Theo
Wagging my hand hard, the residual, painful tingling didn’t go away, and I ran my not-blown-off fingers through my hair roughly. Making breakfast together had seemed like such a great idea, aside from the fact Illya couldn’t use the stovetop, of course. Ever since picking up that stupid pan, though, my right had been having a fit.
Thankfully, it wasn’t terribly painful, but I could definitely do without the spasms up my arm right now.
“Remind me again why I have to follow you around like a dog in a place like this.” Scowling as Carlyle glanced up from his phone, I flexed my ruined hand against the flat of the table. The mall we were in waspacked, and his light, hazel eyes flickered to my hand as I sat back.
“Youarea dog, Theo, at least, when you’re with me. Why does that have to be negative, huh? Do you know how good dogs have it in this society?” I only grunted at that, forcing my fingers as straight as they’d go, which wasn’t that much of an accomplishment. The sting zinging up my arm abated briefly, and Carlyle lounged against the booth with a short sigh. “We’re waiting on a friend of mine to deliver something. She’s a bit of a nut, and this is the place she picked.”
“I wouldn’t have thought you waited for anyone, Carlyle.” He seemed to constantly surprise, and he smirked at my observation. Over the past week or so since locking Mateo up in his house without so much as a flicker of an eyelid of emotion, Carlyle almost acted overly dramatic. It was as if he was trying to prove that he wasn’t just a sicko with a bone to pick with his little brother.
“She’s pretty paranoid, so I don’t really have a choice. She does great work for me, though.” Vague answers to not-so-questionable questions. Carlyle didn’t give me any more than that, and I frowned as my lips thinned before clenched teeth. Interest sparked in his eye, and he flopped his head back before sitting up hastily. “So, tell me something. What do you know about my operations? We’ve never talked about it. I assumed Mateo wouldn’t be able to give any straight answers considering he’s twice removed.”
“That’s a dumbfuck question. I know your father runs the Syndicate, and you’re second in command or some shit like that. I honestly don’t care about the details.” I rolled my eyes at the surprise that brightened Carlyle’s eyes, and curiosity rippled across his hard features as I sunk in my seat. “As long as I get paid, I don’t give two fucks. I can count on my bad hand how many times Mateo complained about Daddy Dearest and being shoved into the corner, and I really wasn’t paying attention at the time.”
“Do you know what your name means, Theo?” Irritation raked my eyelid, and I shook my head as Carlyle propped his elbow on the table to hold his chin on his fist. “It means ‘divine gift.’ Ironically, the name Mateo also means ‘gift from God’. You know what my name means? It was originally a girl’s name, firstly. It means ‘from the walled city.’”
“I really couldn’t give a lesser shit, Carlyle.” My bland tone earned me a smirk, but I didn’t think too hard on what subliminal message he was trying to send me. “Why do you think I want to know what your name means?”
“You don’t. I’m only trying to make conversation. I just thought it was funny— Illya is a boy’s name, and mine was originally a girl’s.” The hairs on the back of my neck bristled, and my eyes narrowed on Carlyle as he feigned ignorance. “You wouldn’t think because the connotation of ‘a’ at the end, but it fits her quite well. I’m sure you agree. Have you seen her chest yet?”
“I bet you’re going to tell me all about it.” My lip twitched in a faint snarl, and Carlyle caught my gaze levelly. He was trying to push me, to find a button, but this wasn’t a month ago. I wouldn’t threaten him— I’d just fucking pop his brains out of his mouth. “Careful what you say, Carlyle, because I have a feeling that threatening to kill you won’t do shit, so I’ll have toreallykill you to get my point across.”
Lucky for him, Carlyle didn’t laugh, and he leaned forward with a graveness dragging down his features.
“I was jealous.” My brow rose quizzically at the admission, and Carlyle smirked a little self-deprecating at me. It almost seemed like he wasgenuine, but even that caused my suspicion to rise. “When Mateo hired you, I was jealous. I admit it. In all seriousness, when I met you, I kinda wanted to kill him myself just so I could transfer you to my service. You’re not afraid to say it straight, Theo, and I appreciate that, especially in a person that’s guarding my life.”
“Right. I don’t suppose you have a reason for not doing that?” The more time I spent with Carlyle, the more I realized that he was a fucking asshole. He was a two-faced, smart, beady-eyed asshole that liked to play mind games, and I fucking hated it. I hated the conversations more than I hated Mateo’s whining.
