The last part comes out as a hoarse whisper. Fear that she’ll hate me suffocates me.
“Rowan,” she says softly. “Sweetheart, I know. Your father called me before he went to pick you up. Nothing is your fault. It was an accident.”
She had been away for the weekend. It was the reason I thought I could get away with sneaking out.
My throat closes, making it hard to push out a response. “But you never said anything.”
“I didn’t want you to carry any guilt for something out of your control. I’m sorry you felt like you had to put yourself in that position for so long.”
Her absolving words wash over me. “I love you.”
It’s all I can muster up in my stunned state.
“I love you, too. Thank you for feeling like you could tell me now. You can tell me anything.”
I nod, though she won’t see it.
“Do you want to come home?”
“I—” My throat closes. The thought of leaving Thorne Point and returning to a place I’ve run from for so long, even knowing I had nothing to fear twists my stomach. “No, I’d like to stay here for now. Are you mad?”
“Of course not.” There’s nothing but love in her tone. “We all process grief differently. I won’t push you into something that makes you uncomfortable.”
We have a lot to talk about, but it’s late. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Okay. Get some rest, sweetheart.”
“You too.”
“Goodnight. Teddy says so, too.”
A wet laugh leaves me. “Night.”
I hang up and swipe beneath my eyes. Wren leans against the doorframe. I don’t remember hearing him come in here. Popping off the wall, he closes the distance between us, tugging me into his embrace.
“She knew. The whole time, she knew,” I say.
Wren strokes my hair until I stop trembling. “Come on. Let’s go to bed.”
Wren keeps me to himself for two days before we return to the Nest. His friends blow up both our phones, but we’re too lost in each other to notice. When I walk into the lounge, Colton practically tackles me with his hug.
“Never ever ever again.” His words are muffled into my shirt on the non-bruised side.
“You’re crushing me. I thought you guys thrived on chaos,” I tease.
“Um, yeah. When we’re causing it. When you’re doing shit like that?” He leans away, shaking his head. “Thought I was gonna suffer from a heart attack. I’m too young to go out like that, babe.”
Colton passes me off to Jude, who also hugs me, being mindful of my healing shoulder. “Gave us a real scare, firecracker. You might be crazier than all of us.”
He steps back and, to my surprise, Levi joins the hug fest, locking his arms around me. It’s a good hug, considering he’s so standoffish. I smirk at him and he flicks his gaze away, ruffling his hair.
Wren watches with his hands braced on the back of the couch. He’s my home, which makes each of these guys like my family. I never would have imagined I could find friendship with the most feared guys on campus.
“Sorry for going rogue, guys.”
Wren snorts, prowling closer to wind an arm around my waist from behind. “Suicidal is a step further than rogue.”
“Well, I’m still sorry I made you all worry.” My cheeks heat and I duck my head. I haven’t had this many friends in a long time. “Um, thanks for looking for me.”
“Duh,” Colton says. “Come on, I want to show you what I found. I was able to take apart your brother’s phone. Luckily those idiots didn’t smash it to pieces and just banged it up a little. Probably figured the water damage would take care of it.”
My mouth drops open. “Did you get it to connect?”
“Yeah. Come see.”
Colton clasps my wrist and pulls me to his wall of computer screens. Hope bounces around my insides like a spring loaded ball. I look back to Wren. They all follow, each of us eager to see what information might be salvaged.
“Ethan always kept his stuff digital.” Saying his name makes my throat ache, but I push it out in a hush. “He liked to be mobile. Backed up. He always thought journals could get stolen.”
“Smart cookie.” Colton fiddles with the delicate looking tools connected to the phone’s inner workings. “Let’s see what we’ve got.”
We all hold our breath while he works. It seems to take forever for its home screen to boot using one of Colton’s monitors as a display. Wren’s hand finds mine to keep me from digging my nails into my palm. He soothes his thumb over my knuckles.
“I got it to connect this morning, but I wanted to wait until you were with us to look around,” Colton says.
“Let’s do it.” I put a hand on the back of Colton’s chair. “Try his email first.”
He navigates into the email app. Before he can search through anything, an unsent email draft pops up, like Ethan was in the middle of it before he was taken. My throat goes dry. It’s addressed to me. Sadness pangs sharply. Even in trouble that would lead to his death, he was reaching out to me.
The subject line reads sorry. Then the body is another single word—danger.
Wren guides me to lean against him. I shut my eyes and breathe.
“There’s an attachment,” Jude says.
“Hang on.” Colton hums. “Partial file. I’ll need to work on it to see if it’s corrupted. Let me see if it’ll preview the contents from a backdoor.”
