Something was going on back at Chapel Crest, and I needed to get home and squash that shit. Ashes and Stitches were right. The longer I was in the Underground, the more deranged I became. I didn’t need them to point it out. I could feel the darkness seeping through my veins with every breath I took in this fucking hell I was stuck in.
I had a little bit of a plan, but it wasn’t much. And the last thing I wanted to do was give in and have a look at what was happening back home. All I knew was that shit didn’t feel right. My assumption was Sin, but it also swung to that fucking Bryce Andrews.
“Lost in thought or just lost?” A familiar voice called out as I walked the halls through the mansion that sat over the Underground palace.
“Asylum,” I greeted him, not surprised he was there. I knew he worked for my father. Or at least my father believed he worked for him. I was under the impression he was on our side at the moment, given what I knew and witnessed from him.
We all had a part to play. Asylum played his well.
“Maybe a little bit of both,” I muttered, stopping to speak to him.
He smiled at me, and I took note of the blood dots on his face.
“Working hard, I see.”
“Always.” He looked past me, a muscle thrumming along his jaw.
“I was under the impression you were staying behind at Chapel Crest.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “To help if help was needed.”
“I’m here and there. Don’t worry, though. I’m more there than here.”
I sighed, hating his riddles.
“I think you love them,” He turned his attention back on me. “Here’s another one. In the darkness, he lurks while you do the work. When he finally steps forward, you’ll realize the truth. He’s as big a part of her as I am her youth.”
“Andrews.” His name was sour on my tongue.
He shrugged. “My advice to you is to let nature take its course. I think you’ll eventually change your mind on whoever it is.”
“He’s never going to join us. He’s not strong enough. You know he’s not.”
“Am I strong enough?” Asylum raised his brows at me.
I studied him for a moment before answering. “You have a better chance than he does.”
“Good to know.” He grinned at me again. “Listen, Andrews is an issue only if you make him one. Like I said, let nature take its course. And sometimes, that course is a little violent. Wait and see. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to work. Someone needs an eye exam.” He twirled his fork and let out a bark of laughter. “I’d like to come home too, Dante.”
He departed, leaving me standing there, wondering what the fuck was truly the matter with him. Maybe he was better at playing the part than I was because he skipped a little before he disappeared around a corner, humming that same damn song Sirena hummed, his fork in his hand.
Knowing I needed to get to the meeting with my father, I pushed everything out of my head and focused on that. If I didn’t, I get overloaded and just lash out.
And that never ended well for anyone.
“Dante, my boy, you’ve done well.” My father’s deep voice interrupted my thoughts. I glared at him and slammed back the drink he’d poured me.
When I didn’t say anything, he surveyed me and sat forward, his hands clasped in front of him at his desk.
“You’re unhappy.”
I scoffed. “How observant, Father.”
He let out a soft laugh. “I do not understand why you are the way you are. You have everything, including power and a kingdom. What can I do to make you happy?”
“Let me leave here and return home.”
“This is your home.”
“This is a pit of despair,” I snapped at him. “A place where the weak and unfortunate come to die. As I am neither, I do not see it as my palace.”
His lips thinned. “You wish to return to Chapel Crest.”
“You know I do.”
“Funny, I had a hard time getting you to go. Now look. Clawing to get back there.”
I said nothing, watching as he sat back and smoothed his tie. He was wrong about that. I didn’t want to go because I was worried about my mother. Leaving her alone to his madness nearly killed me, but she begged me to leave. In retrospect, I knew she did it as a way to give me a chance. I’d gone even though I hadn’t wanted to. And she’d suffered as I knew she would. Each day, I hated myself for it.
“I will give you this gift, my son. My pride and joy. I am freeing you as you wish. You may return to Chapel Crest soon. You’ve learned every aspect of our enemy. I trust in you to deliver the next time I call on you. You will not disappoint me, yes?”
I ground my teeth for a moment as I stared back at him. If I failed, Sirena would be harmed. The family I’d fought to have would suffer. I had no choice but to obey until the day I had the means to end him and his terror. Of course, it would only give birth to mine.
Funny how things worked like that.
“I will not fail. I always deliver on my promises,” I said, my voice a soft, even hum.
A wide grin spread across his face. “You truly are your father’s son. I am nothing but impressed with your work. You will be rewarded.”
“I only require the safety of my family. For Sirena to be mine,” I said. “I ask for nothing else. Sign her soul over to me.”
