“He overheard a conversation between Athens and her… Aunt,” I say the word like it tastes sour. “He thought the journals might shed some light on what she’s unraveling.”
“If he thinks so, then I back it,” Gage replies, trailing me into the shadows of the manor. “What do you think she’ll find in them?”
I pause at the base of the stairs, my hand grazing the banister like it might ground me.
“I don’t know,” I murmur, voice low, dangerous. “But whatever’s in that box… it’ll either stitch her back together or rip her apart completely.”
The air grows colder between us. I glance at Gage, debating. He’s been solid, reliable. Maybe even trustworthy. Close enough to share a sliver of rot from my past.
“There was a time my father nearly beat me to death,” I say, calm as a confession. “Said I was soft. A disgrace to his legacy. Said if I couldn’t become the monster he bred, I wasn’t fit to wear the name.”
Gage stiffens beside me.
“He called himself a legend,” I scoff, dead behind the eyes. “I call him what he really is, decay wearing a crown. I’ve spent years dismantling his empire, brick by bloody brick.”
“Fuck, Wyck,” Gage breathes. “I had no idea…”
“I don’t want sympathy,” I snap. “I want rage. I want your loyalty. I want someone beside me when we burn what’s left of him to ash.”
His answer is instant. “I’m in. I’ll help you finish it.”
A smirk creeps in. “Good. Because once we go down this road, there’s no turning back. There’s no normal. Only fire.”
We share a look. A pact.
“Anything you need, I’ve got you,” he adds.
I nod once. “Then let’s start simple. I need to know what makes you tick. What made you want to become a Devil, and what yoursuperpoweris.”
He blinks. “My superpower?”
“Yeah,” I grin darkly. “Every Devil’s got one. Mine? I bend people to my will. No matter how strong they think they are.”
He chuckles, but there’s unease beneath it. “I’m good with my hands. Breaking. Rebuilding. I fix shit that’s already gone to hell.”
“You’re gonna fit in just fine,” I say, voice low and edged. “We’ll need you. Got a place in mind, out past the cliffs. Abandoned estate. Perfect for expanding. But first, we take care of the rot inside our own walls.”
He nods, full of that same grim fire I see in the mirror. “Say the word. I’m with you.”
I clap him on the shoulder. “I’ll hold you to that.”
But now? I have ghosts to confront.
I make my way up the stairs, feet heavy with the weight of too much history. My gut tells me to go to my room, but my darkness pulls me toward Karter’s instead.
I’m halfway there when I hear her.
Athens.
“Every time I try to give in, to his needs, his bullshit, he ruins it with something fuckingstupidlike that stunt downstairs.”
Her voice is hot. Sharp. Full of venom.
Then Karter’s.
“He means well, you know that. He just… doesn’t know how to show it.”
“I don’t care,” she fires back. “He acts like a damn alpha-hole.”
