Chapter 37
It had been days since Elise had gotten a proper night’s sleep, and the last thing she wanted to do was confront her father early in the morning.
The only thing keeping her from turning back and leaving his new house was Josi’s hand intertwined with hers and Sterling’s red-rimmed eyes.
As much as this was her responsibility, it was also their burden to bear.
She was not the only one who had been impacted by Analia’s death, and she refused to leave her sister alone in her misery again.
The moment Tobias opened the doors to this study, Josi ran into his arms. He kneeled for her and pulled her into him.
Tears fell between both of them, and Elise could not help the pang of jealousy that rocked through her system at the sight.
For so long, she had hoped she would have such a bond with her father.
Perhaps it was better for Josi to have it than her.
She would grow up knowing he was good to her and that he loved her.
Elise had survived his wrath and the cold knowledge that she was nothing more than a project for him.
As long as Josi never felt the burden of his expectations, Elise would shoulder the pain of being less wanted.
“I’ve missed you, my angel,” Tobias said in a shaky voice. He touched Josi’s chin and regarded her with tear-filled eyes and a weepy smile. “You look so much like your mother. You know she loved you so much.”
Sterling and Elise shared a look.
Tobias spoke before either of them could.
“I want to have a proper funeral for her. It will be intimate, so you do not have to worry about performing.” Her father stood with Josi still in his arms and looked at Elise.
“Your mother—the most magnificent woman I’ve ever known—will now remain in a box for eternity.
” His gaze flicked up to Josi, whose expression only further wilted at the knowledge of her mother’s homecoming.
“I fear what I want to do will only further wake the beast feeding on the heart of this city. I might not have the power I once did before, but I still love our neighborhood. I do not want things to be destroyed. My family…” His sharp intake of air cut his words off.
Tobias’s jaw clenched, and he looked at the floor in silence for a moment before continuing.
“I can no longer protect any of you. And now you are too far gone.”
“We’re here now, Daddy,” Josi said softly.
She touched his cheek and gave him a gentle smile, but Tobias only took her hand from his face and set her back on the floor.
The devastating fall of her expression sparked a hot rage in Elise’s chest. But instead of letting her most vile insults fly at her father, she pulled Josi against her legs.
“You aren’t. Not quite. You are…” Tobias pinched his brow and sighed before settling a dark gaze on his youngest daughter. “You are hardly my little girl.”
Josi’s eyes filled with tears. “I am.”
“Father,” Elise warned. “We had a deal.”
“And you said you would fix her,” Tobias shot back. “I have nothing else going for me now. No more children to carry on my legacy. All my heirs have been traitorous to me. A monster lurks, and I have no means to destroy it—”
“We already caught her. And we got your Saint compound back,” Elise said sharply.
She fought past the blow his words dealt to her heart.
Even as her chest felt like it was caving in at her father’s admission of not seeing her as his daughter any longer, she pressed on, voice strong.
“Karine will come looking for her and Josi soon. With them as leverage, she will have to give us Dr. Gray’s location.
I have no doubt that she can help Josi and all of Harlem.
Things are so much worse than we ever could have anticipated.
But there is still something you can do to help. ”
***
Elise could not ignore the glare of disgust Layla dealt the mayor and her father as they entered the cathedral. She shot the reaper a stern look and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “Will you behave just for a few minutes? We need them to listen to us.”
Layla’s glare deepened. “I’m not sure why. We caught Sena ourselves. We can deal with Karine ourselves.”
“Not if they see a value in continuing to partner with her. We have to ensure they know how dangerous she is. Karine is not the reaper they should be trusting,” Elise said softly.
At this, the ire faded from Layla’s expression. Her lips parted, and she looked at Elise with tender awe. “And who do you propose they should trust?” she asked.
Elise’s mouth stretched into a smile. “You know who.” She stepped away from Layla as Arendale and her father approached the small cage made of Saint steel that had been containing Sena for the past few hours, all thanks to Nicoletta and her full surrender of the Saint compound because of the reapers’ and Elise’s assistance in freeing them of Sena.
The ancient reaper sat in the middle of the enclosure, a silk robe draped over her straight shoulders and her hands in her lap while she watched everyone surround the steel bars to peer down at her.
