Page 65 of Sweet Lies

“We deserved to know our sister was alive,” he bites out, and I sense his temper turning deadly.

“Yes and no,” I answer, shoving open the door to allow the other men to get in the car.

Elijah glares at me but says nothing. I know he’ll get his statement in soon enough. He was never one to take anything lying down. I don’t regret keeping her secret though. It was her choice if she wanted to go back to that life, and she sealed her fate the moment she pulled a gun on her brother. I, however, wish they’d left me out of it, and that she would stop haunting my dreams.

The drive to the compound is only forty-five minutes with no issues, though I didn’t think any of the families would try anything this early. This wedding is allegedly being used to get everything in order and everyone on good terms, but that’s bullshit. Everyone will be trying to root out each other’s weakness. Too bad for them, Elijah has already seen theirs. The only weakness he has now is his family, and none of them are helpless—Claire is as much a weapon as I am, and they don’t know how capable Rebecca has become. They’ll try to use her first. That’s what I would do, anyway. Elijah will be banking on that and using it to his advantage. For years, he’s wanted to regain what was taken from him, so he’ll have left nothing to chance. This will be the new order. The others will have to fall in line or face their death.

The compound is set on acres of land. Each family has its own property. It was previously used as a vacation spot when all the families got along—before greed got in the way—and I’d spent my fair share of time here growing up.

“What’s the plan, Kev—Elijah?” Finn asks.

Elijah’s land is at the far end of the large lot. Each house grew more massive as we passed. Most of the homes had added extensions to keep up with the others—each seemed to want to one-up the other.

Elijah’s home is just as I remembered it and was still maintained, as the others had all used it at one point or another over the last few years.

As the car stops, Elijah finally answers Finn’s question: “Stay alive.” Then he steps out of the car, leaving a grinning Finn.

Finn looks at me and laughs. “That’s always the plan.”

Everyone is waiting in the entranceway for Elijah to speak. Rebecca’s eyes widen as she glances around, while Claire leans against the wall as if this isn’t fazing her.

Elijah stops in the center of the group and speaks with confidence. “Tonight we’ll stay here to get prepared for tomorrow, when we’ll meet the others for dinner. Saturday is the wedding. Tomorrow we’ll drink and be merry. Don’t drink to excess though; we need to have our eyes and ears primed and ready for anything. The more they think we’ve let our guard down, the better. Remember: loose lips sink ships. We’ve come this far. Let this solidify our return to power. Claire and Finn, I want to see you in my office for a moment. The rest of you, get ready for the evening.”

Rebecca rolls her eyes. Elijah catches the movement and snaps, “Do you have something to add, dear sister?”

She shakes her head and mockingly responds, “Not a thing, brother dear. It’s just like old times.”

To his credit, he says nothing, but I catch his nails digging into his hands. Yes, just like old times. I laugh a little under my breath before moving toward the stairs. Let this family drama play out without me.

I choose the room I used to stay in as a child. It hasn’t changed, except the old wallpaper is now peeling at the corners.

Throwing my bag on the bed, I pass Rebecca’s room, trying to figure out how the hell I agreed to this craziness. The Rossi family will be the death of me.

The door opening unexpectedly has me grabbing my gun from my bag.

“You going to shoot me?” Rebecca asks, amused, her hands held up. She’s grinning.

“Do you want me to?” I ask, not moving the gun to my side.

“Maybe. It would get me out of family bonding time. I came to talk while they plan whatever the hell they’re planning.”

“Are you mad because you’re being left out? Some things don’t change,” I say to annoy her.

It works: she glares at me.

Stepping back, I place the gun in the bedside drawer.

“I couldn’t care less. I don’t see the point of me being here. If Elijah wants to punish me, I’m disappointed by his choice.” Her fingers touch where the wallpaper has come loose, playing with the edges.

“Were you hoping he would hang you from a public tree?”

“It would be more like him,”she mutters, appearing lost for a moment.

“Have you considered that maybe they both care about you and really do want to be a family again?” I ask, lying on the king-size bed and placing my hands behind my head.

“No, because it’s not the truth. I’m sure the reason I’m here is so the others can’t use me against them.”

I nod because her words do ring true. “Why can’t there be more to the story though, Bec? Maybe it wouldn’t be the worst thing to have it all mended; let the truth come out.”

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