than her father.
I wish it were otherwise. Why can’t she be naive and physically push me out of her room instead of looking at me with wide eyes?
No. My little fox is cunning, and she will not give up easily.
Neither will I.
I ’ ll die inside if it means it will keep her safe. I will continue to make my enemies think Mila means nothing to me but the mere ink of a contractual obligation.
My dad ’ s eyes shift to my seat, so I lean back casually. My hand goes to my jaw, concealing my smile. Everything is going according to plan. If Greg thinks I don ’ t give a shit about Mila, the rest of the world will.
I don ’ t really hook up with the other women. Kissing them fills me with revulsion. All I taste is my regret and self-loathing. But I ’ ll swallow it down to keep Mila off the radar.
“ They ’ re not married yet,” my father sighs as his eyes press into me. Yes, Dad, I ’ m aware we will have words after this pointless meeting is over.
Ever since I returned from Initiation 101 and was thrust back into real life, Dad ’ s been strange. Distant yet present—like a leaf on a branch that isn ’ t big enough to shade you fully but still offers a little relief from the bright sun.
When we are forced to be in the same room, Dad is always staring my way like we were two-distant travelers unable to communicate over the chop waters, but one of us desperately wants to.
It sure as shit isn ’ t me who wants to talk. I have nothing to say to him, not after everything. Mom held us together, and the moment her beautiful heart stopped beating, so did ours. Everything died within the King household.
Greg ’ s face reddens; on his desk is a gold picture frame with a picture of Mila inside. It ’ s when she was a child posing in her ballet class. Tension pinches my neck when I look at that picture; Greg loved his daughter the most when she was suffering, doing something she hated in order to please him.
I look up at his walls. “ Why don ’ t you have one of Mila ’ s paintings hanging on your walls?”
“ Pardon me?” Greg hisses, his annoyance evident.
I point to the walls, “ Mila paints. You want me to be proud of her, yet you don ’ t even have a painting she did on your walls.”
Greg visibly shakes. “ How dare you!”
My dad kicks my foot.
“ So it ’ s wrong of me to point out that you don ’ t know your daughter ’ s favorite things?”
“ You know nothing of love or pride, boy.” Greg stands, hands flat on his desk.
“ I know hate.” I can ’ t help it. Reaching out, I grab the frame and slam it face down on the desk. “ Mila hates ballet. I wonder, since you forced her to dance, if that means she hates you, Greg.”
Speculation and shock flash in his eyes. “ I didn ’ t force her.”
“ Oh,” I tip my head back and chuckle. “You and my dad are so good at convincing Mila and me that we are not being forced to do something that you actually believe it. Pathetic.”
“ Dash!” Dad barks. Bark louder, Dad. I can ’ t hear you.
“ I ’ m warning you!” Greg points his finger at me. What ’ s that supposed to do, old man, make me quiver?
“ No, I ’ m warning you , Greg.” I raise an eyebrow, challenging him. “ I survived Initiation 101. You can ’ t imagine the terrors I endured. What makes men like you hesitate makes men like me approach.” I lean forward, uncrossing my legs, “ The things they made me do are too barbaric even for your contracts.”
I slap on my best evil grin. “ Every night, you close your eyes; you should pray my attention doesn ’ t turn upon your daughter. Consider it a blessing. I will do what I want. Fuck who I want. The contract was for marriage. You never stated it had to be a happy one. You signed your daughter over to a monster so you could sleep well at night.”
“ I did it so she would be safe!” He snaps at me, then looks at my dad, “ I will not put up with this. He will treat my daughter with respect!”
Now Dad's the one leaning back, looking bored. “ He ’ s playing you, and you are allowing it.”
Greg ’ s body shakes as realization hits him, and I can ’ t help but laugh again.
I can ’ t stand the fact that Mila still loves her father. She tried to please him for so long. She ’ s devoted her life to seeing the light in his monstrous eyes. Sometimes, that light is nothing but the glimmering deception of pure evil.
“ You want Mila safe, Greg? Newsflash: Safety nets both save and trap. You made her bed. She ’ s mine. I ’ ll live my life how I want without your opinions pestering me. Deal ’ s a deal. Next time, write better fine print.”
“ Stop it.” Dad exhales, then he looks at Greg, “ I will handle this.”
Oh, I ’ d love to see you try.
“ Don ’ t make me use your cousins to threaten you,” Dad hisses, low and precise. His words hit me like a laser etching a design into metal. I shut up, but it won ’ t work for much longer. That very threat is the reason my cousins—and the rest of my new family from Initiation 101—are plotting a way to ensure we ’ re never threatened again.