However . . .Carlyle didn’t require round the clock babysitting, so I had free time, which more than made up for some of the more unpleasant experiences.
“Do you remember how you felt the first time you met me?” Carlyle’s face twisted in disgust, and I shook my head as the soberness of the moment blanketed my skin in goosebumps. “That’s how everyone is, and I’m not going to lie— sometimes, it gets annoying. If I killed Mateo, you would’ve failed at your job, and, well, then you’d have to die, too. Not exactly what I want. So, I figured why not kill three birds with one stone?”
He so casually admitted interference that I had to doubletake, and I cocked my head as I sucked in a sharp breath through flared nostrils. Leaning back, Carlyle laced his fingers behind his head to blow out a breath, and I clenched and released my jaw hard.
“I’ve had my eye on Illya for a long time. My father hired her mother— did you know that? Illya seems to believe her mom was going to the FBI, but . . . anyway, I started looking into it, and whaddya know? I found her. I shipped Mateo off to California after I got word that she was there. I didn’t necessarily consider he’d meet you, but Mateo goes through bodyguards like candy. It wasn’t luck that you three got together— well, not entirely. Every situation requires a little bit of luck.” He talked so casually even as his frown became more and more prominent and nasty, and his biceps flexed under the strained fabric of his button-down. “I didn’t expect Mateo to get that thing involved, but it’s an added bonus in my book. Maybe, he’ll break under pressure? Maybe, he’ll grow up and stop acting like an angry toddler? Either way, he’ll finally be out of my hair. I’ve always hated him.”
“You boarded him up in his house like he had the Plague. You legitimately boarded up the windows and doors.” It wasfucking insanityto think that Carlyle had plans for me long before we met— that he had plans for Illya— and he arched a brow quizzically.
“So? Mateo acts like a child, I’ll treat him like a child, and children sometimes need a nice, long time out to reflect on their behavior.” Snorting roughly at that, I scowled when Carlyle frowned disapprovingly at me. “Didn’t you threaten to cut your own sister’s fingers off when she was insensitive about it? How is my forcing my considerations on Mateo so outlandish?”
“I can’t wait to see how your kids grow up if you make that mistake.” My grumble only darkened Carlyle’s frown, and I cast him a pointed look. “You never answered my question. You just changed the subject.”
“I was genuinely curious. I haven’t seen her naked.” The flippant reply intensified the blood pounding in my ears, and Carlyle lowered his arms as disinterest masked his features. “Regardless, I’m not interested in seeing her naked. I’m sure she’s got some horrifying scars, and I’m not particularly attracted to that kind of thing— although, I’m sure it’s a different story for you, Theo. To be perfectly clear, here, Theo, I have no interest in her. If she wasn’t so ruined, physically, then, of course, but . . . ”
Theo shrugged, and disgust clawed up my throat before his eyes wavered from mine. Twisting as the conversation stumbled to a halt, I frowned deeply as a familiar body stalked over.That chick worked at the same club as Illya.
“Marcella, my darling.” She slid into the booth next to Carlyle, sinking deep, until her head couldn’t be seen over the top, and sighed a huge, exaggerated sigh. “How was your flight back?”
“About as bad as working in that shitty club for three years for nothing. Are youpositiveshe doesn’t know I’m in cahoots with you, Carlyle, because I— ” Carlyle held up a hand to stop her, and Marcella’s expression darkened as she glanced around wearily. “I hate you.”
“That’s all I ask for, Marcella. Next time, don’t do anything stupid, and I won’t get involved. Do you have what I need?” Casting me a suspicious look, Marcella stuck her hand deep into her purse, and my mind whirled frantically, trying to put this together. Marcella. Illya had mentioned that name a few times, that she danced ‘because she liked it,’ but her parents were rich and . . .
And it was all a lie?That sucks.
“There won’t be a next time. I’m never doing anything for you ever again, Carlyle. That was horrible. I’ll never live that down. This is it. Done. Over. Never contact me again.” Carlyle chuckled, and Marcella stiffened as he grabbed her neck and forced her head up. Watching outside their little bubble, I would’ve thought it was almost romantic if not for her thinned lips and pale cheeks.
“What are you going to dowhenI contact you again? The only person that says ‘no’ to me is dead.” He held out his palm, and she stuck something in it before he let her go, and she couldn’t get up fast enough to run away. Arching a brow, I kept my mouth shut because, well, fuck this shit.
