Page 137 of Loving the Tormentor

Alex is the one right in front of me, the others a step behind, so I notice exactly when something changes in her eyes.Understanding.

"Achilles," she croaks. Her eyes drop because she's not one who can handle confrontation, but right now, she's the only one who can bring the truth to life despite her lack of confidence in it.

With a voice as loud as a mouse, and the most important question on the tip of her tongue, she says, "How can you be so sure she's not Hermes?"

I feel the smirk they all hate slowly spreading on my face. Ella's voice resonates in my head from all the times she’s described it.Achilles smiles like he hides a secret behind it. He knows something no one else does.

"Because I am."

Chapter Thirty-One

Achilles

you broke me first – Tate McRae

If someone made a painting of this, it would portray the biggest treachery in the history of humankind. Forget The Last Supper, where everyone was naïvely trusting their own. This Judas is facing his sins without shame. This is tearing people's hearts out in the most savage way. The mix of confusion, betrayal, and denial should be enough to trigger apologies to flow from my lips, but they get nothing.

Hanging jaw from Alex, tears in Ella's eyes, Chris’s expression so cold, he might have frozen in time. Peach's mouth is opening and closing like a fish out of water. Even her fiery personality can't handle this one. And Wren…I've never seen such fury on someone's face.

"Hate me all you want. I can take it," I say with a voice that shows no regret. Probably because I have none. "But leave Nyx alone."

It's Peach who says the first words, since she's the warrior out of all of us.

"I can't believe it… That's not possible."

I pull my phone out, log into the account, and turn the screen toward them. "It's the truth whether you want to accept it or not."

"All those things you've said about us," Ella croaks, blinking tears down her face. "The horrors, the secrets…"

I let the silence fill the room as I put my phone back in my pocket, and that triggers Peach.

"Say something," she hisses. "You betrayed us!"

I run a hand through my hair, messing up the black locks.

"I'm not saying anything because I know what you want to hear, and I can't give it to you."

"What do we want to hear?" she insists.

Alex takes an instinctive step back when I move forward, and I'll admit, it hurts.

I look at all of them as I say, "You want apologies that you're not going to get. And you want to hear that I'll stop when I won't. I have my reasons for my actions, and they're more important than you or our friendship. You knowing doesn't change anything. I only told you so that you wouldn't go after Nyx."

"Why would you do this? H-How could you fuck us over like this?" Wren mumbles, more to himself than to me. He's looking for the reason, and he won't find it.

He looks at me, then Peach, and when his eyes are on mine again, they burn with hatred.

"The things you put Peach through?—"

He barely finishes his sentence, jumping me and tackling me to the floor.

"Wren!" Ella shouts.

I manage to avoid his punch and push him off me. I don't want to hurt him; I've caused enough damage, so I put an arm in front of me as we both get up.

"Don't! Guys, please don't," Alex rushes out as she tries to get between us.

It's Chris who ends up holding him back.