Page 108 of Wicked Court

I make a mental note to talk to her about this. Perhaps understanding her perspective can shed light on my own.

“I’m here for more important matters,” Kaspian says, drawing my attention back to him.

Movement in the open doorway catches my eye. As if summoned, Axe and Wilder file in.

Kaspian nods, expecting them.

Cav, usually so inscrutable, glowers and still doesn’t bother to cover himself. “I assume it was important enough to include all of us. So, what is it?”

I pull the blanket tighter around me at Wilder and Axe’s presence. Yes, they’ve all seen me naked, but to have them surrounding me in a half-circle, their tall, broad-shouldered forms overshadowing me, I can’t help but feel small.

Helpless.

Kaspian clicks his tongue. “I stumbled upon some unfortunate documents hidden in this manor, likely concealed by previous Sovereigns intending to keep them away from unscrupulous individuals like myself. Unfortunately for them, I love a good chase.”

“Get to the point,” Cav bites out.

Wilder crosses his arms thoughtfully, his lips pressed into a thin line. Axe shoves his hands into his pockets, his eyes narrowed as if expecting a heavy blow.

“There’s no easy way to say this,” Kaspian says with a prolonged sigh.

The bastard’s enjoying every second. I can almost taste Kaspian’s satisfaction.

I tense as he turns his attention to me, pushing the guys—his brothers-in-arms—into the background.

“I believe I know who broke the ruby Heart in half,” Kaspian says to me, his face more serious than I’ve ever seen it.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I falter, my stomach clenching, anticipating a brutal, unforgivable punch to the gut.

“It was your brother,” Kaspian says, causing Wilder to sharply inhale, Axe to jerk back in surprise, and Cav’s subtle uncoiling.

Kaspian pauses, allowing regret to soften his features into the angelic guise many people assume he actually possesses, before unveiling the empty chasm that dwells within him.

I swallow hard, my eyes burning. “No. Maverick wouldn’t have any clue about this. He had no connection with the Court. He was … he was...”

Good. Innocent. Loving.

My voice fades into the silence that swallows my denials and spits back tainted memories of my brother.

“He was more than involved,” Kaspian continues, undaunted by my reaction, “I think he broke that priceless jewel in half and then was killed for it.”

An icy wave crashes over me, making me falter back into nothingness. I take a step back, hands groping for something to ground me. It’s too much—the secrets, the lies, the sins of past and present colliding.

“You’re lying,” I manage to hiss through clenched teeth. “Maverick... he was innocent. It was a crime of opportunity. A burglary gone wrong. Why else would anyone?—?”

But any argument dies a natural death in the face of Cav’s knowing gaze as he steps forward. There’s a cruel finality in his eyes that hints at the depths of his collected information that will forever elude me.

He says with exaggerated sincerity, “You cannot fathom the depths of this Court’s depravity, Elara. I tried to tell you.”

A gust of wind blows through the open French doors of the balcony, carrying with it the scent of impending rain and something more frightening—the cries of nocturnal predators.

Wilder’s eyes ignite with twin flames, fueled by his own history with the corrupt society that cost him someone he loved, too. Axe’s jaw clenches, fists tightening and nostrils flaring as he struggles for control. Cav watches me closely, as if he can read my every thought, every emotion surging through me. And Kaspian…

Kaspian smiles.

The blanket slips from my shoulders as if in surrender to an unseen force.

The French doors slam shut with an ominous thud from the wind.

My brother...

My brother.

Maverick, what have you done?

“We merely guessed at your value before, beastie,” Kaspian says. “But now that we know how priceless you are, we’re greedier than ever.”

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