Chapter 29 Honor Gravehart
Honor Gravehart
The room smelled of iron and fear. Lucian made good on his promise.
Mitch and Troy hung from the beam by their wrists.
Their toes barely brushed the concrete, and they were stripped of everything but their underwear.
They whimpered. Not loud, just enough for me to know they were still alive.
Their chests jumped every time Ghost shifted his weight or Grim's nails scraped the floor.
Killian's best friends sat at my feet, calm in a way that unnerved anyone who didn't know them.
Ghost and Grim didn't snarl unless they were told to.
They didn't bark unless it served a purpose.
Much like their owner, they didn't move unless it was worth their while.
Ghost's jowls were still damp with blood, his dark eyes fixed on the men like he was deciding whether they were worth finishing.
Grim nudged my leg, a warning of how calm could quickly slip into carnage.
A lesson Mitch and Troy had already learned.
"I told you Ghost and Grim were artists." Killian chuckled from his seat near the door.
"And their canvas is beautiful," I murmured, taking it all in.
Their teeth marks were wide, crushing gashes along Mitch and Troy's calves and thighs. Their skin was already swelling, bruised in deep purples and red.
"You're staring too hard, Honor. Don't let the meat distract you from your purpose."
I looked at the men, at the pain I could see in their eyes, but it wasn't enough. My hands flexed. I let Navy's words wash over me again.
They weren't shooting to kill, Honor. It was a warning."
I leaned down slightly, letting the weight of my presence press against the room. My voice came out low as I spoke in Killian's native language, Kriolu.
"Mata (kill)."
Ghost lunged first, fangs sinking deep. Grim followed, tearing into muscle and tendon with ruthless precision. The men screamed, but there was no mercy. When it was over, Mitch and Troy hung still, nothing left but silence, and a finished canvas.
I exhaled slowly and stepped back. Killian leaned into his chair, his expression unreadable, Grim and Ghost settling at his feet.
"Now," Killian's voice cut through, "why am I really here? I appreciate you letting my friends create, but you were more than capable of handling this on your own."
"I need your help," I stated, watching blood drip onto the concrete.
"Wolfe built himself quite the slaughterhouse. He's got way better contraptions here, like the meat grinder that would've easily erased your problems. My help wasn't needed."
"Need not needed." I turned from the bodies and stared at Killian. "I want to kill Lucian."
Killian's mouth curved into a crude smile as he let out a low whistle.
"Killing Lucian is likely to start a war that you can't win."
"I know."
"Then why?"
Before I could answer, footsteps echoed down the hall. Killian's hands went to Ghost and Grim, one palm on each broad head, steadying them as they turned toward the entrance.
"Who?"
"Syn and Choyce," I answered.
Killian smirked. "This will be interesting."
Syn walked in first.
"My babies." She smiled, looking down at Ghost and Grim. They grunted softly, leaning into her touch.
Then Choyce walked in.
She wasn't dressed how Lucian preferred. There was no tailored suit or armor masquerading as sophistication. She walked past Killian without a word. Ghost and Grim growled low in her direction, but she didn't flinch. She just kept coming toward me.
"We need to talk," she spat.
I fell in step beside her, then moved, leading her into one of the side rooms. Before the fluorescent lights could turn on, I heard the unmistakable click of her gun cocking back.
I chuckled, turning just enough to catch the fury burning in her eyes as she aimed.
"Cho—"
The gun fired. The bullet missed me by less than an inch, skimming my ear enough to singe the heat into my skin.
"I hadn't killed anyone until the day you made me," she sneered, "but Kage made sure I had perfect aim." Her finger tightened on the trigger. "That one missed on purpose. The next won't."
"Is everything okay in here?" Syn asked, stepping into the room. She leaned against the wall as Ghost moved in sync with her.
"I know we just became friends, but I need you to leave," Choyce instructed, never taking her eyes off me.
"Honor."
