Derek struggles but can’t do much when he’s tied, gagged, and in a chokehold.
I let the cross hang from my hand while my other holds the lighter to it. When it gets as warm as I want it, I press it to his chest.
His screams are muffled due to the gag. When I remove it, he sucks in deep breaths through his nose, and Grave takes a step back, letting him go.
I remove the gag. “You son of a bitch!” Derek snarls at me. “You better not have hurt her. I’ll rip your head off,” he warns.
I almost laugh at that. Instead, I say, “I would never hurt her. You, however …” I hold up the lighter and cross again, heating it for round two.
“What?” he asks, his dark eyes wide. “No. No. No. You think I did it?” He shakes his head quickly. “I didn’t do it. I swear.”
I pause and shut the Zippo closed. “You knew it was set on fire,” I state.
“Yeah, because that’s what Mitch told me.” He rushes out, trying to adjust himself on the couch to sit up straighter.
Grave and I exchange a look. “When?” I demand.
“This morning. He told me that he spoke to Alexa. She told him it was arson.” He licks his lips. “I may be mad at my sister, but I would never hurt her.”
I pull my cell up and dial Bones’s number. He answers on the third ring. “Hello?”
“Ask her if she spoke to Mitch this morning,” I demand.
Has she been talking to him this whole time? If so, why? We haven’t seen him at Crown since that one time. Maybe she told him I’ve been watching out for him and to stay away.
I hear him ask her but don’t hear her response. Seconds later, he’s back on the phone. “She said no. She hasn’t spoken to him since that night at Crown.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
ALEXA
I PACE THE Royal Suite back at Kingdom. It’s been two hours since Bones dragged me out of my house and brought me here. He and Titan haven’t left my side. They even took my phone from me.
“How long are you going to keep me here?” I demand to anyone who will answer me.
Titan sits at the table, glaring with his arms over his chest. Bones stands in the kitchen, ignoring me while typing away on his phone.
“I’m not staying here.” I shake my head and start to walk toward the door.
Titan gets up from his seat and puts himself between me and the door, forcing me to a stop. “You aren’t going anywhere, Alexa.”
I give him my back and grip my hair. I want to scream. I know they aren’t going to hurt me, but I can’t say the same about Derek. My brother can be a pain in the ass, but that doesn’t mean I want him dead.
Cross just knocked him out like he was nothing. I didn’t think of what would happen when I called Cross and told him Derek was at my place. I just acted; afraid he knew something. Now I’m terrified Cross will kill him.
I sit down on the couch and bury my face in my hands. How long will they keep me here? How …?
The door opens, and my head snaps up to see my brother enters the room, followed by Cross and then Grave.
“Derek.” I rush over to him and jump into his arms. “Oh my god.” I sniff with relief that he’s not dead.
“I’m fine.” He says softly, hugging me tightly.
I pull back, and he lets me go. I gasp when I get a look at him. His shirt is ripped open, and he has a mark on the left side of his chest. “What is that?” I touch it, and he jumps back, hissing in a breath.
What…? I take another look, and it’s a cross. Is it …? I reach out, and he grabs my wrists to stop me from touching it again. The skin is raised and irritated, and I instantly realize what it is. I’ve seen it before.
Pulling away, I turn to face Cross. My hands fisted by my side. “You branded him?” I snap.
He leans back against the bar top, crossing his ankles and arms over his chest, but he stays silent. His once pretty green eyes are now dark and clouded like a storm.
“Sis, I’m fine.” Derek grabs my arm, forcing me to face him. “Are you okay?” He asks gently, his eyes running over my body. He reaches up, cupping my face.
“She’s fine.” Titan is the one who answers Derek, but my brother ignores him.
I shove him away and storm over to Cross. “Why would you do that?”
“I needed answers.” Comes his clipped response.
“Then just ask him,” I shout, shoving his chest, but he doesn’t budge.
“I did. He refused to answer.” Cross shrugs. “Hence the reason I did what I did.”