14. Kaden
Chapter fourteen
Kaden
Ishouldn’t be thinking of Ivan’s deal. Just knowing how upset my sister would be with me when she finds out I killed a man is enough to send me into cardiac arrest.
But she wouldn’t understand.
She doesn’t know what it’s like to think about death day and night, as if it’s embedded into the very fibers of my being.
It’s an unrelenting itch that’s festered and spread with every passing day.
It’s only a matter of time until I get desperate and seek out my own victim.
At least with my friend’s deal, I’ll be promised immunity.
Serve my isolation time and be back before anyone really notices I’ve been gone.
I could play it off as a self-discovery trip.
Melody will be upset. We haven’t been apart since we first met over six years ago. And truthfully, she’s the only thing holding me back from making my choice. Letting her go is something I can’t do. No matter how hard I try.
Saint tips his flask in my direction, the silver glint catching my eye as he offers to top off my drink.
I shove the glass towards him, putting my thoughts on the back burner as the party in full swing drowns out everything else.
Dad is celebrating his company’s fifteenth anniversary with a gala tonight.
There’s gentle swelling music and faces I’ve never seen before gliding across the dance floor.
Evening gowns of deep red and emerald green twirl in the night, and the dim lighting casts shadows all over.
It’s just as over the top and eccentric as every party is. To lighten the mood, I invited my friends as my guests. They’ve been lingering around me like shadows as I sulk in the corner of the ballroom.
Melody is glowing tonight as she ripples through the crowd with a bright smile. Her evening gown is a light blue with sequins and sheer sleeves. She smiles radiantly as she converses with Dad’s business partners, and he presents her like a rare gem. He’s proud of her accomplishments.
At least he’s pleased with one of us. Unlike me, who now has a growing record and can’t seem to hold up my grades in school.
I’m graduating in two months and have no idea if I’ll even get to walk on stage to get my diploma.
Our principal doesn’t seem to think I should have the same opportunity as my classmates, considering the day I beat the brakes off of Jack.
He’s unfortunately alive, but now he knows better than to sniff around my sister.
Everyone at school does. I won’t be there next year to watch over Melody. She’ll be on her own, and I’m expected to go to college. That’s not going to happen, but I can bide my time by playing it off as indecision about where I want to go. That will allow me to stick close to home.
“Are you just going to stare at her all night?” Ivan asks, taking a sip of his whiskey.
I shrug. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Please!” Saint rolls his eyes. “You can’t even hide it anymore! You’re shameless.”
That isn’t completely true. I am ashamed of myself. I’m sick—completely fucked in the head. Because I can’t stop thinking of my little sister in ways I shouldn’t. While Melody cares for me, it’s in a sisterly way. But I don’t want her to just be my sister…
“If you’re going to go through with our deal, why not live a little?” Ivan suggests, tipping his glass towards me. “You aren’t blood related.”
My jaw ticks as I watch Melody spin around, showing her friend Kodi her beautiful gown. “She only sees me as her big brother.”
“As she should,” Saint says pointedly. “Sorry, maybe it’s because I have sisters of my own and I find it weird.”
“Good thing no one asked you,” I snip.
He chuckles. “Fuck it, man. Do whatever you want. I can’t judge. I’ve done far worse.”
Ivan does have a point. I’ve really been considering his deal, and if I’m going down, why not go out with a bang?
It’s better than leaving things unsaid and tattered in the end.
Melody may not forgive me once I get back, but that’s a cross I’m willing to bear if it means showing her how I feel.
The sick and twisted part of myself lives in the fantasy that she’ll wait for me on the other side.
But I know it’s only a dream. She’s entirely too good for someone like me. I should want her to meet someone who doesn’t have blood on his hands, but the thought of her with anyone else makes me violent.
“Don’t look now, but Vincent Halloway just asked Melody to dance,” Ivan mutters.
My head shoots up, and my eyes pinpoint my sister the moment she steps onto the dance floor.
She’s hand-in-hand with the luxury automotive heir, and he smiles cockily as he wraps an arm around her waist. Something gentle and sweet swells from the orchestra, violins humming a high note as everyone watches the two teenagers flow across the polished marble.
But it’s all background noise. My heart and vision slow as my mind rushes.
My pulse pounds in my ears as something nasty and green claws at my gut.
I’m staring at Vincent’s hand wrapped around Melody’s waist, and the way his fingers dig into her dress.
