Chapter 15
ZEKE
Eden
“All actions come with consequences,” Luca’s voice slithers through the darkness as he slides the blade into my palm. My fingers grip around the cold, metal hilt.
“And this one’s yours.”
She’s standing in front of me. Her feet bare on the wooden floor. Those hazel eyes shining like amber in the flickering candlelight.
She looks like peace. Like home.
“It’s okay, honey,” she says, gently lifting her warm hand to my cheek. “It’s going to be alright.”
“No. I can’t.” I shake my head, my voice cracking as a tear breaks free. “I… I can’t do this without you.”
She pulls me close until our foreheads touch.
“What is your name?” she whispers.
My lip quivers. “Ezekiel M-Malik Blackwood.”
“Again.”
“Ezekiel Malik Blackwood.”
“Good.” She smiles, soft and proud. “Remember who you are.”
I nod, tears blurring my vision. “I’m so s-sorry. It’s all my fault.”
“Shh.” She cups my face. “None of this is your fault, sweetheart.”
I try to speak, but no words come out.
“You tell her I said hi, alright?”
I nod.
“And you tell her I love her.”
“I will,” I promise.
“You stay strong, honey. For me. For your sister.”
I nod again, tears dripping to the floor.
“Don’t let him change you,” she whispers. Her soft fingers wrap around my trembling hand, tightening it around the blade. She peers around and glares at the monster behind me. “And don’t you dare let him win.”
“No,” I whisper, my voice barely there.
“I love you, Zeke.”
She presses one final kiss to my forehead.
And pulls.
I gasp awake, heart racing and sweat slicking my brow.
Bella’s curled up beside me, her body warm against my chest. I slow my breathing and ease her arm off my waist, careful not to wake her. She sighs but doesn’t stir.
I slip out of bed and tiptoe tightly down the hallway, then down the stairs and head toward the kitchen. When I get there, I grab a skillet, crack a few eggs, and start whisking away. The sizzle of butter cuts through the silence but not through the memory of her.
Nothing can.
Arms snake around my waist, pulling me tight against his chest. “You didn’t come to bed again last night,” Luca murmurs against my neck.
Breathe. Remember who you are.
I set the spatula down and turn slowly. “Sorry,” I say with a lazy grin. “I was exhausted after all our fun. Passed out the second my head hit the pillow.” I wrap my arms around his neck. “Forgive me?”
“You owe me for that show the other day,” he groans, tracing his fingers low on my back. “I was hard as a rock watching you two.”
Ezekiel Malik Blackwood.
I laugh softly.
“How was she?”
“She fought it,” I answer, running my hand through the back of his hair. “But she wanted it.”
Luca lets out a deep moan.
I turn back to the stove and flip the eggs. “Let’s not forget it was your idea to send me in first.” I keep my voice light.
“I know,” he whispers.
I tense as his hand drags up my spine. I slow my breathing and try everything I can not to envision her hazel eyes right now. Not to see the shame that would undoubtedly be plastered all over her face if she knew how far I’ve fallen since that night.
Ezekiel Malik—fuck!
Get it together, Zeke.
He sighs. “I just need her to remember.”
I nod, plate the eggs, and lay them on the counter.
“Sit,” I order, my mask falling into place.
He does. I join him.
“You still think you can lead her back to me?” Luca asks, eyeing me over his breakfast.
“Bella is strong, but she has a weakness.”
“Which is?” he presses.
“Me.” I smirk. “She believes that I’m still her big brother. Still the protector. It’ll take some time.” I take a bite. “But once Bella is out of the way, Izzy will be free to come out and play. That’s when you take over.”
He hums in satisfaction. Then he leans in and grabs me by the jaw, entangling our tongues in a slow, heavy kiss. A wave of nausea hits me.
Ezekiel Malik Cassi—
No!
Blackwood.
“Just one thing,” I say, forcing myself to pull back smoothly before it can deepen. I keep my expression cool and casual. “I had to tell her I was moving into her room.”
Luca’s eyes darken. His grip on my jaw tightens until I’m sure it’ll bruise. “You what?” he snaps.
I shrug it off, try and act as nonchalant as I can. “Just like Miami.”
“I’m not a fan of that,” Luca pouts.
“You’ll live,” I laugh.
“Doubtful.”
“You’re the one that said whatever it takes,” I say, picking at my eggs.
We eat a few bites in a peaceful silence.
“What is it?” he asks.
“Just thinking.”
“About?”
“The next trial.” I say, still moving my eggs aimlessly around my plate.
“What about it?” I can see his patience thinning as he taps his fingers on the counter.
“It’s just,” I exhale. “Are you sure about The Red Hour?”
“It’s poetic,” he says, taking a bite.
My brows pinch. “How?”
“Because.” He swallows. “I had to do it.”
“You had to fight in The Red Hour?” I say, dropping my fork with a clank. “You’re not a fighter.”
