Chapter 44
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Eve
So, I lied.
I never planned on going down to the beach.
Instead, I take the elevator down to the Exeter House lobby and ask the concierge to call me a car. The driver drops me off at the Black Tide Coffee & Co.—a legendary coffee house that’s been a local Malibu haunt for more than a century. And it also happens to belong to my brother.
It’s late morning, so the Black Tide is all but empty when I walk in, with just Geo manning the place. Business won’t start picking up until around lunchtime.
Geo is leaning against the counter, staring down at his phone, when I walk in.
“Welcome,” he says in a bored tone, not even looking up. “What can I get started for you?”
“Hey, Geo.”
Geo’s head jerks up when he hears my voice, and he stares at me for several long seconds, like he’s trying to make sense of what’s happening. “Holy shit, Eve!” he breathes, moving around the counter to pull me into a hug. “Thank God you’re okay.”
I laugh and pry myself out of Geo’s bear hug, then glance around the coffee shop, expecting Sin to materialize. He’s always wandering around here somewhere. “Is Sin here?” I ask.
His car wasn’t in the parking lot, but if he’s trying to lay low, then he might have it parked around back.
Geo’s face falls. “You don’t know? You were at Rush House, so we assumed you’d heard.”
My brows pinch. “Know what?”
“Sin didn’t come back after the raid at Rush Beach.”
“ What? ” My stomach bottoms out, and a spike of panic shoots through me. “Where is he? Was he arrested?”
“The Burning Crown has him,” Geo says carefully. “A couple of our guys saw him get hauled off. They think he’s being held in the basement of Rush House. Markus and the others are planning to get him out...”
His words hit me like a slap to the face. My mind can’t seem to process what Geo is saying. I blink rapidly and open my mouth, but no sound comes out.
“Eve?” Geo’s voice fades into the distance. “Are you okay?”
The floor shifts under my feet. It’s not true. Christian would have told me, right?
My feet move on autopilot, and I abruptly turn on my heel and head straight to the back of the coffee shop, where there’s a small library filled with old books. The small room is empty as I rush up to the bookcase, my hands shaking, and knock forcefully three times.
There’s a speakeasy nestled behind the bookcase, which was established over a hundred years ago by the men who founded Shadow and Ash. The door is designed to look aged, weathered, and blend in seamlessly with the bookcase.
Two books are pulled back, creating a small hole.
“In shadows, we trust…” a disembodied voice says, trailing off, prompting me to finish the passphrase. It’s Ian, one of my brother’s most trusted guys.
“In silence, we rule,” I push out.
“Holy shit, Eve!”
The door swings inward, and I push inside. “Where’s Markus?”
“Downstairs,” Ian answers.
“Thanks,” I say over my shoulder, already halfway down the stairs.
When this place was built generations ago, the lower floors were cut straight into the sedimentary rock that forms the cliffs in Malibu. The bottom of the stairs opens up into a lounge with plush couches and upholstered armchairs that are drenched in natural light thanks to the crazy floor-to-ceiling windows that are level with the water, making you feel like you’re on a ship.
When I was a kid, I hated those windows. During storms, huge, violent waves would slam against the glass, and the boom would echo through the whole building. I was always afraid one of those waves would eventually shatter the glass and suck us all out to sea.
To calm me down, my brother built me a boat out of cardboard and packing tape and convinced me it would save us from drowning if the ocean ever decided to come crashing in…
But that was a lie, too.
I scan the lounge now, but it’s empty. It’s too early in the day. But by two in the afternoon, this place will be crawling with Shadow and Ash members, sprawled across these couches like they own the place.
My gaze shifts to the glossy black staircase that curves up to the mezzanine, where the conference area overlooks everything. If Markus is here, that’s where he’ll be—probably plotting my brother’s rescue as we speak.
Crossing the lounge, my footsteps echo in the quiet space, and I head up the stairs. The weathered treads creak under my weight, announcing my arrival. It’s impossible to sneak up on anyone here.
