2. Church
CHURCH
I adjusted the oxygen mask on Sin’s face. He was still using it to help him get enough oxygen into his lungs after that fucking cunt Adam had stabbed him.
He wasn’t able to be treated at the facility. They had to cart him off to a hospital for surgery to repair him. His collapsed lung and other wounds had been treated, and he’d returned to us just yesterday. His mother hadn’t even come to see him.
“How are you feeling?” I asked, staring down at him. I had to have asked him a hundred times how he was feeling. He’d answer the same each time.
A thumbs up.
His face was badly beaten, his eyelids still swollen shut. His lip was split, and he’d had to have stitches in various areas of his body, including some along his hairline. He looked like hell.
It was killing me inside.
He’d sacrificed himself for my specter. He promised me he’d die for her, and the crazy asshole nearly had.
Mirage told me the story of Sirena killing Adam with Bryce and him at her side.
The sense of delicious retribution that coursed through me was otherworldly. My only wish was that I’d have been there to take it all in and join her in her madness.
Mirage wanted to meet with me tonight when Ashes came in to relieve me. He said he and my specter had a gift for me.
Color me intrigued.
“Sinclair?” I called out when he didn’t answer me.
He gave me a tired thumbs up but didn’t say anything. It was hard to tell when he was awake or sleeping because his eyelids were practically fused together.
“They let Cady out today. We’ve also been taking turns watching over her at the house,” I said. I’d told him before we were doing that, but I wanted to update him on everything. While Cady pissed me off to no end, she was still Sirena’s sister. That meant something, so by that factor, she got our protection, too. If something happened to her, it would harm our girl. That just wouldn’t fly.
“She’s staying at the house with us. I get to go home to it.”
Sin grunted softly.
I knew the story of what had happened. At least the basic rundown of it. Cady said she’d agreed to meet with Adam. He got violent. He told her to get Sin, or he’d kill Sirena. So she complied. Adam then knocked her out before he attacked Sin upon his arrival.
Neither wanted to speak of their nakedness.
I wasn’t going to push it either.
Not yet, anyway.
We hadn’t told Sin what Sirena had done. I wanted to make sure he was lucid and on the mend before I brought it up. The guys agreed with me. The shock of her doing it may be too much for him. I knew he’d come to see her in a whole other light. I always knew she had it in her, even though I still didn’t know the exact details of that night and what she’d really done.
I was fucking proud of her for letting go and getting her revenge, and I couldn’t wait to share my level of madness with her someday.
If these assholes kept up their games, it would be sooner rather than later.
“S-Sirena?” Sin rasped.
“She’s home. Practically clawed my skin off to get to you again today, but I don’t want her in this place if I can help it.” I held up my arm to show him the ugly cuts from her nails. “You understand, right?”
He let out a breath and gave me another thumbs up.
“She’s doing well. Quiet, mostly. She simply wants you.”
He shifted slightly before letting out a whimper at the pain he was in.
I pushed the button on his meds to get him more painkillers. Within moments, he was sleeping from the combination.
I held his hand and stared at him. So many emotions coursed through me. I wasn’t good at dealing with them, but I’d gotten better, so I said what I felt.
“I love you,” I said softly. “Sleep, brother. We’ll take over the world when you wake.”
* * *
I walked into the house to find Sirena waiting for me on the couch with Mirage. Bryce, however, was an unwelcome surprise as he sat on Sirena’s other side. Mirage hadn’t said shit about bringing him along.
Ashes and Stitches had both gone to Sin to give us some privacy.
“Cady is sleeping,” Mirage said as I hung my coat in the closet.
I hated how he was in my head. I simply liked to know where people staying in my house were. Sirena had given her room to Cady and had agreed to sleep in my bed with me, even though I knew she’d also join Ashes and Stitches at some point.
“Thanks,” I muttered, immediately going to Sirena and pulling her to her feet and away from Bryce.
Mirage smirked at me when I tugged Sirena onto my lap in my chair.
“I didn’t realize you’d be dragging that with you,” I said, looking at Bryce. He had the decency to bow his head and stare at the floor.
Sirena tapped her finger to my lips to silence me.
“Well, I thought this next part was important,” Mirage said, adjusting his rabbit mask.
“Fine. Talk,” I said, deciding the sooner he spoke, the sooner he’d get Andrews out of my living room.
“Sirena, my sweet, come,” Mirage commanded.
I ground my teeth as she rose to her feet at his words and went to him.
“Careful,” I growled when he rested his hand on her waist and whispered into her ear. The way she leaned into him drove me insane. Balling my hands into tight fists, I had to count backward slowly so I wouldn’t lose it on him.
