Chapter 44: In the power game

Noah’s POV

My brother-in-law, the dogs, and me...all in one room.

A soft jazz song is playing in the background but the unsettling tension between Damien and I is strong.

I shouldn’t have come here in the first place.

"What do you say, hmm? Let’s have a good old family time" he jerks his thumb towards the bed.

I stare at the blank screen once more as unease spreads through me like an ice cold sensation.

This is completely insane, I already know every member of this family is messed up in one way or the other, but nothing about this feels right.

Why is he watching Zane through the screen like a freak?

"Why do you have a video of Zane?" I try asking again and he sighs.

"I didn’t peg you for someone who’d like to be forced" he starts to talk and I fold my arms across my chest, challenging him with a weak glare.

"It’s not a video, it’s a live cam. Now, little gold, should I grab you by the neck and make you sit your spoilt ass down or what?" Damien asks with a growl.

A live cam?

That means he’s actively monitoring Zane.

I don’t know how I feel about Damien, but I really don’t want to raise a reaction out of him.

Elias’s isn’t here, Siren isn’t here, and acting in a way that would upset Damien shouldn’t be on my list if I want to save Zane or anyone. So, I return to the bed and sit with my hands on my thighs.

My good day is already down the drain.

All the rolling around in the field, the giggling, the happy hops...everything is gone.

Damien spins the chair so that we’re face to face and he’s beaming at me.

He looks exactly like his insane father. Something tells me the resemblance doesn’t just stop here.

"Information for information, okay? You’ll tell me about the apple in my basement and I’ll tell you about my brother" he says and I frown.

Apple?

Zane is the apple.

"I don’t care to know about your brother" I say and Damien leans forward, resting his elbows on his thighs as he smiles at me.

"You don’t want to outsmart Elias and make him let you go?" Damien asks.

The question is so enticing that I can’t deny that my ears are now perked up at the possibility of losing that man.

"In?" Damien asks and I grip the fabric of my trousers tightly.

"In" I agree in a defeated tone.

"Good choice. You go first" Damien says.

"Why am I here in this place?" I blurt the question that has been on my mind from the first day, and Damien’s grin tell me that I made a big mistake.

"You’re here because we took you" the alpha says.

"No, that’s not my question. I mean why did you people choose to..."

"What is Zane’s full name?" he shoots at me and I stare at him with disbelief.

This alpha didn’t hold his end of the deal!

"You didn’t answer my question" I say through clenched teeth.

"Don’t be greedy, Noah. You used your first turn up" Damien laughs.

I want to get up from this bed and give him a punch, but this can only end up in different unpleasant ways, and one of them is being bitten by his dogs.

"You’re so full of shit" I hiss at him, mentally sending a silent prayer of apology to the moon goddess for my crude words.

"Give me my answer, Noah" the alpha says, he’s still laughing, but his eyes are no longer staring at me with the playful mockery.

"You..." I start and he breathes in sharply through his nose.

"I have the upper hand here, little Gold. I answered your question and you are the problem here, maybe you should have asked a smarter question" the alpha says, his playful tone drops with each word he says.

I clamp my lips shut for a few seconds before giving in.

It’s not like I have a choice anyways.

"Zane Goldsmith" I answer softly and satisfaction floods Damien’s face.

The alpha leans back in his chair and tests the name on his tongue before looking at me again.

"Go ahead and ask your question" he says.

"Why did your family attack Winslow?" I ask in a broken voice, there’s so much emotion swelling in me when I say that name ’Winslow’.

"Your father has a habit of taking a jab at my mother. We don’t like it, so we visited your beloved Winslow; Siren is the center of our universe" Damien says and my shoulders drop.

"My father is a good man, he’ll never attack someone unless they’ve done something" I defend the man that raised me.

"You’re permitted to act clueless, but only for so long, Noah. I won’t hesitate to make you join your city’s dead bodies if you keep acting this way" Damien spins the seat around.

With his back turned, my eyes bounce around the room.

"Why is his name Goldsmith and not what his name used to be before adoption?" Damien asks.

"Why are you so interested in him, Damien, if you hurt Zane..."

"Answer" he sighs and turns around to look at me, "the fucking question, Noah" he says and my frown deepens.

"He didn’t want to be associated with where he was coming from. He’s my brother and my friend, so I gave him my name, happy?" I ask and he nods once but his jaw ticks from the tension of how hard he’s clenching.

"I’m very satisfied. It’s your turn, your highness" he says.

"Why did Elias pick me? I know you only wanted to humiliate me that day, but why did Elias choose me and marry me?" I ask.

"I would have killed you before we left, just so you know. But Elias met a kid years ago here in Gotteigen, and he thinks you’re the kid" Damien says.

Me in Gotteigen?

So that’s why he keeps wanting me to remember him?

But how can I remember something I never experienced?

"I’ve never been to Gotteigen" I frown as I search my memory and the expression on Damien’s face flickers subtly, but he replaces it with a frozen smile.

"Don’t tell Eli that, or else he’ll kill you faster than a clown can joggle" he says and the door opens to reveal my husband.

Why does he always show up like this?

"Don’t tell Eli what?" Elias asks, head tilted and eyes on me like he’s daring me to lie.