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HIM
“Pizza’s here,” Geo announced as he came through the door.
Sage didn’t even try to smother her groan before mumbling under her breath. “I’m about to break my no drinking promise.”
I was almost tempted to agree with her. Because dealing with Geo all day had been exhausting, and he didn’t seem to have plans to leave anytime soon.
“We threw the wine and tequila away,” I muttered.
“We have the whiskey I bought.”
I raised an eyebrow. “The one you bought for Alex and never gave him?”
“I’m waiting for an important time.”
Sure she was. Whatever she was planning, I bet it included the whiskey somehow. Not that I was going to bring it up with my brother in the house.
“Pizza’s going to get cold,” Geo sang out from the kitchen. “I drove all the way into town to get it. One of the negatives of living in the country—no one delivers here.”
All day Geo had been making small talk about anything he could think of. Sage had spent the day on the couch, pretending to be interested in whatever was on the TV. It wasn’t just Geo she was ignoring. It was me too. She was angry I hadn’t told her about her mom. It was one thing Alex and I agreed on. Telling her would only cause more pain. Geo didn’t care about that.
“I’ll get you a slice,” I told her as I got off the couch. I knew she was hungry, but her unwillingness to be near Geo was winning against her rumbling stomach. She mumbled a thank you as she continued to mess absentmindedly with the giant candle that sat on the table at the end of the couch.
Geo was leaning against the counter, opening a beer as I pulled out two plates. The strain between us had only grown all day. For the last few years, we hadn’t been as close as when we were kids, and now it felt different. The connection we had was all but gone. And it wasn’t only about Sage. We’d drifted apart after graduating from high school, and it had never gotten back to how it used to be.
“You get food for her too?” he asked, eyeing the plates in my hands. “What else do you do for her?”
“I spend more time with her than anyone,” I snapped, grabbing a few pieces of pizza. “I’d rather play nice than fight constantly.”
“That sounds like no fun.”
Ignoring him, I grabbed some napkins and turned around to an empty kitchen.
“Shit,” I muttered, picking up the plates and rushing around the corner so I could see the living room. After what he’d pulled this morning, I didn’t want to leave him alone with her at all. My gut churned when I saw him sitting in the middle of the couch. Sage was curled away from him, but he made sure there was no space for me to sit between them.
Geo glanced at me and grinned, nodding to the empty spot on the other side of him. “Are we going to watch this movie or not?”
Sage leaped from the couch. “I can’t do this anymore. I’m going to bed.”
“It’s not even six,” Geo said.
“I don’t care.”
Before she could walk past him, he jumped up and grabbed her wrist. My grip on the plates turned painful as anger overtook anything else. Sage glanced at me, subtly shaking her head, not wanting me to interfere.
Fuck that.
There was no way I’d be able to just stand here if he did anything like he’d done this morning. I had barely stayed in control then. Obviously, Sage was thinking more clearly than I was. If Geo caught on to how much I cared for her—that was it. He’d tell Alex and my family.
“Let me go, Geo,” she demanded, her voice eerily calm. I didn’t move a muscle as I watched her face lose every other emotion except downright hatred. “If I have to be around you, then you better learn to keep your hands to yourself.”
A surprised chuckle left him. “You think you can give me orders, Sage? What did Niko tell you all those months ago? The society owns you. You do as we say. And I’m telling you, sit your ass back on the couch.”
Instead of answering, she brought her knee up, ramming it into his groin. He turned just in time that she hit his inner leg instead of what she was aiming for. With her free hand, she slapped him across the face. The plates fell from my hands as I raced across the room. Geo’s eyes were radiating with rage, and I knew what he was going to do before he even moved.
“Geo, stop,” I yelled as he raised his hand.
He backhanded her across the cheek hard enough for her to tumble onto the couch. A snarl burned my throat as I rammed into him. We fell onto the wooden coffee table, and it broke under our weight as he punched me across the jaw.
“I knew it,” he hissed, betrayal written all over his face. “You’re fucking her. Do you actually care about her too?”
I didn’t answer, digging my fist into his kidney. Nothing I said would change anything. He knew me well enough to understand my reaction. The fact that she meant something to me wasn’t a secret anymore. He clipped my chin, making my tongue knock between my teeth. The taste of blood filled my mouth as I swung my fist into his ribs.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Geo grunted out after my next hit landed on the side of his head.
“What about you?” I grabbed his arm when he tried to slug me again. “Since when do you hit women?”
His eyes glittered dangerously. “Since my own twin betrayed our family. Our entire fucking belief. And it’s her fault.”
We had both stopped fighting, and I was still on top of him as we glared at each other. I could see Sage sitting on the couch out of the corner of my eye. Geo tried shoving me off, and I grabbed his shoulders, pushing him back onto the broken table. The second he left this house, he’d go to our parents. They’d take her.
“You messed up, Niko,” he spat out, squirming to the side. “Don’t worry. I’ll help clean it up.”
“I don’t need your help.” My panic escalated as I tried to figure a way out of this. Whatever he was thinking, it wasn’t going to help her.
“Sage, go pack a bag,” I said gruffly, digging my fingers into Geo’s shoulders when he attempted to shoot up.
“Niko—”
“Go. Now,” I cut her off.
I kept my eyes on Geo as she ran through the living room and down the hall. His face turned menacing when she left the room.
“You can’t let her leave,” he snapped, struggling against me. “You’re going to die right along with her. The group doesn’t tolerate traitors, brother. You know that.”
She was leaving. She was getting out of this house before he was. It was the only way she’d have a chance. A searing pain shot down my leg, and I winced, my hold on him going slack. He pushed me off him, kicking me in the gut as I rolled to the floor. Glancing down at my leg, I saw a slim piece of broken wood sticking out of my thigh.
“You really should have kept up with our boxing workouts,” Geo murmured from beside me. “Taking this last year off made you slow.”
“Believe me, I’ve been working out plenty.” Ignoring the stabbing pain radiating through my leg, thanks to the piece of coffee table lodged inside me, I stood to keep myself between him and Sage’s room.
“I hope her pussy was worth it.” He stepped up to me, and I straightened my spine, curling my hands into fists. My heart was hammering as I stared at my brother. He used to be the person I’d do anything for.
Now she was.
A thud came from the hall, and I glanced over my shoulder, making sure Sage was still in her room. I turned back toward Geo, and his leering grin had me lunging at him. I wasn’t sure what it was, but he was about to do something.
“Choosing anyone over the group was a mistake.” His words were the last thing I heard before he slammed Sage’s candle into the side of my head, and everything went black.
