Page 43 of Golden Atonement

“Yes.”

“Why is Reaper still in New York City?”

My father sighed while he leaned back in his chair.

“Because he believes you’ve moved on.”

“Why would he think that?”

“Because after he killed Baranov, he saw you in the arms of Dakota Stone. We thought when he left with the others, we wouldn’t see him for a while. But not even a few days later, Maxim got word that Reaper had shown back up, drunk and covered in blood at Saint Agatha’s. When he got to the church, Reaper was full of rage and he tore a room apart. Last I heard, the man’s been drunk ever since.”

Sighing, I closed my eyes. “Shit.”

“His actions are not your concern, Remi. He’s a grown man.”

“But it is my problem if he believes a lie.”

“What do you mean?”

“I didn’t kiss Dakota. He kissed me. Jesus Christ. Talk about perfect fucking timing. Reaper has always had perfect timing for everything, and now he believes a damn lie.”

“That’s why you flinched back at the clubhouse.”

I nodded.

“Well, if you want my opinion, I suggest keeping that secret to yourself for the time being. Reaper needs to come to grips with everything he’s done. Right now, he’s angry. Angry at everyone but the one person he should be angry at.”

“Himself.”

Vladmir smirked. “Knew my daughter was smart.”

Grinning, I replied, “No. I just know Reaper. Only when he’s exhausted everyone else will he look and see the root of the problem.”

December 27, 2023

Remi

Sitting on the front porch, I watched Jesse run around with Rebekah. She was happy to see him, remembering him from when she lived at the clubhouse. As for Emma, apparently, she found a friend in Shadow’s youngest sister, Joy. While still older, Joy was able to relate to Emma in ways I couldn’t, and for that I was grateful, because she was finally talking.

As for me, I found myself living in a fog. On the rare occasions the fog lifted, I found clarity, but it was short-lived because the niggle of doubt always wound its way back into my head.

I knew everyone was still keeping secrets from me. I could taste the deceit in the air. It was suffocating. My whole life, I had been subjected to one lie or another, starting from the moment I was born. Nothing was as it seemed. I knew that now. With no one to help me, I tried to figure out the truth. The problem I was having was the more I thought about everything, the more confused I got.

I was missing key elements and until I learned what those were, my fog would never lift. Fleetingly, I wondered if this was how Reaper felt, trying to figure everything out. If it was, I understood his aggravation and hesitation. The man I knew trusted no one. Part of me wondered if he truly trusted his own club brothers. If he couldn’t trust the men who would die for him, then who could he trust?

Like getting struck by lightning, the truth slammed into me with a force that robbed me of my very breath. There was only one other person on this fucking planet he would trust and he wasn’t a club brother.

Or was he?

Getting up from my spot, I walked back into the house, heading straight for the kitchen, seeing them laughing as they enjoyed a few minutes free of the women that surrounded them. Walking over to them, I pulled out a chair and sat, never taking my eyes off them.

“Hey, Remi, what’s up?” Shadow smiled as his older brother Ghost steeled his face.

Leaning back, I looked at my nails and simply said, “Want to let me in on the big secret?”

Shadow looked at Ghost, who still hadn’t moved an inch.

“What secret?” Shadow muttered.

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