I stood my ground and didn’t back down. “I’m not going to let this happen.” The line in the sand had been drawn, and there was no going back from this. I’d proclaimed my loyalty, and it wouldn’t falter.
Fender took a step toward me, his expression starting to boil with rage. “You’re weak.”
“And you’re deranged.”
“Step aside, Magnus. I mean it.”
“Or what?” I challenged. “You’re going to kill me?” I asked the same question that he had asked me. I didn’t believe he would, but I’d put him on the spot with a public audience, so he might have no other choice.
He looked slightly insulted, like the suggestion was offensive. But the anger quickly swallowed him again.
“The only way you’re gonna stop me is by killing me. So, I suggest you pull out your knife and do it.” I rolled the dice and waited to learn my fate.
My brother stared and stared, his feet planted on the earth and still. All eyes were on him, and he had to react. He had to do something to regain the power I’d just taken from him. If he didn’t, he would forever be humiliated.
“We can do this another way. I promise you.”
His eyes remained focused and didn’t change, like he didn’t hear a word I said.
“Don’t be like Father. Be like Mother.”
The mention of her made his eyes change slightly.
“Let’s stop disappointing her more than we already have. Come on, Fender.”
“We’ve already talked about this. It’s too late.”
“It’s never too late. Stop this.”
Silence seemed to last forever, and he didn’t convey the thoughts in his mind. He didn’t pull out his weapon or order the guards to continue the slaughter. “You win, Magnus.”
I did my best to hide my reaction, but I felt so much relief in those words. My brother still had a soul…deep down inside.
“For now. When your rotation is finished, you’ll be discharged from your service. You will never return here— and I will run this camp as I see fit.”
My eyes fell as a new level of disappointment hit me like a ton of bricks.
“You called my bluff and won.” He nodded to the guards to release the crying women and extinguish the torches. “I won’t kill you. But we aren’t brothers anymore. When you leave…I don’t want to see you again.”
Thirty-Two
Three Souls
Days passed, and Fender acted like I didn’t exist.
The guards ignored me too, like there was no point in terrorizing me since I would be leaving soon…and never coming back.
I’d never expected Fender to counter with a threat.
To banish me.
Hearing him say he never wanted to see me again hurt—hurt deeply. The fact that he would rather lose me as his brother than do the right thing made me question who he really was.
Maybe I was wrong.
Maybe he didn’t have a soul.
Raven sat on the bed across from me while I sat in the chair. Her feet were on the wooden frame so she could rest her arms on her knees. She was in one of my shirts with her hair pulled over her shoulder, tired and ready for bed. We hadn’t spoken much since the incident in the clearing.
I hadn’t wanted to talk about it.
“What are you going to do?”
I shook my head, my eyes focused on the window behind her. “I didn’t expect him to say that.”
“Me neither.”
He didn’t try to hurt me. He didn’t try to kill me. He seemed to just abandon me instead. He got tired of listening to me push for justice, and it was easier to toss me aside.
It hurt because I knew we were more than that.
I just knew.
“How are we gonna stop this?”
I rubbed my hands together, my right knuckles still swollen and hot from when I’d knocked out the executioner with a single punch. I might be leaner than the bulkier guys, but I was fast and strong, and I could do a lot of damage. “I have no idea. I could hire a convoy of men to come here and dismantle the place, but unless I kill Fender, he’ll just keep doing it…over and over.”
Raven studied me, her thoughts obvious in the look in her eyes. She wanted me to kill him but would never ask.
It was something I would never do. Neither would he. “I’m gonna try to talk to him before he leaves.”
“Do you think it’ll help?”
“I’ve given him a couple days to cool off. I might get something done…but probably not.”
I walked up to his cabin and saw Eric posted outside. I walked up the steps and approached the door.
Eric moved in front of me and placed his hand against my chest. “He doesn’t want to see you.”
“And he put you here to make sure that doesn’t happen?” I asked incredulously. “Eric, if you want me to break your face again, continue to stay there. But if you want your previous injuries to fully heal, step aside.”
Eric didn’t move, but there was already defeat in his eyes. We both knew he stood no chance against me. Fender probably had different guards on rotation outside his cabin, and Eric just got the bad time slot. He stepped aside.
“Good choice.” I opened the door and stepped inside.
Fender was relaxed on the couch with a bottle of scotch on the coffee table. The TV was on, and paperwork was scattered everywhere. “Eric’s such a pussy.” He grabbed the remote and turned off the TV, his back to me.
“You know none of the guards has a chance against me.” I moved to the couch across from him and took a seat.
Fender sat up, shirtless and in his sweatpants. He tossed the remote on the table and stared me down, slowly growing angrier the longer he looked at me. “Say what you need to say. Then leave.”
It was hard to look at my brother and see the lack of affection in his eyes. It was like he hated me. “I’m just as loyal and committed to you as ever. I don’t want to leave the empire. You know I’m the only one you can trust fully. I just want to do things differently, that’s all.”
With his arms resting on his knees, he looked at me like he hadn’t listened to a word I said. “Trust you? You made me look like an idiot in front of all my men. You know I could never stab a knife in your heart, and you used that against me. Maybe I trusted you before, but I certainly don’t now.”
“I did what I had to do.”
“No, you didn’t have to do it. Your dick is wet all the time because you can’t think about anything except pussy. And pussy makes you weak.”
“It’s not about her.”
“Bullshit it’s not.” He grabbed his glass and threw his head back to take a big drink before he slammed it down. “Ever since that bitch came to this camp, it’s been fucking pandemonium.”
“We needed pandemonium, Fender. We’re better than this. I’ve had to look the other way for years, and I can’t do it anymore. Just because we suffered unspeakable things doesn’t mean we have to make other people suffer unspeakable things. You need to let this go. I am still with you all the way. We can still be the biggest kingpins in France. We just have to do it without including the innocent. That’s all.”