Page 34 of We Will Rise

Beside him is Caleb, and it takes everything within me not to charge out of the van right this second and beat him to a bloody pulp. The realization that he killed Bishop’s mother has been hard on all of us for different reasons, but mostly because he’s been playing us for years, almost Bishop’s entire life, and the whole time I’ve known him.

Nothing was ever real, and for someone who never had anyone before I was adopted into this family, that fucking sucks.

I touch my earpiece to activate it and whisper, “Incoming.”

Crew nods slightly, playing it off as if he’s saying something to Bishop, but none of them turn to see who is making their way up the center of the crowd.

I crack my neck from side to side, reveling in the sound my bones make as I stretch. I can’t wait to see their faces when they realize they didn’t succeed in killing me, but I’m sure as hell not going to make the same mistake when the time comes.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

CREW

Itighten my hold on Camilla after I get the signal that Charles and Caleb are on their way through the crowd.

I don’t want either of them anywhere near her, but especially after the scene at the restaurant earlier this week. It’s a miracle no one caught that altercation on camera, and therefore Camilla hasn’t been dragged through the mud in the tabloids, but that doesn’t make me anymore comfortable with having them near her.

Plus the fact that my brother killed my high school sweetheart and the mother of my son doesn’t exactly instill any comfort when it comes to the woman who has stolen my heart and holds it in her hands.

I catch sight of them out of the corner of my eye, but I know they’re close based on the whispers that surround us.

“Is that Caleb?”

“I thought he was dead.”

I force them from my mind and release a breath. This is all just a show of smoke and mirrors to begin with, but we have to make it convincing nonetheless.

Charles stops in front of me and nods. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you.” My voice comes out even, the way anyone here would expect, despite the grief of losing my adopted son.

He turns his gaze to Camilla, and I swallow heavily to stop myself from protecting her from his filthy gaze. The way he peruses her body makes me want to throw up, but I can’t react. Not here. Not with all these people.

“Camilla,” he regards.

“Charles,” she responds, inserting just enough sadness in her voice to convince just about anyone that she’s grieving, before turning to face Caleb. “I may be speaking out of turn here, but I think I speak for the four of us when I say we don’t want the man responsible for Kovu’s death here.” The venom in her voice is exactly as we planned, and I have to steel my reaction so as not to smirk at how sure of herself she sounds. She’s fucking perfection.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Caleb feigns innocence.

I glance toward the van Kovu’s waiting in and give the slightest nod to tell him it’s time for him to show himself.

We considered letting this play out, but we decided it would be too much for all of us to live through his funeral, especially Camilla. She’s still having nightmares about the explosion, and we made the decision not to throw any fuel on the fire, so to speak.

“Says the man who made his family believe he was dead for years,” she says a little louder, allowing the people sitting around us to hear her. “Says the man who had his secret girlfriend shoot him, having planned everything down to the clean-up crew he paid off to make his death look believable, and the doctor who signed his death certificate.”

Surprise fills Caleb’s face, a feat that has been hard to come by since he showed himself that first time. Wyatt has finally started putting some pieces together about how he pulled the wool over our eyes given our experience and expertise, with the help of Everett and Ace over at Frost Industries.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see movement. Two of the guys Storm sent are escorting Kovu through the crowd, and the whispers from before have all but been silenced as we deliver our own surprise.

Camilla pushes to her feet and straightens her dress. “It seems that despite how many attempts you’ve made on our lives recently, you still haven’t managed to understand one simple thing.” She pauses, and a smirk tugs at her lips as Kovu rounds the edge of the crowd. “We’re not nearly as easy to kill as you seem to think we are.”

Charles’s eyes widen at the sight of Kovu, who shows almost no evidence of the explosion that could have claimed his life, while Caleb can’t shield his own shock.

Camilla steps forward until she’s toe to toe with Caleb, and I fight my instinct to tug her back against me where she’s safe. “Mark my words, the next funerals we all attend will belong to the two of you.” Her voice doesn’t waver under the weight of the threat she’s just made, and I’m not ashamed of how fucking hard I am from her strength alone.

Without another word, she turns on her heel and makes her way back toward the road, with her head held high. Luca appears at her side, and they make their way toward Kaos’s SUV.

Bishop chuckles as he tears his eyes off our girl to face his uncle. “Better luck next time,” he says before he follows her, with Kaos and Kovu hot on his heels. None of us like having Camilla out of our sight at the best of times, but after the threat she just made, I imagine that’s especially true.

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