Page 28 of Broken Promises
“I’ll answer whatever I can that’s not classified,” he replied.
“Please pardon my bluntness, but I don’t know how else to ask the question.” He nodded, so she asked, “Why is raping a woman part of the initiation?”
All eyes moved to Lucian, and I felt bad for my friend, but this was something Hannah needed to know.
She needed to understand how he could have become a monster.
Chapter 12
Hannah
Ididn’t plan to ask Lucian that question, but sitting there, looking at him, all I could see in my mind was him doing to Rylee what was done to me. And I didn’t understand the vileness of the actions, or why it had to be made a public event.
He sat stunned for a moment and Devlin went to speak when Lucian held his hand up, stopping him from speaking. He looked across the table from me, and in his bright blue eyes, I saw remorse. Feeling bad, I went to rescind the question when he began speaking.
“Let me start by saying, the initiation is meant as a demoralizing display for the new members, and also a way to ensure your loyalty.” I looked at him with confusion as he continued. “I’ll be as non-specific as possible, but if you’re willing to do . . . that in front of the families, it shows you’re willing to do whatever it takes to secure your position. I don’t know when it started, but it’s a horrible action that needs to be stopped, once and for all.”
“Agreed,” I replied and saw him exhale before he began to speak again.
“When I was fourteen, Sergey decided to make me the heir apparent to the throne, and with that decision, he didn’t need Devlin anymore. So, he sold him to some sick voyeur.” I saw Devlin and James look down as Lucian continued to speak. “When I was seventeen and Stella was fourteen, he decided to improve his position in the Syndicate by giving her to one of the most unbelievably violent and demented men in the families,only I didn’t know that because he had me locked in juvenile detention while he destroyed my sister.” His tone was calm, and Rhys squeezed my hand as Lucian looked up to the sky, pausing in his statement.
“I spent that whole year working with the Feds to help bring down the Syndicate from the inside, but when I came home, I found my sister was gone, and I was expected to forget about her and Devlin as I climbed the ladder. With Rhys’s help, I decided I needed to do what I had to in order to save not only Stella and Devlin but the countless women who were forced into prostitution, the endless number of people dying from the drugs we sold, and the innocent people caught in the crossfire of warring families.”
“I didn’t mean to—”
“It’s okay, but I’d really like to finish this, if that’s alright.” I nodded, so he pushed on. “The night of my initiation, I was given a few minutes alone with Rylee. She, like you and Claire, had no idea what to expect, but I’d heard stories, so I was able to warn her not to fight. I swear, I was as gentle as I could be while still playing my role, and over the next six months, she and I fell in love. The first hint that she was in danger, I sent her away and did everything I could to keep her protected.” He sighed deeply and his tone softened. “I never wanted to do any of the things I had to do to stop them, but it was the only way to get enough information to put them all away.”
“But Sergey got in trouble and decided to testify in order to save his own ass?” I asked, and Devlin nodded, picking up the story.
“Sergey was a violet psychopath who used mind games and physical punishment to control everyone around him. At the first sign he was going to finally pay for his transgressions, he flipped on everyone to save his own skin. I’ll admit I wanted to kill the bastard for breaking up our family.”
“But Stella beat you to it.” I stated, and they both shrugged.
“You remind me a lot of Stella,” Devlin remarked, and everyone at the table nodded in agreement.
“I was thinking the same thing,” Lucian said and looked at me. “I love the fact that you didn’t shy away from the tough topics, and you’re not afraid to stand up for yourself. While Sergey was a demented man to his soul, his determination and drive seemed to have played a part in all our lives.”
“Nurture versus nature,” James remarked.
Rhys’s computer made a noise and he turned to look at the screen. “I’ve got all the information on the business of the Syndicate.”
He turned the computer to face me as he moved through the documents in the file. A list appeared and one of the names on it scratched at a memory. I stopped Rhys from changing the screen and leaned back with a confused look on my face as I struggled to remember what was bothering me about the entry.
“What do you remember?” James asked, and I looked across at him.
He and Rhys had similar features, but the deep look in both their eyes was the same. It was like they could see past the bullshit and straight into your soul.
“There’s a name on here, Martina Richardson. I remember the name Martina at a house we lived in around my fifth birthday. She made me a birthday cake since my mother was too preoccupied with another man to be bothered,” I explained. Looking back at the screen, I noticed a date after her name, so I asked, “What’s this date?”
Rhys looked at where I was pointing and said, “That’s the date she was reported dead to the Syndicate’s accountants. They tracked all that information, so they knew when it was time to bring in fresh girls. To them, they were a commodity and nothing more.”
“That’s fucking horrible,” I remarked and looked across at Lucian. “Please forgive my intrusive question earlier. I . . . I don’t know how you made it out of that hell with your sanity intact.”
“Some days, I ask myself the same question,” he chuckled, and Devlin shook his head with a smile.
“What else do you remember about this Martina?” James asked as his fingers were poised over his keyboard.
“I think she had a baby, but I’m not sure.” I paused, attempting to think about details I’d long ago tried to forget. “I remember her stomach being big, then there was crying all the time, and then she was gone.”
