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CHAPTER9
JAKUB
“Don’t!” I snap, holding up my hand as I shove past Konrad and stride into the Grand Hall, taking a seat at the head of the table.
Konrad follows me, his dress shoes clipping across the floor, echoing through the silence. “Jakub, we need to talk about this!” he says, sitting to my left.
I slam my fist against the dining table rattling the place settings and spilling wine from the glass Nala had already filled for me. She stands in the shadows, waiting for further instructions. “Nala, inform the cook and the Numbers that supper will be delayed by half an hour, Konrad and I need to talk.”
“Yes, Sir,” she replies softly, her voice wary as she scampers out of the hall, making her escape.
Like the rest of the staff and all of the Numbers, Nala is shaken by the events that have unfolded over the last week. The legend of The Weeping Tree isn’t a secret, and the news about it bleeding cut through the castle like wildfire. Even our guests, who have long since departed the estate, were intrigued by it, though knew better than to delve any deeper into what is clearly a story personal to our family, not to mention the watertight non-disclosure agreements they signed weeks before being allowed entrance to our home.
“Talk!”
“What are we going to do about Leon?” Konrad asks the moment she’s gone.
“He made his choice,” I point out.
“He madeachoice.”
“He made the wrong fucking one, Konrad.I’mthe head of this family. It’s my duty to ensure what we’ve built here remains intact.”
“And it will,” he protests.
Despite his sharp grey suit and teal mask that covers all of his face apart from an arch around his mouth and chin, Konrad isn’t as put together as he wants me to believe. The truth is he’s as fucked in the head over what happened as I am. I meet Konrad’s gaze.
“He chose Nothing, and now there’ll be consequences.”
Konrad lifts his glass to his lips, taking a sip. “Look, I’m as pissed off with him as you are, but you cannot deny that he did what you asked. Shedied, Jakub.”
“He broke our pact. He held a gun to us both so Thirteen and Five could bring her back,” I counter.
“He’s not himself.”
“You don’t need to tell me that. I fucking know.”
Reaching for the steak knife lying on the table, I pick it up and press the serrated tip against the pad of my finger, drawing blood. The sharp sting instantly soothes me, and some of the stress leaves my shoulders. Lifting my finger to my mouth, I suck up the blood, watching Konrad as he stares off into the distance, lost to his own thoughts. Eventually, he turns his attention back to me.
“And areyouyourself?”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“Let me rephrase that, do you have your shit together, Jakub?”
“Do you?” I counter, pissed off that he can even question me given he’s locked himself away in the dungeons this past week. “What exactly have you been up to, huh?”
He cuts his gaze at me, his eyes dropping to my chest. “Unlike you, I haven’t been seeking relief from one of the Numbers. I’ve been focusing on keeping our family, our life we’ve built here, fucking safe.”
“How I choose to deal with Leon’s betrayal is of no concern to you, Konrad. Mind your place.”
Konrad barks out a laugh. “My place? We arebrothers.”
“That hasn’t stopped Leon from betraying us both.”
“He has a history with Nothing. He met her as a child when he was only a few years older than she was. He savedher life before he knew her true identity. It stands to reason that he was changed by it, that the encounter left a lasting impression. He’sconfused,” Konrad persists.
“Clearly,” I retort, tired of this fucking conversation. Tired of feeling out of control. I only visited One a few days ago and already feelings of remorse, empathy andguilthave started to creep back in despite everything I’ve done to try and rid myself of them.
