Page 58 of Unmasked Legacy

Zane is speaking, but I’m struggling to hear what he’s saying.

The low hum consuming my brain is blocking out almost everything.

It’s like I’m stuck in a trance that I can’t escape from.

“Mera?”

I turn toward him, blinking slowly, the burn in my nose a stark reminder that I’m fighting tears that I’m afraid if I unleash will never end.

“I needed to see him. I needed answers. How did you know I was there?”

“Wolfe figured you went there. He wanted you returned.”

I just bet he did.

“It isn’t his decision what I do,” I whisper, staring down at my trembling hands.

“Hey,” Zane says, reaching out and taking one of my hands. “What the fuck did he do to you in there?”

“Told me the truth,” I say. “He told me the truth.”

Zane doesn’t say anything, and when I look up at him, I can see something in his gaze, something that absolutely crushes me. It’s guilt. It’s fucking guilt.

“You know,” I hiss, snatching my hand from his. “You all know, don’t you? All along, you’ve all been kind to me, but you all knew what was happening.”

“Look, Rook is our President. Our loyalty is to him. Can’t help who we are. I’m sorry you found out like this, but you gotta know, he was only tryin’ to protect you.”

“Take me there,” I order.

“Mera ...”

“Take me there, Zane, or I’ll find my own fucking way there.”

His jaw ticks and he growls. “You don’t know the story, until you do, you need to calm down.”

I jerk back, my eyes widening. “You have the nerve to tell me to calm down? Wolfe helped my father become the fucking monster that he is. He deserves to rot right next to him. Now, take me there.”

Zane doesn’t say another word, but his eyes remain dark as he climbs onto the motorcycle and starts it up. I get on behind him, the rage in my chest building to a terrifying level. I’ve never felt this kind of anger, not once in all my life. I’ve been through a lot. I’ve felt hurt and betrayal. But never this. This is a rage thatI have kept bottled inside for so long, and I’m about to unleash it in a big way.

Wolfe is going to learn that what he did will come back to haunt him.

I will be here to haunt him.

After today, he’s going to wish he never met me.

They all will.

I vow it.

I don’t pay any attention the entire drive back to the compound. In my mind, all I’m thinking about is what I’m going to say, what I’m going to do. The rage inside me is a wildfire, consuming every part of me. How could Wolfe do this to me? The betrayal is a knife twisting in my gut, each revelation cutting deeper than the last. I trusted him, let myself feel something real, and all along he was lying, manipulating my emotions for his own gain.

To protect his own secrets.

The anger is a living thing, clawing at my insides, demanding to be unleashed. I feel it in my chest, a storm ready to break. It frightens me how deep it runs, and I fear I’ll lose control. I can't believe I let myself open up to him. I can’t believe I let my walls down. This fury, it's more than just anger — it's a promise. A promise that I will confront him, make him see the damage he's done.

I try to fight it, try to rationalize with my brain, but my thoughts are a jumbled mess.

I want him to hurt the way he has made me hurt; I want him to feel a second of the pain and fear that I have felt in my life. Maybe then he would understand. Maybe then he would know that what he has done to me can never be undone. He has destroyed another piece of me, and with every little bit that falls away, I become a shell of myself. Soon, there will be nothing left.

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