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I screamed for him to stop, but he was blinded by rage.
Deuce lifted his arms to fight back but Lincoln’s blows came too quickly, too forceful.
Another hit. And another. More blood. His face and chest were covered in crimson. Another punch. Until Deuce’s body went limp and Lincoln let go of his shirt, watching him fall to the floor.
Lincoln’s chest was heaving. Drops of sweat dripped from his dark hair on to his face, leaving a trail on the black and white paint. His knuckles were covered in another man’s blood.
But I rushed over to him, and he welcomed me with open arms. He held a bloody hand underneath my chin, then tipped it up so our eyes met.
I opened my mouth to speak, but Malcolm interrupted before the words came out.
“Enough of the theatrics. Give us what we came here for.”
“Fuck you.” Lincoln pinned his father with a glare. “You wanted a fight. I gave you a fight.” He spit on the ground next to where Deuce laid lifeless and limp. “I promise he’s not walking out of here.”
Malcolm walked up to the cage, hooking his fingers in the holes. He grinned wide. “That?” He glanced at Deuce then back to Lincoln. “That was just a bonus. Now it’s time for the real show.” Malcolm laughed and the sound of it sent a chill up my spine. “It’s actually a blessing Grey decided not to show up.” He took a step back and pointed at me. “For years I watched you corrupt my daughter and seduce my son. You were a poison in our family. I knew it the day I ran into you at that community center. I knew you wouldn’t keep your goddamn mouth shut.”
Lincoln’s hold on me tightened.
Bile rose in my throat but I swallowed it back down. I knew Malcolm was fucked up. He had to be to do the things the Brotherhood did. Grey was too, but there was still shreds of decency in him. I had always hoped the same for Malcolm. But this... I never expected this. I blinked back tears of betrayal and looked him in the eye. Nothing but evil stared back at me. My heartbeat was a hollow echo in my chest.
“I couldn’t wait to get rid of you,” Malcolm sneered.
Realization hit me with the force of a thousand bullets.
All this time I thought it was Kipton who had me taken and sent to Judgment Day.
Confronting Kipton Donahue should’ve landed you ice-cold in a morgue with a toe tag. Kipton doesn’t ship people off. He kills them.
Grey was right, and I was wrong, so very wrong. It wasn’t Kipton.
It was Malcolm.
Lincoln must have realized it too because he let go of me and lunged forward. His hands shook the cage as the rage left his body in an ear-splitting howl. This was his demon, wild and unhinged.
I ran to him, circling my arms around his waist and pressing my weight against his back. He shook beneath my touch.
“I’m not going to kill you,” Lincoln said to his father. “Not in front of her. But by the time I’m done with you, I promise you will wish I had.” His words were laced in venom, and violence rolled off him in waves.
Something flickered in Malcom’s eyes that looked a lot like fear. He cleared his throat and quickly recovered. Moving his gaze back to me. “I kept waiting for Grey to break you. I thought he was the worst of us all.” He shook his head as if he was disappointed. “But you poisoned him too, I guess.” His words were meticulous and calculated. He let out a bored sigh. “Now, I’ll have to do it myself.”
“One of you won’t walk out of here.” He shrugged. “Or maybe neither of you.” He looked at Lincoln. “That all depends on you.” His face twisted in a wicked grin. “You have two choices, son: kill her or watch me do it.”
Lincoln broke away from the cage and rushed toward the exit. Pierce and the king stood up, flanking Malcolm, and glared.
I hurried to stop him, grabbing him by the arm. “It’s okay.” I moved in front between him and the gate. My eyes found his. “You wanted to save me, now’s your chance.”
“I’m not fucking touching you, Songbird. Not like that.” The look in his eyes was dead. Cold. Broken.
“Lincoln,” I took a step forward and held his face in my hands. “You have to.” I nodded my head toward his father. “If you don’t, he will.”
Grey’s words from the past slammed into me.Either I fuck you or they do. Take your pick. But I assure you, you want it to be me.
“I won’t do it.” All of his pain bled out in his words.
“You have to.”
He slowly shook his head.
