Page 55 of Ruin My Life (Blood & Betrayal #1)

Damon

O UR SUV SCREECHES TO A STOP IN FRONT of my apartment. We don’t waste time pulling into the garage—just leave it crooked at the curb.

I don’t give a damn if we’re blocking a hydrant or parked in a loading zone. I need to get upstairs. Now .

I tried checking the cameras on the drive over, but someone killed the feed. Took everything offline. That kind of darkness only happens if it’s deliberate. If I want to see what went down, I’ll have to access the local footage from my desktop.

Monroe, Chavez, and I storm through the lobby like it’s on fire—only difference is, we’re not running away from it. We’re charging straight into the flames.

Lee wouldn’t have triggered that alarm unless shit was seriously bad. He would’ve called. Texted. Something . But I’ve gotten nothing except that single alert for help.

Connor’s gone dark too.

And Brie—her phone goes straight to voicemail.

The elevator crawls to the penthouse. Each floor we pass seems to come slow and go even slower. It gives me more time to think. More time to spiral.

O’Doyle swore on his life the Songbirds weren’t involved. Said all his people were accounted for. So this? This has to be the one we’ve been chasing—the one who killed Jennifer. Killed Anya.

They must’ve realized we were closing in .

They hacked King’s Eye—no doubt they could override an elevator key. But taking down Connor and Brie? That’s not a one-person job.

Unless they had help. Maybe they found another partner after Xander?

My jaw clenches as the elevator dings. All three of us raise our guns, aim fixed on the seam between the doors.

When they part, the apartment is dark. Too dark.

“Lee? Brie? Connor?” My voice cuts into the silence as we step out.

Chavez feels along the wall and finds the light switch. The overheads flicker on—

“Shit—Lee!”

He’s lying on the floor, a thick trail of blood smeared behind him from where he must’ve dragged himself across the kitchen. His shirt is soaked through, the colour of it almost black from the amount of blood he’s lost.

Monroe moves fast. First aid kit’s under the sink, and he’s on it before I even reach Lee’s side. He rips the bloodied shirt open and finds the bullet wound that’s torn through his back, stuffing it with gauze. Lee lets out a weak, garbled sound.

He’s still conscious. Still breathing. Barely.

I scan the room for more blood. For Brie.

That’s when I see the laptops—both of them destroyed. Shot straight through. Brie’s phone is on the ground nearby, its screen shattered like it was stomped on.

I’m trying to put it together.

Did someone break in? Wipe the evidence?

If so… where are Brie and Connor?

Why leave Lee alive and take the two of them?

“Damon,” Monroe calls out, drawing my attention. “We need to get him to a hospital.”

“We’ll take him to Dahlia. She should be on shift at the ER,” I say quickly, then turn to Chavez. “I need you to try Connor again. See if—”

“Con…” Lee wheezes .

I drop back down beside him as Monroe presses another layer of gauze into the wound, his movements quick but careful.

“Lee, do you remember what happened?” I ask, trying to keep my tone steady—calm—though every part of me is straining for answers.

“Con… has Brie.”

The breath that leaves me is tight, but relieved. “Okay. That’s good.” If she’s with Connor, that means she’s not alone. That she’s protected.

But then Lee shakes his head weakly. “No—ugh,” he groans as Monroe pulls the wrap tighter around his middle.

“Sorry, hermano ,” Monroe mutters, tying it off.

“We’ll get you to Dahlia,” I tell him again. “She’ll take care of you. Once you’re stable, you can tell me—”

“No.” Lee’s hand clamps around my forearm, his grip weak but urgent. “It… was Con.”

The words barely register at first.

“It was… Con?” I repeat, the shape of them foreign on my tongue.

Lee’s blood-smeared lips part again. “Killed Jennifer… Anya…” His voice cracks, more blood sliding from the corner of his mouth. “Has Brie.”

The floor tilts under me, like I’m standing on the deck of a sinking ship.

Connor?

That can’t be right.

He’s been like family to me. A brother.

I remember the first time we met—just days after I made my deal with Matthias.

There were still Songbirds testing the line, wandering into Kings territory like they hadn’t been warned.

I was tracking one of them down when Connor beat me to it—gifted the guy with a bullet in his skull before I even showed up.

That night, he told me the Songbirds killed someone he loved, and he wanted them to suffer. I saw the fire in his eyes. I offered him a way to turn that rage into something useful— told him he could kill as many as he wanted, so long as they were on my turf.

He's always been violent. Unhinged sometimes. But loyal. I thought.

We fought often about the deal with O’Doyle. He wanted to draw more blood. Wanted to burn the whole empire down. I told him over and over—we’d lose that war. The patience we practiced was the only thing keeping us alive and in control.

I thought he’d understood.

Never—not once—did I think he’d take it this far. Never imagined he’d shoot Lee. Take Brie.

No.

This has to be a mistake. It has to be.

“Monroe, take him to the hospital,” I say, my voice firm. “Chavez, we’re going to check the camera footage. I need to know what the fuck happened here.”

Monroe nods without question, already moving to lift Lee. Chavez and I head down the hall toward my home office.

As I punch in the code, Chavez asks, “Do you think what Lee said is true?”

I pause. “I don’t know. I don’t want to believe it. But I’ve known Lee about as long as I’ve known Connor… and Lee wouldn’t lie to me—especially not about this.”

“Maybe he just doesn’t have all the facts,” Chavez offers. “Getting shot’ll mess with your head.”

“Yeah.” I push the door open, hoping he’s right.

I sit at my desk and power on the desktop. It only takes seconds to pull up the saved camera footage.

I scroll back to the moment Brie and I stood in the kitchen. When I told her I wouldn’t fail—that I’d be back. Little did I know she had already set everything in motion to make sure I could keep that promise.

