Page 60 of Eternal

18

What We Die By

Declan

The basement at SigmaHouse has a deep, constant reek of blood even after the bodies are dragged out and buried. Most buildings this old are haunted by ghosts, but not these walls. Even ghosts wouldn’t dare stay here.

No one does.

Not even Sigma Sin.

Once we graduate, we leave, knowing we never really escape them. After the first mark is carved into our skin, the only way to truly break the chains of the fraternity is through death.

We’re raised for this—bred for this. To spill secrets. To extract sin. To accumulate blackmail for the men who came before us and to continue the tradition of building and breaking men.

I used to believe in that mission. With every letter carved into my pecs, my loyalty deepened. With every trial, I became stronger.

Maybe I still do believe in the mantra of the House, and I’m just shifting my perspective. My loyalty isn’t with the men outside these walls; it’s with the ones within them. I’m going to harness that until we’re something better—something stronger.

Something unbreakable.

The House calls the seven trials a legacy initiation. But it’s torture. Pain we subject ourselves to in order to prove we’re strong enough. It tests us in ways we can’t imagine, and as we survive, we evolve.

It’s what we live by and what we die by.

A singular truth that true Sigma Sin survives anything.

I believed it. I respected it. I earned it.

I’ve spilled my blood. I’ve done my time. Seven letters under my T-shirt are proof of that.

ETERNAL

Teal’s the one who gave me the idea, even if she clearly doesn’t remember.

Soon, they’ll all learn what it means, and by the time the Council sees my plans, they won’t be able to do anything about it.

Skimming my fingers over the implements on the table in the center of the basement, I find my focus. I find my clarity when all of this stopped making sense after what Liam and Braxon did to Violet.

No… farther back than that.

After what the Council did to Alex.

They say that to be Sigma Sin, the House must come above all—relationships, careers, friendship, personal gain. I agree, so long as those with the title live up to what they pledged instead of being self-serving assholes.

The Council uses and abuses the House more than anyone. They aren’t making men; they’re hiding them.

They’re using us to bury their dirty little secrets, and when someone challenges the order, they find a way to flush them out. They think we won’t notice because we haven’t graduated yet, but I see it.

Take from the House, we take from you.

The Sigma Sin motto conveniently leaves out the counterpart.

Give to the House, it gives to you.

When I’m done, Sigma House will no longer be a charity for those who take without giving back. We will truly be a brotherhood. We’ll be one, and we’ll be unstoppable.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. The room reeks of sweat and blood.