“Get ready,” Augustine whispered as he stealthily untied my hands. I kept them folded behind my back as he led me forward. Beyond the altar, I noticed a dark figure dart into the shadows. I casually let my gaze roam and noticed another moving in the opposite direction. It wasn’t until a third, much smaller figure followed the second that my control slipped infinitesimally. “Easy,” Augustine whispered. He disguised the order by pushing me to my knees.
I gritted my teeth when my knees hit the stone. I then searched the shadows again for movement, convinced my eyes were playing tricks on me. Augustine had warned me they would come, and I was terrified to believe he was right because if we failed…
“Any last words?” Andrew taunted.
“Try to be tasteful,” Reginald scolded before I could answer. “Angeles, please present your neck.”
I saw the shadows move again, and this time, it didn’t go unnoticed. Benjamin, a cousin from my own line, noticed the gun pointed at his head the same time I did. He backed away, stumbling, and drawing attention.
It didn’t matter, though.
It was already too late.
“Actually, I do have last words for you,” I announced. I stole Andrew’s attention again before he could notice them. “You lose.”
Andrew went down after Z delivered a brutal blow with the butt of his gun.
“What is this?” Reginald bellowed.
Lucas, Z, and Augustine were busy overpowering the armed and stupid when I smelled her soft scent. I didn’t know I was already missing her until now. “Why are you here?” I growled as she untied me.
She didn’t sound so sure of her answer when she said, “Wouldn’t you do the same for me?”
“There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you.” Her hands froze from untying me, but it didn’t matter. I forced free of the loosened rope and turned to cradle her face in my hands. “But you still shouldn’t have come.”
“Who would have stopped me?”* * *I HAVEN’T KILLED them yet even though I really wanted to. Reginald and Andrew were tied to a chair at each end of the table while our cousins, who hadn’t been injured to within an inch of their life, sat around the table. Lucas and Z stood as sentinels by the door while I leaned against the fireplace, holding the book at my side. The edges of the leather were burned, but I chose to focus on one issue at a time. Tension filled the library as they waited nervously for me to start the meeting.
At this point, there were no sides. Only confusion.
“Someone want to explain what the fuck is going on?” Amir spat. He was a descendant of Meredith and one of the few who hadn’t resisted when we stopped my execution.
“Angeles is a traitor and should be put down,” Reginald roared.
“It pains me to say it, cousin, but he’s right,” Liam, a descendant of Angelo, grimly agreed. “You wouldn’t have hesitated.”
“I wouldn’t have been wrong, either.”
His gaze narrowed. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that these two set me up and he,” I nodded to Andrew, “was stupid enough to confess his betrayal while I was still alive.”
“It’s your word against mine, and even if I was guilty, why would I confess to a corpse?”
“Because I wouldn’t have still been the Knight.” Andrew paled while Reginald glowered at his son. “And as you know my reign doesn’t end until I’m dead.”
“He’s right,” Augustine gloated. “As long as he breathes he’s judge, jury, and executioner.”
The door opened, and Mian slipped past Lucas and Z just as Reginald shouted, “My son is right. Knight or not, you can’t prove he confessed anything to you.”
“As far as you’re concerned, I am your God.” I heard Mian’s gasp. At this moment, I truly was the monster she once feared. “But if you want proof before you die, I can make that happen.” Lucas and Z left on cue. I took the opportunity to meet Mian’s gaze for the first time since she had entered the room. She stood by the door wringing her hands. When I held out my hand to her, she hesitated before coming to me. “You don’t need to be afraid of me.”
“I know.”
My frown deepened as doubt stirred in my gut. “Do you?”
“I think so.”
I kissed her lips, but she didn’t kiss me back. “We’ll fix that later,” I promised, attempting to soften her. I felt her stiffen in my arms just as Lucas and Z returned. I ignored my cousins’ stares and pushed her behind me with a mental note to find out what was wrong with her when we were alone. I felt her fingers dig into my sides when they dragged the senator, crumpled and bloodied, inside. We hadn’t had the chance to get him to the warehouse, so we kept him locked in the cellar with instructions to the servants to stay clear.