“So this is how reapers live now…” Mayor Arendale glanced around the cathedral, his dark eyes alight with wonder.
Layla gave him an unimpressed look. “I’m surprised Karine didn’t give you a rundown.”
The mayor stopped by the enclosure, staring down at Sena. “If your accusation is correct, she did not tell me about a lot of her actions. This is Valeriya?” he asked.
“Sena is her true name.” Tobias nodded. His expression filled with a sad regret.
Elise wondered how much of his interactions with the ancient reaper he even remembered, if so many of them were tainted by her poison, and how he even looked back on them with anything besides pure vitriol.
“You’ve taken so much from me, and still you continue? When will it ever be enough?”
“I could ask the same of you,” Sena muttered.
She shot a piercing glare at Tobias Saint, who only returned the ire tenfold with his own scowl.
“Pity to be woken from a vicious slumber only to be met with disappointment and used over and over again. I have been used my whole life. These experiments, whether you pay for them or not, will never end. You fight one side, they will always retaliate. I have seen every iteration of war and every perceived offer of peace. There is nothing you can do to change someone when they’ve already made up their mind about the way things should be.
You say I changed your daughter, but I had her for only a month.
You raised her. You made her into what she’s become.
Both of them,” Sena said strongly. “Maybe it’s time you all took responsibility for the state of our world too. ”
Elise had never seen someone confront her father with so much hostility. It made her wonder just how intense their conversations had been in the past, in the quiet darkness of privacy. “You must feel betrayed by your friend. She brought you back only to use you to sow more violence.”
“I do not have the energy to feel much of anything anymore. I was willing to do what Karine wanted of me because I had a chance to take care of your sister. It was Karine who encouraged her to follow her impulses. I simply wished to protect her,” Sena said.
Tobias shot forward, his fists clenched around the bars. “She was perfectly safe.”
A low chuckle left Sena. “You gave her to a reaper. And after the lengths Elise went to keep her from you…there is no way you still believe yourself.”
“Elise knows nothing—”
“Has anyone ever told you that you talk too damn much?” Layla snapped.
She stiffened next to Elise as she turned to face Tobias.
“Shut up. Your daughter has done more for everyone in this neighborhood in the past few days than you have done in your little empire’s ten-year-run.
If you sat back and looked beyond your ego, you would know that. ”
Wide-eyed, mouth agape, for a moment, Tobias was stunned into silence. Eventually he released the tension from his fists and turned away from Layla, ignoring her searing words.
Elise could only press her fingertips to her mouth to keep from smiling. Layla continued to shoot daggers at her father even with his back turned on her.
Sterling cleared his throat, drawing attention to him.
“The reason we called you all here was to demonstrate that partnering with reapers can work. We could not have stopped Sena’s violent rampage if it were not for the help of the Diamantes and the rogues.
You have a chance to do the right thing and dismiss Karine as your partner.
Choose someone else to lead reapers into a liberation movement. ”
Mayor Arendale crossed his arms and stepped away from the enclosure. “Perhaps I can negotiate with Karine. She seems sensible and willing to find a compromise as long as reapers benefit—”
Layla interrupted. “I don’t think you understand.
There is no negotiating with Karine. We tried with her, and when she refused, she turned to raising the dead for an army.
She will not let even those who have been gone for decades rest. We have to act against her, and we have to do it before she realizes that we’ve met. ”
Silence filled the room for far too long. The mayor and Tobias continued to watch her with contemplative expressions, neither of them making a move toward a decision.
Layla shook her head, cursing beneath her breath. “Forget it. Do whatever you want, but don’t ask reapers for help.” She made her way to the back of the building and disappeared downstairs.
Elise let out a tired sigh. She faced her father, careful not to make her expression too vulnerable, lest he see an opportunity in her. “Please. You’ve said it yourself—you have nothing left. Let this be the one thing you choose to be a part of.”
Tobias passed a look to Arendale, who still seemed rather unmoved. He turned back to his daughter, and to her surprise, she saw resolve in his dark eyes. “If the only way out of this is a war, then we must make sure we can support that. Give us a day to decide.”