Page 37 of Of Bone and Ash

“I wonder why,” I snark back, tossing my hands up in the air. “Girls are dying here, Atlas!”

“And you think Fina can't handle herself?” he asks, his voice genuine. I shake my head.

“I know she fucking can. I know she can chew up whoever is killing these girls like an easy dinner. But at what cost to her? She already thinks she’s a monster; are you willing to let her fully believe it now?”

Atlas scoffs and shakes his head.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned from Gabriel, it’s that you can never change a Reaper or their intent. Fina is a killer, Ryland. No matter what you want… no matter how you try to protect her from it, that won't change. The only thing we can do is offer her emotional bonds. Magical ties to keep her steady once she reaps her first soul in order to control her blood lust. It’s a part of who she is. If you can’t accept that, then you need to leave her be.”

“Wait,” Boris intervenes, sitting forward in his chair and resting his enormous hands on thick thighs. “I thought the girl was yours. But then this ball of fire,” Boris grumbles, thumbing over at me as he talks to Atlas. “Is popping off like a premature firecracker, and I’m really starting to get confused.” I blink at Boris in surprise as Atlas grimaces and shakes his head.

“I already told you that Serafina isn’t my mate.”

His mate!? What the fuck? Boris thought Fina was Atlas’ mate?

“But you protect her…”

“Like a brother would his sister?!” I snap, the very thought of Fina belonging to someone else enraging me to my very core. My Dragon doesn't care how silly the thought is. Atlas is her brother, yet he still sees any male as a threat until he's mated Fina for himself. Sometimes I wish I could kick my Dragon’s ass and shove his possessive and irrational thoughts in a box and ignore them.

“A… sister?” Boris says slowly, brows furrowing. “I thought she was the councilman's sister?” Atlas nods, and Boris looks at Atlas with a raised brow. “No, shit? I never would have guessed that,” he says, bringing a hand to his cheek and rubbing at his coarse beard, a flicker of respect entering his gaze as he studies Atlas.

“Your discretion would be appreciated. No one knows about my relation to Councilman Covington. He’s kept it to himself so that I can gather information without the fear his name brings. People are less candid when they realize….” Atlas trails off and grimaces.

“Realize you have a brother who will rip their souls from their bodies and has the power to cover up their deaths with a simple flick of his wrist?”

“To put it bluntly… yes,” Atlas agrees with a nod of his head. I snort at that and grin. If only they knew just how twisted Gabriel is to his enemies. I once watched him disembowel a man who called his wife a whore during a business meeting. Granted, Gabe was already planning the man's death since he discovered the guy was elbows deep in the skin market and was selling underaged girls. But he made sure the man's death was extra painful for that comment.

“Shit, a sister who can basically do the same thing, too, huh? And here I was, worried about the odd amount of magic you have at your disposal. I suppose that should be the least of my problems.”

“Nothing about me is your concern,” Atlas says coolly, the hint of authority in his tone making me purse my lips in approval. This man in front of me, full of confidence and an air of authority, is not the broken shell of the man I grew up with.

Sure, the Warlock has slowly gotten better over the years, coming out of his townhouse a little more each holiday and interacting with our family again, but this… I study the man and can't help but smile a little as I watch him quickly and proficiently put Boris in his place. He doesn’t do it with disrespect but with a tone that suggests Boris shouldn’t overstep his bounds. Is this what Atlas was like before the injury that took full use of his legs?

“I think we should get back on topic,” Atlas says gently, and I nod yes. We need to figure out how fast we can get Fina out of here.

“Right. Well, I still have the deaths of twenty girls to figure out. Do you think you two can stow whatever this shit is and help me out here? That Phoenix is going to roast my balls if we don't catch this prick, and my Dragon is itching for the blood of the man who has the fucking audacity to kill innocent girls like this,” Boris says with a rumble in his chest. His eyes flash gold, prompting my Dragon to answer with a vibrating growl in agreement.

“I’ll continue to help, but I want Fina to return to America. She belongs at Black Veil, not here.” Atlas chuckles and eyes me in amusement.

“Yeah, okay, I can agree with you on that. But you have to convince her to go.” I scowl at him and shake my head. She’ll never listen to me. It's one of the reasons I love her. Fina has a mind of her own, and there is only one person she’ll listen to.

“Gabe…” I start to say, but Atlas shakes his head, cutting me off.

“You know that whole Fina has grown-up conversation we just had?” I nod and Atlas slowly rises onto unsteady feet as he pushes his chair back.

I watch him carefully, ready to dive and catch him if he happens to stumble or fall, but he is surprisingly sure of himself, if not a little slow, as he takes a handful of steps to the bookshelf behind his chair and grabs a book, opening and grabbing some papers from it before turning back to face me.

“She doesn't listen to anyone. Don't get me wrong, she’ll listen to reason, but you better have a damn good one if you want her on your side. Gabe no longer holds the sway he did three years ago,” he mutters, tossing the papers at me. They slide across the desk, and I frown, stepping forward and gathering pictures, not paper, my eyes scanning them.

They’re all of Fina. She's standing outside a small, modern-looking house and is giving the camera the tiniest of smiles. Her eyes are cold, emotionless pools of silver that make my gut twist as I look at another one. Fina stands at a small countertop with my adopted father, Zane, at her side. It was taken in a kitchen I’d never seen before. They’re both wearing aprons, and the counter is full of cookies. Zane is beaming at the camera with his daughter Emery in his arms and Aria in Fina’s. Fina's smile is slightly broader here, more authentic than the last, but it still looks forced.

In the last photo, Fina is sitting behind a desk similar in style to the ones I always see her brother sitting behind. The only difference is this one is smaller. She’s working on a computer, her attention solely on the brightly lit screen in front of her, seemingly unaware of whoever is taking the picture of her. She’s dressed in a simple but elegant black dress and has a full face of make-up on. She looks so different from the girl I left three years ago. Older, more beautiful than I can even process, and… sad. She looks so sad.

“She moved out of Gabe's house about eighteen months ago. She bought her own home in Montana and started up a charity for homeless girls that runs side-by-side with Roar’s boys' home he’s opened. She no longer goes to family dinners every night, and Gabe has to go to her house to talk with her. She's completely separated herself from the family. Hell, I think I’m at Gabe’s house more than she is these days,” Atlas muses.

I startle at the information, as panic slowly starts to creep in. No. No, that's not good at all. She’s cut herself off from our family? That can't be right. Fina loves our family, she…

“Wait. How… why?” I stumble over my words, shaking my head as I try to piece together everything. I had my father keep me informed on Fina’s health but asked not to get too much information so my Dragon wouldn’t try anything stupid. “I’ve been back to the house three times in the last eighteen months, and she was there each time,” I say in confusion. Atlas’ eyes widen before he scowls at me.

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