I STAY WHERE I am, not done with my conversation with Nicholas, standing in the middle of the living room.
“Why did you trick her into marrying you?” he asks, not sounding mad like any caring father would.
I glare at him but don’t respond. See how he likes the silent treatment.
“Easton, things aren’t always what they seem. Especially with the Lords,” he says defensively as to why he wouldn’t answer my questions.
“You think I don’t know that?” I give a rough laugh. We’re not supposed to question them. Ever. We get assignments, we follow out the orders, and then we move on.
“They’ll test her,” he goes on. “A Lady has to be initiated.”
“They already have,” I inform him. “She passed.”
He bows his head, shaking it as if he can’t believe what’s going on right now. But he doesn’t bother asking what they required her to do in order to be my wife.
My phone starts to ring, and I pull it out of my back pocket. Seeing it’s Chance, I hit answer and walk over to the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Yeah?”
“It’s canceled. But just giving you a heads-up, Linc and Laura aren’t happy.”
“Of course not. They think you were their only option for her.”
“Yeah, well, just wanted to let you know.”
I can tell he’s still pissed at me. I hope he can tell that I don’t give a fuck how he feels about his situation involving my wife. “Thanks,” I say dryly and hang up. Turning around, I see Nicholas standing by the couch, holding a picture in his hand.
Sliding my cell into my back pocket, I stuff my hand into it as well and realize that he’s holding the picture I had of Elli that I found in the box in my father’s office. I rush over and yank it from his hand. It must have slipped out when I removed my phone. I’ve always got it on me, not wanting Elli to find it.
Nicholas looks at me. “Why the fuck do you have that?” His eyes narrow in suspicion.
“I found it.” I dodge the question. If he’s not going to give me all the information I need, why would I give it to him? I’m still not one hundred percent sure how he ended up at Carnage. For all I know, it was some assignment with the Lords, and he was ‘forgotten.’ It’s happened before. I’m sure it will with others in the future. And of course, there’s the other option—the Spade brothers set him free only to keep an eye on me and Elli. I sure as fuck don’t trust anything about them.
He runs his hand down his face and then looks at me. “I need to go somewhere. Will you take me?”
I pause, the thought of taking him somewhere makes my suspicions grow. Where the fuck would he need to go? He’s been dead for nine years. But curiosity gets the best of me. I need answers. Maybe this will get me some. “Sure.”
“Give me ten minutes. Get Elli, she needs to come with us as well.”
My shoulders straighten at that. I open my mouth to tell him no. That he’s not going to tell me what she needs to do. He doesn’t know her. But maybe he’s right. She does need to come with us. Be with me. Chance called off the wedding. I wouldn’t be surprised if Linc were to show here within the next hour demanding to know what the fuck she’s done for Chance to not want her anymore. After all, they had an agreement that he got her on their wedding night.
Finally, I nod. She’s safer with me than here alone. “Ten minutes.”
ELLINGTON
I SIT IN the back of my car while Sin drives and my father is in the passenger seat. He said he needed to go somewhere, and I was given ten minutes to get dressed and in the car. I can tell they’re not getting along.
We’ve been in the car for over thirty minutes, and they haven’t said a word to one another.
“Next right, up here around the corner,” my father finally speaks, pointing out of the windshield.
I look over to Sin who has one wrist draped over the steering wheel. He’s relaxed in the seat, but I can tell by his hard jaw that he’s not happy. I’m not sure what they said to one another after I left the living room, but it obviously wasn’t friendly. Or maybe it’s me he’s mad at, which I couldn’t care less about. If anyone should be mad, it’s me.
“Right here,” my father speaks once more, pointing to what looks like a driveway.
Sin slows the car and makes the turn. We’re on a gravel road, grass overgrown on either side. Some coming up in places through the gravel.
A house comes into view. It’s gorgeous, or at least once was. One story and the front nothing but glass windows, the little siding it has is black with matching trim. You can tell it’s older. Long forgotten by the flower beds out front left to die and taken over by weeds.
My father turns around and looks at me. “Does this look familiar?”
I frown at his odd question but it’s Sin who speaks first. “Why the fuck would this look familiar to her?”
My father continues to look at me, ignoring Sin as he brings the car to a stop in front of the house. I shake my head, knowing he’s expecting me to answer. “No.”
“Nicholas,” Sin growls, getting out and slamming the driver side door shut.
I crawl out from the back as my father holds the front seat forward for me. “Just curious,” he answers vaguely.
I frown, so over this. I always imagined what it would be like to have my father. But the him before I thought he committed suicide. He’s different now. I can tell by the way he walks, carries himself. I don’t see it being a good thing.
We make our way up the three stone steps and my father bends down, picking up a once black flowerpot but over time the sun has turned it an ugly shade of gray. He removes a key and unlocks the front door.
It squeaks as we enter. The house smells musty and stale. Like it’s been abandoned for years. It’s sad, really. I bet it was gorgeous back in its prime.
“Last chance, Nicholas. Why the fuck are we here?” Sin demands. My eyes drop down to the back of his shirt as he stands in front of me, and I see the outline of his gun tucked into his jeans.
My cheeks flush, remembering what he did to me with it back when he was the masked man that I wanted to stalk me for the rest of my life. Now he’s my husband. Funny how dreams come true in ways you never could have imagined. Too bad I want to punch him in the face now.
“I want to see something,” he answers and walks through the house. Going over to a door off of a hallway, he pushes it open and there’s a set of stairs to a basement.
My father goes first and then Sin grabs my hand, pushing me to go next, and then he goes behind me, leaving the door open at the top of the stairs for extra light.
Making the last step, I wrap my arms around myself and run my hands up and down my body to create friction. “It’s cold in here.”
Sin comes up behind me and wraps his arms around me from behind, his chin resting on top of my head, but I feel how stiff his body is. He doesn’t trust my father. He’s not trying to warm me up, he’s trying to protect me from the unknown. My father has obviously been here before and I’m not sure we should trust him. Who knows why he brought us here.
“Do you recognize anything, Elli?” my father asks again, and I hear Sin growl in annoyance.
I frown but look around the room. It’s nothing special. An old dingy white sheet covers something in the middle of the room. Other than that, there’s nothing else in here that I see could be important. “No.”
Sin drops his arms from my chest, and I instantly miss the heat from him. He steps around me. “Nicholas—”
“What about you, Easton? Do you recognize anything?” My father interrupts whatever he was about to say.
Sin tilts his head, his dark brows pulling down at the odd question. “Why? Should I?”
Instead of answering, my father walks over to the white sheet and yanks it off to reveal an old dingy twin mattress. It’s got stains all over it. I’m guessing sweat and blood. Some look dark brown like pop but I guess that could be blood too. Not sure. “I don’t understand,” I say and look over at Sin.
His body is rigid, eyes staring straight ahead, jaw clenched, and hands fisted by his sides. “Sin?” I ask, but he doesn’t even blink. Stepping closer, I place my hand on his shoulder and he jumps back from me. “Sin, what’s wrong?” I ask, eyes searching his wide ones. I don’t understand. “What am I missing?” I ask no one in particular.
Sin reaches out, grabs my arm, and yanks me behind him while pulling out his gun and pointing it at my father.
