Page 15 of Upon Blooded Lips (Vengeance #1)

NATE

I switch the TV off and clench my fists. Fucking Presley. That cunt can never just sit down and shut the fuck up. She should be glad Tessa’s gone, not sobbing and wailing for the cameras.

Tessa’s been “missing” for less than twenty-four hours, and Presley’s already done three appeals. It’s setting off alarms for me. Yes, she’s an attention whore, but her reputation means everything to her. All of Willowmen will be gossiping, and not all of it will be complimentary.

Presley wouldn’t risk that, because strangers’ opinions of her mean more to her than her daughter’s. So why? Is she scared the Martinellis will blame her? Or is she worried Tessa ran away and might reveal what Presley did to her?

As I scramble some eggs and toss bacon into a pan, I tamp down on my annoyance. It was fifty-fifty really, which way Presley would go, but I had bet on her keeping her head down, not making a spectacle of herself.

I don’t like being wrong. I pride myself on my analytical skills, because mistakes in our line of work can get us killed. I don’t take chances. If anything happened to Eric because I was lax, I’d never forgive myself.

The problem is that Willowmen isn’t Chicago.

We can’t lose ourselves among a couple million people.

Presley putting Tessa’s face all over the media will make it difficult for us to move around without being spotted.

And with Robert’s prominent position and friendship with Mayor Thornwood, the news is unlikely to let up any time soon.

Until we talk with Tessa and work out our immediate future, I suppose it doesn’t matter.

There’s a reason I built this house in the forest surrounding the outskirts of Willowmen—privacy.

A ten-foot wall surrounds the two acre property, and the private driveway is almost a mile from the road. She’ll be safe here.

While I wait for Eric to finish giving her the tour, I set the table and place the food in warming trays.

Hopefully, Eric’s golden retriever energy will have calmed any nerves she had when she woke up in a strange place.

My tattoos and height can be intimidating, and I didn’t want to scare her right off the bat.

Although, her alter ego didn’t show any fear. Tessa told us about Mirror Girl years ago, and while I don’t pretend to understand, I respect their dynamic. If Tessa sees her darker side as a separate being, who am I to question that? I have my own demons to worry about.

But I’m glad she made herself known. The way she moved, her confidence, how the knife became an extension of herself—it bodes well should Tessa decide to enact the revenge she’s been talking about for as long as we’ve known her.

Eric and Tessa appear in the doorway, and my shoulders relax at the smile on Tessa’s face. Her eyes lock with mine, and the corner of my mouth kicks up. “Hey,” I say, jerking my head toward the sideboard. “You must be hungry. Come get some food.”

Eric throws his arm over Tessa’s shoulders. “My stepbrother Nate, better known as Pal1. And before you ask, yes, he fell out of a beanstalk at birth.”

“That must have hurt,” Tessa replies. My lips curl up at that.

“Yeah, the ground,” Eric shoots back. My smile turns into a scowl. It’s not like he’s that much shorter than me.

Tessa sidles up to me and tilts her head back. “You’re the one that drugged and kidnapped me.”

“Yes.”

She searches my eyes, then throws her arms around my waist. I freeze before patting her awkwardly on the back.

“Thank you for saving me.”

“You’re welcome.”

She pulls away and takes the plate Eric hands her. He tosses me a wink and fills his plate before ushering Tessa to the table. I shake off the stunned feeling and load up my plate. That’s the second time in two days I’ve held her. Why does it feel like it’s where she belongs?

After taking a seat next to Eric and across from Tessa, the three of us eat quietly.

Tessa fixates on her food while Eric’s amused gaze pings between us.

The air bristles with building tension, and I know we need to get everything out in the open.

She’s bound to have a million questions, and the time for secrets and half-truths is over.

We’ve kept a lot from her over the years. First, because she was just a kid, and second, because she had enough to deal with without us adding more. But she’s an adult now and deserves to know everything.

