Tempted Hero by Ella Miles
Beckett
My heart stoppedat Caius’s words, and I don’t think there is any way to restart it.
Gage found out who killed Odette. He knows it’s Ri. They all do, I suspect.
And Caius is about to beat my ass for hiding the truth, for Ri not already being dead.
“Who is it?” I ask, my voice cracking as I speak.
“I don’t know. Gage wouldn’t say. He said you deserved to know first.”
I nod, but inside my nerves are shattered. I need to find Gage and put a stop to what he thinks he knows.
“I have to go ahead and help arrange for the ceremony. I’m taking Hayes with me. Lennox and Gage will go with you to the initiation ceremony,” Caius says.
Lennox nods his agreement.
“Am I to expect another competition?” I ask.
Caius smirks. “No, this will be a pretty straightforward ceremony. Then once you get retribution for Odette, it will be permanent.”
Permanent—as soon as I kill Ri.
Jesus,I run my hand through my hair, trying to keep the anxiety in my chest pounding through me like a herd of antelope quiet so that Caius doesn’t notice my stress.
Hayes arrives, so he and Caius head out, leaving me with Lennox.
“Where’s Gage?” I ask.
“In his room. He’s looking over the footage he cracked one more time to be sure he knows who it is before we leave. He thought it would help you during the initiation ceremony to know who killed Odette,” Lennox answers.
“Pull the car around to the front. I’ll speak with Gage, and we’ll be ready to go soon,” I say.
Lennox nods and walks to the door to do as I asked.
I take a breath for what seems like the first time since Caius spoke as I go in search of Gage. I have no idea what I’m going to do when I find him. I just go.
Gage’s room is the third door on the left. The door is open, so I don’t knock. I just stand in the entryway, looking stern-faced and domineering. It doesn’t matter what Gage knows. I’m the one about to be given the leadership position. I’m the one about to have all the power, not him.
I don’t show my fear, my anguish, my anxiety. I don’t show my turmoil at trying to figure out what to do about Ri, why I haven’t already killed her. I don’t show him anything but an alpha in complete control, an arrogant leader who won’t bow down to anyone.
Gage is sitting on his bed with his computer in his lap.
“So you went against my orders and pulled up the video,” I say, my anger flowing through my words.
“You already knew who killed Odette. You’ve known this whole time,” Gage says, his voice flat, not giving away his emotions.
I don’t answer him.
Gage closes his laptop. “I’m sorry, I was just trying to help. I didn’t realize that you had already figured it out and had everything under control.”
“I do have everything under control.” I eye him sternly.
“Of course you do, it’s just…” Gage rubs the back of his head, a bead of sweat dripping down his forehead.
“What?” I snap.
“It’s Ri—that complicates things.”
“And why would it complicate things?” I growl. “Ri is responsible for Odette’s death. A woman I loved more than anything. I will get retribution for her death.”
“What do you want me to do then?” Gage asks.
“Say nothing. Tell no one what you know.”
“What about Caius and the guys? I told them I know who killed Odette.”
I frown. “That was a mistake.”
Gage winces at my tone.
“You will tell them that I have ordered you not to tell anyone. The information is too sensitive. If the information were to leak, it would prevent me from getting retribution. You will hide that it is Ri. Lennox, Hayes, and Caius care too much about her. If they know the truth, they might try to stop me.”
“But Caius, he’s my leader. I have to—”
“No. I’m your leader. I will be his leader after tonight. If you want to remain in the Retribution Kings, you will do as I say.”
Gage tenses.
“Do I have your word?”
Gage pauses for a minute before finally standing. “You have my word. I won’t tell anyone that it’s Ri.”
I don’t know if I trust Gage, and I still have no idea what I’m going to do about Ri. Try to get answers. Try to understand why she did it; maybe that would help. Try to understand if she’s a cold-blooded killer or if she was just doing what she was forced to do to save someone else.
Right now, though, I have to go become a leader to a group that has done nothing but betray me. For some reason I still don’t understand, they want me to be their leader. No, need me. I just have to find out why. And then I’ll destroy everyone who had a part in destroying my life.
I open the passenger door and step out of the car before Lennox even has the car stopped. I don’t know what this ceremony will entail. I don’t know how I will be accepted as their leader, but I want this over with. I want the power to destroy them all if I want, to decide what to do about Ri, and this is how I get it.
Lennox and Gage step out of the car, and we start walking toward the arena. It’s the same arena I fought Caius in only days earlier.
And then I hear the low whistle, so quiet that it almost melds into the night air. But I know who it is and what I must do.
“You guys go ahead. I need a minute to gather my thoughts,” I say.
Lennox puts his hand on my shoulder. “You’re going to be great. There was a reason you were chosen. Don’t doubt yourself.”
Lennox walks inside. Gage only nods at me before he follows Lennox in, leaving me alone outside.
I scan the street before I take off, jogging toward the dark alleyway. I stop once the shadows hide me from the street.
“You didn’t need to come, brother,” I say.
“And miss my brother’s initiation as leader of a different crew?” Enzo steps forward, putting his arms around me as he hugs me.
I exhale a deep breath in his embrace. For a second, all my worries disappear. It’s just me and my brother.
Enzo steps back, looking at me with concern. “I’ve missed you. We all have.”
I sigh, realizing the real reason he’s come. He’s here not to celebrate my triumph at becoming a leader but to try to guilt me into returning.
“I’ve missed everyone too. How are my nieces and nephews?”
“Everyone is well, but we’re all worried about you. This made sense when you were with Odette. We even gave you time to try to get revenge for her death. But are you sure you want this?”
I frown. “Am I sure that I want to be the leader of a criminal organization that I barely understand? One that I’m sure is a rival to the one my brother controls? A job that will require tremendous responsibility and a target placed on my back for the rest of my life? Am I sure that I want this? No, I’m not sure. I didn’t want any of this. That’s why I chose Odette. A fresh start, a chance to live and have kids without the danger that this world puts us in.”
“Then don’t do this. Come back with me. Be with your family and friends. You’ll find someone else to love. I know Odette was your everything, but you’ll find that again.”
I shake my head as my blood boils in my head.
“You know why I can’t go back. I love you all too much to go back.”
Enzo frowns. “You need to come back. The past is in the past. No one cares. We just want you back.”
“I can’t come back. I can’t be forgiven for what happened.”
“Not that we feel the need to forgive you, but we do forgive you for what happened.”
“I don’t forgive myself,” I snap.
We stare back and forth at each other. Silently, letting my words set in.
“Then leave. Travel the world. Spend some time healing. Don’t become the leader of a criminal organization that you will never be able to escape from.”
“No amount of time will heal me. No amount of travel will make me forgive myself for what happened. The world has shown me time and time again that I don’t deserve happiness. I don’t get a happily ever after. I might as well do something worthy. I might as well follow through and get revenge for Odette.”
Enzo sighs. “If you do this, then we are rivals. We will fight in wars against each other. We will have no choice.”
“There is always a choice. As leader, I can ensure that we never go to war with each other.”
Enzo’s eyes grow heavy. “There’s a lot you don’t know about being a leader, but you’ll learn.”
Enzo starts to walk away. “I wish you luck, Beckett. And we will always be here for you as your family, even when the inevitable battle happens.”
