Tarnished Crown (Gravestone Elite #2)

by Caitlyn Dare

  “If I help them, I get my freedom and Phillip’s blessing to be with Sasha. Well, if they uphold their end of the deal. I don't trust a single word that comes out of their mouths, to be honest."

  I contemplate telling Channing what I learned from James, but something stops me. Until I know exactly who all the moving pieces are, I don’t want to reveal my hand too soon.

  "You don’t even trust your Uncle Harrison?" I ask.

  "Especially him. He's proved time and time again that he's an untrustworthy cunt. Just look at what he's done to Alex and Hadley."

  Fuck, Hadley.

  "What's wrong?" Channing asks, clearly seeing my expression change.

  "Hadley still doesn't know about Alex. I told her that she needs to come back because there are things she needs to deal with, but she refused."

  "Let's get through this first, and then maybe we can all go to Sterling Bay to see her. She deserves to know that she's got a brother."

  I nod at him, happy that he's not like the others and actually cares about people—family.

  "You really should get dressed. Today is not the day to get on Cade's wrong side."

  "I disagree. Today is the perfect day to get under his skin."

  "So he can take it out on Mia later?"

  My blood turns to ice. "Fuck." I'm up before I've even realized I've moved.

  "Exactly. I'll see you downstairs. I promise you, Bex. I won't let anything happen to her."

  His eyes hold mine for a beat, and although I see honesty shining in them, I also see trepidation. He knows as well as I do that he can't really promise that. Cade doesn't follow the rules, which means we have no chance of being one step ahead of him.

  "Thank you," I mouth before he slips back out of my room, leaving me to dress in the suit that's hanging from my closet. Blowing out a long, steeling breath, I drop my sweats and get this funeral underway.

  By the time I get to the bottom of the staircase a little over thirty minutes later, all the guys are already there—well, everyone minus Cade. I'm sure he just wants to make some kind of grand entrance.

  Channing nods at me before Alex smiles sadly. Not wanting to stand with Brandon and Tim, I come to a stop beside Sasha, who immediately threads her arm through mine and gives my forearm a squeeze in support.

  A loud crash from above is the first sign that Cade is about to appear. When he emerges from the hallway, I find he's dressed the same as the rest of us, but instead of looking a little pensive, he's got a shit-eating grin on his face.

  My fists clench as he makes his way to us.

  "Calm down," Sasha hisses at me. "This is only the beginning."

  Sucking in a breath through my teeth, I try to follow her orders, but it's really fucking hard when the motherfucker jumps the last few steps, his eyes never leaving mine as he approaches.

  "All set for the fun and games, Easton?"

  My lips press into a thin line as he taunts me. The temptation to take a swing and ensure he turns up to this thing with a broken nose is strong, but I know that he'd stop me attending, and despite knowing how fucking painful it's going to be, I need to be there for Mia. She's going to need to know that I'm there and that I meant what I said to her last night.

  She's mine.

  Fucking mine.

  I force a smile on my lips, and, finally, he looks away.

  "Great. Let's do this. I've got a fucking wild night ahead of me," he announces, pushing past me and toward the front door.

  "Hell yeah. You remember Tim and Fawn's Coglio? They didn't come up for air for over twenty-four hours."

  My eyes shoot to Fawn, whose face burns bright red before she attempts to hide behind Tim.

  "It's the drugs, man. They're the fucking shit," Tim explains, pulling Fawn from behind him and kissing the top of her head. "Best night of my life."

  I stare at the two of them for a beat, trying to work them out. At times, like now, they look like a normal college couple who are head over heels in love. But then there are other times when it's like there's a dark cloud hovering over both of them, and it seems like they've been forced together much like Cade and Mia. I know Channing says Fawn's got some mental health issues, so I can only assume it's that which puts a strain on their relationship, but still, I can't help wanting to know the whole story.

  There are two black SUVs waiting outside the house when we emerge, Sasha, Fawn, and a reluctant-looking Ashton climb into the second while the six of us move toward the first.

