Page 117 of Sovereign

Avery is stone cold. But he was always the meanest son of a bitch out of all of them. Even more of a motherfucker than Clint. I’m surprised he wasn’t picked as the brother to marry and torment Keira until it was time to kill her off.

My stomach knots. The rest of me is numb.

We enter the kitchen. Diane is tied to the chair at the head of the table. There must have been a struggle because she’s gaggedand the terrycloth robe is on the floor, leaving her in just her slip. Westin stands in the open kitchen door, having a cigarette. When he turns, I see a bright red scratch across his jaw.

“Sit,” I say.

Diane’s eyes are wet, tears spilling down her cheeks. She looks to Thomas for reassurance, but he doesn’t meet her pleading gaze. He just kicks a chair out and sinks down. Avery pauses by the table, narrowing his steel gray eyes at me.

“If you’re going to act your little revenge fantasy, go ahead,” he snaps. “I’m not letting you play with us.”

“Sit the fuck down,” I tell him quietly.

He sits.

I jerk my head and Jack ties their hands behind their backs. This isn’t a fair fight, but it’s never been a fair fight between the Garrisons and I.

They weren’t going to have mercy on my redbird.

They were going to kill her, perhaps slit her throat while she slept. The thought of blood on her perfect skin, of her blue eyes open and lifeless, turns my stomach.

I sit down opposite Avery and spread my knees, gun still pointed at him.

“I found your calling card,” I say.

His brow raises. He’s got an angular face with tall features. He’d be handsome if he wasn’t such an evil cunt. It seeps out in his narrowed gaze, in the harsh line of his mouth.

“What card?” Thomas asks.

“Mine,” Jack says.

He flicks his wrist and a card appears between his two fingers. Black with a silver terrier. It flashes as he flips it between his fingers and then it disappears into thin air. He gets a lot of women with that trick.

“Who did you pay Jack to kill?” I ask.

Avery’s face tightens. He darts a cold stare at his brother and Thomas shrinks back. I stand and flip my chair, sinking down and resting my arm across the top. This way I’m focusing on Thomas and he’s squirming.

“Don’t look at your fucking brother,” I say. “Look at my face. Who did you pay Jack to kill?”

He’s chewing on his lip so hard it’s bleeding. Red trickles down his chin.

“Ask him,” Avery snaps, jerking his head up at Jack.

Jack shakes his head. “I have confidentiality agreements. I can’t squeal the way you can, Garrison.”

Avery swings his head back to me and his lips curls. “I always thought you were smart, Sovereign. But after you picked that stupid bitch as your woman, I realized you’re not as smart as you want people to think.”

My jaw twitches. I’ve called Keira a bitch before, but not like that. When I use that word, it means I love her enough to degrade her and she still feels safe in my arms. The way Avery uses that word gets my blood moving.

“Who said anything about my woman?” I ask.

Thomas swallows hard. He’s having trouble staying quiet. I can see the sweat etching down his temple.

“How does it feel having our brother’s fucking leftovers?” Avery snaps.

He just can’t help himself.

“Pretty good,” I say. “Especially because I was the one who put him six feet under.”

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