Page 55

“Who is the other man?” I whispered to Jon, who stood to my left.

His pale gray eyes met mine. “Heath Glen, Killian’s uncle.”

I nodded.

“What happened today shouldn’t have happened, Arkane,” Heath Glen said. “You had no right to keep Killian a hostage in the Rose Ellen. You played with his life.”

“Can’t your nephew speak for himself?” Arkane smirked. “Or is he still a boy?”

In an instant, Killian held Arkane by his collar while the latter laughed. “You’ll see how big a boy I am when I sell your pricey head to the highest bidder.”

“Is that a threat?” Arkane raised a brow. “Because I take my threats seriously. Look how that one ended up.” He gestured toward what was left of Timothy Walters’s body.

“Killian,” Heath Glen chided, pulling him away from Arkane. “Let’s not forget what we came here for.”

“Fine, fuck,” Killian muttered. It was apparent who was in actual control. Killian did have his bizarre tendencies, but it was Heath Glen who moved the chess pieces behind the scenes. I wondered what role his father, Kenny Stormhold, played in all of this. Was he aware that his friend was betraying him, or was he betraying his own son for selfish needs?

“I apologize for that, Mr. Stormhold,” Health Glen said, feigning respect in his tone. “But we were pulled into this unnecessary situation because of your…, or should I say her?” He eyed me with a look of sick mockery and pure vileness. It wasn’t anything new to me. It was the same look he had in his eyes when he made me watch my mother being killed. “The audacity of you to take one of our own and drag Killian into this mess. Do you think you can get away with it, you little girl?” he asked me, snickering. “He could’ve lost his life last night, and that is not something the Covent will just let go, Mr. Stormhold. She has to face the consequences.”

If my hunch was correct and he was working with the traitor, he wanted Killian dead tonight. And the Rose Ellen collapse was because of him, not me. He was just stirring up trouble to save face in front of Arkane.

A beat of silence passed through the air as no one spoke a word. The air became strained with heavy tension as the silence continued. My feet itched to take a step back, but I did trust Arkane on some level, maybe even more than I should after today. Seeing him take care of me and use that soft tone when he spoke, but more so, it was the look in his eyes that melted my heart. The look of care. But for an outsider like me, I didn’t know what that meant, and his family was more important to him, so he could simply hand me over to Heath Glen without a second thought to keep their truce safe.

By now, the early morning sun had risen high in the sky, casting a bright light on the scene. Even then, I couldn’t read the expression on Arkane’s face. It looked carefully composed, and everyone held their breath for his next words. Well, except for Killian, who looked outright bored. It was apparent that none of this was his idea, but rather Heath Glen’s sick game of power.

“And what would that be?” Arkane finally asked, his tone suggesting nothing. My hand was already reaching for my blade. I knew it was a fight that I couldn’t win, but I would rather die than let Heath Glen take me once again.

Heath Glen threw a leering smile my way. “That’s for us to decide.”

“Is that so?” Arkane chuckled, which made Heath Glen lose his smile in an instant. “You can try, Glen. But Bellerose is under my protection. If anything happens to her, you’ll have to face my retaliation. You can only try to destroy us, but you know I will annihilate the Covent. There won’t even be a foot soldier remaining to recite the story that you once existed.”

Heath Glen’s jaw tightened before he quickly composed himself with a shallow laugh. “No need to get this serious for a nobody…” He flicked a brow. “But she’s not a nobody, is she? Considering you’re going to such lengths for her.” He laughed, waving his hands. “But whatever keeps you entertained at the moment, Mr. Stormhold. We don’t care what you do in your private time. But somebody has to pay for Harvey Walters’s death and the injustice toward my nephew.”

“Someone also has to pay for making deals behind my back, don’t they?” Arkane smirked, and all the contained composure in Heath Glen’s face crumbled because he knew exactly what Arkane was talking about. The Serb deal.

“Good one, Kane.” Killian laughed, loud and obnoxious, patting Heath Glen’s shoulder. “Let’s go, Uncle. I’ve had enough of these uptight fuckers for the day.”

With that, he walked away without a care in the world. Heath Glen quietly followed, but not before he gave me a glare of pure evil. It promised my death. A retaliation for Arkane embarrassing him. I made sure not to show even an ounce of emotion. I could tell he only saw me as a Valerian agent in his way and not as Lylah Queen’s daughter. But soon, he’d know that Lylah Queen’s daughter was back from the dead to take his life.

That much I promised myself.

ARKANE

My eyes snapped open only when the car slowed down to a stop in front of my mansion. I turned to see Bella beside me, her eyes wide open, eyeing the view outside the window, looking deeply lost in thought.

What was she thinking?

Was she thinking about the events of today?

Or was she scared that I would’ve outed her to the Covent? Like hell I would ever let that happen.

But Bella wasn’t a woman who feared easily. She handled every emotion with such calmness and patience. I had no clue how someone like her could master that at this age.

After the pier, we just climbed into the same car, not speaking a word. I didn’t even offer to drop her back at her house as the car drove. We were both so wrapped in our own heads and exhausted to the bone. The high state of emotions we experienced in the past day was finally wearing off, and I could see the exhaustion of it mirrored in our eyes. It wasn’t a day I wanted to relive anytime soon.

Climbing out of the car, I helped her out, making sure she leaned most of her weight on me to not add any pressure to her injured feet. It was almost 8 a.m. now, with gray-blue skies. The daylight did nothing to help my tired eyes.

Mikhail shadowed us till we reached the foyer. “Except for updates on Marcus, I want to be left alone,” I told him, and he nodded, understanding that I was particularly referring to my father. Without saying another word, he left.