Chapter 221: Dead Man Walking [1]

I chugged the whiskey before leaning back in my seat, my eyes fixed on the chandelier above.

Pretty.

I pulled an arm over my face, and the more I looked at the chandelier, the more I saw something way more beautiful... a pair of stunning gray eyes like the moon and the darkness of the night had a baby.

So fucking pretty.

What I’d give to see those eyes again, that burning gaze tearing through my skull, which caused the heat to rise in my lungs. The feeling of being alive... what I’d give to feel alive again.

I heard the door, but I didn’t move until I heard a stack of paper being dropped on my desk.

I leaned forward, eyeing the picture in the newspaper... a warehouse engulfed in flames, the headline above it demanding attention.

"Do you have any idea what you just did?" Elliot’s voice came off sharp. "The kind of mess we’re now stuck in?"

I took my sweet time lifting my eyes off the colorful paper. "I’m aware."

"So you were sane of mind when you gave the order."

"What else did you expect?"

"That you were drunk, and this..." He pointed down at the paper. "Was just a clouded decision that we could rectify."

I pushed myself to my feet abruptly, not a word said for over three seconds. Then I smiled.

"As you can see, I made that decision with a sound mind. No screws loose up here." I tapped the side of my head.

"You really wanna go to war with Ares King of people? You and I know that we always use restraint because there are some people we can’t piss off, and the Devil of Midnight is one of them!"

"Julius..." I began, pouring whiskey into the tumbler until it was filled to the brim. "His last name is King. Which means he had some connection to Ares King. Am I making sense yet, or do you still prefer to say I’m insane? In fact, I’ve never been more sane in my entire life."

I sipped, keeping my eyes on him. "I got a name, and I acted accordingly."

"Acted accordingly? You think I don’t wanna get to the bottom of this as you do? I do. But there are ways we can go about this. You’re spiraling, acting without any definite plan, and if you’re not careful... you’re gonna bring us down with you."

I set the tumbler down on the table with far too much force, causing the whiskey to spill across the paper

"Then so be it."

Disbelief crossed his gaze.

"After all, I did a fucking good job keeping my brothers alive. I think it’s time we all ride up to hell, huh?"

Elliot’s eyes were hard, but for a moment I saw... pity. He should fucking keep up that stony expression, or else I was gonna knock any other emotions on his face with my fist.

"You’re becoming destructive," he said the words as though it was supposed to make me feel something.

But I don’t feel shit.

"Dante found something... scattered evidence in front of that building that night..." I paused as my nightmares sprang to life.

The sharp screeching tires on the asphalt, and then the car tumbling and smashing against the road like a piece of sandwich.

I inhaled once, just enough to get back to speaking.

"There was a briefcase, and inside it were all confidential materials that could be used to destroy me... to destroy everything I have worked so fucking hard to build. Tell me, who could’ve provided the Syndicate with something like that?"

There wasn’t much of the Syndicate anymore. I made sure I wiped them out of existence, but it still didn’t erase the impact they made on the Undercity.

"You’re talking about the Benefactor," he clarified. "I heard from Dante."

"Ah yes... the Benefactor." I chuckled lifelessly as I finished the drink. "He’s closer than we think, don’t you agree?"

Elliot swallowed hard. "I’ve been doing some digging, and the moment I find—"

"Are you the Benefactor, little brother?" I caught him off guard.

Slowly, I rounded the table to him, burying my hands in my pockets as I licked my lips. "What do you have to say about that? You’re the one person who has watched me as I grew the company. The very person who knows the ins and outs..."

"You think I’m the Benefactor?"

"Did I stutter?"

"You suspect me?" His tone held extreme disbelief.

"You never liked the way I run the company. Those subtle disagreements when I decide on my company."

His jaw tightened, and I grinned.

"There it is..."

"You’re insane!" He gripped my collar, eyes seething with rage just like that day in the hospital, but this time, he looked like he was gonna strangle the life out of me without so much as batting an eye.

"If I were the Benefactor... Do you think I’d ever hurt Anastasia?"

His words created a foul, twisted sensation inside me, my smile dropping.

"Do you think I’d ever put her in harm’s way?"

His grip shook from the rattling fury.

"You’re selfish..." He stated. "So fucking selfish that you were willing to drag her back into your world when she was finally freed from it. She could have stayed without her memories, stayed hating you—us as the villains. You knew what she went through with her sister, what she had to endure, what your relationship was like with our enemies circling you like predators. You could have let her live... but that wasn’t enough for you, was it?"

"And you?" I threw the question. "Was it enough for you?"

I must’ve struck a nerve because he instantly freed me. He didn’t meet my eyes anymore, choosing something else in the study as a preferable point of attention.

"It never mattered what I wanted. I’ve stood by you like any honorable brother would have, even when..." He clenched his teeth.

"Go on..." I demanded. "Say it."

"It doesn’t matter, Zade."

"SAY IT!"

"I love her!"