Page 173 of Demise

His face blanches as he looks to the ground.

Wesley found out that piece of information a few weeks ago, and we’ve been sitting on it for the opportune moment. Guess what, it’s here.

“Stroughton, your father beats your entire family black and blue and has been assaulting your half-sister since her seventh birthday, has he not?” I ask.

Jeremy has the decency to wince, throwing his eyes to the ground as he gives me a terse nod.

“Lewis,” I say, his eyes filled with far too much hate. He’s going to be our wild card for sure.

“Your uncle, the one who took over when your father passed away,” I say, sharing a brief look with Vincent and Ronan. “Tell me you wouldn’t love to gut him like a pig.”

We didn’t actually have anything on the Lewis family, but they are hotheads. They feel their emotions in sharp peaks, and I can tell by one look at Dane, that I hit the nail on the head.

“Then what?” Dane asks. “We become the new Elders? You rule us like your father?” he scoffs.

“I’m nothing like my father,” I say, “But yes. We will rebuild, not with a centered focus on our past but our future. We will stop the abusive fucking rituals, the degrading hierarchy, and we will treat this as it always should have been. A brotherhood.”

Dane seems surprisingly pleased with that, though none of them speak.

“If we say no, you’re going to kill us, aren’t you?” Andrew asks.

I lift a brow to him. “Is that an actual question, or hypothetical, Hutchinson?”

He looks ready to shit his fucking pants as his eyes drop to the ground.

“Hypothetical.”

Shit, maybe he’s the wild card.

“Andrew,” Liam says, appealing to him the way only Liam could. “You haven’t been inducted yet, none of you have,” he says as he runs his eyes over the other two. “You don’t know what it’s like…what they make you do.” Liam winces with ashake of his head. “If we don’t stop them tonight, you will, and you’ll never be the same. Trust me.”

My heart twinges at his words. I hate that his induction has affected him so much. He tries not to let anyone see it, but his spark has dimmed. His joy, muffled. He’s not the same Liam, and I’m terrified he never will be again. That is why we have to stop them, that is why we have to take a stand.

“I’m in,” Lewis says.

“Me too,” Stroughton agrees.

All eyes come to Andrew, a fearful look in his eyes as he glances around the room. His gaze falls on Skyla, and she gives him a compassionate yet earnest nod that has him nodding his agreement.

“Me too.”

After the last three legacies agreed, we weren’t stupid enough to just let them go. The temptation to burn us all and save their own asses would be too great. So, each got an escort to the tunnels.

Ronan went with Andrew, like he would have anyways for his induction night. Wesley went with Stroughton and Liam went with Lewis. I’m double checking that I have everything when Skyla steps into the room, Vincent right behind her.

“I’m scared,” she admits.

I stop what I’m doing and hold her in my arms. I don’t want to tell her that I am too. That I can feel that we are on the verge of…something. I just can’t tell if it’s our demise or our salvation.

“Don’t be,” I say. “We will be fine. Vincent will be with you the entire time, and if you’ve changed your mind, you don’t have to come. Fuck, I’d rather you didn’t,” I say with a rough chuckle that is not at all humorous.

She frowns. “I have to be there, Asher. This is my life, too. The Brethren took everything from me, they’ll continue to. My fathe— Henry,” she corrects. “He needs to suffer, and I won’t miss it for the world.”

I sigh, knowing we’ve already been round and round with this decision before. I was on the losing end of the argument, unfortunately. Nodding, I grip the back of her neck, pressing my lips to hers as I do.

“I’ll see you soon, and this will be all over, okay?” I say.

She nods her head. “Promise me we will all make it out of this. That when we do, we’ll go back to the cabin in New Hampshire. That we’ll stay there for two weeks at least just the six of us?”

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