Page 89 of Splitting Secrets
“I don’t fucking believe it,” Beatrix mutters.
“You don’t have to. He’s staying here and there’s no room for debate. The owners of the house have already approved. You don’t like it? There’s the door,” Griffin bites out, pointing towardthe door they just walked through. His tone sends chills down my spine, but his focus is solely on Beatrix.
She scrunches her nose, but chooses to stay silent.
I’m not surprised my parents had the heads up that he was coming and neglected to warn us. They’re allergic to healthy communication.
“I won’t impose on you at all,” Raze promises.
“I have so many questions,” Ava tells him, her eyes still wide in astonishment. “Mirranes haven’t been recorded in over fifty years. They were all killed off...”
Raze lifts a brow at her.
“He’ll take the room you left empty,” Griffin declares, pushing past us to lead Raze in the direction of the stairs.
My heart sinks. The room right across from mine?
Raze marches up the stairs behind Griffin, leaving the four of us to stare at each other in disbelief.
“Well, shit,” Beatrix sighs. “Who knew it could get worse?”
“It’s not that bad,” Ava says, bumping her shoulder into Bea’s teasingly. “It could be Griffin staying with us.”
“No, instead we get the hitman for one of the deadliest secret societies in the world,” Jonah scoffs sarcastically as Beatrix pretends to punch Ava in the arm.
Iwait exactly twenty minutes after Griffin leaves to go to him. The door is cracked, and when my feet quietly pad up to it, I lift my fist to knock, but he calls out for me to come in before my knuckles collide with the wood.
“So, I assume that what happens next isn’t going to be good, is it?” I greet, not even bothering to hide the worry in my tone.He’s unpacking a small black bag into his dresser, stacking each piece of clothing neatly on top of the last.
His mouth tightens into a flat line. “No, it’s not,” he admits.
“But you prepared for this, right? I mean, you knew that everything was going to come to a head at some point.” With all their talk about these big plans, they had to have anticipated a scenario like this.
He leans forward to rest his elbow onto the top of the dresser, his gaze directed toward the ground. “We’ve known that tensions were rising, sure. But when they had me get you on the beach, our timeline was sped up significantly.”
“Yeah, I know,” I mutter, rolling my eyes. “No one has been shy about telling us what an inconvenience we’ve been.”
Swinging his head back toward me, he scowls. “You arenotan inconvenience. You’re our greatest weapon.”
“Right,” I scoff in doubt.
“I’m serious. Having you on our side is a huge honor, and it’s not lost on any one of us. I think the pressure of keeping you safe is translating into something it’s not.”
“Keeping us safe is looking an awful lot like keeping us imprisoned,” I mutter childishly.
“You aren’t imprisoned here,” he dismisses.
“I can’t even go outside,” I whine.
“That’s different?—”
I cut him off with the shake of my head. “I don’t see the difference.”
“The Syndicate has unleashed their most talented trackers to search for you. They want you dead, Sonny. Your existence is a threat to their power. They hesitated to kill you before because they were considering bringing you in as a member. There won’t be any hesitation if they find you again. You’ll be killed on the spot.”
It’s been mentioned enough times for me to realize how badly the Syndicate wants to eliminate the threat they think I pose, but somehow hearing it put so bluntly from him makes everything feel that much more real.
Still, I’m immature enough to cock my head and ask, “And?”
