Page 13 of Cruel Secrets (Cruel Command #2)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

ROYCE

Fuck.

As the second ring comes through, Aiden’s name flashing on my phone, I tug the curtain to the side, peering out at the long driveway that runs in front of the safe house. All is quiet, no light flashing across the bottom, no car parking out front. He isn’t here.

Yet.

The thought of him catching sight of Bianca is enough to send panic coursing through my veins as I slide my thumb across the screen. “Yeah?”

“Well, good fucking day,” Aiden says, his tone sharp. “What the hell took you so long to answer?”

Avoiding you.

Hoping you aren’t storming in here to see my daughter.

Wishing that I didn’t have to worry about one half of my family killing the other.

I step back and allow the curtain to flutter shut, dropping down onto the chair. “Believe it or not, I don’t sit around all day waiting for your call. I have other things to do with my time.”

“Those other things better be getting ready. We’re coming over soon.”

I don’t need him here. Every time he risks seeing Bianca, I feel like I’m going to be sick.

Something in the background of the call slams and one of my sisters starts shouting. “You know, if I didn’t think they would all end up dead, I would’ve kicked them out by now.”

“I think they’ll do just fine without you.” I rub my eyes, glaring at the time on my computer. “It’s almost noon. Why the hell do you think you need to come out here now? It’s going to take nearly three hours to get here.”

“Don’t want to risk talking about things over the phone.”

“And what if you’re being followed?” I don’t know how Aiden will react when he finds out about Bianca, but I do know that I’m going to delay it for as long as possible. “You think coming out here is any better?”

“If I’m there, at least I would know who’s paying attention.” Aiden’s voice grows louder as the shouting in the background becomes shriller. “Jesus fucking Christ! They never stop. It’s enough to make me want to ram goddamn pens into my ears. I doubt I could hear this fucking shit if I was bleeding out from punctured eardrums.”

“You know, punctured eardrums might improve your chances at sleeping with someone other than hookers.”

“Fuck you. I don’t go near those walking petri dishes.” Aiden let out a hiss as someone shrieked. “If the two of you don’t shut the fuck up, I’m going to cut your damn tongues out and hang them on the fucking Christmas tree!”

“Shut the fuck up!” Summer screeches in the background.

I don’t know what he did to piss Summer and Jade off, but it sounds like they’re not going to let him live it down.

Getting to my feet, I head to the door and shut it, not wanting Gia to overhear.

I still don’t know if I can trust her.

As I drop back down into my chair, the shouting on the other line goes quiet.

Chuckling, I twist and look out the window. “If you would let the pair of them have their own lives, they would leave you alone.”

“Talk to me after negotiations are done, then we can take another look at what their lives are going to look like.” Aiden sighs and something slams shut. “I’m going to pick up Sean now, and then all of us will be on our way.”

“Do not bring the entire family here.”

The call ends without so much as a goodbye from him.

“Fuck.” I toss the phone onto the desk, leaning back in the chair and running my hands down my face.

In three hours, my entire family could be here. They could be shoving themselves into the house, causing chaos, and then realizing that I’ve had a child with the woman I’m supposed to be holding hostage.

They would all start to question whether or not they could trust me.

I could run with them now. Call Aiden back and tell him that the safe house has been compromised. That we had to leave and I’ll call him when we get elsewhere.

It would be enough to buy me half a day at most, but even that half a day won’t be enough to keep my life from imploding.

My chest tightens as I stand, heading into the kitchen.

Gia glances up from the roasted carrots she’s busy feeding Bianca. “Everything alright?”

It all seems so mundane. Like her brother isn’t trying to hunt us down and take her back. Like I don’t have to look over my shoulder constantly for my own brother.

“Nope. My family is coming and the two of you need to make yourself scarce.” I yank open the fridge, reaching for a beer and cracking the top off, even though it’s barely noon.

Her gaze cuts to the beer. “Are they really that bad?”

“I have Aiden and four sisters. Plus, Ellie is married, and her husband is a great guy, but he’s a pain in the ass too.”

“Sean Andino, right?” Gia spoons another mouthful of carrots into Bianca’s mouth, catching the orange goo that dribbles down her chin. “I heard that he and your sister got married. Noah was furious about it for weeks.”

“I know. Your brother kidnapped and branded them both.” I can’t keep the bitter note out of my voice. Noah never should’ve been able to get that close to him.

When he finally catches up to us—and I’m sure that he will—I’m going to kill him.

Her mouth drops open, eyes widening and glistening with tears. “I didn’t know about that.”

“Yeah, well, I would suggest not bringing it up if you do see any of them. Sean doesn’t take to it being mentioned too kindly.”

I take the beer and head outside, needing as much time as possible to prepare myself for the rest of the Lyndes.

* * *

Skyla brushes by me as I open the front door three hours later. “I’m going to go talk to Gia. You have fun with the two of them. They’ve done nothing but bicker since we started the drive up here.”

