I hold my breath as he watches me silently, assessing me. It makes me feel fucking dirty the way he watches me so intently.
“Your father was a very powerful man, with access to a lot of information, and a lot of friends in high places. Some in very low places as well. It would seem that as a backup plan, a failsafe as it were, he collected information. On me, our sect, on the Knights as a whole. Information that would be… damning, should it fall into the wrong hands. I want that information, Miss Royal. I want every trace of it returned to me, so that it can be kept… safe.”
My heart hammers in my chest. “Is that why you had him killed? You hoped Edward would find the information after killing him?”
He smiles, it’s so cold that a shiver runs down my spine. “My, my. You are astute, aren’t you? I wonder which of your little lap dogs worked it out and told you.”
My heart stops at his confirmation.
He killed my dad.
He’d probably have killed me if he could get the information without me.
My mind races, when a single thought screams in my mind.
“What if I have a different deal I want to make?”
He leans back, eyebrow raised, hands clasped in his lap. “And what sort of deal is that?”
“The information, but not just for my freedom. For Lincoln’s. For Finley’s. For Maverick’s. Forever. There is no arranged marriage, no whoring out of your son. All ties are cut, but they are still afforded the same protections I am.”
“No deal. I will not lose all four of you.”
I shake my head and grit my teeth. Clenching my hands against the arms of the chair so he doesn’t see them shake as I push myself to standing. “Then no deal. And now I know the information exists. When I find it, do not think I won’t use it.”
“Sit down, Miss Royal!” His voice booms around the room, turning my blood to ice in my veins. “The information for their freedom then. But not yours. I wonder, will you sacrifice for them, the way they have for you?”
“If I agree to this, I want their trust funds released instantly. With zero strings. No way for you to take back what is granted.”
“You’re stronger than I thought you’d be. If we bring you back into the fold, if I agree to your terms, you understand you will become my heir for Regent. You cannot take the seat until your eighteenth birthday.”
I nod. “I understand.”
He picks up the phone and makes a call, putting it on loudspeaker so I can hear as he speaks to Edward and Charles. As he tells them the deal. They’re beyond pissed, but they do not argue.
Next he calls his lawyer, and I wait as he releases the trusts for all three boys. He signs the document emailed to him while we wait on the line, and his lawyer confirms it is done.
“It was nice doing business with you, Miss Royal. You have two weeks to find me the documents your father had or I will pull those three back in so fast their heads will spin, and none of you will ever find another way out.”
“I won’t fail,” I say through gritted teeth. There is no way I’m going to let them down.
He stands, offering me his hand. “Then I accept your deal, Miss Royal.”
My legs shake as I rise to my feet. I take his hand, an icy drop of dread running down my spine.
I just sold my soul to the devil, and I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.