He clicks around, sending the file to a different screen. When he opens the preview window, it shows the beginning. Only a few words are legible before the rest of the text devolves into an array of symbols.
“It’s still gibberish,” Levi says.
“I see that.”
Colton mutters as he types. A few symbols reveal words. Network. Elite. Key.
There isn’t much to go on, but a name jumps out that makes us all freeze.
Astor.
“Well, fuck.” Blowing out a breath, Colton falls back in his chair, holding his head.
Jude leans over as if being closer will change anything. “What is going on?”
“It has to be my uncle,” Levi growls. “Because I don’t know what the hell this is.”
“Whatever it is, they’re one step ahead of us time and again,” Wren says darkly. “I’m sick of it.”
“Keys,” I murmur. They stop bickering to look at me. “It all keeps coming back to keys.”
They return their stares to the screen, each of them going quiet and contemplative. They don’t like not being in control. It threatens the power they’ve built their thrones on. A predator is only a predator as long as it’s the biggest shark in the ocean. Once a killer whale comes along, it’s game over.
I know it’s not Ethan’s fault he got mixed up in this. He was doing what he did best—dig up corruption to find his story.
His murder is connected to something bigger at work in this city.
I entered this dark underground world as my last hope to find my brother. Going back to my life before Wren and the Crowned Crows isn’t an option. I’m part of this now.
Thirty-Eight
Wren
It feels good to be at a fight night. The burns Rowan and I got the night of the fire have mostly healed. I could get in the ring, but it’s Levi’s turn tonight. He needs it after we found Ethan Hannigan’s file with his last name in it. The deranged look in his eyes grew worse in the last week, his demons wrapping their claws around his throat.
The crowd gasps and goads Levi on above the remorseless sounds of his fists colliding with his opponent’s jaw. I catch Jude’s eye across the room on the other side of the ring and he nods.
Neither of us will let Levi kill someone in the ring tonight. We might all have blood-stained hands, but tonight isn’t a fight to the death.
My shrewd gaze moves around the room, cataloguing every face in attendance. If Baron Astor is involved in what we discovered, who else might be?
It could be any of the
elite businessmen, socialites, or politicians filling the warehouse tonight.
The shipyard is only a few blocks from this location. When we sent Penn by to cover Rowan’s arson tracks and check things out in the aftermath, he said it was deserted, the burned shell of the warehouse gutted and already wiped of any traces of the cause for the fire. I doubt things could be so easy. Those that made it out could have taken their grievances to their investors.
This isn’t over, but we’ll be ready.
People in this city can call us whatever they like—a twisted brotherhood, a fearsome gang, Thorne Point’s own heartless silver-spooned mafia. It doesn’t matter what the Crowned Crows are. What’s important is knowing we wield the secrets of this city like merciless swords. No one should forget that ending up on the wrong side of our wrath will result in us wreaking havoc for the enemies we make.
For someone to threaten us knowing that, we’ll make them regret it.
This game of cat and mouse is over. It’s time to remind this city who reigns in the darkness.
Me and my brothers haven’t spent years building our legacy for someone to threaten it without consequence. We won’t fall without a fight.
Slender arms slip around my waist and familiar fingers smooth over the buttons of my vest. Full armor seemed appropriate tonight. I capture her fingers.
“You have your evil thinking face on. I could see it from across the room.”
“It’s not evil, kitten.” I turn to smirk at Rowan. “It’s strategy. There is no good and bad, only those who come out on top of it all because they have no qualms doing what’s necessary.”
She hums, squinting at me in mock skepticism. “Sounds a lot like getting your hands dirty to win.”
“If they’re already dirty, what’s a little more?” My voice dips as I drag my fingers down her spine, smirk stretching into a wolfish grin when she shivers. “Dirty is always better.”
She laughs and I eat up the sound before it dies off. She can smile and still be shattered by grief inside.
The shock of her brother’s death is still fresh. It will take her time to come to terms with it. She’s thrown herself into the question of who has been toying with us as her way to cope with his loss. My girl is a brave fighter at heart and I wouldn’t want any queen but her by my side.
I take her hand and we watch Levi unleash hell on his opponent.
Someone bumps into me, but when I turn to look there’s no one there. Suspicious, I keep searching.
“There’s something sticking out of your pocket,” Rowan says.
“What?” No way would someone have the skill to slip something on me without me noticing. Jude’s shown me all the tricks he uses.
Sure enough, there’s a crisp square envelope in my suit pocket. I slip it out and flip it over. There’s nothing written on it. Before I can open it, something else catches my eye that makes my blood pressure spike.
Like goddamn clockwork, Pippa arrives to kick up a fuss. There’s no fresh-faced academy graduate with her this time. She’s alone.
“She was at the founders gala,” Rowan says.