"I'm good, Syn," I reassured her.
"Okay. And Choyce, I told you before how I show up will always announce my why. It's smart to be skeptical. It's stupid to kill him." Syn left without another word, Ghost's nails clicking against the concrete as the door shut behind them.
"Y'all two are friends?" I asked.
"Something like that."
"She'll be good for you." I nodded. "Syn knows the importance of doing what needs to be done without losing yourself to make it happen. She can teach you how to become the woman you're chasing."
"And what do you know about the woman I'm chasing, or who I want to become, for that matter?"
I wasn't used to Choyce sounding so cheeky.
She flirted in order to control rooms, bending attention where she wanted it.
However, this wasn't that. This was the little sister who used to look to her big sister for safety.
The feelings she liked to pretend didn't exist. This was Choyce without the Mancinelli name. The real her.
"I know you want power," I asserted evenly. "Enough to erase what Lucian did to you. Respect, so survival never costs your self-worth again. Money, so rules stop being something to obey and start being something you create. And Cherish—"
"Don't you say her fucking name," she hissed, closing the distance between us. "Don't act as if you care about my daughter. I warned you. I told you there'd be consequences for telling Lucian no, and you didn't give a fuck. You went toe-to-toe with that man, and for what? For fucking what, Honor?"
"I needed him to show his hand."
She laughed.
"Congratulations, because all he showed me was how far he's willing to go. He was in my fucking house. My house. Not the one he built, but the one I paid for. He sat in my daughter's room." Her eyes burned. "And he told me because she wasn't a boy, she was disposable."
Silence swallowed the room.
"And a few hours after he left?" she continued. "I had to deal with my bitch ass husband and your bit—"
The look I gave stopped the word in her throat.
"Girlfriend," she corrected, jealousy heavy in her tone. "Do you understand how fucked up my mental was when your girlfriend came questioning me about shit she should've asked you?"
Her chest heaved, spit flying as the words poured out of her.
"Look what your precious girlfriend did to me."
Choyce set the gun down, lifted her chin, and peeled the bandage from her neck. A swollen, ring wrapped her throat, from one earlobe to the other.
"This…" she pointed to the mark she'll have to carry forever, "this is what happens when you don't trust the people you work with, Honor."
"Nah." I shook my head, a venomous laugh slipping out. "That happened because you let your infatuation with me go too fucking far."
Choyce's eyes flickered with a mixture of embarrassment and hatred.
"I told you to quit playing with me. You chose not to and treated it like foreplay. The back and forth, me threatening your life, you liked that shit. It turned you on and gave you courage when you should've run the fuck away."
"Is that what you think?" she scoffed, jerking her head back. "I'm not infatuated with you. I just see what everyone chooses to ignore. Navy is a moment. She's not your forever."
"Your new neck jewelry didn't teach you shit, did it?"
I reached for Choyce's throat, my thumb pressing into her wound. She flinched but held her composure.
"Think what you want, but Navy is my purpose and my reason. I know that's hard for a bitch who's never known love to understand, so let me make this real clear—"
I took Choyce by the hand and dragged her out of the room, back toward where the bodies hung like reminders. I forced her down onto her knees, not giving a fuck that she landed in a pool of blood.
"Honor, what are you doing?" Syn gritted.
"Ignore what doesn't concern you, Emersyn," Killian calmly stated.
I removed my gun from my waist and pressed the barrel to Choyce's forehead. Not hard or shaking. Just ready to kill if she didn't make the right choice.
"One of the first lessons Lucian drilled into me," I quietly voiced, "was never to flash your weapon unless you're prepared to end the problem."
I nodded past her shoulder.
"Those men behind you? They were a problem. They put bullets in the air at Chosyn and Navy on Lucian's command, so I killed them, and I killed Lucian's butler, too. His consequence for using Navy as a warning."
My gaze cut back to Choyce. Her eyes flickered with something twisted and hungry. Fear didn't come, but excitement did, and lust followed, pooling in her stare.