When I reach the top, everyone is sitting around the large table, looking in my direction, their conversation dying mid-sentence. I pause, searching for Markus in the dozen faces that are staring back at me.
Markus pushes back from the table and rises, crossing the distance between us with long strides—that same hurried stride he’s had since we were kids racing into the ocean. His green eyes sweep over me critically, his brow furrowed with that protective brotherly look.
“Are you hurt?” He grabs my shoulders, scanning for any visible damage. “What happened? Did you escape?”
I can see the worry and relief etched on his face. Markus is Sin’s best friend, and he’s always been like a brother to me—teaching me how to throw a punch that would send Sin to his knees. And when Mom died, he was there—a shoulder to cry on.
And having him here now, standing in front of me, familiar and protective, makes the tears well up. Lifting my chin, I try to blink them back, but it’s too late. He’s already seen them, and he pulls me into a tight hug.
“Don’t worry.” He pulls back, reading my thoughts. “We’re getting him back.”
Clenching my jaw, I nod. “There’s something you should know—Cash is there, at Rush House.”
“What’s that cunt doing there?”
If I go into the details, Markus will go ballistic, so I keep it as vague as possible. “The Sacred Sons had an issue, and they paid Cash to deal with it.”
Markus’s eyes narrow suspiciously, already picking up on my omission. “What issue? ”
“Doesn’t matter,” I say, brushing off the question. “The point is—the job is done, but they might keep him on to deal with Sin.”
“ Fuck. ” Markus tilts his head back and forces a breath out. “If Cash is there, then shit just got a thousand times more complicated.”
My sentiments exactly. But an idea is forming…
“I can get to Sin,” I say.
“ No ,” is Markus’ immediate response. “I know what you’re thinking, and you’re not going back in there. It’s not happening.”
“The Sacred Sons aren’t going to hurt me,” I lie. “If they wanted to, they’d have done it by now.” Another lie. “Maybe I can talk to Cash.”
“It’s not a bad idea,” someone from the table says. Lucy. She’s a more senior member, and if I’m honest, one of the smartest people at any table. “She has access to Rush House that none of us have.”
Markus shakes his head. “We have no idea what we’re up against yet.”
“I know exactly what we’re up against,” I say. “I’ve been living at Rush House for weeks, and now they have Cash on their side.”
“Which is exactly why you’re not going back,” Markus says, finality in his voice. “Cash is a fucking lunatic, who’s unhinged on a good day. What if he uses you to get information out of Sin?” He shakes his head again and turns to face the table. “We’ll send someone else.”
I step in front of him, forcing my face into his line of sight. “Cash and I have history. The Sacred Sons and I now have a history,” I say, my thoughts drifting to Christian. “Which is why it has to be me. I can exploit that.”
“You want to reason with the Sacred Sons?” Markus laughs, the sound flat, humorless. “The same assholes who killed Tyler simply because he pissed them off? No way. I won’t risk them doing the same thing to you.”
“She’s right,” a deep voice breaks in. I turn to see Logan leaning back in his chair. “They already let her go once. Maybe she can talk to them, and we can avoid more bloodshed.”
“This is the fucking Burning Crown we’re talking about,” Markus counters. “All they know is bloodshed.”
A heated debate erupts, people talking over each other—Lucy arguing in favor of my plan, Logan backing her up, while others side with Markus.
But my mind is already made up. It was made up the second Geo told me my brother had been captured.
“I don’t need anyone’s permission,” I speak up, interrupting. “Sin is my brother, and I’m going back.”
If it’s not too late already , my mind supplies.
As everyone continues to argue, Markus pulls me aside, genuine concern carved into the lines of his handsome face. “I promised your brother, if anything happened to him, I’d protect you. He’d never forgive me if I let you walk back into Rush House.”
“You’re not letting me do anything,” I say. “It’s my decision.”
