Tarnished Crown (Gravestone Elite #2) by Caitlyn Dare (top inspirational books TXT) 📗

elbows on his knees and stares straight ahead. "Phillip is worried about Cade and where his head is at, and his intentions for Mia… for the future."

"Well yeah, he's a fucking psycho."

"Agreed. But I think this runs deeper than we’ll ever know. Gregory Kingsley was always an advocate of the old ways… The blood rituals and ceremonies. I think Q thought with him gone, they could keep Cade on the straight and narrow, mold him into their puppet."

"Well, that was a huge fucking failure."

"Gregory has been dead for years, but Cade is just like him. Cold, cruel, callous." Channing runs a hand down his face.

"What have you and Mia got to do with all of this?"

"Mia, I've no idea. Maybe they think she can tame him or some shit. Whatever it is, it's fucked up, and she doesn't deserve it. Me? Well, I want out and they need a snitch, so…"

"You're spying on him?" I blurt.

"In not so many words. I think there’s a divide in Q. Phillip wants hard proof that Cade’s taking things too far before he takes it to the rest of the elders. They need him. I don’t know why, but he’s important. That much is obvious.

“If I help them, I get my freedom and Phillip’s blessing to be with Sasha. Well, if they uphold their end of the deal. I don't trust a single word that comes out of their mouths, to be honest."

I contemplate telling Channing what I learned from James, but something stops me. Until I know exactly who all the moving pieces are, I don’t want to reveal my hand too soon.

"You don’t even trust your Uncle Harrison?" I ask.

"Especially him. He's proved time and time again that he's an untrustworthy cunt. Just look at what he's done to Alex and Hadley."

Fuck, Hadley.

"What's wrong?" Channing asks, clearly seeing my expression change.

"Hadley still doesn't know about Alex. I told her that she needs to come back because there are things she needs to deal with, but she refused."

"Let's get through this first, and then maybe we can all go to Sterling Bay to see her. She deserves to know that she's got a brother."

I nod at him, happy that he's not like the others and actually cares about people—family.

"You really should get dressed. Today is not the day to get on Cade's wrong side."

"I disagree. Today is the perfect day to get under his skin."

"So he can take it out on Mia later?"

My blood turns to ice. "Fuck." I'm up before I've even realized I've moved.

"Exactly. I'll see you downstairs. I promise you, Bex. I won't let anything happen to her."

His eyes hold mine for a beat, and although I see honesty shining in them, I also see trepidation. He knows as well as I do that he can't really promise that. Cade doesn't follow the rules, which means we have no chance of being one step ahead of him.

"Thank you," I mouth before he slips back out of my room, leaving me to dress in the suit that's hanging from my closet.  Blowing out a long, steeling breath, I drop my sweats and get this funeral underway.

By the time I get to the bottom of the staircase a little over thirty minutes later, all the guys are already there—well, everyone minus Cade. I'm sure he just wants to make some kind of grand entrance.

Channing nods at me before Alex smiles sadly. Not wanting to stand with Brandon and Tim, I come to a stop beside Sasha, who immediately threads her arm through mine and gives my forearm a squeeze in support.

A loud crash from above is the first sign that Cade is about to appear. When he emerges from the hallway, I find he's dressed the same as the rest of us, but instead of looking a little pensive, he's got a shit-eating grin on his face.

My fists clench as he makes his way to us.

"Calm down," Sasha hisses at me. "This is only the beginning."

Sucking in a breath through my teeth, I try to follow her orders, but it's really fucking hard when the motherfucker jumps the last few steps, his eyes never leaving mine as he approaches.

"All set for the fun and games, Easton?"

My lips press into a thin line as he taunts me. The temptation to take a swing and ensure he turns up to this thing with a broken nose is strong, but I know that he'd stop me attending, and despite knowing how fucking painful it's going to be, I need to be there for Mia. She's going to need to know that I'm there and that I meant what I said to her last night.

She's mine.

Fucking mine.

I force a smile on my lips, and, finally, he looks away.

"Great. Let's do this. I've got a fucking wild night ahead of me," he announces, pushing past me and toward the front door.

"Hell yeah. You remember Tim and Fawn's Coglio? They didn't come up for air for over twenty-four hours."

My eyes shoot to Fawn, whose face burns bright red before she attempts to hide behind Tim.

"It's the drugs, man. They're the fucking shit," Tim explains, pulling Fawn from behind him and kissing the top of her head. "Best night of my life."

I stare at the two of them for a beat, trying to work them out. At times, like now, they look like a normal college couple who are head over heels in love. But then there are other times when it's like there's a dark cloud hovering over both of them, and it seems like they've been forced together much like Cade and Mia. I know Channing says Fawn's got some mental health issues, so I can only assume it's that which puts a strain on their relationship, but still, I can't help wanting to know the whole story.

There are two black SUVs waiting outside the house when we emerge, Sasha, Fawn, and a reluctant-looking Ashton climb into the second while the six of us move toward the first.

The journey