Page 42 of Catch a King (Five Kings 1)

“Her?”

We look at him in surprise and he grins. “Women will spill their darkest secrets when they’re tied up facing pain. You don’t think I play in my own yard all the time, do you? Occasionally I like to taste forbidden fruit, and this particular delicacy is more forbidden than most.”

Axel slams his fist down on the desk and roars, “You had better be fucking playing with me because God help us if you start a turf war with the Dark Lords over a piece of fucking pussy.”

“It got me information, didn’t it?”

Slade faces him off and I swear I see smoke coming from his ears as he works up into a rage that will not end well for some poor unfortunate.

Stepping in, I say calmly, “How you got the information isn’t the point. The point is, what difference does it make to Billy’s murder?”

“That’s what we need to find out. I’m guessing we both need to pay Rose Finley a visit and discover exactly what she knows.”

I feel my heart beating so fast I’m fearful it may explode, as Axel says wearily, “Do what you must, but I want to be there too. If my brother had a wife, I want to meet her and if there is any information she can give us, I don’t want you shooting your mouth off and riling her up, so we all go together tomorrow. At least it will be an excuse to get out of Griffin’s party. The last thing I want to see is my old lady being handed around like the main course.”

“You’d allow that?” I look at him in shock and Axel looks as if he’s eaten a hornet. “I allow it because she asks me to.”

For a moment I see the weakness in the man before me. He looks haunted, unhappy and struggling with something I’m not sure about. I catch Slade’s eyes and he looks angry, but that’s not unusual and I can’t tell if it’s because of Marina’s actions, or his own weakness where it concerns her. Just thinking about how my own brother uses her, makes my skin crawl and by the sounds of it, Marina likes it that way. Once again, I feel the need to get this shit done because once I walk out of that door, I am never coming back.

We stay close to the Castle for the rest of the day and I take the time to show Millie around. She seems unimpressed and I’m guessing she’s used to much better surroundings and I’m curious about her life at the Twisted Reapers.

We head to her room for a while and as we lie side by side on her bed, she places her head on my chest and I stroke her hair, loving the way it slips through my fingers.

“What’s it like being a Reaper?”

I’m curious to know and she smiles against my chest. “It’s the best, Sawyer. Most of them are ex-military, a lot like you. They show up when they have nowhere else to go because many of them are running from something - we all are, really. I suppose that’s what makes us a family. A shared common interest, where we help each other heal. The guys are hard, crude and dominant and the girls love every minute of it. There’s no forcing anyone to do anything in the Rubicon, we can take up embroidery and knit baby clothes if we want, but where’s the fun in that?”

I hate hearing her speak of them, yet I asked for it and I must accept this is who she was and the only reason she came here. If she wasn’t a member of that club, we would never have met, which is why I must put it behind me and move on.

I can tell something is bothering her and say gently, “Spit it out, darlin’.”

“What?”

“What’s bothering you. You’ve gone quiet on me and I can tell something’s on your mind.”

“It was something Avery said.”

“Go on.”

Sighing, she sits up and faces me, looking disturbed and her beautiful green eyes swirl with a hint of pain. “Avery told me that you, your family, have no loyalty to women. That as soon as you’re bored, you move on to the next pretty face.”

“And you believe that?” I laugh.

“That may be true of Slade, but only because he’s hurting right now. Axel has always been wrapped in darkness and keeps his private life close to his chest. We all do I suppose but you should know me by now, I’m pretty open about my feelings for you and I’m not one for talking about things much, so it should count for something.”

I reach up and push away the hair that has dropped over her eyes and she nods. “I thought I did, but then she told me about Billy and your mom.”

“What did she say?” I’m not sure I’m going to like this from the look on her face and she sighs. “That Billy screwed around behind her back and drove her to drugs. That hit me hard because even if someone who was obviously as kind as Billy was to Rose, could treat a woman so bad, it well, it made me think.”

I can’t believe what I’m hearing and my eyes flash as I snarl, “Billyneverdrove mom to drugs. I told you what they were like. If Avery says otherwise, it’s a lie.”

“But Slade…”

“Is wrong. There is no way that Billy wasn’t anything but a good husband and father and Avery has it wrong, or Slade is feeding her shit. You’ve met Rose. Did she look as if Billy had treated her badly? Maybe you shouldn’t pay much attention to the things Avery says because she’s got her facts wrong.”

Millie looks relieved. “Yes, I expect she has. Anyway, we’re heading out tomorrow while you’re out on business because apparently, it’s party night here, and she warned me to make myself scarce.”

I pull her back down onto my chest and growl, “If you think I’d allow you to be here when that fuckfest kicks off, you can think again. Yes, maybe in this case she’s right, it’s best to get the hell out of here and let the animals play.”

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