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“He lost a lot of blood, and there’s no telling how much damage it did to his organs, especially his brain.” Wyatt hangs the chart back on the end of the bed. “But Kain’s one tough son of a bitch,” he says, walking over to me and places a hand on my shoulder. “Have faith in him.”
I nod, and step to the side, allowing him to exit the room. Alone, I take the vacant seat next to Kain’s bed. Leaning forward, I rest my elbows on my knees and stare at his bruised and battered face.
“Shit, Kain. I never thought I’d ever be sitting in a position like this. Of the three of us, you were always the strong one. Lucifer was the leader, always seeming to have the answers, but it was your strength that always pulled us through any situation we found ourselves in.”
My hands shake where they hang between my knees, and I ball them into fists. “How the fuck did we get here? We were supposed to be brothers until the end. We chose each other. Loyalty to the bond, right?”
I stand, running my fingers through the rat’s nest of hair at the top of my head, closing my fist around it and giving it a tug. I drop my hands and walk around the chair, gripping the back and leaning over it. “Dammit, I can’t do this anymore.”
“Can’t do what anymore?”
I glance up to the doorway, Edward leans against the frame. His knowing gaze cutting through me and seeing way too much.
“I don’t fucking know.”
“Who are you trying to lie to? Me? Or yourself?”
I stare at the man who practically raised me, and the walls I’ve held tightly in place for years crumble at my feet. “I miss my brothers. Life isn’t the same without them in it. But I don’t know how to move past my anger.”
“It’s not anger you feel, Son, it’s grief.” Edward pushes off the frame and takes the seat on the other side of the bed.
“You cared for that girl, and you took her to the one place you thought she’d be safe; to your brothers because you knew you could trust them. But the unthinkable happened instead; she paid the price, and you were left behind to mourn her loss.”
“How do I forgive a betrayal of trust?”
He leans forward and takes Kain’s hand, holding it between both of his. “Was it really betrayal though?”
“What do you mean? He went behind my back to the network?”
“Why did he go to them?”
“To take out Donovan without retaliation.”
“No, Son. Why did he tell you he did it?”
The old conversation and the look on Gemma’s face rush to the forefront of my memory.
“Daemon, I know you want to take down Donovan. You want him arrested. You want him to stand trial and answer for the crimes he’s committed against this city, and not only Gemma, but all the other women in his employ. I understand that, and I’m all for it. But let me ask you this. Do you truly believe that he’s going to let her,” Lucifer nods in Gemma’s direction, “and the other girls go after they put themselves front and center to testify against him? Do you really think he can’t reach them from behind bars?”
“He didn’t really say why. He just asked if I thought Donovan would let her and the girls go after they testified against him. The fear in Gemma after he asked that question … For the first time since joining the police force, I truly considered blurring the lines of right and wrong.”
“This isn’t news to you, Daemon, you already knew all this. Anger has a way of morphing our outlook on situations though.”
“No … No, Lucifer’s only ever wanted power. Ever since we were kids, he wanted to lord over us, he wanted to be in charge. He wanted Donovan’s position then, and he’s still vying for it now.”
“After everything the three of you have been through, do you truly believe your brother is that selfish? Do you not believe he wants you to be happy, to find peace in this world? Or Kain?”
I look down at Kain. “I don’t know.”
“Lucifer has always walked the morally grey line, but one thing that has always been at the top of his priority list is the wellbeing of his family. He always put you before himself. He has since you were kids.”
“But—”
“No,” Edward growls, standing from his seat, looking every bit the stern father he had to be when raising three boys with dark pasts and poor attitudes. “You need to understand Lucifer. He will only ever look out for you and the ones you love, no matter the cost to himself. He put himself on the line to protect her.”
He walks around the bed to stand in front of me and places a hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry she’s dead, I understand you cared for her deeply. But forgive your brother and put the blame where it actually belongs.”
He slides his hand up to the back of my neck and pulls me down into a hug. The big bear hugs he used to give us after every outburst, every nightmare, every time we rebelled. He somehow always knew what was going on inside our heads even if we didn’t fully understand it ourselves. He never got mad, rather he loved us through the hard times while we learned to trust someone again.