  The journey is long and painful with Cade looking smug as fuck and my stomach churning as if I'm going to empty the contents of it on the car floor at any moment.

  But I'm sure it's nothing compared to how Mia's feeling right now.

  I don’t know what's worse: being a part of this and forced to endure what's coming her way tonight, or watching from the sidelines, not really understanding everything that's about to happen.

  "Right, this is it, gentleman," Cade announces as we pull up outside of Gravestone Hall. "Time for me to make an honest woman of my prosapia.” His eyes flick to mine, glowering for a second. “Hell knows she's not experienced a real man yet."

  My teeth grind, but he's out of the car before I can figure out a good enough comeback.

  "Ignore him. He's trying to push your buttons. Do not let him win," Channing warns.

  Much like the last time we were here, we're directed to a bar where we have a drink with Quinctus before one of the waitstaff comes to tell us that it's time to go through.

  Every guest stands as we enter the ballroom. I glance around at the faces, most of which I don't recognize. I don't know why I bother; I already know she's not here yet. We take our seats, as do the rest of the room. The men around me chat, but I don't hear a word of it, my eyes firmly locked on the doors, wanting to be the first one to see her.

  The second a voice rings out, asking us all to rise, my heart jumps into my throat.

  This is happening.

  It’s really fucking happening.

  My breath catches the second I see her. She looks like a fucking angel in her ivory dress. My heart races and my palms sweat as I imagine how I might feel if it were me she was here for right now. Like the luckiest motherfucker in the world.

  But she's not here for me.

  She's here for him.

  My eyes find Cade as he damn near molests her with his stare alone. My stomach turns once more, thinking about him touching her later, making her his. The room starts to spin around me, making me wish I took something before we left to take the edge off a little.

  Thankfully, we're encouraged to sit again, and I fall down to my chair as if my legs can no longer hold me up.

  The meal passes at a snail's pace, each plate of food more pretentious than the last—not that I eat any of it. My appetite vanished a long time ago. I barely look up, too scared of what I might be able to read on Mia's face, but I do know that she's eaten about as little as me.

  Phillip brings the meal part of the ceremony to a close and invites Q and the Electi to the Sanctuary for the ceremony. The second he says that word, my eyes shoot to Mia. She looks like a rabbit caught in headlights. My scared little mouse.

  Her eyes narrow as we stare at each other, a final silent goodbye passing between us that damn near rips my heart right out of my chest. She stands beside Cade and allows him to take her hand and lead her from the room. Q and her father follow before the rest of us.

  The hallways are dark and oppressing, much like every building that has something to do with Q, and with each step I take it feels like it's another closer to death, because I already know that everything about my life is going to be different when we emerge from this building.

  There are two rows of seats that we all take as Cade and Mia stand at the front before Phillip Cargill, as if he's about to perform their wedding ceremony.

  My heart thunders as I watch them. Cade stares at Mia as if he's about to eat her alive, while Mia looks like she's about to bolt for the door at any mome
nt.

  Look at me, I silently beg in the hope that I can reassure her.

  I'm sure it's luck, but I like to think our connection is so strong that she can actually hear me, because after a beat, her head turns, and she immediately finds my eyes in her small congregation.

  "I love you," I mouth, not giving two shits about who might be watching me.

  She nods ever so slightly, her eyes telling me everything she can't right now, before Phillip begins the service.

  I don't hear a word of it as I keep my eyes on Mia, praying that she can take the strength from me that she needs.

  I gasp when Phillip turns and takes hold of a similar branding iron that he used for my initiation brand. Except this one is different. The circular brand splits into two irons.

  A pair.

  One for Mia.

  One for Cade.

  Fuck, I think I’m going to puke. The knowledge that he's about to brand her beautiful, flawless skin has my fingers curling around the chair beneath me to keep me in place. But unlike when he did it to me, a woman appears from the shadows and rubs some kind of ointment onto her skin, right over her heart, before Phillip raises the iron and presses it against it.

