Page 24 of Reign By Wrath

Everleigh wasn’t supposed to be arrested. I was very clear on this ending one way—with her dead and disgraced. The disgrace part started with openly revealing she was a murderer and psychopath. Even so, it was highly disturbing having a police captain blow off serious crimes.

It wasn’t that she’d eventually take the bribe to look the other way, like she did when William Burkhardt paid her to drive her son home instead of the police station. It was how obvious it was she wouldn’t even get that far. She wasn’t going to investigate. She wouldn’t talk to Everleigh.

Captain Capaldi didn’t believe a word that came out of my mouth.

Plan B.

Hopping in one of my stepdad’s cars, I took off.

The night before, Alistair, Mom, Jack, and I had that promised talk. It all came out. My parents’ past. Their decision to split to keep us safe. Jack and Martha’s true arrangement. How sorry they were for lying to me my whole life.

It was a lot to take in, and I had four days to do it. Truthfully, I may never fully come to terms with everything that happened. It’d always be a wound in my heart knowing that if they’d been honest sooner, Winter might still be here.

I drove across town, lost in my thoughts. What did Winter think when she found all this out the hard way? Did she see a long, terrifying life where our father’s enemies used and abused her to get to him? Was that the life facing me now?

Alistair agreed that staying out of my life to protect me didn’t work, so there was no reason to keep doing it. He would stay as long as I wanted him to. And I did want him to.

Everleigh had taken enough from me. I wouldn’t let her take away the chance to get to know him and answer the questions that have been dragging down my heart my whole life. I wasn’t the dirty little secret of a married man. Our father loved us. He wanted us. Everleigh’s hate would not get in the way.

I arrived at the restaurant, parked the car, and climbed out. I didn’t have a network of T.O.D.ers to do my bidding, but I did have the Instagram-loving Katie and her minute-by-minute updates. She was currently at Toussaint’s, “finding her peace at the bottom of their endless grapefruit mimosas.”

I found her exactly where social media said she was, sharing a table with Dean, Piper, and the person in her background shot that brought me there.

“Hello, Everleigh.”

She froze with her saltshaker hovering over her plate. I rounded the table to see her—

I smirked.

—jaw-dropped, wide-eyed panic.

“Surprise, bitch. I’m not dead. You had your puppet confess to your crime too soon.”

“Wha— I— You—”

I said a while ago that seeing Gabriella tackled and arrested was better than sex. I was wrong. Looking at the woman who stood over me laughing while she shrugged off driving my sister to suicide—gaping and bug-eyed like a dead fish... I nearly came on the spot.

“Shocked to see me? You would be after youtied me up, set fire to the Gallery, and left me to burn alive,” I half shouted through the restaurant, snapping all eyes to me. “All this after you bragged about bribing Wesley, Levi, Giovanni, Ashton, and Owen to torture my sister and then killed Giovanni and Wesley before they could give you up.”

Everleigh tripped over her chair, scrambling up.

“Luna?” Katie said. “What are you talking about?”

“Nothing! She’s spouting bullshit, as always.” Everleigh rushed me. She stuck her mouth to my ear. “You keep your fucking mouth shut, or I’ll—”

“Keep my mouth shut, or you’ll what?” I was practically screaming. I had the attention of the entire restaurant. “Try to kill me? Again. I’m sure you’re going to do that anyway, which is why I told Captain Capaldi everything. Enjoy those oysters, Starling. The food in prison isn’t made by a five-star chef.”

“What’s going on?” Katie pushed back her seat. “Are you saying Everleigh tried to kill you?”

“You’ll hear the echo of her maniacal laugh in the burned-out remains of the Gallery.”

“That’s a lie! I never touched her,” Everleigh cried, whipping around. “First, Saylor. Now me. She won’t stop until she’s destroyed all the Royals—”

“Uhh, it wasn’t me who killed Giovanni and Wesley. If anyone is destroying Royals, it’s—”

“Enough! Get out of here, Sinclair. We’re done being harassed by you. I’m taking out a restraining order. If you come near me again—”

“Your plan failed,” I said under my breath, just for her. “My father knows you tried to set a trap for him, and he won’t be springing it. How’s it feel to know you failed your deadbeat, child-killing daddy?”

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