Page 31 of Goddess of Mayhem

“Do you ever relax?” I ask Lion as his eyes track Caine and everyone else around.

Akila snorts, and I smile at that. I like her. Lion and Malia have always been handfuls. I can appreciate the people that choose to put up with them.

Lion rolls his head to the side and looks at me before returning to the room. “Do you?”

I chuckle. “No, I guess I don’t.” He laughs, knowing he is right but not fully expecting me to admit it. “I didn’t get a chance to thank you for taking care of her.”

He hums. “You don’t need to thank me, Uncle. It’s what we do.”

“Ah, right. ‘I protect you; you protect me.’ I remember.”

Lion’s body stiffens, and he pushes his body off the wall with his foot to propel him forward. I look over at Malia, and Caine has his hand running down her face. I go to reach for my gun, watching as Lion pulls her into his side.

“Not here, brother,” Elijah says, coming to stand beside me. He’s clearly been watching everything unfold.

I growl. “This was a bad idea.”

He shrugs. “Maybe. Maybe not. I’ve never known you to do something without having reason, though.”

I straighten when I watch Lion escort the girls away from Caine. I know he has a handle on the situation, and that is going to have to be good enough.

“Someone’s going to bleed tonight,” I say, fidgeting with my cuffs.

Elijah chuckles. “Our children are here and both of them are pissed off. Tell me something I don’t know. Where’s your head, Nate?”

He started asking me that when I was a teenager. There was a time I lost all self-control, a time that shows exactly how Malia is like me. I gained it back thankfully, but she’s never learned to control her impulses. To be fair, though, I’ve never wanted her to.

Elijah would ask me where my head was to get me to talk so I would not shut down. It seemed redundant at the time, but I see what it is now.

“It is not something we should talk about here.”

He nods.

We stand in silence, taking in everything around us. I spot a man in the back who looks exactly like Joseph. My heart hammers in my chest as I’m once again haunted by the ghosts of my past within the same day.

“I promised both Joey and Nadya I wouldn’t drag Liam into this lift,” I blurt out, mostly to myself, but Elijah thinks I am talking to him.

“I should have known this was going to happen, Elijah,” I continue.

He hums. “You’re a smart man, Nate. I think you knew exactly what was going to happen. Joey may not have wanted this life for Liam, but it may be as meant for him as it was for his father.” He pauses. “I know you have your reasoning. However, if Malia loves him, then you need to come clean.

“Joey would not have wanted to keep them apart if they want to be together, and I think you know that. You’ve always been a man of your word”—he steps in front of me and places his hand on my shoulder—“but you are entertaining your delusional wife’s wishes. I know my goddaughter as well as anyone else close to her. Malia thinks your code is worth more than she is to you.”

I shake my head, closing my eyes. I have fought so hard to make sure she understands how much she means to me and how much I love her. I cannot tell her everything, but she will understand in the end.

“She should know—”

Elijah raises his free hand to stop me. “Do the right thing, brother. Tell Malia about Joey and Liam. If they love each other, then let them be together. For Joseph. For Malia. For Liam.”

He pats my back and walks off, leaving me with my thoughts. Suddenly feeling suffocated, I leave the ballroom in favor of fresh air.

Fourteen

Malia

LIONLEADSAKILAANDme toward the grand staircase. Saria stands with her hip popped out, arms crossed, and scowl on her face as she listens to one of the caterers explain what I’m sure is a fuck up.

“Mama,” Lion interrupts, looking from his mother to the woman on the verge of crying. The look he gives the woman is all that is needed for her to dismiss herself.

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