Page 40 of Taming Darkness

I shake my head at his denial. Although, I shouldn’t be surprised. Not many can accept the truth, and to do so, he would have to face the horrors he’s committed, the relationships he’s severed in service of the lie he’s spent years hanging onto and believing.

"No, this isn’t the truth!” He screams. His aura ripples violently, yet the edges flicker oddly. I have trouble reading that emotion within his aura. I’m still learning them and only know what certain colors mean; as the population is primarily Dark-Fae, they are usually black. Like lightning, certain flickers of color emerge, mostly just tinging the darkness with their aura.

“Ask my mother; she knows the truth. You murdered your wife for a lie and treated her son far worse than trash because she loved you and was willing to sacrifice everything for you. She loved you enough to be turned into a whore to stop them from killing you. To stop Lysander stealing Lycus, everything Karla did she did for her family.”

I stare into his eyes, my own burning with anger and sadness. I can tell he is struggling to reconcile what he was told with what he now knows; his beloved Karla didn’t betray him, she was a victim of circumstance.

He takes another step back, his expression pained. He looks at the ground ashamedly as if it can somehow take away all the wrongs he has done. He finally looks up and meets my gaze.

Horror plays across his face, vivid and visceral. He stares at me, breathing heavily, and opens his mouth to reply. But before he does, he shakes his head and turns on his heel, rushing out of my cell. He locks the door behind him, staring in at me with a tortured look on his face. What a waste of the power I had used.

He straightens again, his face hardening, and suddenly turns around, not toward my cell, but storming off in the direction my mother had left earlier. Clearly, my words got under his skin, because if he thought what I showed him was a lie, he wouldn’t be going to hunt her down. Now he doubts his actions.

Chapter28

~Porter~

That conniving brat has to be lying! I know what Darius showed me. My wife was nothing but a scheming whore. That woman never deserved me, and neither did her bastard child! I’m not the one in the wrong here; I’m the victim! My entire family died because of the mutt she was involved with before me. I threw my entire life away to be with her, only for her to fuck around behind my back! All those visions?

LIES.

I storm down the hall, fury pulsing through my veins until I spot Lydia in the lab, surrounded by vials on every shelf and counter. She inspects one, examining the contents, holding it up to the light as I barge in. She doesn’t even bother to glance up.

I can feel a vein in my forehead pulsing as I confront Lydia. “Did you know about my wife? Did you know Lysander was behind it? That he used her, and that your husband used her?” I snarl, unable to suppress the rage that courses through my entire being. I need her to verify that this is all a lie, so I can focus on more important work.

Lydia chuckles, swishing her little vial around. “Did you believe you were kept on because you're just so highly valued and skilled?” she giggles.

In shock from her words, I blinked at her, shocked by her words. “Pardon?”

She smiles coyly and sets down the vial on the counter in front of her, gesturing vaguely around the laboratory before leaning forward as if to share a secret.

“Oh, Porter. What is it you offer in any of these fields? You've always played the fool; the idiot, she was the smart one. You are a sloppy drunk; worthless, really. Furthermore, you were scheduled to be sacked forever ago. That woman begged and pleaded on your behalf. Xandrious wanted to kill you, but because of Lycus being Lysander’s son, he spared you, knowing Karla wouldn’t hand over Lycus when he came of age.” She shrugs as she holds the vial up, gazing at its contents before setting it down.

“I always thought people exaggerated when they described someone offering 'anything' to protect loved ones. Karla was on her knees instantly, hands clasped, begging me to keep you on. Quite frankly, I think she wasted her time; she would have been better off with you dead.”

“It did infuriate me when she offered herself up to my husband, although sharing her was fun. Bitch is good at eating pussy,” Lydia snickers.

I feel bile rise in my throat and my hands clench. Is everything Aleera showed me true? My stomach turns at the thought. I want to kill Lydia, but she remains unfazed by my presence, not even turning to face me.

“Honestly, Porter, your wife had more cocks than she had holes for; ask half the council. Most took turns on her. She’s the only reason you didn’t get the death sentence when you robbed Xandrious and betrayed him. She's also the only reason Greyson stopped your ass from being put in the incinerator.”

This has to be some sick joke.

“You never questioned where the extra money came from? Really, Porter? What secretary do you know earns what she did?”

“It was her inheritance money. She came from a well-off family,” I tell her.

“Yes, she did… But when Karla left Lysander, that money went to him. He made sure she earned it back, don’t you worry. He put her on her knees if she wanted to feed her son—feed your pathetic ass, since you were only good for gambling every cent you earned.”

I stare at her. The mocking smile on her lips, the way she sets back the dark amber liquid in that vial on the shelf before grabbing another, and turning toward me. These mimic what I’ve seen my friends do when they’re excited to watch a fight. Yet, she is not my friend. She is my boss. She knows about my mate, so why is she saying such things? Is my boss really claiming that what happened to my mate is my fault? That can’t be possible. She must be lying. There’s no way in hell that whore would stoop that low for me; she did it because she liked it. She wanted to trick me into raising her bastard son! Lydia and her daughter are both liars, and I refuse to believe either of them.

“No, you’re lying!” I snarl in warning at her.

She sets her vial down and turns toward me, hands on her hips and a mocking smile on her lips.

“Did you know Lysander was to be the one to take your head? You weren’t going to be merely fired, of course; you were to be executed, and he was the one in charge of that. In fact, if she hadn’t spread her legs for him, you wouldn’t be standing here and sharing my air. From what I’ve heard of that night, she was highly skilled. She impressed him so much that she was passed around like a party favor; everyone got a taste, and you got a promotion from it. You could say Karla sucked and fucked your way to the top,” Lydia snickers.

“Don’t worry, though. She was paid afterward. She did take half the office that night after all,” she adds.

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