Once we’ve finished, Eric runs our plates to the kitchen before taking his seat again. I let out a breath, and he squeezes my knee under the table. I open my mouth, but Tessa beats me to it.

“Why?”

“Why what, angel?” Eric asks.

Tessa leans back in her chair and twists her napkin around her fingers. “Why did you write to me? Why didn’t you tell me who you were? Are we really related?” She drops the mangled napkin onto the table and pins me with an anguished look. “Why did you kidnap me? Why me?”

“There’s a lot?—”

“I want to know everything. All of it. I can’t… I can’t be in the dark anymore.”

“Okay. We’ll tell you anything you want to know. If you need a break, just say so,” I say, and she nods. “Are we related? No.”

Tessa’s brow furrows. “But Eric said we’re cousins.”

“We are, in a sense,” Eric replies. “Our family’s a bit fucked up, but none of us are blood related.”

“My mom, Meredith, married Presley’s brother, Daniel. A little over a year later, I was born. I found out later that Daniel isn’t my biological father,” I say.

“Who is?” Tessa asks. “Did your mom have an affair?”

My shoulder lifts. “I don’t know. Daniel never told me, and I never cared enough to look into it.”

“I came along nine months later,” Eric says. “Daniel’s my father. He had an affair, and I was the result. My biological mother dropped me on Daniel’s doorstep when I was a baby, then disappeared.”

“And with Presley not being my bio mother?—”

Eric dips his head. “Right. So you’re my adopted cousin, while Nate’s your stepcousin.”

Tessa nibbles on her lip before saying, “Okay, but why did you do the whole pen pal thing? It’s not like we grew up together.”

“Do you remember us?” I ask.

Tessa waves her hand back and forth. “A little, but my memory is vague.”

“We babysat you one afternoon when you were three or four. We never saw you again after that, but we didn’t forget you. When your teacher started the pen pal project, we thought it would allow us to have contact with you without raising suspicion,” Eric explains.

“So you were, what? Keeping tabs on me?”

“In a way,” I reply.

“But why? You only met me once, and I was a toddler. Why did you care?”

I lean back and cross my arms. “Because you’re our family. You’re one of us.”

Tessa picks up the napkin again and shreds it. “What does that mean?” she whispers, her gaze locked on mine.

“We were forged in violence, witnessed horrors no children should ever experience, and we’re still standing. We’re not victims; we’re fucking survivors. You’re one of us, Tessa. Our family. And you belong with us.”

Tessa’s lip trembles and tears glide down her cheeks.

Eric reaches across the table and takes her hand.

“I agree. You belong with us. But you’ve had enough choices stolen from you, and we need you to understand that your future is your decision.

Nate designed this house with the three of us in mind, but it’s not a prison. ”

“What do you mean?” Tessa asks again, wiping away her tears with the back of her hand.

I pick up the tablet sitting next to me and open up a banking app before sliding it across the table. Tessa picks it up, her eyes widening at the number of zeros in the balance.

“That’s an offshore account in your name.

It’s your freedom. We’ll support any decision you make.

Want to go to college? Eric will get you into any university of your choice, and we’ll pay for the entire experience.

Want to leave the country? We’ll purchase your plane tickets and get you a passport.

Want us to kill your parents? We’ll arrange it,” I say.

Tessa sets the tablet down. “What if I want to stay here?”

A wide grin spreads across Eric’s face. “Then stay here. This is your home now, and you’ll always be welcome. The world’s your oyster, Tessa. You can do whatever you want.”

“And if I want revenge?”

Eric and I exchange knowing glances. I was hoping she’d ask. While I would happily do it for her, I’d rather help her do it herself. She deserves to avenge her inner child for the harm those monsters did to her.

“Then we’ll train you, support you, and do everything in our power to make it happen,” I reply.

Her face lights up, and the sight makes my chest ache. She’s endured so much, far more than Eric and I have. I want to see her smile every day, to make up for the suffering she’s endured.

I’m so fucked.