Page 120 of Bite Me

“She’s not alone. She’s always had me.”

“Well, maybe not.” He shakes my phone in the air. “Not if you mysteriously disappear. She’ll worry. She may even be so worried that she’ll come willingly back to the family.”

“Don’t threaten my sister,” I growl.

They’ve never wanted her back because they care about her well-being. It’s all about control. Luckily, she already knows our family’s tactics. Daniel will take good care of her, but I’ve created a fail-safe if not. She’s got Parker’s number if she needs it and a burner phone for emergencies. I know that asshole would help her in a heartbeat.

“I’m looking for her right now, and I will bring her back to where she belongs. Right where your grandfather decided.”

“You can’t earn his love, Liam. I don’t know why, after all this time, you still try. My grandfather has never cared about his family. What makes you think he’ll make an exception for you?”

Liam was packless, with no direction, when he met my grandfather. I know exactly what he saw in him, a lonely, moldable weapon. Someone who was easy to manipulate, with no strings attached. It’s easy to buy love when you pair it with money and basic needs. Liam worships the ground my grandfather walks on, and when I was a kid, I used to love him. But as I grew older, I couldn’t ignore things I had ignored as a child, like the way Liam treated my sister.

He’s spent more time at my grandfather’s side than even I have, as the heir.

He scoffs. “You’re just like your father.”

An icy feeling tenses my core.

Liam’s never mentioned my parents to me. Not even a passing, “You have your mother’s laugh,” or “your father’s nose.” Even when asked, he kept a stoic disposition. I must have gotten under his skin.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“He was trouble, and when he married your mother, that trouble grew. He had a whole future ahead of him before he met her.”

Dizziness blurs my vision. What’s happening? What does he mean? Why is he bringing this up now? He knows something he isn’t saying, and that’s not something that’s ever occurred to me before. The story of my parents was sealed in my mind, but his words have cracked open the book. I’ve never been given any indication that my parents were anything but the perfect, obedient pair.

“I’ve got to go. Hopefully, you learn your lesson, and this isn’t something we have to revisit in the future.” Liam reaches for my phone to place it in his jacket pocket, and the notification light flashes.

Emma.

“Wait. Emma is expecting me back today, and if I never show up, she’ll worry. Let me call her.”

“No.”

“You don’t know her, then. This mess you’re cleaning up will be even bigger than before. Surely you’ve heard of her father.”

“Fine. Text her, but I’m going to watch.”

He throws me the phone, and I search through her string of messages.

“I need to talk to you. Call me ASAP.”

“Luther and his family are targeting my sister. Where are you?”

“Did you know about the Donor Program contract they had her sign? I don’t know what I believe. But I’m still worried about you. What’s happening?”

“Please answer me.”

Contract? Oh, shit.

The contract Darien mentioned was for Evangeline, not Emma. I’m such a fucking idiot. How did I miss the bigger picture? I should have warned them.

“Type.”

He’s looking over my shoulder, so I make it brief.

“There.”