“You shall receive all that and more. Finish this task for me, and I will sign my name on the dotted line for you. Let us have dinner.”
“I do not wish to dine here.” I tried to keep from grinding my teeth together, my irritation at an all-time high.
He chuckled and got to his feet, completely ignoring my frustration. Or maybe I’d gotten so good at remaining emotionless on the outside he didn’t catch it.
“Of course. I have a table at Monico’s already booked for us. Come. I’d like you to finish out the week here with me.”
“You said I was free to return to Chapel Crest.” I rose to my feet, my elation at the possibility of going home deflating quickly.
“Yes, you are free. I would like for you to remain here for a few more days. I do need one more thing from you.”
Of course. A fucking catch. There always was.
“And what is that?”
“It’s really only a side task. I’d have assigned it elsewhere, but I feel it’s a good final job for you for this visit.”
“Sounds like fun,” I muttered as we walked to the front door. The men opened the door for us, four of them moving in to walk behind. I knew how this worked. He brought two to man the vehicle, armed to the teeth, with the other two following closely in another vehicle. His entourage. It was one of the reasons I couldn’t kill his ass. This entire place was crawling with idiots who’d die for him. Idiots who would overcome me since there was a vast number of them prowling the halls. My father’s orders were straightforward. If something happened to him, kill whoever did it, even if it were me. It was an issue I was working on. It was why I needed to somehow get him alone or get enough manpower to gut his ass, get out safely, then return to take over.
Of course, there was the issue of loyalty too. Just because the men were loyal to my old man didn’t mean they were loyal to me. They feared me, so that was a good start.
“I need you to simply go in and check on him. Make sure he’s still working.”
We got into the back of the blacked-out SUV, two of the men getting into the front like always. The partition was in place, so I knew they couldn’t hear us.
“And if he’s not?” I stared out the dark window, watching the scenery move past.
“You’re creative. I’m sure you’ll know exactly what to do. Ensure he works. I do ask that he keeps his hands and fingers. He does require those to work.”
“So I’m free to remove everything else?”
A wicked smile curled his lips upward.
“Bring me the spare parts if they happen to come off. I don’t like to waste. You can see to him after dinner.”
I said nothing, hating him a little bit more.
Just a few more days. . .
Then I’d be home with my girl and brothers. I only hoped I wouldn’t be adding Sin to my body count when I returned.
I stood outside a wooden door on the ninth level of the dungeon. Around me, the sounds of soft sobs and incoherent babbling sounded out. Typical for this part of the world.
I hated it down here. It was a fucking nightmare sent from the asshole of hell. The quicker I could leave, well, the quicker I wouldn’t mentally descend further into my own brand of madness.
With the key card, I buzzed the door open, nodding at the two men guarding the door. Father kept his most prized possessions down here. Many of them I’d never seen before, so only the devil knew what was holed up at this level of hell.
Carefully, I stepped into the dim room. As far as holes in hell went, this one wasn’t what I expected. There was a toilet, a sink, a bed, and a computer with five monitors connected to it.
And a man hunched over and staring intently at all the screens of code. He was a tall man. I could tell he’d wasted away after being trapped here many years, but that was typical. He may have been a force to be reckoned with at one point.
“Tell him I’m working,” the man called out gruffly with a Russian accent. “I’m only one man.”
I walked deeper into the room and stared at the monitors, taking in all the information. I had no idea what any of it meant. Computers weren’t really my thing. Ashes spent more time fucking around with them than I did.
“What are you working on?” I finally asked.
“I’m working on breaking into Ivanov’s accounts. He has them on lockdown. I’ve never seen code like this before.”
I watched in silence, wondering what my father was up to. Whatever it was could seriously fuck us all if it went south.
“Work harder,” I said in a deadly whisper. “Faster. Results are needed now, not tomorrow.”
The man stopped typing furiously and didn’t move for a moment. Finally, he turned and faced me.
I blinked rapidly at him, something in his face making my guts churn.
He was familiar. Too fucking familiar.
“I am trying. I can only do what I can do. He has me roadblocked at every turn. He’s smart. Ivanov’s paranoia works in his favor. It always has.”
I swallowed. “Indeed.”
The man rubbed his eyes and pushed his dark hair away from his face, his blue eyes filled with exhaustion. Black rings from lack of sleep circled his eyes.
“What’s your name?” I asked after a moment, my heart thrumming quickly.