Fucking perfect.

Sean and Aiden both stand near the driveway. I jerk my chin toward the backyard and they both take off. I stuff my feet into a pair of boots before following after them, leaves crunching beneath my feet.

“Let’s go sit by the river.” I pull two cans of beer from the pockets of my hoodie and hand them out.

Aiden pops the top on the can and heads for the dock. “We’re having more problems with Noah.”

I follow behind him with Sean, hands stuffed in my pockets. “It’s so bad you couldn’t tell me what’s happening on the phone? You know it’s a risk for the three of you to be here.”

“Could’ve brought the whole family.” Aiden shrugs as we step onto the dock, sitting in the heavy wooden chairs at the end.

Sean snorts. “You’re not that stupid, even if you did want to come out here.”

My spine stiffens, but I do my best to remain neutral. “You didn’t think it was worth a trip out here?”

“I think by now we have to assume that Noah has people working for him that are hidden among us, which means that most of what we’re saying is probably getting back to him in some way or the other.” Sean downs some of his beer, setting the can to the side.

The breeze blows harder, an icy chill to the air.

Aiden looks out at the water. “It’s not long before there’s going to be snow on the ground. Should keep people from coming up here and looking for you.”

I study him for a minute, trying to figure out why he would want to come up here when nobody else around him thinks it’s necessary.

Does he suspect the truth about Bianca?

As of right now, he knows that there’s a child, but he doesn’t know that Bianca is my child. Would he come up here if he knew and wait to trap me in a lie?

Sean clears his throat, nestling deeper into the collar of his coat as the wind picks up. “You’re going to have to stay at the safe house with Gia for longer than initially planned.”

The best fucking news I’ve heard all day.

I shift, sitting taller and glancing between the two of them. “What happened?”

They exchange a look, neither one of them acting like they’re going to be the first to speak.

Finally, Aiden shifts in his seat. “Noah sent a group of people to attack an incoming shipment. Between that and him finding you at the other safe house, we know that there’s at least one rat, but we still haven’t been able to find them.”

“And you can’t risk killing everyone.” I press my fingers to my temples, trying to stave off the headache already forming. “Do you think he’s going to meet you for negotiations after this?”

Aiden shakes his head. “I don’t think he ever had any intention of meeting with us, but I’m going to keep trying. I don’t want to have to kill more people until there’s no other choice.”

Sean rolls his eyes. “He’s not leaving us much of a choice and you know it. Sooner or later, we’re going to have to kill him before he kills us, and I think we’re running out of time with how long we can wait.”

“I know.” Aiden shifts to the side. “There’s nothing I would love more than to destroy that fucker and his entire family, but this is about preserving ours.”

Which explains why you’re obsessive about them.

Though I don’t say it aloud, I’m thinking about it. I want to call him out, to tell him that I can see him slipping, but maybe it’s not that bad yet.

Maybe he’s just trying to pull himself together.

Sean rubs his hands together, trying to find warmth within the icy wind starting to dart through the trees. “It’s going to come to a full-blown war, and you know that. I think we should bring the fight to them before they have a chance to get to us.”

“You know, we don’t have to go to war.” I nearly choke on the words, already thinking about what this would do to Bianca.

She’s still a baby now, but what would happen when she grew up to find out one side of the family killed the other?

Would she see me as the same monster I saw my father as?

Aiden taps his foot on the dock in time with the lapping of the waves. “I know that we don’t have to, but the longer this goes on, the more unavoidable it seems. I don’t know where this is going to end up, but I do know that we’re trying to get in contact with him.”

“We can’t afford to keep trying,” Sean says, his tone sharp. He tips back the rest of his beer, finishing it in a couple gulps. “It’s becoming a problem. The fucking Rinaldos had ten men killed. They were my men, Aiden, and now they’re dead. I can’t keep doing this game with you. Either you want to put the bastard in the ground, or you’re holding out for some reason you’re not sharing with me.”

The tension crackles in the air like electricity right before a lightning strike.

Aiden’s hands curl into fists. “We’re friends, Sean, and I don’t want this to come between us, but you need to stand down. We agreed that I would be the one to take lead on the Rinaldo situation, since it’s my family it affects.”

“Ellie is my family.” Sean looks like he’s about ready to get out of his chair and punch Aiden.

It wouldn’t be the first time the two of them have fought, and I doubt it would be the last either.

They both run powerful mafias, and at least once every few months, they seem to butt heads.

Aiden hums and takes a pull off his beer. “I know you want revenge, and it’s going to happen, but I think we should minimize the damage, don’t you, Royce?”

I bite the inside of my cheek as I nod. It might not be the right answer, but these days I’m not sure what is. I lived in shades of gray before, the darkest shade, but there was still a small gray area. Now, it’s like there are a thousand different ways to look at this scenario and with each one I become the bad guy.