“So were most of the people here tonight. Like the Crow’s Nest, they come for the escape and to feel like they’ve walked on the dark side.” I narrow my eyes as Pippa stops in front of me. My greeting drips with venom. “Detective Bassett, as always. I’m curious, are you aware of the definition of insanity?”
“Thorne,” Pippa sneers.
“Don’t you get bored of this song and dance? It’s so trite.” I look her cheap suit up and down. “It was beneath you once.”
Ignoring my comment, she turns to the ring, her gaze snagging on Jude first. “What are tonight’s odds?”
“We wouldn’t touch your money if it promised to save us from poverty.”
Rowan covers a laugh, sliding her hand into mine and squeezing. The memory of the first night we met hits me. I told her I didn’t need her money either.
“Doesn’t matter,” Pippa says. “I just wanted to know what this will cost you.”
“Ah, yes. I do enjoy the part where I call Warner. You must enjoy being choked every time he yanks your leash back.”
Pippa’s self-assured smirk puts me on edge. Usually she’s clawing at any feeble chance of beating us. She’s never won.
“I’m going to remember the look on your face for a long time,” she says conversationally while unclipping a radio from her belt. “Initiate.”
My brows flatten as a horde of officers pour through the doors, weaving between the crowds. A pair of them head for us. I swing my scowl on Pippa. Her eyes gleam with confidence in her success tonight.
“You will regret this,” I tell her. “Before, we granted you leniency because you were one of us. Tonight, you’ve killed that mercy.”
“Big words for a criminal,” Pippa says.
Rowan shoots me a terror-stricken look, dragging me down to whisper in my ear. “Are they going to arrest me for arson?”
“No,” I say vehemently. “I’ll never let anything happen to you.”
Her fear is unfounded when the officers breeze by us to drag Levi from the ring. Pippa pushes me aside to oversee. Colt appears at my side.
“The fuck is going on?”
“Pippa. No matter what happens, keep her safe,” I order.
“Got it.”
Rowan grabs at me, the people around us jostling as they move to watch. I clamp a hand on the back of her neck and kiss her hard and quick.
“Trust me. We’ll be fine.”
“I do,” she breathes.
I stalk after the pain in my ass miniature detective, Colt and Rowan following in my wake. This vendetta of hers is getting old. We don’t have time to play around with her and the law when we have bigger problems looming.
Unlike other times when Pippa has attempted to raid our fight nights, this time the presence of her and her team of uniformed officers causes chaos to erupt. Some press close to watch, but when the officers turn their attention on them, they move as one in retreat. The patrons who came to see violence and bloodshed scramble to hide their faces and leave. If they’re caught and implicated, it could spell their ruin.
They shove and bump into me as I fight against the mass exodus to get to the ring. I step in front of Rowan, reaching back to keep her from being trampled. Colt trips a few people until we’re given a wide berth to cross the room.
I freeze when Sergeant Warner steps in our path just before we reach the ring. That’s not how this plays out. He’s never come here. When Pippa tests the limits she’s allowed, we call him to rein her back in.
“Why are you here?” Colton barks.
His grim expression gives nothing away. “Cooperate.”
With that single cryptic word, he turns his back on us to stand with Pippa. Colt and I exchange a look.
Sweat drips down Levi’s tattooed body, making the Crow tattoo glisten under the lights. He bares his teeth, more wild than stable at the moment. They should have let him finish his fight.
Pippa motions to one of her officers. It takes two of them to wrestle his hands behind his back and slap handcuffs on him.
Jude grabs her arm. “What the hell are you doing?”
She ignores him.
“Levi Astor, you are under arrest,” Pippa announces above the clamor, eyes flashing with triumph and hatred for the four of us.
This can’t be fucking happening.
Levi clenches his jaw, remaining silent.
“You don’t have shit, Pip,” Jude growls in her face, wrenching her arm. “You’re grasping at straws if you think this will stick.”
“Step back, or I’ll arrest you, too. Assaulting an officer is a felony. They’ll lock you back up for it. That would break your grandmother’s heart, wouldn’t it?”
Seething, Jude releases her with a vicious snarl.
I turn a glare on Warner. He’s cuffing the other fighter and reading him his rights. The deal we’ve had with him for years is clearly over.
Jude, Colton, Levi, and Rowan look to me.
Fuck.
The thick card in my hand crinkles and I drop my furious gaze to it. I freeze, going cold all over. No…
Fury rolls off me in waves as I tear into the envelope and take out the black card. An address with a date and time are printed in stark white on the back. On the other side…gold crossed keys. My eyes fly up to meet Rowan’s.
There’s only one other thing printed on the card.
Clavis ad regnum.
This is only the beginning.
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