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Dacre’s office door closes and maybe touching Baldur has made me a little braver than usual because I decide to eavesdrop. Putting my ear against the wood, I ignore the flutters in my stomach. I know I shouldn’t be doing this and if Dacre catches me red-handed he’ll be so angry the earth will probably shake.
Nobody messes with Dacre. Not even me. Nobody gets a pass because he’s ruthless like that.
Still, I can’t help myself. I mean...what if those men in his office were the ones who took the journal? Maybe this will help me get some more clues.
“And?” Dacre asks and there’s the sound of liquor being poured into crystal glasses. “What’s the new plan?”
“Boss wants us to stay away from the Grecian’s,” another voice rasps and I raise my brows. I don’t get it. Who the heck are the Grecian’s? Not to draw any hasty conclusions but it sounds like either a theater company or a...gang.
“Why the fuck for?” Dacre snaps, obviously not happy about the decision. “That bastard needs to go down. Remember what that asshole did to one of our brothers?”
“We know, but boss claims it’s all under control. He’ll get exactly what he deserves. We just need to trust boss on this.”
Dacre lets out a curse but then he mutters something as if he’s coming around. Whoever the boss is, it seems like Dacre has a lot of respect for him. There’s that clinking sound of glass again and Dacre exclaims, “To shadows.”
“To ice,” another one adds and a third echoes,
“To death.”
I freeze. Wait...what? Death? As in the kind that puts you underground, the kind that means you’re done, toast, finito...? Is my stepbrother a killer?
Biting my lip, I shiver.
Or maybe I got it all wrong. Maybe it’s completely normal to raise a glass to death.
They say something again but this time they speak in a different language and my eyes nearly roll back in my head. I didn’t know Dacre knew a second language. He doesn’t even have an accent and that language sounds so ancient and mystical and...stony.
I’m so enthralled by it I fail to hear the nearing footsteps, I flinch when the door flares open and I stand there face to face with Dacre. His brows curve over his eyes and he’s so freaking scary like this that I clutch my kaftan and let out a mewl.
I catch a glimpse of the men’s faces as they turn to look at me but Dacre sneers at them over his shoulders and they stop paying attention.
“What are you doing here?” Dacre snaps and I twitch, my eyes widening and I struggle to come up with an excuse.
“Sleepwalking,” I blurt. “Then I suddenly woke up and found myself outside your o...office.”
Dacre’s lip curls over his teeth. “Any chance you heard anything of our little conversation?” His eyes bore into mine, searching for the truth and I swallow.
“No,” I whisper but he knows I’m lying. You can’t get away with lying to someone like Dacre. He reads people like normal people read the news. It comes naturally to him and lying doesn’t come naturally to me so no wonder I’ve been caught.
“Go back to bed, Greta,” Dacre rasps and my lower lip trembles.
“I w...will,” I stutter and start backing but to my surprise Dacre follows. He stalks me all the way, prowling while looking at me without blinking and he’s so much taller and so much wider than me. If he wanted he could pulverize me, just by putting his body on top of mine.
My cheeks heat because I shouldn’t be thinking about his body after what I just heard. But somehow it’s so hard to imagine Dacre as a coldblooded killer. My stepbrother’s a menace but he’s not a bad man.
“Who were those men in your office?” I ask and a muscle ticks in Dacre’s jaw.
“Colleagues.”
“Some colleagues...,” I murmur and Dacre’s eyes harden but his voice is soft.
“Greta,...like you said you were sleepwalking.” His eyes leave my face and linger down my body. “You have no idea what you heard.” His jaw tenses. “Now go back to sleep, princess and leave your nightmares to me.”
Letting out a low gasps, I do as he asks and even in the safety of my own room, my heart still keeps on pounding.
Tonight I saw another side to Dacre and it’s unnerving. But to a girl who’s been overprotected her whole life it’s also a bit...stimulating.
4,
