Page 25 of The Omega Trials: Part One

“That ring is the reason our family was exiled,” I finish for him.

She takes a tentative step back and speaks with forced calmness. “Listen, I don’t know what you think this ring is, but it’s been in my family for generations—”

“For, let me guess, four generations,” I scoff.

She perks up at this, a curious spark replacing some of the wariness in her eyes. “Yeah . . . How doyouknow that?”

I roll my eyes.Okay, so we’re gonna play it like this, huh? Fine.

“Your great-great-grandma decided to walk away from her responsibilities—”

“Responsibilities?”She scoffs incredulously. Furiously, she continues, “I think you mean life as a sex slave. She was twenty times braver than all you fuckwads combined and figured out a way to not only escape herself, but protect her family for generations.”

“And threw us to the wolves in the process!”Titus shouts.

Sinclair closes the distance between them with determined strides. She has to tilt her head back to meet his eyes and spews spitefully, “It looks like you landed on your feet just fine.”

He jabs a finger in her face and growls, “You have no idea—”

“Alright, alright.” Bishop surprises me by stepping between them, pushing them apart. He looks at Titus and points to the far corner of the room. “Go cool off, Ti.”

He doesn’t look happy about it, but he does it anyway, his heavy footsteps crossing the room. Sinclair snickers and shouts after him, “Yeah, calm your tits, Titty.”

“Andyou.”Bishop spins on her, and his words seem to dry up the moment he meets her eyes. I can tell by his terse expression he’s as stunned as I am about this whole situation, but being this close to her is testing his restraint.

“Stop antagonizing him,” I step in for him. I point to the couch then fall back in the armchair next to it. “If you insist on playing dumb, just shut up and listen.”

Her eyes narrow, a retort on the tip of her tongue, but I reemphasize my gesture to the couch and alpha growl, “Sit.”

Like a petulant child, she crosses her arms and scowls but sits her ass down.Fucking finally.

I exhale. “When your great-great-grandma ran off, no one knew how she did it, but she must have had help. There were rumors of a ring or pendant orsomethingwith a Dusk Daisy to suppress her noble nature. So, when the Elders began looking for her accomplices, that was the lead they followed.”

“And your great-great-grandbitch,” Titus continues while pacing by the big, arched window, “set up the Ceruleans’ pack by stashing a small bundle of dried Dusk Daisies in their wing. Maybe somewhere in this very room.” He looks around bitterly.

“Apparently, that was all the evidence they needed to prove collusion, and as punishment, the entire Cerulean family was exiled from the Echelon for three generations. And now, when we finally have a chance to claw our way back”—I flick my gaze over her in disdain—“we end up with the descendant of the very person responsible for our exile. Did I leave anything out, SinclairAzurite?”

There’s a heavy silence as she breathes deeply in and out. Her eyes flit like she’s trying to process something too big to comprehend.

My skin feels uncomfortably tight as I wait for her to say something. My legs itch to jump out of this chair and take to pacing like Titus.

When she finally speaks, I don’t expect what she says.

“You can’t tell them. Please, don’t tell the Elders I’m an Azurite heir,” she pleads solemnly, flat and devoid of emotion,yet somehow still full of desperation. Something about it twists a spike in my chest because it’s . . .genuine.

“Are you saying they don’t already know?” Bishop asks, standing on the other side of the coffee table in front of her.

She raises her eyebrows skeptically. “Were we not in the same meeting?”

I don’t believe her, and I can tell Bishop doesn’t either, but I play along, leaning forward on my elbows. “Why don’t you want them to know? Azurites are the most powerful family in the Echelon. As a recognized member, you’d have more power than any of us.” I nod toward my brothers.

She sits up, more animated than before. “I’m happy to be the no-name, illegitimate daughter of a whore. The less value I have to them, the better chance I have of getting out of here.” I’m surprised by her honesty. If it’s authentic . . . “You guys don’t like me? Imagine how I fucking feel. For generations, my family sacrificed everything so I wouldn’t end up—” Her voice cracks and she quickly swallows, eyes flicking to the ceiling. The shimmer of tears in her eyes is gone when she looks back at us. “So I wouldn’t end up in this exact position.”

No one speaks for a while. The air in the room is suffocating with answers that only lead to more questions.

I have no idea what’s the truth, a half-truth, or full-out deception. Trust feels impossible, but when I meet her heavy eyes, Iwantto believe her.

“If you care about your grandma at all, you better forget any pipe dream of getting out,” Titus says coldly but collected, his emotions regulated and his head clear again.

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