Page 133 of Ruthless God

“Listen to him?” My voice is sharp, dangerous. “What does that mean?”

Blanc’s lips press into a thin line. “Nothing.”

Liar. I take a step forward.

“Blanc, there’s a damn good chance my brother is alive and about to avenge our father’s death.” My voice is like steel. “If you know something, start talking. Now.”

Blanc meets my gaze. And for the first time, I see something new in his eyes. Not just frustration. Not just guilt. Fear. Real, cold-blooded fear. He knows something.

Blanc swallows. “I told you, it’s nothing.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it.”

His jaw tightens, but I don’t stop.

“Gabriel isn’t just alive. He’s moving. He’s coming for you. And if you think hiding in this house is going to save you, you’re already dead.”

His breath shudders out. A flicker of something breaks in his expression. I press harder.

“You said you didn’t listen to him. What did he want?”

Silence. Thick. Suffocating.

Then, finally, Blanc exhales.

“He wanted your father to die.”

“What?”

The room feels smaller. Like the walls are closing in. Blanc’s words settle over me, heavy and wrong.

“Gabriel would never say that. He was loyal to our father.”

But Blanc doesn’t hesitate.

“He wasn’t, Irons.” His voice is steady. Certain, even. “He said he could see what kind of man your father was. How he was turning both of you into monsters. When I told him it may be impossible, he came to me with a new plan. He wanted out.”

Out.

The word curls in my chest like poison. There’s no out. Not in the Brotherhood.

Until death. It’s literally our motto.

“What do you mean by out?”

Blanc meets my gaze, his own dark and knowing. “You know what I mean.”

I do. And it makes me fucking sick. Because if Gabriel wanted out…if he went as far as speaking to Blanc, that means he wasnever the brother I thought he was. That means he was lying to me, too.

I shake my head. “You’re lying.”

“I’m not.”

The worst part? I think he’s telling the truth.

“If this is true, then why is he after you?”

Blanc shrugs, casual as ever.

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