“If I ever betray him…” My voice wobbled, but I pushed through it anyway. “If I ever betray the Syndicate, then do exactly what you said. Tear me apart. Make me miserable. Make me wish I was dead.”
A hiccup interrupted me and I ignored it completely.
“Because if I ever hurt him like that…” My chest tightened painfully. “Then I wouldn’t deserve peace, deserve happiness. So take it. Crush it. Ruin me if I ever become that kind of person.”
My voice cracked at the end. “It’d be what I deserved.”
The smoky fingers beneath my chin loosened slowly. Ezra leaned back into the booth again, eyes still fixed on me with unsettling focus.
“Interesting.”
That was it. One word. And for some reason it pissed me off instantly.
“Are you fucking with me?!” My voice came out way louder than intended. Nearby tables immediately looked over before scrambling to look away again.
I barely noticed, instead pointed wildly across the club toward Nova and Aniyah.
“Did you do this to their mates too?!”
Aniyah nearly choked on her drink. Nova covered her mouth trying not to laugh. Ezra smirked over the rim of her glass.
“No.” The answer came so smooth and easy, I thought I miss heard. “No, I didn’t.”
“Then why me?” The question ripped out of me before I could stop it.
I pressed both hands dramatically against my chest to steady myself while the room tilted slightly beneath me.
“Is it because I’m?—”
“A woman?” Ezra leaned toward me again immediately. “Yes.” The blunt honesty knocked the rest of the words out of me completely.
“Is it unfair?” she continued calmly. “Absolutely. Is it a double standard? Definitely.”
Then her voice lowered. “But do you knowwhy?”
I shook my head slowly even though something told me she didn’t actually expect an answer.
Ezra gestured lazily toward her sisters across the club. “Because women are more dangerous.”
Nova glanced over at that. Aniyah grinned proudly. Riot didn’t react at all from her perch above us.
“I watched their mates carefully,” Ezra continued. “Their devotion is obvious. Straightforward.”
“That doesn’t mean they’re incapable of betrayal,” I cried out.
She nodded, her eyes going sharp. “You're right. But their simple ways means I’d see it coming long before it happened.”
Her finger tapped once against the table. “Men are transparent creatures when they want something. They use force. Power. Violence.”
“But women…” Something darker flickered behind her eyes. “Women survive differently.”
She leaned back slowly against the booth cushions.
“We smile while hiding knives behind our backs. We can crave love and power at the exact same time. We can want closenesswhile still preparing escape routes. We learn to think ahead because we have to.”
Her gaze locked onto mine again.
“Plans within plans. Possibilities within possibilities.” A small smirk tugged at her mouth. “The intelligent ones prepare for outcomes no one else even considers.”
