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“Ever wondered…,” Dean continued, his upper lip curling back over his teeth. “Why my brother has the same Familiar as you?”

Roman shook his head—not in answer, but denial. “You’re full of shit,” he hissed.

“Am I? Look at the facts, Roman,” he challenged. “Or shall I spell it out for you?”

Roman kept shaking his head—it was all he could manage.

Dean continued, “Brutus is a dragon. Black body, green eyes… Looks a lot like Sayagul. Wouldn’t you agree?”

Roman opened his mouth. Shut it. Squeezed out, “Dean’s my…”

“Dad—yeah. Your whore of a mother fucked around with him—back before you were born.”

‘It was before your time,’Dean had said to Roman that night at Wacky’s Waffles, when Roman had asked him whoshewas—The Onethat had gotten away.

It wasliterallybefore his time.

Had Dean known? Did DeanknowRoman was his son?

Don continued. “It took me a while before I found out. Before I…clued in. It was their naughty little secret. One that only the two of them shared.” A cruel smile that was more a baring of teeth slashed across his face. “No reason to tell me, right? I mean,Iwas the one who was marrying her.Iwas the one who gave her everything she wanted. And yet, somehow, it wasn’t good enough for her.Iwasn’t good enough for her.” He poked himself hard in the chest. Smirked. “No—it was mybrothershe wanted,” he said through clenched teeth.

‘Your fault’—that was what Don always said.‘She died because of you.’

‘He’s lying,’Sayagul had cried, countless times in that dungeon in the House of Black, while Roman hung there from chains.

But he hadn’t lied. Don hadn’t lied, at least not about that.

Helen Devlin had died because ofhim.Because of Roman. And Donovan?—

Donovan had murdered her in cold blood.

Because he’d found out that Roman was not his child.

And Sayagul?—

‘The suppressants,’the dragon whispered now, her voice small and hollowed out with shock.‘Dean mentioned suppressants?—’

“You drugged me,” Roman whispered.

“Found out about the suppressants, did you?” Don said. “Took you long enough.”

Donovan had drugged him—must have slipped a banned suppressant into his food during his teenaged years, when his magic was still maturing. Which would explain why Sayagul was so small—something Roman had not thought twice about…until now.

Until he’d found out that Dean was his father, and Dean had a dragon who was ten times the size of Sayagul. The size Sayagulshouldbe at Roman’s age.

Donovan had intentionally weakened him.Wreckedhim.

Roman felt like he was floating. Disconnected. “You ruined my life,” he whispered. When he spoke again, his voice was no longer a whisper. It was a deafening scream that ripped his throat to shreds.“You ruined my FUCKING LIFE!”

Donovan was unfazed. He stood there, his lips tipping up with a cruel smile as he watched. Watched as Roman unraveled.

He had been waiting a very long time for this.

Roman’s head spun with questions. Epiphanies.

Cold, hard facts.

“Pax—” he gasped.