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“Ash?” I call out as she runs toward her house.
I rush up behind her and grab her arm, turning her to face me. She whimpers in my arms, and I hate how terrified she is of me. “You’re okay,” I say and force her eyes to mine. “I’m not going to hurt you, okay?”
She nods, crossing her arms over her chest, not believing a damn thing I just said. I look at her house and then back at her. “You can’t tell anyone what you saw.”
Her watery eyes meet mine, but she says nothing. “No one, Ash.”
“I under—”
“I don’t think you do,” I say, tightening my hands on her upper arms. She tries to pull away, but I maintain my firm grasp. “No one. Not a soul.”
“I understand,” she snaps, pulling away from me, and I let her go.
With a heavy sigh, I watch her turn away from me. She runs up her steps into her house and slams the front door shut.
TWENTY-ONE
ASHTYN
Isit straight up in bed, the covers falling to pool in my lap. Straining my ears, I hear a sound in my house, and I jump out of bed, grabbing my cell from beside me. I had fallen asleep after I finished a bottle of wine and cried into my pillow.
A look at the clock tells me that Saint dropped me off five hours ago, and it’s still dark outside.
Getting out of bed, I pull up his name and hover over the call button when I hear water running in my kitchen. Maybe he’s come back, and that just pisses me off. How dare he think I’m just going to forget what I saw? Or that he doesn’t have to answer my questions?
I make my way in there, expecting it to be him, but I come to a stop when I see someone else standing at my sink filling a glass of water. “What are you doing here?” I ask, taking a step back.
The man turns to face me, his eyes dropping to my bare feet and running up my oversized T-shirt. He sets the glass down and leans back against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. “Ashtyn—”
“How did you get in?” I demand.
He reaches into his pocket and removes a key. “Dad gave me a key when he got you the house.” Then he drops it onto the counter.
I roll my eyes. “Leave.” I don’t want anything to do with any Lord right now—especially my brother. I didn’t see him there, but there were several in cloaks and masks. He could have easily been one of them. I turn and walk out of the kitchen, but he grabs my arm, yanking me back. I spin around and slam my fist into his face. I'm not in the mood to play games at the moment. Or be touched by anyone.
“Fuck, Ash.” He covers his nose with his hand.
“Don’t touch me!” I scream.
He holds his arms out wide, taking a step back. “I’m here to check on you,” he states.
“Bullshit,” I spit out.
Sighing, he removes his cell from his back pocket, unlocks it, and sets it down on the counter. Saint’s voice fills my kitchen. “Hey, man. Where the fuck are you? Your dad is pissed that you’re not at Carnage. Speaking of which…” He sighs heavily, sounding stressed. “I took Ash with me, and she saw…some shit. I just dropped her off at her house. She was pretty upset. I wasn’t able to stay with her because I have to head back. If you get a chance, can you stop by and check on her, please? I’m really worried.” He pauses. “I have to go. Kash is calling me.”Click.
“What did you see?” my brother asks, pocketing his cell.
I drop my eyes to the marble floor. “Doesn’t matter.”
“Ash—”
“You want me to believe that you came by to check on me in the middle of the night because Saint asked you to?” I’m not buying it. They’re testing me. Saint told me not to tell a soul what I saw. Although I’m pissed at him right now, I’m keeping my mouth closed. I won’t give the Lords a reason to kill me. That would be them taking the easy way out.
“Look, I know I’ve been a shitty brother. But…” He looks away from me. “There is some shit going on that I’m trying to make sure you stay out of.”
I step forward. “What do you mean? Does this have to do with what Dad was talking to you about the night of the party in the woods? The girl who went missing?”
His silence tells me enough.