He holds her other hand, keeping his touch innocent and cordial, but to me, it’s like someone is stabbing me repeatedly in the chest with a knife.
It fucking hurts to see her smile at him. I don’t want him touching her. No one can touch her. She belongs—
Fuck! Fuck it all! I don’t care if I’m sick. I don’t care if Melody hates me for what I’ll do in the next two years. I don’t care anymore. I can’t let her go without her knowing how much she consumes my every thought. How everything I’ve done has been for her and her alone.
My type of love isn’t normal—it’s twisted and fractured with jagged edges and parts that are tainted beyond repair. It’s obsession and possession, owning the person who belongs to me without question.
If I’m going to hell, I want to drag her down with me.
I’m moving before I can think, stepping across the marble floors as my boots click. With every footfall, I can only see her.
The crowd quiets, but I don’t stop. Not when my goal is just out of reach.
As Vincent spins Melody out of his hold, I catch her, replacing his hand at her waist with mine and intertwining our fingers as I glide her away from him with practiced steps.
Her beautiful eyes widen as she gasps. “Kaden? What are you doing?”
I don’t answer her as we dance. I spin her around the ballroom, enraptured by her smooth movements.
It’s like she’s on ice, fluid and conforming to her surroundings.
I’m taller than her, towering high above her head, but she never falters.
We’re like two perfect pawns—a rook and the queen he vows to protect.
As the music swoops into something fast and steady, I dip Melody low, my hand at her back as we stare into each other. It’s as if the whole room fades until it’s just us.
Her gaze bounces between mine, something unsure and frightened in her eyes. “Kaden…“ She whispers.
The way she’s looking at me makes me flustered.
I quickly glance away, only to catch my dad’s stare from across the room.
Mom is smiling so hard her cheeks must be hurting, but Dad appears ready to strangle me.
I’m an obstacle to him, the son who stands in the way of anything and everything.
I’m the kid who tramples over his perfect rules without hesitation.
I’m his enemy.
I have his sweet, precious daughter in my arms, my shrouded and dark shadows curling around her like a disease. And he can’t fucking stand it.
I rip my eyes away from him before pulling my sister back up and spinning her until she gives a breathless giggle.
The sound is better than any delicate harp or sharp violin.
As I pull her back into my arms, the smile I’ve perfected over the years eases onto my features.
It’s so simple when it comes to her. The emotions feel natural—pleasant.
As the song comes to an end, I notice Vincent standing awkwardly to the side. He’s staring at us like he can’t believe what he’s seeing. There’s a bundle of uncomfortable small signals from him. Shifting from foot to foot, the tight, blank expression he wears, and his fist squeezing at his side.
To onlookers, we’re siblings who are extremely close, with an unbreakable bond. But to Vincent, I’ve made something very clear.
Melody is mine.
My sweet sister belongs to me.
She may not understand it yet, but she will. This whole city will know before I meet my fate. Even now, staring at the heir who gawks at me like a freak, those urges beg me to close the space between us. To strangle the very air from his lungs for even touching Melody.
My sister squeezes me into a hug, unaware of the vile bloodlust nipping at me. “If you wanted a dance, you just had to ask.” She whispers affectionately.
I place my hand at the small of her back, never taking my eyes off Vincent. “I don’t ask, Sunny. I take.”
She rolls her eyes, giving me a friendly pat on the chest of my suit. “Okay, edgelord. I’m gonna go grab a drink. You should lay off the alcohol. You smell like whiskey.”
I let her go, my hand trailing after her until she’s out of my reach. “Don’t come near my sister again,” I warn Vincent.
He scoffs, shaking his head. “You don’t own her. You’re just—” His eyes flicker across me again. Calculating. Judgmental. “Too much.”
Cold fractals crack and shatter across me, my gaze darkening as I close the space between us. “You think you’re good enough for her? Because a room applauds at the mention of you?”
His eyes crash with mine, slight fear bleeding into them as he swallows. “I think she’s scared of you…”
I tilt my head condescendingly, sight burning into him. “Melody has nothing to be afraid of. You, on the other hand…” I let my words trail before pushing past him and slapping a rough hand over his shoulder. “Enjoy the party. It could be your last.”
Later that night, Dad yelled at me for interrupting Melody’s dance. I zoned out while he screamed until his face turned red. All I could think of was how I was going to bide my time for the next few years. I have to make every moment count.
And I don’t plan to waste a second.