Page 15 of Silent Night, Savage Heart

"Done."

"Second, I need to learn how to protect myself. Guns, knives, whatever you think I need to survive if something happens to you."

"I'll teach you."

"Third—" She pauses, and something shifts in her expression. "I need you to tell me the truth about my mother. I want to know who killed her and if my father knew any of this.”

This one's harder. I’m sure the truth about Peyton’s parents is complicated, bloody, and tied to family secrets that predate me. But I nod anyway.

"I'll tell you what I know. And what I don't know, we'll find out together."

"Together." She tests the word. "That implies a partnership."

"It does."

"I don't do well with partners. They tend to have their own agendas."

"So do I."

"Which is?"

"Keeping you alive. Everything else is negotiable."

A knock on the door interrupts whatever she was about to say. Three sharp raps, a pause, then two more.

A family code.

I move to the door, check the peephole to make sure it isn’t Silas, then curse under my breath.

"Who is it?" Peyton asks.

"My brother. Luca." I unlock the door, open it just enough to see him. "Bad timing."

Luca Delano stands in the hallway looking like a mini-me in a designer suit. Twenty-seven, reckless, with our father's eyes and our mother's tendency toward self-destruction. He's got a split lip and bruised knuckles, which look fresh, probably from tonight. I haven’t seen him since I left town, and for a moment, I feel like a shitty brother.

"Silas is looking for you," he says without preamble. "Wants you at the estate. Now."

"I'm busy."

"He knows." Luca's gaze flicks past me to where Peyton's standing. Something changes in his expression. There’s a recognition, calculation, and something else I can't read. "He knows that she’s here and what you're doing. And he's pissed."

"He'll get over it."

"Blake." Luca's voice drops, urgent. "He sent Domenic and six guys to Talia's place. They tore it apart looking for the Kingsley files.”

The hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention. If anyone lays a hand on my sister, I will fuck them up.

“Dude, she’s my sister too, and she’s fine; she wasn't there, but Silas is serious. This isn't just about control anymore. He wants the girl, and he's willing to destroy everything to get her."

Ice slides through my veins. "When?"

"An hour ago. Maybe less." Luca glances at Peyton again, then back to me. "Look, I don't know what's going on. Don't want to know. But whatever you're planning, do it fast, because Silas isn't playing by family code anymore. He's playing to win."

"He always was."

"Yeah, but this is different. He's scared. And scared men do stupid things. Especially scared Delanos.”

“I’ve never seen a scared Delano,” I scoff. “Sometimes, I wonder if that fucker is actually related to us.”