Page 77 of Darkness Falls

"You know I didn't mean to overstep. I'm just as committed to this as you are. Do you really think I would have spent all these years killing for you if I didn't believe in what you're building here?"

“I can very easily have you replaced, should I feel the need. I suggest you stay in line if you want to continue as my right hand."

Damien balls his fist.

"I've been by your side this whole time. I'm not going to waiver now. As soon as we get Callie back here, we can move forward with the marriage and get rid of the council,"Damien says. "These people will believe whatever you tell them."

Gabriel narrows his eyes. "I'm their leader. Of course they believe what I tell them. The council is outdated and unnecessary. We will have things dissolved once your marriage to Callie has taken place. From there, the bloodline will continue, and the community will look to us for guidance. We will be the only founding family line left."

"I still can't believe Austin and Steve never had children."

Gabriel smiles. "Austin never had children because he had a vasectomy. The dumb fuck actually thought he was giving his father the middle finger, but when he went to have it reversed, he found out sometimes they really are permanent."

Damien laughs uncontrollably. "You never told me that before!"

"You weren't in the circle of trust before," Gabriel says while raising his brow.

"And I am now?"

"Barely, so don't be stupid."

The video cuts out, and I'm left speechless for a moment. Gabriel and Damien planned to turn Rogue into some kind of dictatorship. I get why it’s labeled the way it is. This video could condemn both Gabriel and Damien. I make a mental note to keep it on hand. We will definitely be capitalizing on this somehow.

"Anything interesting?" Ky asks, and I turn to glare at him.

"The entirety of it is interesting if you know what you're looking for. This is going to come in handy before all is said and done. We should grab a few of the files from that room too before we go. There are a couple of names on here that appear to be council members. This entire drive is full of blackmail on every single person that was in his notebook, probably ones that weren't noted, too. Something like this in the wrong hands could be a major cause for concern. This goes beyond just members of Rogue."

"No wonder he kept it under guard."

"We should prepare a few things in the event that we have to try to take Rogue down."

"You think something's going to happen?"

I sigh. "I don't know how Callie is going to want to handle all of this, but she will never be safe as long as Rogue exists."

Ky's attention is pulled away when our girl comes into the kitchen. She looks like she's on a call with someone. My suspicions are confirmed when she places it on speaker, and I hear Damien’s voice fill the room.

If I could strangle him right now for even having the audacity to talk to my girl. How the fuck did he get her on the phone? She would have never willingly talked to that piece of shit.

Chapter 36

Callie

Sebastian is a stubborn asshole. I knew what I was doing, and at some point, he needs to trust that I'm not some kind of meek woman who needs people to protect her all the time. I can hold my own, just like the three of them. Did I need their help to get out of Rogue? Yes, but that doesn't mean I'm not capable of leading things.

"You don't have to keep looking at me like that." I glare at him. Kyler left us in the room with the filing cabinets a few minutes ago so he could go check in with Barrett. That’s what he said, at least. I know he didn’t want to be here with Mr. Grumpy and me.

"Here's the problem, trouble. You don't know when to stop. You take these uncalculated risks, and you don't think about how it affects other people," he tries.

"No. You're not going to try and say that again. I did what I thought would be right, and I did it that way because I knew you wouldn’t go with it. We didn't have time to sit around and talk. I know what I'm doing, Seb, and I would never do anything that would intentionally hurt one of you. You have to know that by now."

"Youshould have let us discuss it first in the car before you got out and barged down the front door."

"Would you have let me take the lead?" I raise a brow at him, wondering if I did make a mistake by not talking to them about it first.

"No. It was too risky."

"My point exactly. You have got to start letting other people help you with things. You can't just be there to do it all and expect us to file in behind you. I can't do that, and you know damn well that I've been controlled by men my entire life. I want a say in what we do, and I won’t accept anything less than being an equal part of the equation."

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