Can I really afford to walk away from this?I thought.
I turned back to Pierce, who remained where he stood before, still wearing a patient smile on his face. Not an unkind one. In fact, it was one that I instinctively wanted to trust. Probably not the kind of smile a serial killer would have.
I took one step back. I noticed now the amount of height he had on me - most alphas were significantly taller than omegas, sure, but Pierce’s presence was different. He exuded a kind of power I’d never seen before. I remembered the way he didn’t even blink when he practically fought off all those alphas from earlier.
“So, the catch is that I follow you into some dark alley and you stab me to death, right?” I asked.
Pierce laughed again. His wide grin exposed his pearly white teeth. I noticed how sharp his canines were, then brushed it off as just my imagination.
Too much of Caleb’s stupid stories.
The thought of Caleb twisted my chest up in knots. He was inside the hospital, suffering, while I was out here debating whether or not to take money from a stranger.
Maybe what he wants isn’t that bad,I thought grimly.
“I’m sorry for laughing, Benji,” Pierce said. “But no, there won’t be any of that. I swear on my mother that I will do no stabbing, or attempt to harm you physically, mentally, or emotionally in any way.”
“That’s oddly specific,” I muttered. Then, suspiciously, I asked, “Are you on good terms with your mother?”
“Good enough,” Pierce admitted. “She’s not entirely pleasant, not with her age and illness lately, but I do love her.”
“Illness?” I asked, my brows raising.
Pierce’s face darkened - the same way I’m sure mine did whenever I remembered Caleb’s sickness. “Yes. She’s been ailing for some time now. It hurts me, and my brothers, to see her in such poor health, with nothing to be done about it.”
I felt a pang of sympathy for Pierce. I took a step closer to him. “I’m sorry. My brother, Caleb, he’s… he’s sick, too. In the hospital right now. That’s why I’m here. I was visiting him, I mean.”
Pierce nodded in sympathy, putting two and two together. “Then the reason you require the money is for his sake, I assume.”
“Yeah.”
“I’m sorry. It’s never easy to see a loved one suffer,” he said gently.
I swallowed hard, feeling a lump in my throat. Then I realized something. “Wait. If you have so much money, why can’t you get your mom help?”
As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I realized how callous they sounded. But Pierce didn’t look angry - just sad. “It’s not an illness that can be helped with human technology. There is nothing anyone can do to help her, unfortunately.”
The way he saidhuman technologywas kind of weird, but I chalked it up to him being religious or something. Maybe he meant nothing except divine intervention could save her. I felt bad for bringing it up.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude,” I mumbled, rubbing the back of my neck. “It’s just been a rough day.”
Pierce smiled. “There's no need to apologize, but thank you.”
I stared uncomfortably down at the pavement, then asked, “So, you never ended up telling me what your catch was.”
“Ah. Well, to answer that, I’m afraid Iwouldprefer to have this conversation in private - at my home, if that suits you?” Pierce said.
I continued to get not-creepy vibes from Pierce, especially knowing we had something in common to bond over. “Maybe. Where is your place, anyway?”
He gestured over his shoulder. “You might know it as the heritage site. We simply call it the Tenebrae Estates.”
My jaw dropped again. “Wait. That fancy old mansion on the hill? With all the property and the gate and everything?”
“It’s not simply one mansion. We have other estates on the property as well. But otherwise, yes.”
“Okay, now I know you’re screwing with me,” I muttered.
“I’m not,” Pierce said simply. “If you look at the plaque on the gate, you’ll see it says Tenebrae Estates. That is my last name.”
