Page 28 of Dust to Dust

No back seat driving, Ghost.I hissed.

Now back to the naive fools who slumbered in their homes when I lurked within their walls.I mean, seriously, haven't they ever read a history book? Villages were raided all the time; empires rose and fell, and spies were always lurking in the darkness.

Can you guess who the spy is in this history lesson?

I spent my teenage years training with a Torpedo, a Russian hitman in the Bratva. I could fade into the background and vice versa. I became just as good about standing outwhenI wanted to. Like when I snuck into the basement to spy a few days ago. I didn't try to hide. I sat on the stairs and let Titan, Dash, and Damian know they wouldn't be safe in their own house. I was going to be there to disrupt everythingifI wanted to.

We are not walking alone now, are we?Ghost asked.

I glanced at Titan, who had his left hand on the steering wheel. The flesh-colored ink that lined his ring finger with my old name.

You mean my name. Ghost corrected.

She was greedy and made it clear that Titan was devoted to her. I'd be changing that. Titan was committed to us, Ghost and myself. Therefore he needed to add on to that tattoo when the dust settled.

His right hand rested on my thigh. His thumb tapped in a rhythmic pattern as he tried to prepare himself for what was coming. As soon as he touched me, I was his calming presence. They say opposites attract, and when Titan touched me, I calmed him. Yet when I touched him, his presence revved me up.

The car turned and slowed as we pulled into the guarded gates. The guard flagged us in, not knowing Titan was driving the Trojan horse through Lucas King's walls. The driveway to Titan's childhood house seemed endless. Straight and narrow with perfectly groomed trees that were framed by shaped hedges. "You ok?" Titan asked.

I hadn't realized the tightness in my chest that affected my breathing. "Just eager," I murmured, but that was a mask. My chest hurt because I had never been this close to my parents' house. Our community was just a street away. However, Titan's home was vastly different than my childhood house. Yet no matter the differences, the forest was too familiar. I never wanted to return here again. After today I wanted to bury this town in my past. Better yet, burn it out of my mind. Some ghosts were better left dead.

And some aren't,Ghost quipped.

I grinned.

Looking over at Titan, I remembered the boy who first stole my heart, then killed me. That death only resurrected me and forced me to be stronger. Titan and I were both pawns in someone else's game. It seemed like the purpose of the brotherhood was to take control of the game board; the pawns and pieces would become the game makers. Titan and I stayed up late as he talked about the brotherhood. Titan confessed some of the journeys the men had experienced. Some made my childhood look like nothing. I decided I would give the brotherhood a chance. Plus, they needed a confident pair of ovaries in their group if they wanted to be accepted nowadays. I'd be their poster child of female empowerment. They better clear the path because the head bitch is coming, and when I arrived, I was going to shake things up.

Glancing down at my Piaget watch, I noted the date. Today would shake up the underworld and shift the controlling powers.

April 1st.

All around the world, the men from the brotherhood were drawing blood. The caged animals were turning against their masters.

The palms of my hands grew clammy as the mansion came into sight. I rubbed them against my leather leggings. Once again, I had to dress the part of the villain. In case you didn't know, villains loved leather, thus my Saint Laurent leather leggings. A matching black jacket concealed my weapons. Instead of dawning all black, I chose to wear a golden shirt that shimmered when the light hit it. After all, kings preferred gold, didn't they? You had to dress the part you sought to assume. Naturally, I had to stick to my guns and wear my Prada combat boots, blood red, raspberry-flavored lip gloss, and a smoky grey eye. My mask was complete.

Titan grabbed my hand. I hadn't realized that I kept rubbing my palms up and down my legs until he stilled them. "You don't have to do this." He stated with such affection Ghost wanted me to consider it.

Titan was trying to protect me, but at the same time, I was guarding him.Isn't that what a real marriage is about, Ghost? Making sacrifices to defend your significant other?

Ghost didn't respond. She usually didn't when she agreed with me. She didn't dare to admit I was right. I wasn't the only victim here to claim my revenge. Titan was just as much a victim as I was. A boy was used and abused by the man who was supposed to be his role model. I knew back then Lucas King wasn't a good father. I could see it in the eyes of the broken boy, who, at the age of fourteen, should have had no worries in the world. Instead, he carried the weight of his family name on his young shoulders.

I was so clouded by pain, shock, and trauma that I wanted anyone close to me to suffer.

So I did make them suffer.

Now that I'm older, wiser, and have Ghost as my moral compass, I see my faults, like not wearing a pair of contacts when I tried to trick Titan.

Ghost coughed. Areyou sure about that, Nova? Or, are you lying to yourself again?

Ok, so maybe it was a cry for help. Perhaps I longed for the boy who I once loved. I wanted the prince to save me from my tower, but I had to climb and fall from the tower and then save the prince—none of my mistakes now mattered. The only thing that did matter was both Titan and I were going to cut ourselves free from our chains. Titan would be safe, as would I.

I pressed my fingers into his hands tighter. His hands were larger and swallowed mine like a suit of armor. The heat penetrated my core. I looked at Titan and finally gave him what he wanted. "I love you," I confessed.

Titan eyed me with shock.

"I love you, Titan King, because let's face it, hubby, I will take what I want, when I want it. I love you because you are right. You make me stronger. I was drowning in my old world. I always needed you, but I never could voice it out loud. So I sought you out and changed my looks. I hoped that you would recognize me. I needed to know that you never forgot about me."

Titan leaned forward and rested his forehead against mine. His lips hovered over mine,

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