If I’m being honest, I want to see this business with the Rinaldos come to an end as quickly as possible.

What I can’t tell either of them is why.

With a smug smirk, Aiden turns to Sean. “See? You’re acting rash. It’s not the first time we lost lives, and I doubt it will be the last. There’s still a long way to go before we get the Rinaldos out of New York for good.”

My eyebrows pull together. “I thought the negotiations were to give them their own territory so they would stop infringing on ours.”

“It is.” Aiden looks over his shoulder as Skyla comes out of the house, walking toward us with her arms wrapped around her, holding her jacket closed against the wind.

She stops behind my chair. “I need to talk to Royce. Alone.”

Aiden arches an eyebrow. “Do I want to know what this is about?”

“No.” Skyla jerks her head toward the driveway. “Go get the car ready to go. I won’t be long, and I need to be back in town before nine. I have a date tonight.”

“Like hell you do.” Aiden shakes his head as he stands, his arms crossing over his chest. “You’re not seeing anyone since you split with that douche, and I haven’t met anyone either, so how can you be going out on a date?”

Her nostrils flare, hands dropping to her sides and balling into fists. “You might try that shit with Summer and Jade, but I’m only a couple years younger than you. If I want to go out on a date and not tell my brother about it, then I’m going to do that.”

Sean stands behind Aiden, giving him a shove forward. “I remember the time she broke your arm for ruining her prom date. If I were you, I would get walking.”

Though Aiden glowers at Sean, they both head for the car, knowing better than to argue with Skyla.

Skyla stands in front of me, looking like she’s seconds away from giving me the broken arm. “Trees, now.”

“Why?”

Without a word, she grabs my arm and hauls me over to the tree line that surrounds the house. She keeps tugging until we’re nearly a dozen feet deep into the forest.

As soon as we can’t see the house anymore, she smacks me upside the head.

“What the fuck were you thinking, Royce?”

I shoot her a glare, rubbing the back of my head. “What are you talking about?”

“Did you think that nobody would figure out that baby in the house is yours?” she asks, her voice a hiss as she steps closer to me. She raises her hand and smacks me upside the head so hard my ear starts ringing.

“Jesus, Skyla. There’s no need to get fucking violent.” I rub my ear, glaring at her.

She raises her hand again, this time ready to smack the other side. “Maybe pushing you around would knock some goddamn sense into you.”

“Don’t know why you’re so pissed.”

Skyla steps closer to me, her finger jabbing into my chest. “You. Don’t. Know. Why?”

Each word is accentuated with a harder jab, sending me back a step. If this were anyone other than her, I would break the damn finger. Skyla’s the only one who’s ever been fully on my side, though. Just like she is now.

If she wasn’t, she would’ve told Aiden and Sean about Bianca.

“How stupid are you?” Skyla holds up a hand. “Wait. Don’t answer that. Obviously, you’re the biggest idiot ever. Idiots all across the world are going to build shrines dedicated to your dumbassery.”

“Dumbassery isn’t a word.”

She gives me a dirty look. “Idiot.”

“I’m not. I didn’t know Gia was a Rinaldo when we were dating. We were together for a year before I found out who she was. I left as soon as I did, and she hid the baby from me until I showed up in her house a couple weeks ago.”

Skyla paces back and forth. “I can’t believe you let this happen. You know Aiden is going to freak out when he finds out, right?”

Understatement of the year.

“You can’t tell him.” The words are out in a rush. “He doesn’t know and you can’t tell him. It would put Bianca in danger.”

She stops. “You know he wouldn’t hurt her.”

Do I?

“I know, but there’s a rat among the men. If Aiden finds out, he’s going to be pissed, but I can deal with that.” I take a deep breath, linking my hands behind my head, trying to get a breath. “The problem is if Noah finds out. You know he’s a monster. We don’t know what he’s going to do to her.”

Skyla grabs me, hauling me in for a tight hug. “It’s going to be okay. We’re going to keep Bianca safe, and nothing is going to happen to her.”

“You have to promise to keep Gia safe too. I’m not going to be the reason my daughter’s mother dies.” I hug Skyla back before letting her go. “Gia is a good woman, and she doesn’t trust her brother. You saw her. She escaped to come back to us.”

“I’ll do what I can to keep this a secret from Aiden for now.” Skyla leads the way out of the woods and back toward the house. “But sooner or later you know you’re going to have to tell him.”

“I know.”

“She changes things, Royce.”

I turn toward the house, catching a glimpse of Gia’s silhouette framed in the window. Her full lips press together as Bianca stops squirming on her hip, matching stares on their faces.

Fuck, I’d do anything to protect them.

The wind bites through my jacket like the icy reminder that my family—and Noah—are closing in on us.

Bianca does change things. She changes everything, and I’m afraid of what that means in a dangerous world like mine.