Page 11 of Reign By Wrath

He rocked back on his heels, leaning against the armchair. He was quiet for so long I thought he had changed his mind.

“I told you what he did to get into the Rogues,” Alistair said, speaking to the ceiling. “I knew why. He was desperate to claw out from under his father’s thumb, the same as I. He bargained with the only chip he had... then, a kid died.”

I sat up straighter. “What? Who?”

“This was before you were born. Attorney-client privilege didn’t exist within the Starling Group while Everton was selling it all to the highest bidder. There was a case—not even well known at the time. A Royal couple, low on the ladder, did what many of us do when love turns sour. They jumped to hate with quick and alarming speed.

“There was a spousal abuse accusation that turned out to be fake, and child abuse that turned out to be very, very real. Because Everton sold their entire legal strategy to the lying fake, their side shredded an innocent man on the stand and got him sent to prison for ten years. His pleas that it was all lies and the true abuser was his spouse were ignored. Three months after he was sent away, his son was beaten to death.”

“Oh no.” My eyes rimmed with more tears. “That poor boy.”

“It was an unconscionable tragedy. Of course, people weren’t buying what he was selling for noble reasons, but that a Rogue played a part in locking away an innocent man and trapping a child with an abuser? That couldn’t stand, Luna.

“When I took over, I told Everton he either found a new racket or he was out of the Rogues. The thing is, the Rogues aren’t an after-school math club. There’s only one way to leave—in a body bag.”

I shook my head. “I’m guessing Everton didn’t like being threatened.”

“Didn’t like it one bit, but I had to make myself clear. What he was doing had to end. No discussion.”

“Did he stop?”

“No.”

“I knew before you answered,” I said, dropping my chin on my knees. “We wouldn’t be here if everything went well with you two.”

“Everton didn’t believe his childhood friend would kill him, and he was right. I had a moment of weakness,” Alistair confessed. “I punished him instead. I outed him and destroyed the reputation of the Starling Group in the process. Every case they tried was overturned, and countless people were able to demand a retrial. Including the father of that young boy. He got out of jail, leaving an empty cell for Everton.”

“Everton was arrested?”

He nodded. “Arrested, disowned, reviled. He lost everything, and believe me, it did not soften the blow that he didn’t lose his life too. All he saw was that I betrayed him. It sealed his hatred of me.”

“You were trying to do the right thing. You were doing what Everton should’ve done himself. Why would he want to continue after someone used him to destroy an innocent man and kill a child?”

“Everton took the approach that all he did was sell the information. It wasn’t on him what people did with it.”

I scoffed, feeling less and less sympathy for the guy by the second.

“Everton wasn’t on trial for long,” Alistair continued. “He fled in the middle of the trial and lay low among his many undisclosed properties. During that time, he plotted how to take me down.”

“He wanted you dead?”

“He wanted me deadandhe wanted my throne. Everton secretly spread division among the current and former Rogues. Weren’t they chafing under my new rules? Didn’t they hate taking orders from a twentysomething upstart? Didn’t they want a return to the old ways? Join with him, put him on top,kill me, and he’d give them everything they wanted and more.”

Even all these years later, I saw the pain in Alistair’s eyes clear as day. “This set off a wave of assassination attempts that’d make a president quake in their boots. Old and new enemies came after me relentlessly—spurred on by my oldest friend.”

“Wow.” I tried to imagine my old friends from Catholic school hating me so much they sent assassins after me. Alistair was right. It was a frightening thing when love turned to hate. “Were you with Mom while all of this was happening? Did she know the truth about you?”

“Your mother knew everything about me, from the mundane to my deep, darkest secrets. I never lied to her and never will,” he said firmly. “She knew everything and didn’t judge me. All she wanted was to be with me and raise our family together. The only thing I wanted more than leading the Rogues was to give you, your sister, and your mother everything.

“I was stupid to think I could do both. The day my brakes failed and I crashed the car with the three of you inside ended my silly fantasy.”

My lips went numb. “A car crash? But... I don’t remember that.”

“You wouldn’t. We were bringing you home from the fucking hospital,” he forced through gritted teeth. “You were three days old. Winter was only one. I had no idea someone had gotten close enough to your mother to watch and wait until she went into labor. Everton knew I wouldn’t miss your birth, so that’s when he told them to strike.”

Oh yes, my sympathy for the man was nonexistent.

“After that, your mother and I agreed to split up for your safety. She took you girls out of Regalia”—emptiness bled into his eyes—“and I killed my oldest friend.”

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