He looked up at me from his seat and let out a soft laugh.
“It’s funny you should come in here and ask my name. I figured the son of Satan would know it, or does he not give you pertinent information like names when he sends you to do his bidding, Dante?”
I narrowed my eyes at him and pulled my knife out. I gave it a twirl, trying to soothe the monster inside me who wanted answers but feared them.
“Right.” He eyed my blade. Judging by the look in his eyes, he’d contemplated attacking. Had he not wasted away down here, we may have been a fair match. He knew better, though. “My name is Anatoly Sokolov.”
“Is it?” I demanded in a low rumble.
“It is. Of course, I’ve gone by many names. I’m sure you’ve heard of me before. Nathaniel, Frederick, William—”
“Jonathan,” I said, a slight wobble to my voice.
He blinked in surprise at me. “Yes. Jonathan.”
“Lawrence.”
He crinkled his brows as he stared back at me. “Everett told you that one?”
“He told me nothing,” I snarled. “You have daughters.”
He exhaled, his hands trembling. The careful, strong mask he’d had in place slipped. “Do you. . . know my girls?”
“Yes.”
“You-you haven’t hurt them, have you? They aren’t here, are they?” He went from somewhat cocky to terrified as he rose to his feet. “Please. They are good girls—”
“How would you know?” I asked, anger surging through me. “You haven’t seen them in years.”
“I-I couldn’t.”
“Or wouldn’t,” I snapped at him. “You walked out and left them. Do you even know what happened to them?”
The trembling in his body grew. “What happened to them? Please. . .”
“Cady has gone mad. Tried to kill her stepfather. She trapped him in his car and set it on fire.”
Anatoly’s face paled at my words.
“And Sirena.” I let out a bitter laugh, taking in the fear in his eyes. “Someone tried to kill her when she was younger. Left her to rot in a box in a shed.”
He pushed past me and went to his toilet, where he fell to his knees and heaved his guts into it. I watched, waiting to finish the story. When he was done, he wiped his mouth and looked at me from his knees.
“Where is she buried?” he whispered, tears on his cheeks.
“Did I say she was dead?”
He frowned. “She-she lives?”
“Oh yes, she certainly does. In my home.”
“What?” He stumbled to his feet, the fear in his eyes morphing into something that showcased his terror. “You-you have her?”
“I do,” I answered as he stood before me.
“Please, I’ll do whatever you want. Don’t hurt her. She’s a good girl. The sweetest. She’s my-my princess. . . She-she dances. Ballet. Sings. Her voice is like an angel’s—”
I let out a laugh at him, angry at him for reasons I wasn’t able to pinpoint. Perhaps it was the fact he’d been under my nose the entire time and I was angry with myself over it. Or maybe it was because he’d walked out on her and Cady.
“I remember you,” I said, closing the space between us. “That night with Ivanov. The night my father took you from him. I assumed you were one of Ivanov’s top dogs.”
“Tell me about Sirena,” he choked out, ignoring my comments. “Please. Let her go. Set her free. She-she wants to be a singer—”
“She no longer speaks,” I snapped at him. “Her ordeal has left her mute. She wouldn’t even respond when I first met her. But after I claimed her. . .” I smiled at him, drinking in the way he shuddered and sucked in a sharp breath. “She came around for me.”
I twirled my knife again. “She still doesn’t speak much, but she’s a little crazy these days. I suppose being with me, she’d have to be. I tend to rub off on people.”
He lunged forward, his hands hitting my chest hard. I took a step back, my blood on fire with all sorts of wicked thoughts.
Quickly, I caught myself and whipped forward, stopping his next attack and kicking his legs out from beneath him. He went to his knees with a cry, my knife at his throat.
“Why did you fucking leave her?” I demanded as he clung to my arm, my knife biting his flesh.
“I-I had no choice,” he rasped. “I could never stay long. It was part of my-my job.”
“Who do you really work for?”
“N-Nicolai Reznikov,” he choked out.
I released him, letting him fall forward.
“So you were on the inside trying to get Ivanov.”
“And De Santis,” he said through a cough. “I-I worked both ends.”
“For what purpose?”
“Nicolai wanted information. He knew I could get it.”
“A mole,” I muttered, shaking my head at him. “How are you connected to Reznikov? Blood?”
