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“You didn’t give them to us.” I kept my hands in my pockets, meeting his cold stare. “We made a deal.”

He got me. He fucking broke me. And in exchange, Nikolai and I got our siblings.

“And as I said, we handled it.”

“You.” He pointed at me. “You handled it. My Crow handled their fucking mistake.” He threw the knife across the room, it only just missing the portrait of my father.

He wanted me to bite back. To fight. Instead, I stayed calm. I raised men, not broken boys. I stood by mine and Nikolai's decision.

“I have asked Bastion to join us.” he stepped away from the desk, and there were few things that would get a reaction out of me. But threatening them was definitely one.

“Damius, as you said, they are my crows, my responsibility. So, I’ll take the consequences.”

His eyes lit up, and that’s when I realized I had fucked up.

“But Vincent, hurting them, hurts you more. Consequences for both. Sounds fair, does it not?”

It took everything inside of me to control my reaction.

“Would any of the crows you made last in the basements? Because every crow I made did.” He stepped forward, ready for a challenge. “What did I always tell you? Your weaknesses are my opportunities.”

I slowly nodded. “I remember the all the vows, Damius. So, what shall it be, then?”

That sick, twisted look in his eyes.

I took a step forward, “But my right is to take both punishments. According to the oath, correct?”

“And if I’m to punish all three of them? Then what?”

I shrugged. I highly doubted there was something he could think of I hadn’t endured.

His cold stare slowly turned into a smile. “Always my strongest.” Laughing, he hit my back, “Come, the rest of my crows are waiting.”

I followed behind him. There wasn’t anything I hated more than the formal sit down with my cousins every second month. Over thirty of us waiting to be scolded. Nine out of ten times, it was my family he targeted. Unless one of the others really fucks up.

Then if by some miracle he doesn’t target a member of my family.

He targets Villain. Somehow finding a way my city has disappointed him. Considering our trade was down because of the laced drugs. Three buildings went up in a fire. And there was that massive fuck up with Roman and the guns.

It would take something serious to not have his full focus for tonight.

This whole meeting I enjoyed Damius ripping shreds off Jamison and Marcel.

Nearly starting a war. Honestly, it was just a bonus that Madeline’s cousins were the ones to make them look bad.

“Like you said, grandfather. The actions were careless. So careless it looks staged.” Jamison was glaring at me.

“Is there a reason you’re looking at me, Jamison?” I turned my chair to look down the table at him.

“Perhaps I just want answers.” He shrugged, staring at me.

“Answers to what exactly?” Tapping my finger on the table as I looked from him to Marcel. “Are you two trying to say that this giant fucked up mess is somehow our fault?”

“Your fault. To be exact.” Marcel glared. “Do we look stupid, Vincent? The attack was so staged, you might as well of signed your name with blood at the scene.”

“Lacking accountability, don’t we have a vow about that, Damius?” I asked, not taking my eyes off them. “A Crow is as weak as the mistakes he fails to admit.”

Marcel hit the table. “Don’t you fucking sit there, baiting us, when we know it was you.”