I knew I’d said she got to choose, but fuck me, I honestly hoped she was done with it all. Mirage. Asylum. Decent guy. Fucking weird, but I could get past it. I was open to the possibility, but only because of what he’d done for her in the facility and the fact that I wanted her to feel like she had some control. I wasn’t a fan of the fact he’d put her in a fucking coffin and caused all that shit, though. She’d made it clear she was interested in him despite his crimes.
It was when Bryce stood and guided her away, his hand on the small of her back, that I sat forward, ready to strike.
“Easy, Dante.” Mirage’s voice pulled me away from my murderous thoughts. “We have a gift for you.”
I said nothing, my focus on Bryce as he went to the kitchen with Sirena and opened our fridge. He pulled a gift out and handed it to her before they both walked back to me.
Sirena went to her knees in front of me and handed me the package.
“What is this?” I asked, my eyes narrowed at Mirage. I cast a cursory look at Bryce to see him watching Sirena. It was taking all my willpower not to plant my fist in his pretty face. He definitely stopped being subtle a while ago.
“A gift. Have you never gotten one before?” Mirage’s blue eyes were focused on me as he sat forward.
I grunted, not bothering to comment. My life wasn’t all Christmas gifts and birthday presents.
“I suppose my question is why,” I said.
“Because it’s proof,” Mirage answered, his elbows on his knees.
“Of?”
“Open it and find out,” he urged.
Feeling uncomfortable, I pulled the red ribbon and let it fall from the black wrapping paper. Carefully, I opened the gift to find a wooden box with a woodland scene burned onto the top, complete with all sorts of forest animals.
I raised a brow and looked at Mirage.
“You guys got me a jewelry box?”
Bryce laughed softly while Mirage outright snorted. Even Sirena offered me a smile.
“I suppose you could put jewelry inside it. Bryce actually did the artwork. Nice, isn’t it?” Mirage said.
I grunted, noting the artwork really was outstanding, but I wasn’t about to tell him that.
I opened the lid to stare down at the contents.
It took me a moment to get my wits about me, but when I finally did, I reached inside and pulled out the jar with the heart preserved inside.
“What the fuck is this?”
“Adam’s heart,” Sirena whispered, her colorful eyes dark.
I blinked at her answer and looked at Mirage.
“It was Asylum’s idea,” he said. “He likes to keep parts. He has a lot of hearts. He thought you might like one of your own. Sirena and Shadow loved the idea, too. So we did it for you.”
I stared at the jar and licked my lips.
“I want the details,” I finally said softly. “Specter?”
She stared at me for a long time. I didn’t really think she’d speak since she’d completely returned to her old self. Finally, she parted her lips, her sweet voice so soft on my ears.
“Mirage gave me his knife. I stabbed him until he stopped screaming,” she said, her eyes wide as she stared at me.
I nodded slowly. “How did that make you feel?”
“Alive,” she whispered.
“Do you regret it?” I studied her pretty face.
“I will never ,” she answered fiercely before going silent on me.
I gave her a smile and cupped her face with my hand. “Then I cannot wait to join you in that darkness someday when we take out more of these assholes. If you’ll have me.”
She pressed her lips against mine and kissed me, her tongue teasing mine. I had a way of getting lost in her. I pulled her close with my free arm and deepened our kiss, forgetting the world around us for a moment. She was telling me yes, and I was more than fucking agreeing to it.
Mirage cleared his throat, bringing me back to the living room and away from my sweet little ghost.
Breathlessly, I broke off the kiss and stared him down.
“What else?” I asked.
“Always so smart, Dante,” Mirage said, smirking at me. “We presented this to you to prove we’re all in this together. Even Shadow.”
“Shadow.” I snorted, looking to Bryce. “When did you get a superhero name?”
“When it was realized I was pretty fucking useful,” he answered strongly.
I chuckled at that. “I’ll bite. Tell me what makes you so useful, Shadow. ”
He glanced at Sirena, his hands shaking.
“What’s wrong?” I pressed. “I’m sure your story is fascinatingly dull. You’re a turncoat who worked for my father. What else?”
“I watch,” he finally said, dragging his focus from Sirena to me. “Always. And I never forget.”
“Wow. I’m impressed.” I placed Adam’s preserved heart on the table next to my chair.
“I also know things.”
“Color me intrigued.” I rolled my eyes at him.
“Adam Larson was your fucking brother, Dante,” he snarled at me. “Flesh and blood brother. And now his heart is going on your mantle. I knew who he was.”
I froze at his words.
“What?”
He inhaled deeply, his hazel eyes locked on me.
