Malum: Part 1 (The Elite King's Club 4)

I rub my temples. “That can’t happen. Surely, and what has that got to do with The Circle, and also!” My eyes snap to Nate. “You’re not exactly freaking out about our daughter…”

He straightens, his shoulders pulling back in defense. “Are you fucking kidding me, woman! You come in here—”

“—Alright!” Madison snaps at both of us, then her face softens when she looks at me. “He’s not freaking out because they won’t harm that child, Tillie. She means too much to too many people. They’re bluffing, but we’re going to get her back before this night is up.”

I hear the front door slam closed and then heels clicking across the tile floor. Oh god, if this is Tate, I cannot deal with her distracting Nate right in front of me right now.

“Where the fuck is my granddaughter!”

Nate smirks at me.

Crap.

I clear my throat. “We’re trying to figure that out.”

Elena’s blue eyes cut to mine with sharp precision. Just when I think she’s going to start yelling at me, her face softens. She yanks me up from my seat and pulls me into her arms.

“Whose fucking side are you on, mother?” Nate scolds her in the background.

She ignores him.

Pulling back, Elena’s hands come to my face. “We will get her back, honey.” She pauses, her attention going around the room. “And then she will not be easily accessible to being kidnapped and you and my son have to sort through your differences and come up with a somewhat healthy routine for her.”

I squash down my initial thought to call her out on her overactive brain. All I can think about is not having her in my arms right now. Any discussion about Nate and I will have to wait.

Elena’s eyes lock onto her son. “Do you know everything you need to know about the whereabouts?”

He nods. “Yeah. We’re ready to go.”

“Already? I answer, nerves wreaking through me. How can they already know where she is? How can he be so confident? Something doesn’t add up.

Joseph enters the room, going straight for Madison and kissing the top of her head. It was a shock to find out that he wasn’t Madison’s biological father, but that fact hasn’t come between their bond. “The Circle is not your issue. We can handle them.”

“The Circle are a pack of old Kings who have gone rogue by choice.” Brantley must see the confusion on my face, and again, he frightens me. He’s always watching everything that is going on around him without actually watching.

“Right,” I answer. “Well, at least that’s something I didn’t know yesterday.”

Joseph nods. “We’re handling it. The Circle are not our enemies, but they’re not our allies either. In the meantime, another thing that you all need to know is that the new generation is starting Riverside prep after the new year. There will obviously be the ceremony that will start them off that will be happening after Christmas in a few months. Though I shouldn’t have to remind you…”

A new generation of Kings. That doesn’t sound fun at all. Are they all scary brats like these fuckers?

I keep my thoughts to myself.

Nate chuckles. “Good times…”

My mind wanders back to Daemon, like it usually does. The book I found last night, I almost completely forgot about. Obviously, Madison doesn’t know about it, and I know that I might not be able to decipher it on my own, but a selfish part of me doesn’t want to share it with anyone yet. Maybe after we get Micaela back, I can show it to her and we can look more in-depth to find out what it means.

I ignore everything going on around me until my phone vibrates in my pocket.

“Hello?”

I can’t hear the voice on the other end, so I excuse myself, blocking my other ear with my finger and quickly dash out through the glass slider that opens onto the backyard and pool. Once I’ve shut out the noise, I repeat myself. “Hello?”

“Tillie!”

“Oh my god!” My hand goes over my mouth. “Ridge?”

“Yeah, babe, it’s me. You’re a hard girl to get hold of these days.”

I exhale, flopping down onto one of the sunbeds beside the pool. “You have no idea. Seriously.”

“Are you okay? I know we haven’t spoken in a long time and we have so much to catch up on.”

“Actually, I don’t think I am okay, but I’m trying to adapt to it.”

“Well listen.” He clears his throat. “I’ll send you an address in town, so we can catch up.”

I smile, the mid-morning sun hitting my cheeks. “Sounds like a good idea. Text me.”

“Will do. Stay safe, Tills.”

“I’ll try,” I whisper, hanging up and clutching my phone in my hand.

Growing up, Ridge and I were inseparable. He was my first kiss, my first—everything, really. When we were fourteen, we decided we may as well be each other’s first “time” too, you know, get the deed over with so we could move on. Only he was like a bad habit and I was addicted. We sort of continued to sleep together right up until I met Nate, actually. When he was with a girl, or I was with a guy, we wouldn’t. It wasn’t something we agreed on or anything, it was just natural. If we were single, we were probably having sex.