Page 98 of The Devils They Are
Rylan crosses the floor, making a beeline for Hunter. I hold my breath, nearly expecting him to tackle his childhood best friend but he stops short, shoving a finger into Hunter's chest. "Her fucking mother died, you moron. Your little stunt nearly made her miss the funeral on Saturday morning."
The three of us fall silent, Ry and I waiting for the information to process in Hunter's mind. I can practically see the cogs turning as he assesses what to do with it, placing it into some mental alignment with the rest of the recent events.
"That doesn't change things," he answers, softening his tone slightly. "Our priority is our position. She's weakening us." His eyes fall to me, narrowing slightly. "And she's getting to you as well."
"You need to stop listening to Marcus," Ry scoffs. "Fuck his reputation."
Hunter scowl. "Our reputation is all we have. Your father would agree."
Ouch. Playing the daddy card. This is turning messy. But surprisingly, Rylan doesn't react like I expect. He just laughs, amused at the idea that his father would be on Team Lannister.
"I don't give a shit anymore." Rylan pauses, deep in thought. "What has that ever really done for us?"
"Everything—" Hunter starts but Ry cuts him off.
"It's not, H. We're forced to follow in their footsteps. To our fathers, we're just extensions of them. Everything we do, everything we say, it's all for their benefit. We deserve better."
For once, Hunter doesn't know how to respond. He looks confused at the idea, like being a pawn in his father's career success is unfathomable.
I feel for them both. To be under scrutiny every day, it must be exhausting. Having an absent father is secretly a blessing in disguise. I don't care how much money he makes or how important he is in the legal world. None of that matters when we should be his priority. When I was younger, I looked up to him. Being rich and successful opened a lot of doors for our family. But it wasn't until I realized that Sophia was struggling without an active parent that the price wasn't worth paying.
All Dad cares about is his image and reputation. And Rylan is correct—Marcus Lannister and Max Astor are exactly the same. The only time they offer any praise or guidance is when it benefits them. If we do something that's deemed a failure, we are punished and belittled.
"I don't even know who you are anymore, Rylan," Hunter mutters. "Listen to yourself."
"H," I start, tone gentle. "He's right. We've spent too much energy looking at this the wrong way. We turned our attention to Cedar Heights when we should have been focusing on the events that got us here."
Hunter shakes his head. "It was needed. We had no choice but to mark our territory when they arrived."
"Maybe so," Rylan agrees. "But what does that get us? All I see is expectations and a life that's not my own."
I frown. I never realized just how much he was struggling. Hunter seems surprised too, letting out an exhausted sigh and rubbing his temple.
"I thought we suspected that someone from Cedar started the fire."
"I don't think so," I shrug. "There wasn't any benefit from them attending Willowbrook. All it did was cause chaos and mess with everyone."
Rylan nods. "Besides, Cedar are under the impression that someone from Willowbrook started it."
Hunter snorts. "Not our circus, not our monkeys."
"See. That's why we need to be careful. Someone out there is out to get all of us," I finish.
Pacing again, Hunter's face pulls up in concentration. "This still doesn't excuse either of you for befriending the enemy. After what she did to us…"
"Fuck's sake. Let the damn ass table go," Ry groans. "At least she didn't steal your credit card and make you wear booty shorts."
"Or post your number on Grindr," I say.
A smirk breaks through Hunter's concentration. "She really got to all of us in one go. I have to give some credit."
"We did worse to her," Ry sighs. "But honestly, she's not so bad when you get to know her."
I choke back a laugh as Hunter's head snaps to the side, glowering at Rylan. "I'm not being friends with her."
"You don't have to," he grumbles back. "But if we're going to find out who started this mess, maybe we need to work together."
"Absolutely not," Hunter replies. "We've got more than enough power to find out answers on our own. Plus, if Dad catches on…"