  Mia flinches, but that's the only reaction she shows as it scars her for life. Internally, I scream in pain for her, knowing that her fate has just been sealed.

  That's it.

  It’s done.

  She's his.

  30

  Mia

  Applause rings out around us as Cade slides his hand to the small of my back and presents me to the Electi and Quinctus elders.

  The fresh brand over my heart is nothing more than a faint sting. But I know its effects will live on long after tonight.

  “And now for the binding,” Phillip Cargill says, coming around to us. He lays my hand on top of Cade’s and wraps them together with a length of fine silk emblazoned with the Quinctus crest.

  “Tonight marks the start of your new life together. A toast to new beginnings.” He hands us each a champagne flute. I hesitate, and Cade smirks.

  “Trust me, you’ll want to drink it.” There’s a threat laced in his words that shoots fear down my spine.

  I pretend to take a sip and swallow. I’ll probably regret it later, when I’m lucid for everything Cade has planned, but I want to be of clear mind.

  I want to remember every single thing that happens.

  “To Cade and Mia. Ubi concordia, ibi victoria.”

  The small crowd repeats Phillip’s words, and I fight the urge to laugh bitterly at their twisted words. Where there is unity, there is victory. What the hell is wrong with them?

  I catch Bexley’s eye, and the look of devastation is like a knife to my heart. But we both knew it might come to this.

  “The car is waiting,” Phillip confirms, unbinding our hands as if it’s the most normal thing to send a young, innocent girl off with a monster.

  Cade shakes hands with each member of Quinctus, a smug expression plastered on his face. My father approaches me and pulls me into a hug. “I’m sorry,” he whispers, and I frown. “I had hoped… just know that I never wanted this for you, Mia. But this place… these people…”

  “Mia, it is time,” Phillip says, and my father releases me and glances away, as if he can’t bear to watch me leave with Cade.

  I want to demand answers, to demand he tell me what he means, but Cade loops his arm around my waist and gently guides me away, perhaps more gently than he has ever touched me before.

  But I know it’s all part of his plan to make me lower my defenses before he strikes.

  “It’s almost time,” he whispers, making me shudder with repulsion.

  I feel the weight of Bexley’s stare, the desperation in his eyes as they follow me and Cade out of the chamber.

  “Tonight, you’re mine,” Cade snarls against my hair. “Tonight, Mia, I finally get to take what’s owed.”

  The ride back to the Electi house drags on. Cade’s leg is pressed against mine, his hand gripping my knee.

  A shiver runs through me, and Cade chuckles. “Nervous, love?”

  Nervous doesn’t even begin to cover it, but I peer up at him, steeling my expression. It only makes him laugh harder.

  “You should be,” he says around a dark smile, loving every minute of this. “I have waited a long time for this. For a second there, I thought they might step in and ruin everything.”

  “What do you mean?”

  He regards me for a second, dragging a finger over my lips and down the valley of my breasts. “So much to learn about this world, Mia. They think they can control me. They think they can rein me in and do their bidding.” He lowers his mouth to the corner of mine and smirks. “They’re wrong.”

  Cade kisses me hard, all teeth and tongue, taking what he wants without a second thought to what I’m willing to give. My hands press against his chest, trying to stop him, but he’s unmovable. Something isn’t right. I felt it earlier and I feel it now—the same chill in the air.

  “I am Cade fucking Kingsley.” He grips my throat and stares at me, anger and hatred turning his eyes into two soulless black orbs. “They took everything from me… everything… and now I’m going to show them. I’m going to fucking destroy them.”

  Fear washes over me, rendering me powerless against him. He isn’t making any sense… and yet, there’s something hovering just outside my thoughts. The final pieces of the puzzle that once slotted into place will reveal the truth.

  “Mr. Kingsley,” a voice comes over the speaker. “We are almost at the house.”