"And now," I continued, "you're starting to feel like a problem to not only me, but Navy too.
" The gun stayed kissed to her forehead.
"Navy let you off easy. You should probably thank Chosyn for that.
But me, I'm all out of fucks to give. I've pulled this out one too many times for you to still be breathing. "
I leaned in just enough for her to feel the weight of the gun.
"So I'm gonna ask you this once. Lie to me, and I'll kill you right here, right fucking now."
I paused, asking God to give her the common sense she so clearly lacked. I didn't want to kill Choyce. She was a victim of her circumstances. Shaped, scarred, and broken by it. She deserved better than me, better than this life.
My eyes drifted to the cut Navy left behind, proof of how far she'd been pushed.
If killing Choyce meant Navy would never have to touch that darkness again, then I'd do it.
I've crossed worse lines for less. Still, when I looked at Choyce, something familiar curled in my chest. She felt like the innocent parts of me I had forgotten about.
The kid who waited for protection that never came.
Choyce wasn't angry. She was broken and silently begging for someone to piece her back together.
I didn't want to be her executioner. I didn't want to be the monster she clung to because she didn't know what real safety looked like. I wasn't the better she deserved. I was just the man who survived what she hadn't yet learned how to escape.
"Are you a problem or a solution?"
"A solution," Choyce answered, pushing herself to her feet despite the gun still kissing her skin. "But I need something from you."
"What?"
"Protect Cherish," she softly requested. The excitement was gone. What looked back at me was raw and vulnerable. "I don't know what's going to happen to me, but if something does… I need you to protect her. She doesn't have anyone who'll rearrange heaven and hell for her."
"Why me?" I asked. "Why not Chosyn or Kage?"
"Because Kage has his own demons to face, and I see how you protect Navy.
I want that for my daughter. Talon is her father, but the moment I told him Lucian threatened Cherish's life, he took her to his house.
He doesn't understand because he refused to play Lucian's game.
But you and I, we've played. We know the rules.
I don't want Cherish to learn the way I did.
So, I need you to promise, no matter what, you'll protect my daughter. "
Something like a pain stirred inside me as I saw Choyce in a different light.
Vulnerability. Honesty. Everything opposite of the control freak I'd been fighting with. She was simply Choyce. Stripped down to the part of herself that only wanted someone to keep her daughter safe, even if it cost her everything.
I lowered the gun. "Cherish is safe. No one will ever touch her."
Her shoulders collapsed in relief, a broken sound slipping out of her. I almost let myself feel it with her but turned away and faced the rest of the room.
"Lucian has to die," I calmly stated.
Killian's voice was even. "You don't pull a pillar without bringing the roof down. Are you sure you'll be able to withstand those consequences?"
"If it means those I love are safe forever, then I'm willing to bear the weight."
Syn's eyes met mine, an unspoken understanding passing between us. Killian's warning was clear. The roof would fall, and when it did, I might not be left standing. However, it didn't matter. Nothing mattered more than the cost being worth it.
"Lynx's family goes first, then Talon." I turned to Killian. "Send the word."
"I'll be in touch." Killian rose, already moving, Ghost and Grim falling in line behind him as he left the room.
"Syn, I'll reach out about the Lynx situation. I need it quick and clean."
"Choyce and I will handle it," she assured, then gestured for Choyce to follow.
Choyce didn't hesitate. She fell in step beside Syn and walked out.
I pulled out my phone and texted Wolfe.
Me
Clean up. Make it quick.
Wolfe
Busy. Hit Crown.
I hesitated, knowing things with Crown were still rocky.
"Fuck it."
Me
Need you at the mill. ASAP.
A moment later, his reply lit up the screen.
Crown
I'll be there.
The plan was moving. The pieces were in place. The world Lucian had built would burn, and by the time I made the move to kill Lucian, nothing he considered his would exist.