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Anytime there’s a change in the council, several rituals must take place for the initiation of a new council member. I was never privy to what exactly they involved because only members being sworn in have knowledge of the tasks. If it was known ahead of time what the tasks were, a person could prepare, and you can't have a true test of loyalty if it’s something you can prepare for.
"Where is it?" I ask him. I've been so careful, and I've never seen the raven brand anywhere on his body.
"Where is what?"
"Your brand. Where is your fucking brand?" I demand.
He slowly removes the watch from his left wrist and reveals a small raven brand. An evil grin crosses his face when he sees my shock. He’s enjoying every single moment of my torture and pain.
His fucking watch. I flash back through all of my time spent with him, trying to remember if I ever saw him without his watch on, but I don't think I did. This entire time, the face of his watch was hiding my biggest fear.
“How long?” I spit. “How long have you been my father’s little pet?”
“I’m sure you remember my father, Barry, who was your father’s second-in-command. He had a misfortunate incident that ended his life a little over four months ago, and I was lucky enough to take his place. The initiation process began not long after.”
Four months ago, that was right before I was taken by the guys. Right around the time Julian started having all these business meetings that he had to leave town for. All the pieces start to fall into place, and everything makes so much more sense. This whole time, Julian was Damien. He wasn’t going to business meetings. He was coming to Rogue so he could be initiated as a council member. The plane tickets to Nashville, the possessive way he was acting after he took me from the guys’ house, the army of men he showed up with. They were the guard. It was Rogue all along. The pieces all connect simultaneously. This bastard has been part of Rogue all along.
Complete disbelief shakes through my entire body. I spent a year with this man and let my guard down. We were intimate, and I trusted him, but all along, he was my father’s little minion. Thinking about how long he lied has me fuming. He pretendedto be a completely different man. I don’t even know the person standing in front of me.
Realizing that I've zoned out for the entire speech he's been reciting for the last few minutes, he walks towards me and grips my chin forcing me to look up at him.
“If you think I’ll willingly marry you, you’re out of your fucking mind. I ran so that I wouldn’t be shackled to you. What makes you think I’ll just bow down and do it now? You're nothing to me,” I spit at him.
Letting go of my chin, he bends down and places his arms on the armrests of my chair, boxing me in. “You will not speak to me in that manner. You are to be my wife and the future leader of Rogue. It’s time you begin to act like it. I will no longer accept any disrespect from you. I’ll be forced to punish you if you continue to be disrespectful,” he says angrily. His tone was so familiar to my father when he would lecture me as a child.
“Punished? So, you’re telling me being forced to marry a lying piece of shit like you isn’t punishment enough?!" I yell.
"You need to learn your place, Callie. You may be Gabriel’s daughter, but I will not tell you again.” His gaze appears so intense that any other girl would be instantly thrown into submission.
“Fuck you, Damien,” I yell.
He rips me out of the chair and slams me against the wall with so much force a photo frame falls to the ground, and glass shatters around us.
“Do I need toforce you to your knees and shove my cock so far down your throat that you remember exactly who I am to you?” he states.
“Don’t fucking touch me. You’re nothing to me, and I’ll never be yours.” My lip curls up in disgust.
“Sweet girl, since the day your father advised you of our marriage all those years ago, you were mine. When we were living together in Braxton Falls, and you were begging me to fuck you, you were mine. When I had you pinned to the bed licking that sweet pussy, making you come all over my face time and time again, you were mine. I was gentle with you before, but now that you're where you belong, I no longer have to be. I can use you however I please, and there isn't a damn thing you can do about it because Daddy isn't going to save you.”
Fuck, Avery was right all along. She always saw the inner darkness in him that I refused to accept. I should have believed her.
He leans in and whispers in my ear, so close that I can feel his breath on my neck, making me want to gag. “You have always been mine, and I will force that attitude of yours right into submission if I must. Now, be a good girl, go to your room, and change. We have an important dinner to get to. Your father has requested we be punctual. There’s someone who’s been waiting to see you. I believe you remember the way?” His smug smile adds flames to the burning fire inside me.
When he finally leans back to give me the space I desperately need, I bite my tongue, and slip out of the old office, walkingright up the stairs to what used to be my childhood bedroom. Slamming the door behind me, I walk over to sit on the bed so that I can process what in the actual fuck just happened.
Julian was a completely made-up person. How is it that I never saw right through his disguise? He made me believe he was a kind, giving person who didn’t have a mean bone in his body, but in reality, he’s the complete opposite. Thinking of everything he and I did together is enough to make me sick to my stomach. When we were intimate, it always seemed like he was holding back, and now I understand why. He was pretending to be an entirely different person the whole time. He was holding back. I never would have imagined the person he was in those situations was who he really is. It makes me feel so violated.
The person I was when I was with him in Braxton Falls was a weak version of myself. I should’ve known better than to trust anyone. The only person still alive who’s never deliberately broken my trust is Avery, and I hope for her sake that she stays as far away from this place as possible.
Fuck Damien. He thinks he knows me so well. He’s a fool. That man has never seen the woman who spent her entire life adapting to shitty situations just to survive- the real me. The person he knew was the fragile girl I turned into when I got comfortable living in my fantasy world. Julian or Damien, whatever he is calling himself these days, thinks he can control and manipulate me, but that’s not fucking happening anymore. I am nobody’s possession, and he is about to find out exactly who the real Callie Ashford is.
Deciding it's time to regain some control of this little charade, I get up and walk into my bathroom to shower and get ready for dinner. The performance of a lifetime is about to begin. The only person I can count on is myself, and it's all about survival now.
I haven't decided what I plan on doing yet, but getting rid of my father is the best possible outcome, considering he’s calling all the shots right now. If I find a way to take him out, I would become the leader of Rogue and would be able to name my own second-in-command.
Damien will be a non-issue at that point. I could place the blame on him, kill my father, and say Damien did it in order to rise to power. That just might work. I would just need the approval of the council to take him out. If they truly believe he betrayed the community and conspired to murder the leader, shit, they would vote with me in a heartbeat.
Vengeance is a bitch, and so am I. My father’s biggest mistake was letting everyone believe I was away with his permission. He should’ve taken Sebastian's deal. Nobody knows Callie never wanted to be the leader. Nobody knows Callie was tricked by Damien. Being stuck here might not be so bad after all.
