Page 44 of Filthiest Of Them All

“What the fuck!” I hear Halo snap, then Omen’s voice comes through the phone.

“I’ll go after her but this is the only time I’ll cover your fuck up with her.”

I snort. “Watch it, brother, I’m not in the mood,” I snarl.

“Good, you deserve to wallow in it, you fucker. I’m telling her,” he says, then ends the call. I throw my phone across the room. When the fucking thing doesn’t shatter it pisses me off more.

Was the reward really worth the loss of the woman who saw the real me?

Tatum

I have no idea where I’m going, I honestly don’t care either. My feet are aching but the pain is nothing compared to the pain in my chest. I refuse to admit to myself why my chest feels like it’s cracking open. I barely know him. I have no right to feel this broken over a guy who used me. I was a fucking idiot. He warned me from the start that he was going to use me, I have no one to blame except for myself. I wish I still had my phone so I could call Vivian and Nova. I know they have both been hurt like this before and if there is anyone in the world that can understand what I’m going through, it's them.

I spot a lone tree up ahead and sigh. I resonate with that lonely ass tree. It’s on its own in the middle of an open field, just like me. We are on our own with no one else. I have no doubt Alex will slaughter my brother and claim his vengeance, it’s been his mission in life since he figured out who took the person he loves most from him. The sick part about all of this, I get it. I hate that I understand his need to ruin my brother just so he can find peace within himself.

I sit down, lean against the tree and wrap my arms around myself, not really feeling the cold. I know I could have gone to the main house and demanded one of the guys take me to the airport but I’m not stupid. I know women like Desire, even if I told her whatever was happening between me and Alex was over she wouldn’t believe it, and would just kill me for the fun of it. I hear a wolf howl in the distance and I can’t stop the snort from escaping me.

I may not have blown his straw house down but he certainly destroyed my fragile stick house. Maybe one day I’ll find someone who will build a house out of bricks with me. Chances of that happening are slim though, like I’ve said. I’ve never had any interest in males and the one fucking time I do, he obliterates me without mercy.

I tilt my head back and stare up at the sky, it's so beautiful.

“The stars are why she loved this place.” I snap my head to the side to see Omen walking toward me with a blanket and sweater. He tries to smile but it looks more like a grimace when he hands them to me. I thank him, pull the sweater on and wrap the blanket around my legs. “Uh, I brought you these.” I frown as he pulls out a pair of… slippers from his back pocket. I smile my thanks and purse my lips when I realize they are my own fucking slippers—this shit head went through my things.

When Omen sits down beside me I stare at him. “What are you doing?”

He exhales and lulls his head back to stare up at the sky. “You aren’t like every other female, Tatum.” I scrunch my face.

“Uh, is that a compliment?”

He nods. “Believe it or not, I don’t like women.”

I snort. “Gee, I never noticed,” I deadpan.

He tilts his head to the side and glares at me. I raise my hands in mock surrender. “You don’t do well with pain, do you?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You don’t cry and scream, or jump on social media and whine to the world.”

I shake my head and decide to be honest with him. “I’ve never seen the point in crying, it changes absolutely nothing about the situation you’re in. Pain is just a reminder of what you’ve survived and it will pass over time. As for social media? Yeah, that’s never been my thing. I don’t even have an Instagram, I only scroll TikTok for the cat videos.” He laughs and it's strange to hear that sound coming from him.

“You’re the first woman I have spoken to in years,” he admits.

“Why is that?” I gently push in a soothing tone.

“In order for you to understand I need to explain things to you.”

“Okay…” I say skeptically.

“Pope, Vatican, Halo, me, Desire, Wrath, Rage and Carnage are all siblings.”

“How does that work exactly? You’re all so close in age from what I’ve gathered.”

He nods, his features pull taut before he forces them to relax. “Halo and Carnage are twins, which I’m sure you have already figured out.”

I laugh. “Yeah, Halo and Halo 2 look like replicas of each other, but also different.”

“They aren’t identical, the only identical twins in our family are Wrath and Rage.”

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