“No.” He righted himself slightly and crawled back into his chair to stare up at me. A thin line of blood glistened on his neck from my blade, giving me a sense of satisfaction that helped quell the fire in my veins.
“Nico and I have been friends since we were children. Our fathers were friends. Best friends. You know how it works in our world.”
I did. Children were heirs and ushered in whether they liked it or not.
“I wonder why it is that Nico hasn’t looked for you,” I said, frowning. Nicolai Reznokov was a monster. He was mostly situated on the west coast but had once had his fingers deep in Chicago. He’d pulled out suddenly, and now his name was simply whispered in terror. De Santis took over most of the city, and Ivanov took what was left. And us. We sat somewhere beneath it all, waiting. Watching. Plotting, apparently.
“Perhaps he has, and you simply do not know about it. Or maybe he’s smart to let me go. Waging war on the Underground seems a bad idea, don’t you think? Everett’s reach is far and wide.” He stared glumly at his hands before he let out a soft sniffle.
I sighed. He’d been in this fucking hole for too many years.
“I’d have gone back,” he said after a moment while wiping his eyes. He stared at me, so much sorrow on his face it made my skin crawl. I hated seeing sadness in people. It angered me. I had no idea why, so I didn’t spend a lot of time exploring the emotion.
“I-I have another child aside from Sirena and Cadence. I’d have gone back for all of them.”
I stared him down, knowing damn well Sirena and Cady had no idea they had another sibling.
“Who is the third?” I asked.
He looked away from me. “Why would I tell you? So you can trap her too?”
I let out a soft, dark laugh. “Sirena belongs to me. Trust me, it’s better than who she could belong to. I’m a walk in the fucking park compared to my father.”
He scowled at me, the fury still alive and well in his eyes as he gazed back at me.
“Do you torture her like your father tortures the people here?”
“No,” I answered evenly.
He crinkled his brows while surveying me. “You-you love my daughter?”
“I do,” I said. “And she loves me.”
He shook his head. “Impossible. Sirena is a sweet, innocent girl—”
“Sirena is an adult with a mind of her own. She chose me as much as I chose her. She is mine, and I am hers.”
“She would never. What did you do to her?”
“I did nothing she didn’t want,” I responded fiercely. “Now. Tell me who the other child is.”
He glared back at me. “I will tell you nothing.”
I sighed. “Listen, Anatoly, I’m not in the fucking mood. Get your shit done here. Fucking off to buy yourself some time won’t work. I’ll kill you without batting a lash. There are other mediocre hackers out there we can replace you with.”
He rose from his seat, his bottom lip trembling. “I want to leave here.”
“Then get the fucking job done,” I snarled at him.
“Everett will never let me leave. This is where I’ll die.”
He was right. I was certain that’s exactly what would happen to him. I also knew I couldn’t be aware of his whereabouts and let that happen to him. It would devastate my specter.
“I’ll ensure your freedom if you finish the job,” I said, my voice low.
He drew in a sharp breath. “What?”
“For my girl. I’ll let you out. She deserves to know why you did what you did. Why you left. And you’re going to tell her yourself.”
He nodded wordlessly.
“But I want to know the name of your other kid. Sirena and Cady deserve to know they have more family out there. If you die before you’re released, then it dies with you. You’ve already fucked their lives enough.”
“And you won’t harm her? Or tell your father?”
“I won’t give him shit,” I hissed out. I put my blade to my palm and made a cut. The blood blossomed out, dribbling down my palm and to my wrist. I placed my hand on his old torn shirt, leaving my mark over his heart. “You have my word and my blood.”
He visibly swallowed when I pulled away, contemplating my promise for a moment. “I have another daughter. Her name is. . .” He exhaled and scrubbed his hand along his cracked lips.
“Her name is Bianca. Last name Walker.”
I logged her name away. I’d look into her soon enough.
“Get this job done,” I said, backing away from him. “I’ll see to it you’re free. You’ll need to be patient and understand it’ll take some time on my end, but I will come for you.”
He watched me go to the door without a word. It wasn’t until I knocked to be let out by the guards and the door creaked open that he finally spoke.
“I really am trying to hurry. I’m not lying. I’m stuck.”
“Then get unstuck. Have a good night, Anatoly.” I stepped out of the room, the lock clicking into place behind me.
Drawing in a deep breath, I stepped away, knowing I had my fucking work cut out for me. Saving him would be a real bitch.
But I’d do it.
For Sirena, I’d do anything.