“I never forget anything. Ever. I heard your father speaking one night while I was stuck in the underground with him. He was speaking to Adam. Telling him he loved him, but he would never be in command. That he wasn’t his legitimate heir, like you are. Conceived outside of marriage after he already had you. They didn’t know I was listening. No one ever knows when I’m listening, but trust me, I’m always there.” He stared me down, no sign of fear on his face that I was used to seeing. “I dug into it further. Your father had a woman he fucked. He had a full-on relationship with her. Carys Larson. When he found out she was seeing someone besides him, he killed her. You know what happened next. He took his favorite pieces and had a feast. He had Adam sent to Chapel Crest after learning how unhinged he was with his multiple personalities. The brutal one always won out, and so Everett latched onto that madness and just made him screwed up in his head more than he already was. Adam already had a desire to harm others. He was a lot like you. Killing the small animals before moving on to bigger things.”
I said nothing, his words making me sick. I couldn’t fucking think. A raging fire of fury was slowly building within me. Glancing over to Adam’s heart, I breathed out, my hands trembling.
“He was training him to mess with you. To test you. You always pass the tests,” Bryce finished in a low voice.
“How long did you know of this?” I finally demanded, my voice hoarse.
“I knew he was your brother since I got here four years ago.”
I stood abruptly, nearly knocking Sirena over, and paced the room, trying to get my head together.
“And why did you never fucking tell me?” I roared after a moment. I stormed over to Bryce, dragged him out of his seat, and shook him violently.
“Because why the hell would I?” he snapped back before shoving me off. “There are things I know that would make your head spin.”
“Then fucking rock me,” I shouted. “I want to know everything.”
Bryce had the balls to laugh softly at me.
“It would seem we both want something, huh?”
I glared at him for a moment before I looked to Sirena, who glanced nervously between us.
“Never,” I snarled. “You will never have her.”
“Then you will never know what I know,” he said softly.
I breathed in and out, desperate to just beat the ever-loving shit out of him and force his secrets to the surface. I needed to know what he knew. If he knew half the shit he was claiming, he was an asset to taking down my father.
“Are you still working with my father?” I asked, trying to steady myself.
“Yes.”
I looked to Mirage. “Like you?”
“It’s not really like me,” Mirage said. “We’re…different. Me and Asylum.”
I scrubbed my hands down my face in frustration.
“How do I know you’re not an implant sent by my father?”
“How do you know Mirage or Asylum aren’t?” Bryce countered.
“Because they’ve proven themselves to us?—”
“And I haven’t?” He growled at me. “Plus, you clearly don’t know the shit I know about them?—”
“I guess your shit just stays in the shadows, huh?” I gave him a sour laugh as Mirage visibly bristled at Bryce’s words. “Maybe a little bit of honesty would go a long way, Andrews.”
He glared at me, his hands balled into tight fists.
Sirena hadn’t moved an inch the entire time, but I didn’t blame her. Getting between me and Bryce could end up with her hurt. I didn’t want that. I tugged at my hair, my head a fucking mess. So many thoughts and emotions raced through me. I couldn’t focus on just one.
“I want her,” Bryce said fiercely.
I let out a bark of laughter at his demand. “Go fuck yourself.”
Sirena got to her feet and put her hands on my chest, her eyes searching mine.
“Are you serious?” I whispered, staring in disbelief at her.
“I choose,” she answered back in the smallest voice.
“Not him, specter. He hasn’t proved himself?—”
“Then fucking let me,” Bryce shouted. “Give me the chance. Fuck, Dante. I’m good for her. You know I am!”
I swallowed the lump in my throat and tore my eyes away from Sirena to look at him. Mirage sat like a statue on the couch.
“All you’ve done is shown me betrayal.” I inhaled a shaky breath. “You knew Adam was and never told me. You were helping my father. All this shit. Why do you think that earns you any fucking right?”
He said nothing, his eyes locked on me.
“You will prove yourself to me. You will fucking kill for me. There is no weakness amongst us. Standing next to Sirena and Mirage while they do the dirty work doesn’t fucking count.”
“You want me to commit crimes to prove to you I’m worthy?” He scoffed and shook his head.
I moved past Sirena and faced him, our chests nearly touching.
“If you can’t even take a life, you have no place within our ranks. You’re weak. Pathetic. A fucking parasite, looking to latch onto anything that could bring you up. We aren’t it. She isn’t it. Fuck off and die, Andrews.”
I shoved past him and grabbed the heart before I went up to my room without looking back. My fist met my wall, putting a hole into the plaster as I tried to fight the fucking tears threatening to erupt from me. I didn’t know what they meant, nor did I give a shit.
There was never any peace.
And there never would be.
I just needed to find a way to accept it.
Bryce fucking Andrews was definitely not it, though.