It was approximately fifteen minutes later when the brothers turned their attention to the door. They'd ordered appetizers and a second round of drinks in that span of time, and I had moved on to water. I was almost bored with waiting by that point. Asher and Blaine stood, buttoning their suit jackets. I craned my head to see Carson, but a party was leaving simultaneously and I couldn't see the door clearly. By the time the other patrons left, no one was waiting to be seated.
I leaned to my left to look at the table in the center of the room once again. Apparently, they were seated together, though I realized a large plant on the half wall between tables blocked my view. Standing, I smoothed my dress and took a deep breath.
Making my way to the table, I passed the maître d' and a few waiters. I drew to a stop beside Asher, and my jaw dropped.
"Elena?"
48
Kinsley
I was rooted to the spot, my feet refusing to move and my mind a complete blank.
"Oh, Kinsley," Elena said. "So wonderful to run into you."
Asher leered at me. "Yes, Kinsley, do sit down."
With wobbly knees, I sank onto the extra chair. "What are you doing with these two, Elena?"
The waiter appeared, and Elena ordered a drink before responding to her daughter-in-law. "It's a bit of a long story, but I suppose it won't hurt to tell it to you."
"Where's Carson?" I asked.
Blaine laughed, the sound reminding me of nails on a chalkboard. "Dead."
My brows winged up before I remembered to school my features. Apparently, I'd missed my chance to confront him.
"Oh, Anna and I took him to the little place we're staying at. He spouted off to Asher, so I told him to go ahead and put a bullet in Carson's brain."
Asher smirked. "Satisfying, that."
Heart clogging my throat, I tried to put the pieces together. My instinct told me I knew the answers, but my brain couldn't seem to process everything. I turned to Elena. "How long?"
"How long has it been me?" I nodded, and Elena continued. "Oh, Lord, so long. Carson used to tell me men dominate in the chaotic world women create. He was such a fool."
Sweat trickled down the small of my back. "But still you obeyed everything he commanded of you."
Rolling her eyes, Elena picked up her glass. "I never thought I'd get this chance, my dear. I had to obey; it was the only way to fool him."
"Even going so far as skipping all the chances you had to tell Burke about me and Finn?"
"Oh, Carson and I agreed on that point, except he assumed Burke would never touch you unless he was drunk and it was a mistake. I wasn't sure how it happened, but I figured you wanted the family money and told him you were on birth control when you weren't." She laughed heartily. "Lord have mercy, you were so timid when you came to tell me of your little mishap. I thought you'd throw up on my Aubusson rug, and I would have been so pissed. Back then, you would've been the perfect wife to manipulate, but even I can see how beautifully you've matured."
"What did you think would happen when Burke found out? He had a private investigator searching for me."
"I considered breaking my promise and telling him, especially when it seemed like he had nine lives." She grinned, and I suddenly saw how unhinged the woman was. "After all, he survived the hit, he survived the explosion; hell, he even made it through the White’s trap. I didn't see that one coming."
I clasped my hands in my lap to stop the shaking. No, she and Anna weren't the meek women Burke thought he grew up with. "It wasn't Carson, but you who convinced Anna I'd trapped your son into marriage. And she convinced Logan and God knows who else."
"Anna believed it so readily. She sincerely wanted Harper as her sister-in-law. Of course, the little lamb didn't realize how much we wanted Burke to marry into another powerful Family." Elena's fingers curled around the stem of her glass. "Carlos White promised us things, but needless to say, they fell through on their promises."
"Because of me."
"Because your husband is a stronzo," Blaine interjected.
"Language," Elena admonished.
I gaped. She acted as though she was their mother, and they obeyed. They were all insane.