Greg didn ’ t hear my dad ’ s threat, so he continues. “ After what your father did, you ’ d think your son would be grateful, Marcus, but no! Kings always leave a mess in their trail. Tell me who will clean up Dash ’ s mess—”
“ That ’ s enough!” Dad stands so abruptly that his chair clatters to the floor. One of the wooden armrests splinters, a cold prelude to the coming pain. The anger on Dad ’ s face makes me sink into my chair. Dad doesn ’ t lose his temper in front of people. Hell, even when I ended up in the hospital, Dad remained calm, disappointed, but level-headed.
Greg pushed a nuclear button, and I need to know why so I can use it.
What did my grandfather do, and why is it such a stain on my father ’ s legacy?
“ Dash, leave the room.” Dad mimics Greg ’ s stance, leaning on Greg ’ s desk and causing Greg to inch back. “ You wanted our protection, Greg. Be careful before I rescind it.”
“ You don ’ t have the power to do that.” Greg grunts, “ You ’ re not the great and mighty Kings you all once were.”
“ Careful because my son will be, and he ’ s tied to your daughter, Greg.” Dad seethes so low I almost miss it.
Greg whips open his desk drawer, slamming down the marriage contract. “ They wanted this. You can ’ t betray them again. That boy,” he glowers down at me, “ needs to get in line, or they will kill him just like they did your grandfather.”
What the fuck is Greg talking about?
And what about my grandfather? I admit dad never speaks about his father. I…shit, I don ’ t even know how he died.
It seems there is more to the story. I can ’ t wait to tell Damian and Titan about this.
“ Dash!”
I look up to see my father ’ s agitated face glaring down at me. “ Get. Out.” He bristles, and then his eyes slither to Greg. “ Utter one more syllable,” the crisp tone makes every heart in the office pause, “ and it will be your last!”
Greg ’ s throat rolls, the red vanishing from his cheeks, replaced with a color that an artist would refer to as sallow green. A nasty, sick color that would ruin the canvas.
I stand. I ’ ve never seen Dad this mad.
Ever.
As much as I want to find out, I don ’ t put it past my father to hurt my cousins in order to punish me for not obeying him. I walk to the door as slowly as I can, pocketing all the information.
I ’ ll figure out what he ’ s referring to one way or another. Greg won ’ t always have my dad protecting him from my listening ears.
◆◆◆
“ He said that?” With a questioning look in his dark eyes, Damian leans forward while I rest my feet on the computer desk. His voice echoes off the soundproof walls of our basement. It ’ s the safest room in the house, and it ’ s where we call and meet with the Brotherhood.
After a year away from the chaos of Initiation 101, we ’ re finally laying our traps. We ’ re building connections and finding allies to help us take down our families.
“ I know how our grandfather died.” Titan hesitates, fingers hovering over the key as he sends an emergency meeting message to Leo, Cillian, Anders, and Dante.
“ How?” I lean back, balancing my metal chair against the wall. We really should get more comfortable chairs, but it ’ s bare bones down here for safety. The fewer cushions, the better; the harder it is to hide a microphone or camera.
Titan hits send. “ I asked my father,” he says, running a hand through his golden hair, “ and he was furious. Just the mention of our grandfather, and I thought my dad was going to ring my neck. All he told me was that the enemy killed our grandfather, and he was happy, which makes me think this enemy is really a secret ally.”
“ That ’ s all he said?” Damian looks at Titan again.
Titan nods. “ I never asked again. Didn ’ t care to hear what dad said, anyway.”
“ There ’ s no way our dads would let someone get away with that,” Damian agrees. “ It would make them look weak.”
“ Unless they agreed to the killing. Shit! Maybe they helped them.” I add.
Damian stands and begins to pace. “ You said Greg mentioned that ‘ they ’ wanted your marriage to Mila and that whoever ‘they’ are, you can ’ t betray them again . Why do I get the feeling that our grandfather betrayed these people, but our fathers chose them over their own blood?”
“ Greg made it sound like someone was controlling our fathers,” I agree.
“ We need to find out who that is before we make a move against our dads. No enemies or allies can be left unaccounted for.” Titan declares.
I agree. Even though I hate it, it ’ s the safest choice, meaning we ’ ll be under our dad ’ s control for longer.
◆◆◆
A few months later.
“ You look stressed,” Mila whispers as she enters my bedroom. She ’ s no longer apprehensive when she enters the campus house. Eventually, even torture becomes routine. It has been just that: torture; not touching each other, not daring to look her in the eye.
I ’ m not brave enough, too.
I know the moment I do, I will crumble into her hands, and then she will break under our enemy ’ s hands.
I ordered her to come to our campus house tonight rather than me sneaking into her dorm after she was asleep. The reason why makes me a pathetic lovesick fool. Her scent had vanished from my sheets. I needed it back, so I forced her to come here to lay in my bed.
“ Are you leaving town again?” Hurt sinks into her features.
“ No.”
Her face lights up. “ Why did I have to come here?”
Because I ’ m fucked in the head, thanks to you.