  “Saved by the bell.” Cade pulls away, smoothing down his hair. The way in which he swings between calm and composed to dark and deadly is terrifying. “But don’t get too comfortable, Mia. The fun hasn’t even begun yet.” He shoots me a dark look as I scramble to think of a way out of this.

  All too quickly, the car pulls up to the house. Steeped in shadows it looks as welcoming as a dungeon. I contemplate refusing to move, but I know it will only result in Cade manhandling me inside, because no one will help. The driver wears the Quinctus crest on his jacket, so I know he won’t come running to my rescue. He’s paid to drive and not ask questions.

  How the hell am I going to get out of this?

  I tremble uncontrollably as he climbs out and opens the back door. Cade gets out first, offering me his hand. I knock it away and inhale a shuddering breath before I step out, smoothing my dress down.

  “Good night, Mr. Kingsley. Miss Thompson.” The driver hurries back to his car—and, just like that, we’re alone.

  Cade starts to undo the tie hanging around his neck. “Shall we?” He motions to the house. Nervous energy zips up and down my spine, a ball of dread swelling in my stomach.

  “I can’t.” The words spill from my lips as I start backing away, the urge to run so strong I feel lightheaded.

  I can’t do this.

  I shouldn’t have to do this.

  “Don’t make this any harder than it needs to be, Mia. You’re mine now. Quinctus, your father… they handed you over so easily.” My brows furrow, sweat beading along my neck, but he continues. “You know, I thought they’d question it more. When your name was pulled from the calix, I thought they’d at least turn on themselves…”

  “Y-you… you put my name in there.” The pieces start falling into place. I can’t figure out the overall picture yet, but I know I’m getting closer. I feel it in my bones. “Why?”

  “I think you know why, Mia.” He stalks toward me as I inch back, trying to keep a safe distance between us.

  “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.” My pulse drums in my skull, everything happening too fast. I need time to think… I need time to find a way out of this.

  “Don’t you?” His brow arches. “So you haven’t been sniffing around Quinctus? Around Cargill? You haven’t been asking questions? Playing detective?”

  “I—” The words die on my tongue as his arm snaps out and grabs me, hoistin
g me up against his hard chest, making my heart lurch into my throat. “I told you, babe, I know everything about this town. All of its dark and dirty secrets.” His eyes pin me with a look of contempt. “I told you… and yet you still disobeyed me.”

  “I am not yours to obey,” I screech, hammering my hands against his chest.

  “Scream a little louder,” he chuckles. “It only makes it sweeter.”

  “You’re sick,” I cry, unleashing all of my frustration and anger out on him. “You’re nothing more than a—”

  He grips my wrists in a vise-like hold until I’m sure my bones will snap under the pressure. “Run, little mouse,” he snarls at me. “Run before the big, bad wolf catches up with you.”

  I flinch at his use of Bexley’s name for me.

  He knows.

  Of course he knows. We should never have been so reckless, so careless. But being with Bexley is the only thing that made sense in this living nightmare.

  A beat passes as I gawk at him, willing this to be some kind of sick nightmare. But it isn’t—it’s my grim reality. I shove him hard, taking off toward the woods. His dark chuckle pierces the air like gunfire. “You’re going to have to run faster than that.”

  I kick off my heels and pump my legs faster. My heart races in my chest, the oxygen in my blood replaced with nothing but adrenaline and fear. I melt into the dense thicket, branches clawing at my skin and dress like monstrous fingers trying to claim my soul. The ground crunches beneath my feet, stabbing and cutting into my soles, leaving droplets of blood in their wake.

  But I don’t stop.

  I run and run and run until my lungs burn and the blood roaring in my ears sounds like a storm howling all around me.

  Cade’s dark laughter trails behind me. “I know these woods like the back of my hand, mouse.”

  I burst through the trees and find myself in the middle of a clearing. The moon shimmers overhead, bouncing off the trees, creating eerie shadows that seem to close in around me. I don’t feel so good, my mind swimming with confusing thoughts.