A laugh escapes my throat. I can’t help it. The thought of him trying to fight a man twice his size… now that’s fucking poetic.
“Well aware,” he says. “And it’s not that funny.”
“It’s a little funny.”
He sets his fork down and leans back. “You don’t get a choice when you pledge loyalty to them. They throw you in The Pit and pin you against their biggest monsters.”
Luca pauses and narrows his eyes on me.
“Ever wonder why there are only just a few Hollow Kings at a time?”
I stare at him, entirely unimpressed with wherever this story is going. I release a long sigh. “Is that rhetorical? Or are you looking for an answer because I have no clue on all the university history. You grabbed my ass before I could enroll for classes, remember?”
He rolls his eyes. “It’s because the whole damn thing’s staged. The brotherhood they preach, the loyalty they drill into your skull, all of it’s a lie. And Izzy fell for it. Fell for him.”
He looks off for a second, shoulders dropping.
“But not this time,” he says turning back to me, his evil gaze sharpened to a point. “This time her king will fall in our pit. This time we get to watch him bleed.”
I raise a brow.
“That’s poetry, Zeke.”
I stay silent.
“Everything’s in place,” he says. “Almost, anyway.”
“What’s missing?” I ask, lifting my mug to my lips.
“I need you to get something for me. I need the ring.”
“The ring?” I echo.
He nods. “Alejandro’s.”
“What?!” I choke on my coffee, my eyes flicking up to meet his. “You’re letting me leave?” I ask, carefully setting my mug down before I drop the damn thing and it shatters everywhere.
“You’ll be back,” he says, pulling out his phone. He types something into it, angling it away from me so I can’t see.
Typical.
He taps the side of my collar with two fingers. There’s a faint click as the lock disengages. He removes it, his rough fingers brushing slowly over my bare skin.
I rub my neck, but the skin there burns like it’s still strapped tight.
His eyes follow the movement, amusement flickering in them. “Think of it as another field trip.”
“How long will I be gone?”
Luca smiles, slow and sickly sweet. He pulls out a syringe from his pocket. Before I can react, he jabs it deep into my neck.
“Shit,” I hiss, my hand flying up to the spot. “What the—”
“You’ve got seventy-two hours,” he cuts me off, completely unbothered. “You’ll need the antidote by then.”
“Fuck.” I stagger back a step. “There’s one problem with your plan,” I rasp, rubbing my neck until the sting eases.
He lazily strides to the edge of the counter. “And what would that be?”
“He’ll never talk to me. Hell, he’d shoot me first.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” he says, leaning down to throw the needle into the trash.
“How do you figure?”
“Because his bitch of a daughter is still in love with you.”
My heart races. There’s no way. After everything that happened Mar would still… would she? No. Not possible. Especially now. Not after all I’ve done.
Damn it. Does he have the heat set to ninety degrees or something? It’s fucking stifling. A fuzzy numbness creeps into my hands. I shake them, but the feeling won’t go away.
No.
Not again.
Breathe.
Ezekiel Malik… fuck!
Ezekiel Malik Blackwood.
“Ok,” I grit, breathing through the sting in my neck and doing my best to slow my racing pulse. “Let’s say they give me the ring. What happens when Marisol runs off and tells them all your little plan?”
“Let her.” He waves a lazy hand. “One less poem for us to write.”
I stare at him, blood roaring in my ears. “Can I say goodbye to Izzy first?”
“Make it quick,” he says with a sick little wink. “Clock’s ticking, baby.”
???
BELLA
Day 14 in Eden.
“Morning sis,” Zeke says, balancing a plate of eggs, bacon, and toast with jelly in one hand and a cup of milk in the other. “I made you some breakfast. Sorry, we didn’t have anything to make pancakes.”
“That’s okay,” I say as I sit up against the pillows, brushing the hair out of my face. “It looks great, thanks.”
He sits down on the edge of the bed and stares off at the floor.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, fork halfway to my mouth.
“Nothing.”
“Zeke.”
He finally looks at me. “I have to leave for a little bit.”
“What?” I lock my knees, a sudden chill washes over me as my body goes stiff. “Why?”
“Luca’s sending me on an errand,” he says, rubbing his neck.
“What kind of errand? And where’s your collar?”
He looks away, the silence stretching thin between us. “I’ll tell you later. I promise.”
My brows pinch. “Nope. Tell me now.”
“Look, I don’t have much time,” he says, pulling an envelope out of his back pocket. “There’s something you should know.”
“What is that?” I ask as he sits it down next to me.
“The truth,” he says, tears filling the corners of his eyes. “I told you that I wasn’t here alone, Bells. That I had someone helping me get through it all.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“It was your Aunt Claire.”
“Impossible,” I whisper. Then cough, choking on a bite. “She’s been dead for over three—”
“No,” he cuts me off, his shoulders slumping. “She was missing for over three years. Bells she was—”
“Let’s go, Zeke.” The voice cuts in sharp and slick as oil.