“ You don ’ t get to ask questions.”
“ Then maybe I should leave.”
She ’ s in a rare mood tonight. She ’ s been growing bolder. It ’ s like watching a child push up on their tiptoes before they jump off the high dive. My little fox has been up to something. I ’ m just waiting to see what she does. I expected this, some sort of lashing out after all my antics.
“ Try.” Run for me, little fox; this way, I can have an ironclad excuse to cage you.
She swallows; I imagine her swallowing around my cock.
“ No. That ’ s what you ’ d want me to do. You enjoy the chase.”
“ I enjoy the kill.”
Her chest sinks in. I ’ m sorry, little fox. I wish I didn ’ t have to drag up old memories.
“ Yes, you do.” She replies in contempt. “ And how slowly you enjoy making your victims bleed.”
I hate myself. “ Go to sleep.” I snap.
She used to fight me longer, but month after month of enduring fire has lessened her to embers that barely hold a flicker.
I watch her walk to my bed, but instead of kicking her shoes off like she usually does, she pauses. “ N…no.” She stutters now. It ’ s out of fear, and I fucking hate it. It reminds me of my failures. In time, I will break this new habit she has developed.
“ Was that a question or a statement?” I reply with a smirk, keeping my eyes trained on her forehead and not lower.
“ Don ’ t belittle me.”
I shrug. Hate me. Please fucking hate me! Stop this insanity of trying to get me to say I love you. Stop it! Please, I beg you!
“ I ’ m not.” I ’ m keeping you safe. “ Go to bed.” Turning, I intend to leave and meet Titan in the basement. Damian has been missing for three days now. He set off to ask his dad about our grandfather and never returned.It ’ s not unusual for Damian to go missing. It ’ s his way of coping, of handling his demons and ensuring Titan and I don ’ t see them. Damian rarely lets us see his battles because he is always trying to fight ours.
The question is, did Damian leave of his own free will, did he find something out, or did his dad hurt him?
We ’ ve spent months searching for the identity of this group that may or may not be controlling our fathers, and the only thing we ’ ve found are more questions.
Meanwhile, the Brotherhood is steadily preparing to take over, but we still need more time. Cillian has been forced to move to New York—his uncle sees him as a threat to the empire he stole so he ordered Cillian to oversee the East Coast operations. In reality, it was just a way to get Cillian out of Ireland. Slowly, Cillian is building his army, but the rest of us fear his uncle will try to eliminate him before we ’ re ready to strike.
Dante is locked in a power struggle with his mother and her new husband, who have shared control over the family business. Anders is dealing with his prick of a father, who tries to torture him daily.
Leo is the only one who has taken control of his entire family—his father was assassinated, though the killer remains unknown.
Anders is our top suspect in the murder because of his past with Leo ’ s sister. Leo ’ s dad had planned to auction her off in marriage to gain more power. Naturally, Leo won ’ t confront Anders about it—doing so would mean thanking him, and that ’ s something he ’ d never do. Leo and Anders are always at each other ’ s throats, their relationship resembling that of siblings who fight constantly but would still sacrifice everything for each other. It ’ s that classic ‘ only I can mess with him ’ dynamic.
“ No. I ’ m not tired.” Mila responds with a shaking voice.
I exhale a weighted breath. I love her fight, remembering it the first time I met her. The only way to subdue that fire was to smother it with a kiss.
If only I could do that now…
I turn, preparing to be cruel, but she bridges the gap, her movement reflecting a ballerina ’ s leap, jumping directly into me. Arms and legs wrap around me as she hugs me, and then…heaven. My strength dies when she forces her mouth to mine and cups my face in her tiny, trembling hands.
A simple kiss, the kind you would place on a dying lover who is suffering, and you would rather they depart from this world than breathe in another anguished breath. A kiss to send them off to the afterlife, a kiss to promise them you will wait for them until you ’ re united.
It ’ s so bittersweet.
Love and acceptance. Like when a warrior falls on his sword willingly. She makes me feel like her samurai committing Seppuku. It ’ s the only way I can restore honor to us.
We both have to die in order to start over, but how can we accept that fate when we are each too stubborn to stop inhaling each other?
How do I forgive her when her actions were my fault? I admit it now. She wasn ’ t in the wrong when she fucked Dom, but…it was so wrong.
She was mine, my first. The only girl I had slept with, and at the time, I was the same for her.
Then I pushed until she was broken, and Dom scooped her up and tainted her heart.
Dom knew in order to break me, he had to hurt Mila, so he did.
It was my fault.
It ’ s all my fault, and I can ’ t fix it. I can ’ t tell her I forgive her and that there is nothing to forgive. I have to keep pushing and hoping no one believes I love her.
My fingers push into her flesh. When did I grab her?
Wait! Stop!
I pull her off and set her down.
And then I look her dead in the eye for the first time in two years.