Page 27 of Dust to Dust

“The actions that will be taken tomorrow are for myselfandyou. We’re one now,” he looked down at the tattoo that spelled Elsa on his ring finger. I glanced at my wedding band tattoo.

Titan King.

He was forever inked on my flesh.

“I protect what is mine, and I consider every action. You think you are the only family my father destroyed?” Titan snorted, “My father’s past is a graveyard of sin. The sins of a father pass to their son. I’ve inherited my father’s sins, but that doesn’t mean I am saddled with them. I’m going to correct his wrongs, and when I do that, I’ll be doing my own wrongs.” He leaned forward and claimed my lips. When my tongue pressed against his, he pulled away. I wanted more.

“I need to know you are by my side when my wrongs come back to haunt me.” He held my steel grey eyes, seeking an answer.

What do you say, Nova? Are we keeping Titan as a war prize?

There was no other option for us now.Nova smiled.

I worry about him and the repercussions ahead when we kill Lucas.I admitted to Nova.

We won’t have to worry about that Ghost. Like I always promised you, I am going to kill the King. I will shield Titan from that task, and if the brotherhood has any issue with that, they can be next on my list. I’m not only taking the crown, Ghost. I was going to take the whole fucking kingdom. Marriage means 50/50. Everything Lucas King did and worked to claim is now half mine, along with his most precious possession. Titan.

Chapter 22

Ihad become slightly obsessed.

Ok, not a little. I was a complete stalker, but it wasn't like I was some crazed killer hunting my prey. I was protecting my target, making everything I did honorable and good.

I sat at my usual table in the coffee shop across the street as I watched her, Isabella. Isabella was a mistake, like a whisper on the wind that my eyes and ears caught. When I saw her, when that whisper from God spoke to me, I never looked back. Isabella was everything I ever imagined I would want. She was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, with strawberry blonde hair that flowed like calm ocean waves down her back. That is what Isabella was, a calming force to my tempered rage.

My mind imagined her hair spread out on my bed. In the past few weeks, I rarely ventured close enough to uncover the fine details of her heart-shaped face. But our past has been forever etched into my mind.

My Isabella thought she could run. She was wrong. I worked forever in the shadows to keep her where I needed her until the timing was safe. I knew my father always had men watching my movements, so to keep Isabella safe, I kept as much distance as I could, but God could only tempt the devil so much. Sometimes I slipped and gave in. I couldn't resist, and neither could she. But my disappearing act only enraged her.

Isabella worked in the small local book store across the street. Six days a week, she was here. Isabella was earning an honest living, something far different than how I was raised to be. She took night classes at the community college when she wasn't running the store. She lived in a run-down part of town that kept me up at night. Her apartment building was a shit hole, so I took the liberty of buying it and upgrading the security for all the tenants free of charge. All for her.

The bell above the coffee shop door chimed as a young couple walked in. Hand in hand, they walked to the counter and ordered their drinks. An act so simple yet unattainable for me. I tore my eyes off the couple and grabbed my coffee cup. The sharp, bitter notes filled my mouth. My mind turned towards my cousins, who each had women they loved, women they could touch and hold like the young couple in the shop.

Dash did everything he could to twist his mind into not forgiving Mila. It was destroying their once pure love, but Dash would not realize that until it was too late. It might already be too late. Dash won't forgive Mila for something that was not her fault or her control. Instead of comforting her when she needed it most, Dash poured salt into her wounds. It sickened me that my cousin could torture Mila mentally just as my father had done to my mother. Unlike my father, Dash was not a lost cause, he would break eventually, and then he'd be the one graveling for Mila to forgive him.

Then you had Titan and Nova, or Elsa. Bat-shit crazy wrapped up tight in a hot sexy as sin package. I set my coffee down and exhaled. Just the thought of handling a girl like Nova exhausted my mind. Nova was a bundle of fucked up memories, twisted with rage and gift-wrapped with a need for blood. Titan would be her undoing and the one thing to save her.

I remember that day when I first saw Nova in class. Titan was deadly silent. I knew he was hiding something. From the first day I met Nova, I knew that Titan owned her heart. That's why I followed Titan when he drove back out to his old childhood home. Titan never visited his father in that house. He avoided it like the plague.

It wasn't only Titan who gave away something that day. The way Nova looked at my cousin when we walked up those stairs to her row told me that not only did she know him, but there was a burning fire inside of her that was set free when Titan cornered her against the wall. If I were Titan, I'd sleep with one eye open but then again, Nova had plenty of chances to kill Titan, and she hadn't done so yet. I'd be willing to bet she never would.

Speaking of killing, my time stalking Isabella would soon end. I'll be free to love without pain. Standing from my table, I grabbed my paper cup, thanked the barista, and tossed the cup in the trash bin. I exited the coffee shop and pretend to look at my phone, but in reality, I took a picture of Isabella. Her hair was pulled back into a low ponytail that I'd love to wrap around my fist. She's smiling wide as she talks about a book to a customer.

I bought an apartment in Aspen, where King Corporations had its second largest office facility. Hidden in the mountains, King Corporations was working on the next generation weapons manufacturing. That was where I'd be relocating as soon as I graduated in just a few days. I've never been apart from my cousins for long, but this next phase in our lives will change us all. Each of us had roles to fill and kingdoms to run to aid the brotherhood.

I snapped a series of photos and slipped my phone into my pocket. I made sure to have a whole library installed in the apartment I bought in Colorado. Isabella wore a lot of yellow and not just any shade but marigold. So, I told the designer to design the library in navy blue and marigold shades. All I had to do was make sure my plan worked. In my pocket, my fingers brushed against the small antique pocket knife that I never left home without. Rubies and emeralds were embedded in the solid gold hilt. It was worth a very pretty penny; then add in its history and the price skyrockets. The blade was still sharp after all these centuries. I kept the knife on me like a lucky rabbit's foot.

It is my most prized possession, beside Isabella. I remember, as a boy seeing the knife on a stand high up in my father's office. It looked cool as a kid, like a weapon used by a king from past eras. The knife haunted me, but the best way to outrun your demons was to confront them, which I will be doing tonight. As a matter of fact, that is where I'm headed now. Titan and Dash wanted to go with me, but I insisted I must do this alone. Whether I make it out alive or not is another story, but my cousins gave me their word that no matter what happened, they would protect Isabella for the rest of her life.

I slipped into my car and closed the door. The engine revved to life and caused a surge of adrenaline to course through my veins. From my rearview mirror, I eyed the bookstore one last time before I peeled out of my parking spot. The knife in my pocket burned with fire now like the heat from the pits of hell. It spread and ignited my soul. The warmth from the flames called out to me like the devil himself. The knife ordered me to give the devil another soul, not just any soul, but the soul of my maker.

I floored the gas and rocked forward towards my next mission. You see, my mother gave this knife to my father as a wedding gift. It was this knife she used to kill herself. I would kill my father with this same knife.

Chapter 23

It always amazed me how comfortable people were in their own homes. Once tucked inside those walls, they let their guards down. People made the misfortunate of thinking they were safe and protected behind a thin layer of brick and drywall.Insert that evil laugh here, baby, because Nova is back in the driver's seat, and let's be honest with ourselves, life is much more thrilling when Nova is driving.

Now you're talking in the third person, Nova?Ghost asked with concern.

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