I scrub through the feed. Hours pass in minutes—Brie and Lee at the kitchen island, laptops open, heads down. Connor standing near the door, motionless. Just watching.

When Connor steps closer, I stop scrubbing and watch.

At first, everything seems normal.

But then I notice Brie’s expression .

Her eyes shift—wide, alert, uneasy.

“What's wrong, Brie?” Connor’s voice crackles through the speaker, deceptively calm.

“Nothing,” she answers too quickly, flicking her gaze toward Lee. “I think we should call Damon. Tell him what we’ve found.”

Lee doesn’t hesitate to pull out his phone. “I’ll text him. See if he’s finished with Matthias—”

“He will be by now,” Brie cuts in.

She knew I would be, because of the deal she made with O’Doyle.

“I can call if you want. I don’t care if I interrupt.”

She reaches for her phone.

Connor doesn’t move until she pulls it out. Then—calmly—he steps toward he and snatches it from her hand. Holds it above her head like he’s taunting a puppy with a treat.

My stomach clenches.

He’s mocking her. “Come on, Brie. You started this little fire, and now you’re gonna piss on Damon’s meeting with half a clue and a gut feeling?”

“Con?” Lee says. “What the hell are you doing?”

Lee starts to step in, but Brie blocks him. My fists curl.

She’s already calculated the threat. And she’s trying to protect him.

How the fuck did I not see this coming?

Connor grins like he’s won. “There she is. The infamous Black Rose. Took you long enough to figure it out.”

He drops Brie’s phone. Smashes it under his boot.

Something inside me cracks. Rage floods my chest.

“It was you…” Lee breathes.

Connor doesn’t flinch. “You were always a sweet kid, Lee. But sweet doesn’t survive long in our world. Haven’t you heard the saying, keep your friends close and your enemies closer?”

Lee stares in disbelief. “But... why?”

Connor laughs, low and sharp. “Jesus, you really don’t know?” He shakes his head. “You’ve all been so focused on protecting Damon, you never stopped to think who he failed to protect.”

My throat tightens.

“You son of a bitch,” I mutter.

Brie’s voice is steel. “Damon is supposed to be your brother.”

Connor’s face hardens. “The day he let them kill my sister, any chance of brotherhood between us died with her.”

His sister?

“Isabella?” Brie asks, and I freeze.

No. That’s impossible. He’s not—

He grins. “Ding ding ding! We have a winner.”

My mind reels.

Chavez stiffens beside me. “Isabella was Connor’s sister?”

“It’s the first I’m hearing of it,” I tell him. “I didn’t even know she had a brother.”

“I can’t believe he never mentioned that,” Chavez murmurs.

I stare at the screen, the betrayal unfolding frame by frame. “Seems it was his plan all along.”

My heart pounds as I watch Brie shove Lee back and lunge at Connor, grappling for his gun. Panic jolts through my veins.

What the fuck is she thinking ?

I lean in closer to the monitor as she shoves his arm down, redirecting the aim toward the floor. Her voice cuts through the speakers—sharp, commanding. “Lee, call Damon!”

Lee scrambles for his phone. My hand twitches toward mine, uselessly, as if I could go back in time and make the call myself.

But then I hear Connor laugh—low and cold. It turns my blood to ice. “You think one training session with Monroe makes you a threat?”

He moves like he’s done this a hundred times—because he has. He wrenches Brie back effortlessly. Like he’s been waiting for this moment.

Then he fires.

BANG!

I flinch. I’ve already seen the damage—Lee bleeding out across my kitchen floor.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen now,” Connor snarls. “I know Damon took you to Block Island on your little honeymoon. And I’m betting he showed you to his extra-special hideout, yeah?”

My jaw locks.

My mom.

This was never about Brie. It was about my mother. About the choice I made—to protect her first. Before Isabella. Before anyone else. I built her a safe place, far away from this world, and Connor’s going to use Brie to get to her.

Brie’s face pales, horror etched in every line. His arm tightens around her throat. Her feet barely touch the floor. She’s fighting, but she’s not strong enough to break free.

“You, my feisty little hacker, are going to introduce me to mommy dearest,” Connor drawls. “And you’re going to come with me willingly. Unless, of course, you want me to finish what I started and kill poor, innocent Lee?”

I grit my teeth, rage slamming through me like a freight train.

Connor . A fucking traitor.

I’ll kill him with my bare hands when I find him.

He raises his gun again, aiming at Lee with the same calm face he’d use when holding open a door or clinking his drink with mine.

Brie’s voice cracks. “Stop! Stop. I’ll take you to her. Just don’t hurt him.”

Fury rips through me, clawing at every edge of my restraint.

Connor eases his grip—just enough for her to breathe—and sneers. “Good girl.”

I shove away from the desk, my fists shaking, adrenaline searing through me like a wildfire. My heart pounds so loud it's deafening.

Two more gunshots ring out .

My eyes snap to Chavez who’s still hovering over my screen. “Laptops,” he says, which eases the tightness in my chest a little.

The laptops, of course.

He’s covering his tracks. Trying to, anyway.

“She’s still alive,” I say, mostly to myself. “He needs her.”

He can’t find my mom without her.

“We need to go,” I tell Chavez, already on my feet. “They’ve got almost an hour’s lead based on the timestamp.”

Chavez nods. “I’m with you. We’re not letting him get away with this.”

No, we’re not.

Connor thinks he’s in control. Thinks he’s finally found the upper hand. But I’ll burn every bridge, every safehouse, every last piece of my fucking kingdom to the ground if it means getting her back.

And I know Brie—she won’t go down quietly. She’ll fight.

They both will.

But only one of them walks away.

I’m coming, Brie, I say silently, hoping the words will make it to her somehow. Hold on.