Page 100 of Fate of a Faux

She fucking came back for me when I didn’t deserve it.

Standing tall, I vow to forever deserve her from this moment.

If my sister gets in her way, I’ll clear it, painting the path with the blood of our own.I shake my head. “Never mind. Go on.”

She continues walking beside the girl she called Haide, and I hang back a little to get my brothers in earshot.

“Who’s that girl?” Legend asks, his eyes focused on her. “And why the fuck is it like her and London have known each other for a long time?”

“Maybe they have...” Sinner adds, as we pass empty rooms and get closer to the stairs that lead us up to the main room. “There’s a lot that has been taken from her. Let her have a fucking friend.”

“Do we really want to let the little psycho befriend a bigger one?” he complains again.

Sin looks his way. “How do you know she’s crazy?”

Legend scoffs like it’s a stupid question and Sinner smirks.

I roll my eyes when they start bickering about dumb shit, taking the steps two at a time until we’re in the familiar meeting room. It feels the same, only the chair where my father usually sat is empty.

Anger pulses through me once again and I have to fight with everything inside of me not to lose control. Not to lose controlagain.

“Is it safe to talk here?” Haide asks, looking around the room. The rectangle table takes up the majority of the space with the golden chandelier hanging delicately above. The walls are made of glass, giving a direct view of Rathe down below as we circle in orbit, constantly, always watching what is happening below.

“Yes. It’s the only area of Rathe that is cut off from everyone. It’s where we hold our meetings with the Ministry.”

“Ahhh...” Haide clucks her tongue above her mouth, lowering herself onto the gold chair at the head of the table, kicking her boots up to rest on top. Her eyes bounce over each of us, leaving out London. “This glorious Ministry.”

"London.” She gets all our attention with that, but she keeps her gaze locked on mine. The girl is brazen, I’ll give her that, meeting the eye of the future King so openly. And then the brat cocks her head to the side, offering the perfect angle to her sharp jaw. She resembles Tomb Raider, what with her tanned skin, sharp features, and bright green eyes. There’s something else though. She’s a rebel, through and through. Where the fuck did London find this girl?

“To be fair.” London laughs, her fingers dancing across the wall as she heads toward the window. She looks over her shoulder, smirking at Haide. “You said he didn’t want to know and two didn’t care.”

Haide narrows her eyes and my insides riot, wanting to jump up and tear them from their sockets, but London’s laughter and the following smile Haide gives has my muscles relaxing. She’s not a threat, I remind myself.

If she were, London would have killedher the minute she no longer needed her help.

“So … my people were right.” She crosses her arms. “You are their Queen.”

“Your people?” Legend glares.

Slowly, the girl drags her gaze to Legend, and it’s as though the whole room falls silent. She gives no emotion and no answer to his question.

Sinner smiles from one to the next and Creed sighs, shaking his head.“Here we go.”

“We need a plan.” Legend pivots, leaning against the window, watching as the room continues to float directly over the colosseum. “Everyone is down there, like they’re waiting for something.”

“Oh, they are!” London follows Legend. “Your death. No doubt the council was going to make a show of it, and they wanted the whole of Rathe to witness just howbadthey are.” My fingers itch to be near her and any time she puts distance between us only makes me want to tear her apart just so I can always keep part of her with me.

A smirk touches my mouth as my eyes darken on her. She looks up at me, and if I could reach out and touch the tension between us, it’d leave burns that challenge even hellfire.

“Well, since they think that you’re all still locked up and bleeding out below, why don’t we portal on down there and kill them first?” Haide shrugs, checking her long black nails. “I’ve always wanted to peel back the many layers Magdalena has suggested she had through the years. You know... for shits and gigs.”

My eyes narrow on London’s new psycho little friend, but before I can say anything, Legend must kick her under the table when he drops into the chair because her body jerks forward and her mossy eyes turn sharp on him. I have no doubt Lege can handle himself, but she even makes me question myself.

“What psych ward did our little London break you out of?” He stares her down.

Haide challenges his stare, as the corner of her mouth curves upward in a sinister smirk. “Well wouldn’t youloveto know.”

“You guys know that remix Machine Gun Kelly and Travis Barker did... what was it called?” London pretends to think to herself, looking up at the ceiling. I push away from the wall I’m leaning against, losing the fight of being separate from her for this long. The closer she gets, the harder my heart thrashes in my chest and all I want to do is grab her by her hair and drag her the fuck out of here. Before I can stop myself, my hand is on her throat and I’m shoving her against the glass, my teeth sharpening at the ends as I feel her pulse thud against the palm of my hand. She bats her lashes up at me. “A girl like you.”

---