Then, before he can argue, I turn and head for the stairs. Behind me, I hear Markus slam his fist against the table, but I don’t look back. I keep walking, keep moving, because I have to. Any hesitation, and I might lose my nerve.
Outside, the morning sun is bright, too bright, after the darkness of The Caves, as we call them. As I step out onto the walkway, I spot Geo leaning against the wall, apron pulled down, a cigarette hanging limply from his mouth.
“Hey, where’s your car?” I ask.
He points to a black SUV in the parking lot.
“Can I borrow it?”
With a shrug, he fishes the keys out of his pocket and tosses them to me. “Where are you going?” he asks.
“Thanks,” I say, deliberately ignoring his question. “I’ll get it back to you.”
In less than fifteen minutes, I’m standing in the bedroom at Exeter House. I had to break a few traffic laws to get here so quickly, but it doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters right now is getting my brother back in one piece.
First, I need information.
Christian is asleep on his back, arm slung over his face, his tanned body stretched diagonally across the huge mattress. On my way in, I stopped by the kitchen and grabbed a paring knife. I’m holding it at my side, squeezing the handle as I climb onto the bed and straddle his hips.
With a sleep-drenched moan, he shifts slightly, arm falling to his side as he gradually begins to stir. I hold the sharp blade lengthwise against his throat, right next to the bandage, pushing into the skin a little. Enough for the pressure to wake him up.
“Eve,” he says, blinking, not realizing there’s a knife to his throat. “Damn. I must have fallen asleep.”
“Why didn’t you tell me my brother was captured?” I ask, my voice deliberately ice-cold.
His brows pinch together, and he glances down at my hand, finally noticing the knife. He doesn’t try to push it away. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“On the night of the Vernal Whatever Ceremony, my brother was captured by your guys—” I push the knife in a little more, and he rewards me with a wince “I know he’s being held in the basement at Rush House.”
Clamping his fingers around my wrist, he pulls my hand and the knife away from him. “I don’t know anything about that.”
“ Bullshit ,” I yell, trying to pull my wrist out of his death-grip. As usual, it’s pointless. But I’m so fucking angry. Just when I was beginning to trust him, he obliterates that trust again. “I’ve been watching you guys, and I know all four Sacred Sons have to approve before doing something like that.”
In one quick motion, he takes the knife, throws it across the room, then flips me onto my back and pins my body to the mattress. I struggle against him, but he manages to grab both my wrists and hold them above my head easily with one hand. The fucking asshole.
“I should have slit your throat while you were asleep,” I say, acid in my tone. I was stupid to think I could trust him.
“Listen to me, Eve—I don’t know anything about your brother being held at Rush House, I swear. Jesus. ”
He looks genuinely confused and alarmed, but…do I believe him?
“ Bullshit,” I spit out.
“I slept in the office that night,” he says. “And since then, I’ve been here with you. I haven’t even been checking my phone. So whatever they’ve done to your brother, I’m not part of it.”
I search his face for anything that would tell me he’s lying, but all I see is alarm, maybe even concern. With a sigh, he releases my wrists but keeps me pinned to the mattress. “How did you even hear Sin was captured?”
I hesitate, knowing he’ll be pissed when I tell him I didn’t go down to the beach like I told him I was going to. “I had a driver take me to find my brother. When I got there, Sin’s second in command, Markus, told me he’d been taken by the Sacred Sons last night.”
“ Fuck ,” Christian says with a hiss, dropping his head.
Sitting up, I push him and he falls back easily. “I’m going to Rush House, and I’m getting my brother.”
“Fuck, no.” He runs a hand through his wavy hair, then pulls it down his face. “You’re not going anywhere near Rush House.”
My heart pounds. “Funny, you’re the second guy to tell me that today,” I say. “And you’re the second guy I’m going to ignore.”
Christian’s eyes search mine, and he must know he’s not going to win this, because he rises off the bed, grabs the paring knife off the floor, and hands it back to me, handle first. “Fine. Then I’m going with you.”