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Pain sears through my shoulder all of a sudden, covered by wet heat. I jerk my head over, still sluggish, to find that Lianna—the fucking psycho—has cut me…and now she’s licking the blood off me.
What have I gotten myself into? Fuck, fuck—
“I’m warning you, Rossi,” Vance says, his voice a low growl. “I protect my people—“
“Stop hedging around it, Solace,” Caius says. “We both know the truth.”
Vance goes still, his gaze hardening as he looks past Caius…right at me.
“Think about it, Solace,” Caius goes on. “A brother for a brother. Seems fair, doesn’t it?”
What?
No…it can’t be.
“How did you find out?” Vance finally says, voice hollow.
I’m still reeling at the confirmation.
This whole time, and he never said anything? How did I…no, I knew my dad—
“Maybe I have a mole in your operation,” Caius says. “I know you have one—or more—in mine. But you’re crazy if you think I’m going to give them up. The bottom line is…I have your brother. You have mine. It seems like a fair trade.”
Vance’s face is unreadable now, a mask concealing whatever storm brews behind those bright blue eyes. There’s no denying it though, not with Caius’s words hanging heavy between us.
“Pack business is pack business,” Vance says finally, his voice cold as ice. “You think throwing blood ties around will change the game?”
“Perhaps I do,” Caius retorts with a shrug. “Or perhaps I just enjoy watching you squirm.”
Blood ties. Family. The very thing I’ve been kept in the dark about. And now, here, used as a bargaining chip by a man who knows nothing of loyalty or kinship.
“Time to pick a side, Solace,” Caius says. “You have twenty-four hours.”
Then he ends the call before Vance can reply.
The silence that follows is deafening, filled only by the harsh beat of my heart and the questions swirling in my head. What does this mean for me? For us?
And what the hell happens next?
I blink and the world blurs, Vance’s image on the screen fracturing into a thousand pieces as Caius’s finger jabs at the end call button. The device goes dark, and I’m left staring at my own hollow reflection in its glassy surface.
“Guess that settles it,” Caius drawls, turning to face me with a wolfish grin.
He leans back against the edge of the table, arms folded across his chest as if he’s just closed a deal on the stock market, not bartered with human lives. His eyes rake over me, taking in every inch of the symbols scrawled across my skin, Lianna’s artwork that marks me as something other, something owned.
“Looks like your big brother isn’t as sentimental as I thought, Gunnar.” Caius’s voice cuts through the thick air, each syllable dripping with mockery.
My mouth opens but words fail me, my mind snagged on the sharp edges of betrayal and shock. The room feels colder, or maybe it’s just the blood in my veins turning to ice. The revelation hangs heavy—Vance, my brother, our shared blood now an anchor dragging me down into depths I can’t navigate.
“See, family—blood—it’s all just leverage,” Caius continues, prowling closer, his steps measured and slow. “And when push comes to shove, everyone’s looking out for number one.”
I should argue, spit fire back at him, defend the pack that’s been my everything. But I can’t. The doubt seeds itself deep within me, sprouting roots that threaten to crack open everything I’ve ever believed in.
“Come on, Gunnar. Say something,” he taunts, his voice a blade sliding across my already raw nerves.
“Vance—he…” My voice is barely there, gravelly and strained. “He’s playing a different game.”
“Is he now?” Caius chuckles. “Or maybe he’s just not playing for you.”
