Page 78 of Beast: Part Two

Finally, he turns back to Priest. “As long as my name stays on that order, the other one can’t go through. That gives you time.”

“Time for what?” Many asks.

“To kill Corbyn.” The grin that spreads over Dominique’s face is slow and malevolent. The boardroom suit and tie façade fall away, and we see the real diabolical man.

“That was your plan the entire time.” Priest states what we’ve all come to realize. “It’s why you signed the order.”

Dominique chuckles. “Yes. I have plans. And those plans consist of Elliot Corbyn being out of the way. He has run his course. I am not the only member of the committee that feels this way.”

“Then why doesn’t the committee kill him?” Maksim asks, pushing away from the wall. “You all have the means. Why put Priest and his boys through this bullshit just to kill Corbyn?”

Maksim is right. If they wanted him dead, they could have done it and left us out.

“Politics,” Dominique shrugs. “Mostly.”

“He’s lying,” Albany says in the earpiece. “There is something he’s not telling you.”

Before Priest can ask anything else, Dominique speaks again. “Look, I’m not your enemy. Corbyn wants you all dead. He’s not going to stop signing those excommunication orders until he gets what he wants. The next three may not be as willing to agree as myself and Franklin.”

“You convinced Franklin to sign the order?” I ask thinking back to what Franklin Smith said. He admitted he had no plans to sign the order until someone convinced him.

“Yes,” Dominique replies. “I knew we needed to buy time. In all honesty, you are doing us a favor, but you’re saving yourselves as well. You were always going to have to kill Corbyn,” he says the last part directly to Priest. “You took something from him. Something he wanted.” Dominique’s gaze flashes to me before going back to Priest. “Corbyn is a jealous and prideful man. He will not give up.”

We all knew at some point we had to go after Corbyn. We thought if we could clear our names, we could possibly have the resources of the Church in our corner. However, it seems as if we won’t have that luxury.

“When we kill Corbyn,” Priest says. “You will withdraw your name and get the excommunication order lifted?”

“The moment Corbyn takes his last breath, I will make the phone call and withdraw my name before his body temp drops. You have my word.”

We all remain quiet, waiting to see what Albany will say.

“He’s telling the truth,” she says reading Dominique.

Priest stands and tugs at his suit jacket. Many stands too.

“You have a deal.”

Dominique smiles, getting to his feet. We all start to make our way over to the door.

“Uh, Priest, may I speak with you alone for a moment?”

“No,” I say.

Priest holds up a hand toward me. He eyes Dominique. “Give us a minute, boys.”

I hesitate to leave. I still didn’t trust these Royal Crown people totally.

“We got eyes on him, Gabriel,” Lucien says in my earpiece.

Nodding, I follow the others out of the room. I turn to look at Priest once more before walking out. He dips his chin briefly, signaling he’s alright. The guard that was in the room with us steps out behind me and shuts the door.

“For this conversation,” Dominique says. “You’re going to need to turn that earpiece off.”

Seconds later, we can no longer hear what Priest hears.

“What’s going on?” I ask Lucien.

“They are just talking. I can’t hear them, but Priest doesn’t seem pressed.”

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