A Rose to Keep (The Society 1)

“Don’t worry. I can handle myself.”

“Doubtful.” Steve shook his head. “One day you will find out, but I’m not telling you everything. Joan, Sian’s mother, was a special person to your dad. I’m not going to delve into the whys or whatnots. Your father … loved her, so much. They all had plans. A carefully organized and mapped-out life that involved all of them. I will never forget how happy your father was. I’ve never seen him like it since.”

“What changed? Joan isn’t my mother.”

Steve grabbed my arm and pulled me into my father’s room. “Your questions are very telling, Mateo. I have raised you to be a lot better than this.”

“Help me to understand. We already know Joan was our fathers’ selected. Like Sian is to us.”

“Then why ask all these questions?”

“How did he love her and end up with my mom? That kind of shit doesn’t happen. Not with The Society.”

Steve slammed his hand across my mouth. “Do not utter those words so easily. You need to learn to respect the organization.”

“Fill in the blanks for me. Tell me one of us is not fucking our sister.”

“Sian isn’t, nor will she ever be your father’s, Lucas’s, George’s, or Harrison’s. She is not related to any of you in any way. They would not allow such a selection to occur. Not here.”

“You’re talking in riddles. You’re not making a whole lot of sense.” I was tired of being taken on this ride.

“Joan was always supposed to be theirs, Mateo. They loved her and she loved them. She was the only real selected to fall in love with the men who owned her. Not because of some initiation process. They were loved.”

“What changed?”

“Their third year in college, end of the last semester before vacation. They were all having fun. Against the rules, they went and partied, drank too much, even though your father to this day claims they only had sodas. None of them drank. They got in the car, heading back to the dorms, and no one knew what happens next. The car was badly damaged. Joan was the only one left in the vehicle. She suffered a miscarriage. At the time, she was carrying their baby. They had been careless. When it came to that woman, they always were pushing the boundaries of what they’d been told. It finally caught up to them. They promised to protect her always, but instead, Joan registered an intoxication level that was off the charts. As per instruction, she took the fall, and your fathers walked free.”

“But … why would they do that?” I asked.

“They broke the rules. They made sure payment was due. With Joan taking the fall and what she lost, it fell to Alexander to pick up the pieces. She was never the same again, nor were your parents. What was once a beautiful romance had been turned into something sinister. He never got over it. As part of their punishment, they each had to take a woman of their choosing and get her pregnant. Congratulations, this is where you and your friends come in. After everything went down, it didn’t take long for Joan to fall in love with Alexander. They were married, and Sian was born not long after Gideon was. The continued punishment and decision of them was for Joan’s daughter to be their sons’ selected.”

“What you’re saying is even before we were born, it was decided.”

“I don’t make the rules and neither do your fathers. They know the consequences of not following their instructions. Do not make the same mistake they did, Mateo. The Society are not to be trifled with. They will know when you break. They will be there to make a profit, decide punishment, and rule upon your fate. You’ve got to decide if you can handle it.”

I watched Steve as he took a step back. The USB keys and the DVD felt heavy in my pocket.

“I will allow you to put back what you took, and we will not talk about this again, will we?” he asked.

“No.”

I didn’t know how he knew I’d taken anything but that was Steve for you. He knew everything and we all just had to play along.

Steve left my father’s room and I had no choice but to sit on the edge of my dad’s bed. Steve’s tale filled in so many blanks, but why? Why allow her to take the blame? Did Sian know about her mother’s miscarriage?

I had to let the guys know what I’d learned. More importantly, I pulled out my cell phone and typed in a warning to Fred. The Society meant business, and for me, I had no choice but to put any digging on hold. I refused to risk his life.

Shit was hitting the fan in a big way. I needed to make sure there were no future casualties. No one was dying because I was too fucking curious for my own good.