Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“You killed him?” Apollo’s not normally the killer in the family either, but then again, his twin brother who was the killer died, so I suppose he felt the role fell to him.
“Yes. And the less you know, or anyone knows, the better.”
This was the way Ares used to work. He told no one of the details when he made a hit. Clearly, Apollo has taken notes from our brother.
“Does Ani know you killed him?”
Apollo nods. “Yes, but not all the details.”
My disbelief is quickly morphing to rage. Why wouldn’t she tell me? Why would she lie? She told me he was gone. Not dead. Just gone.
“And Daphne knows you killed him?”
Apollo nods. “And before you start bashing my wife and telling me she’ll turn me in to the police—”
“Again,” I snap. “Turn you in to the police again, brother.” My hands shake, so I put them in my pocket to try to control my emotions. I don’t want my brother to see me lose my shit. “That woman nearly destroyed our family. And you just handed her the tools to do it again. Her sister, too. Those two women now have the ability to hurt the Godwin family again.”
“It’s not going to happen.”
“They are both a security risk!” The heat in my face, the shaking of my hands, and the way my breathing feels it’s seizing is betraying just how furious I am. “I oversee security. Don’t you think I should have been made aware of this? Where the fuck is the body?”
“Taken care of,” Apollo says calmly. “There’s nothing for you to worry about.”
“Except the two women in this situation who are not Godwins.”
“Daphne is my wife. She is a Godwin. And I was doing her sister a favor. Ani will never turn against me. Plus, it would mean putting her and her sister in jail, too, if she did.” He takes a step toward me and places a hand on my shoulder. “There’s nothing to worry about. I know how to clean up my messes.”
“And what does Father say about this? Athena?” I ask.
“They don’t know, and we’ll keep it that way.” Apollo’s eyes darken in warning.
“Because you know they’d want both those women killed to keep this from spreading like a goddamn disease.”
“I told you it’s taken care of. It’s over. Done.”
I don’t like being blindsided. Of being kept in the dark, completely unaware. And that is exactly what has happened.
And Ani… I trusted her.
I thought she was genuine. Honest. Someone I could open up to.
Lava erupts in my gut, and I have never been more relieved when Apollo says, “I need to get back to Seattle tonight.”
That would explain why the helicopter is still on the pad rather than flying back to Seattle.
“But I wanted to tell you in person that I’m going to be a father,” he adds.
“Congratulations,” I say between clenched teeth. “Athena told me.”
“I figured she did. But still. It’s news I wanted to tell you face to face.” He pauses. “I’m happy, Phoenix. It’s a rare emotion in our family, I know. But I am genuinely happy.”
He remains in place. I don’t know if he’s waiting for me to bust out the cigars or something, but I have nothing to offer him. I’m not happy. I’m fucking furious.
Daphne trapped him. She trapped us all.
The minute Apollo leaves, and the blades of the chopper are swirling, I march to Ani’s room. I can’t see straight. The ringing in my ears is deafening. There is a traitor in my sanctuary, and I must get rid of the cancer now.
She jumps as I open the door. “Phoenix? Is everything okay?” She doesn’t move, which is a good thing. It’s smart to remain very still when face to face with a beast.
“I’m going to ask you something, and I want the truth.” I’m giving her an option to try to fix this situation, if that’s even possible.
“Okay…”
“Where is your ex?”
She licks her lips, swallows. “I told you. Gone. Why are you bringing him up again? I don’t want to think about him for another second.”
“Where is gone?” I press.
She shrugs and avoids eye contact with me. “I don’t know. Baja maybe. He has a brother there. My guess is he’s riding dirt bikes and drinking cheap Mexican beer.”
And there it is. Ani Parker is a liar.
Controlling emotions has never been one of my strong suits. However, up until this very second, rage and fury were not emotions I had often experienced. Usually, there was something darker inside of me that sort of numbed those feelings, allowing me to take a step back and observe the world around me with a disaffected calm. But not now.
The sight of her sitting on the bed, her small frame filling the space with a betraying energy, is enough to ignite a fire in my heart I have never known before. Ani and her sister could now be the source of all my family’s pain if they open their mouths, the ones responsible for shattering the Godwin name into a million pieces.