Page 10 of Wrathful King

“She’s not my half-sibling.” Today was the day I came clean to my brother. “Because Angelo isn’t my father.”

“What?” His voice was eerily calm.

“Angelo isn’t my father,” I repeated.

I could almost hear the drumming of his heart as we stared at each other, the silence hanging thick between us. I’d intended to take the secret to my grave, but learning Reina wasn’t Romero’s daughter changed it all. I’d destroy every bridge, every mountain, and every continent for her.

“How long have you known?” His question held a note of accusation, not that I could blame him.

“Three years.”

Like the quiet ticking of a bomb ready to detonate, I pushed the feelings of guilt down, though the tension in my body didn’t release. It reflected the frustration and betrayal staring back at me in my brother’s dark blue eyes.

“Three years,” he repeated slowly. “And you couldn’t find a moment to share that with me?”

I ran my tongue across my teeth. It wasn’t an unreasonable demand, but I hated being questioned.

“And you never thought to share with me that you falsified Angelo’s signature to marry Reina,” I stated calmly, though fury flared and simmered my blood. For reasons I couldn’t explain, it bothered me that he would want her. Fuck, it bothered me that he’d even taken her on a date, though it was clear neither one of them had enjoyed it.

All Reina’s dates and all her time belonged to me. Nobody else.

“How about the fact that Reina is my half sister? You couldn’t tell me that? Jesus, what if she hadn’t resisted my charms and we’d done the deed?” A grimace twisted his face.

I snickered. “In your dreams, maybe.” Dante was determined to pin this shit on me. “Besides, I only recently learned she’s not my sister.”

Dante’s eyes widened. “So who’s your father?”

Tick, tick, tick. “Romero.”

“Holy fucking shit,” he drawled, laughing. “You were screwing your sister.” I shot him a glare. If I wasn’t feeling half dead, I’d wring his neck. “Well, you didn’t know she was your sister, so it’s okay,” he pacified. “But still. Holy fuck. You were screwing your sister.”

“She isn’t my sister,” I gritted. “And if you don’t stop, I’m going to give you a brand-new concussion. One you won’t recover from.”Empty threat.

“Okay, don’t get all bent out of shape.”

I let out a heavy sigh. I needed him to stop jerking my chain. “Besides, I sent you a message after Reina and I got married, right along with her true birth certificate that lists Angelo as her father.” I pinched the bridge of my nose, hoping to release some of the pressure behind my eyelids. “But apparently all my communication was blocked, both ways, with everyone except Mother and Hiroshi.”

“I didn’t get any messages or calls.” He pulled out his phone and waved it in front of my face. “See?”

God, please grant me patience so I don’t murder him.I loved him like a brother, but he drove me insane.

“I just told you my communication lines were interrupted, Dante. Please listen. We don’t have time to keep going around in circles. Catch up.”

He rolled his eyes. Rolled his fucking eyes. “Then stop repeating yourself.”

How much damage could I do by banging my skull against the wall?

“Stop fucking with me, Dante. Thank me for saving you the agony I went through forthree yearsthinking I was in love with my sister, and then help me find her.” I shot him a serious look. “Why her, anyhow? Knowing what she meant to me.”

“I just want to see you happy, brother.” This was the man I knew and loved. Dante leaned against the wall, his eyes flickering with his own secrets. “I didn’t really want her…” He paused to take a deep breath. “I wanted to know why she killed Father—”

“How do you know she did it?” I interjected.

“I had my ways.” I narrowed my eyes. “Regardless, I was going to either destroy her or demand she marry you.”

He would’ve never gotten the chance to destroy her, though the current situation could be classified as slightly ironic. Maybe it was my claim on her that destroyed her in the end.

No, don’t fucking think that way.I would find her and bring her back. The silence grew so deafening it was about to erupt like a volcano.