Page 84 of The Reckoning
“He’s alive.” The words tear from my throat. “Arson is alive, and he’s been living asme.”
Father’s gaze sharpens, assessing me with new wariness. “Sit down, Aries. You’re clearly unwell.”
“I’m not sitting down, and I’m not unwell.” My voice rises despite my efforts to control it. “Stop gaslighting me. I know everything. About the institution. About what you and Patricia did to him. About what really happened at the boathouse.”
For a long moment, silence stretches between us, taut as a wire about to snap. Then, with deliberate slowness, Father rises from his chair.
“If you know all this, then you also know why it was necessary.” It’s insane how steady his voice remains,how emotionless he becomes. “Your brother was unstable. Dangerous. We did what was best for this family.”
Rage flares hot and bright behind my eyes. “Best for the family? You locked him away for eight years. Tortured him. You tried to erase him. All because he was inconvenient to your precious image.”
“He took the blame for your mistake.” Father’s eyes narrow, calculating. “Isn’t that what truly bothers you, Aries? Not what happened to him, but your own guilt?”
There’s a deadly accuracy to his statement, and I flinch, unable to hide the truth of it.
“Yes.” The admission costs me, each word torn from somewhere vital. “It was my fault. I was showing off. I froze when it went wrong. Arson stepped in to protect me, like he always did, and I let him. I let you take him away. I let you hurt him.”
“Okay, and what do you want to do about it now?” Father’s voice is dangerously soft. “Surely, you didn’t come here to confess your sins?”
“I’ve come to end it.” I meet his gaze unflinchingly. “All of it. The lies. The cover-up. The?—”
The study door opens, and Patricia glides in, elegant as always in a cream silk blouse and tailored pants. Her gaze widens fractionally at the sight of me, then narrows with suspicion.
“Richard? What’s going on?” Her gaze slides to me. “Aries. What an unexpected surprise.” I can feel her eyes scanning me, her face filling with confusion at what I can only assume is my altered appearance.
“Perfect timing,” I say, bitterness coating each syllable. “We were just discussing family secrets. Specifically, how you helped orchestrate my brother’s disappearance.”
Patricia doesn’t flinch. She doesn’t even blink. Instead, she closes the door with a soft click and moves to stand beside my father in a unified front.
“I see.” Her voice is cool, controlled. “This is nothing more than an accusation.”
“It’s not an accusation if it’s true.” I feel strangely calm now, detached from the hurricane of emotions raging inside me. “Arson is alive. He escaped the institution you sent him to. He’s been impersonating me, planning his revenge.”
“If this is true,” Father says carefully, “then he’s a threat that needs to be contained.Again.”
The clinical way he says it—like Arson is a problem to be solved rather than a son who was wronged—makes my skin crawl. Yet it’s exactly what I expected. He’s so caught up in his need to ensure the secrets he buried stay there. Whatever is the quickest and most efficient way to keep it all under wraps.
“Yes,” I agree, the word tasting like ash. “He’s dangerous. More than you know.”
Patricia studies me, head tilted slightly. “Why are you telling us this now, Aries? After all this time?”
Fuck me. Here it is.
The moment of betrayal. I force myself to meet her gaze, to speak the words that will damn us all. I can’t take this back, but it means the game is over, and if all goes well, the three of us—Arson, Lilian, and I—will be the ones left standing.
I can only hope they will forgive me for setting things in motion without them.
“I’m telling you because I know where he is.” My voice doesn’t waver. “And I’m willing to help you deal with him.Permanently.”
“In exchange for what?” Father’s question is immediate, his business instincts never failing.
“In exchange for my rightful place as heir to Hayes Pharmaceuticals.” The lie comes so easily it’s scary, but it’s what they expect me to say. “No more discussions about my future. No more conditions. I take my position as COO immediately, with full autonomy over the research division.”
Father and Patricia exchange a look—measuring, calculating. I can almost see the wheels turning behind their eyes. The threat Arson poses to their carefully constructed world versus the benefit of having their golden child back in the fold.
“There’s more,” I continue, pressing my advantage. “Lilian knows everything. She’s been helping him.”
Patricia’s perfectly composed facade cracks slightly at this. “Lilian? My Lilian?”
