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CHAPTER11
Onyx
“We’re goingto have to talk to Margeaux,” Alicia said very matter-of-factly as she glanced around the table.
It was a wild assortment of people—thePredatorsthe chain of command, Alicia and Cree, Carmen and Miranda.
“Good luck with that.” I laughed, bringing all eyes to me, and I shrugged. “Nobody even knows where she is and I’m not sure how you plan on tracking her down.”
A few seats away from me, Blue grunted. “Or do you just not want anybody talking to your ex? What is it? You’re afraid she’s going to tell us somethingelseyou don’t want us to know?”
I chuckled, looking him right in his damn face as I answered. “Nah. I’m afraid she’s going to do irreparable psychological or physical damage to somebody. I’m not worried atallabout that ‘somebody‘ being me, ’cause that was half the appeal of being with her when I was. But as far as I knownow, me and Margeaux are cool. The rest of you motherfuckers? I don’t know.”
“I agree with Onyx about Margeaux,” Alicia spoke up. “Whatever you’re thinking about her, she’s stronger, smarter, and more vicious—when she wants to be. She is incredibly volatile, so however we approach her, thathasto be kept in mind. Shecannotbe underestimated.”
Cree raised an eyebrow. “Damn. If I didn’t know better…”
Alicia smirked at him. “Youdon’tknow better, when it comes to this one. I am not afraid of much in this world, but if there was any bitch I felt like I needed to watch myself around? It would be her.”
“Y’all make this girl sound like a super-villain,” Tati spoke up. “Why is everybody so tensed up about thisonewoman—presumably human, right?” she asked, directing the question at Alicia.
“Because she has very few limits. She’s not like the rest of us, with good reason,” Alicia answered, taking a deep breath before she continued. “For anybody that may not know, Margeaux’s last name is Belrose. But we’re almost certain she’s not on their side. Margeaux is Etienne Belrose’s daughter, which to most people… you’d think that meant the birthright of being treated like royalty. Sheltered, pampered, all that. But no—she was trained as aRose. All the training, all the trauma, at the hands of her uncle and father. It’s not the type of thing you come out of with your mental wellness intact. Some of us have had it worse than others,” she said, briefly looking at me before she quickly shifted her gaze. “But through therapy, or whatever alternative healing methods, many of us managed to come out okay. I haven’t seen any evidence that’s the case with Margeaux. She looks like any other pretty bitch.” Alicia shrugged. “She’s not walking around foaming at the mouth, nothing of the sort. But make no mistake—the Belroses create monsters.”
“So how do we make a conversation happen?” Keira asked. “If she’s volatile, can’t be forced to do anything, hell—can’t even befound… What is it that we need to do to make this conversation happen? Because at this point, we’re navigating chaos. There needs to be some kind of rhyme or reason placed around all of this.”
“I think we have to draw her out. But I think the bait has to be attractive enough for that to happen,” Alicia said, looking straight at me.
Which I already knew was coming.
“What’s attractive to a woman with aRoseskill set and a face that can’t be denied?” Miranda asked. “Are we even sure she’s still around? My ass would be laid up on a yacht somewhere.”
“She’s here for Renard,” I answered, breaking eye contact with Alicia. “She played along with Alicia sending aThornto ‘capture’ her and bring her to Vegas a few weeks back, but… she only ever made it here because this is where she wanted to be. So if Renard is still here,she’sstill here. There’s no doubt about that in my mind.”
“Okay, young man,” Carmen agreed. “The other question still remains though—what does it take to draw her out? ’Cause we don’t have that bitch Renard either?”
I blew out a sigh and then gave the answer that I didn’t want to. “Me.” I shrugged. “If I don’t know anything else about Margeaux, I know she sees shit through to the end. She planted a seed in me, one she’s probably been wanting to check the status of.”
“She has to see her influence carried out,” Tati guessed and I nodded.
“Pretty much.”
“What was this seed she planted,” Blue challenged. “We’re saying we need answers, so stop talking around this shit. Spell it the fuck out.”
I gave Blue another look. I was trying to be patient with his ass, but he was truly toeing the line with me. “She was the one who told me where to find Jesse Garrett. And she knew this information, because well…she’s a Belrose. She has her ways of finding shit out.”
“Why would she tell you that? Because you were fucking her?” he asked.
“No,” I answered. “Well—yes, I was, but that’s not why she told me. She told me that to placate me. To keep me from killing her.”
Across from me, Alicia’s eyes went wide. “Why wouldyouwant Margeaux dead?”
“Because.” I shrugged. “Margeaux killed my mother.”
That declaration sucked all the air from the room.
Nobody blinked.
Nobody breathed.
