Page 45 of Blood and Thorns

The last of my patience was waning. “What happened with my money, Uncle?”

I wasn’t asking out of curiosity anymore, it was annoyance. Alexanderknewhe’d done wrong. I could see it in the way his fingers twitched, and the vein pulsed in his forehead.

“I trustedyou,” I continued, the words cutting harder than I intended. “Was that a mistake?”

“You can be so dramatic,” Alexander muttered. “Just like your mother.” Finally taking a seat, he gestured to the one opposite his desk. I continued to stand, and he sighed once more. “I see your decorum hasn’t improved.”

“Stop deflecting.”

Alexander cocked his head, his eyes hard when they held mine. “There was someone here that was purposely miscalculating, hiding money when it should’ve been flagged.”

“How long was this going on?”

“I tracked it back for almost eight months,” he admitted, clearly just as annoyed as I was. “She was taking a cut of the profits.”

“You didn’t notice foreight months?”

Alexander’s gaze was pointed when he looked at me. “I had no reason not to trust her work. When I checked, every penny was accounted for, so she was smart in covering her tracks. Once it came to my attention, I dealt with it.”

My lips tugged up into a smirk. “You dealt with it?”

Uncle always played the part: polished cufflinks, bespoke suits with the faint cologne of money and control. But underneath the elegance was the same rot that ran through the underworld. He was the one who first introduced me to the big names and connections, the gangs, cartels and organisations that kept the trades open and the corrupt money moving.

“Did you get your hands dirty, Uncle?” I commented, voice smooth but laced with challenge.

He scoffed, lips curling into something just short of a sneer. “Of course not. I have people for that.” He flicked a hand toward the door, trying to dismiss me. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

Therewas a beat of silence, long enough for his arrogance to settle. Then I took a slow step back toward his desk, letting the tension stretch taut.

“I don’t take orders from men I bankroll,” I said, my voice quiet, but harsh. “I’ll cut you off.” I let the words sink in, each syllable deliberate. “You’ll become just another moneyless baron with a crumbling social standing, clinging to tailored suits you’ll no longer be able to afford.”

Alexander’s jaw tightened, red spreading across his cheekbones before he smirked. “You finished?” he grated out.

This was why we kept in-person meetings to a minimum. We were too alike, carved from the same cold ambition and sharp edges.

I leaned in slightly, just enough to let him know I wasn’t in the mood for games.

“Don’t fuck with my money, and I won’t make another impromptu visit.”

“Always a pleasure, Sebastian,” he grunted, already reaching for the papers on his desk. “Next time, bring my son. At leasthe’smore civilised.”

I didn’t bother with a reply, turning to give him my back.

“Oh, and Sebastian.”

I paused, looking over my shoulder to meet his flat, calculating gaze.

“Remember what I said. You can have your fun, but that girl’s still nothing more than a toy. Dispose of her before she becomes a problem. Or I will.”

Chapter 23

Arabella

Sebastian was actively avoiding me.

Okay, so I didn’t know that for sure, but it had been almost a week, and we hadn’t exchanged a single word.

We had dinner in silence, which wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be, and that was it. During the day he was gone, and I only saw him briefly at the table every evening. I itched to speak, to break the silence, but I knew if I did I’d probably admit I’d watched him masturbate, and I didn’t think I could survive the embarrassment.