Damn him for saying that. I know that pit of loneliness all too well. I’d been submerged in it for the last ten years. The guys mentioned that Nikolai died several years ago. I don’t know what happened to his mother, Nina. And Aleksei…fuck.
I hadn’t felt any remorse for what I did to Aleksei until this very moment. I took Aleksander’s brother from him.But Aleksei isn’t his only brother.
Before I can convince myself that this is a really bad idea, I lower to the floor and sit cross-legged, facing him.
“You said ‘our father.’”
Uncomfortable silence descends and smothers the air around us.
Just when I’m about to sayscrew thisand plow over him to get to the elevator and leave, he says, “I found out the night of the gala when I asked you to dance.” He chuckles quietly, but it’s hollow and devoid of any humor. “Helena Amato has a big fucking mouth when she’s drunk and high.”
Warily, I scoot a little closer. “Tell me.”
This is the last chance I’m giving him to be honest and real. A chance he doesn’t deserve, but one my guilty conscience wants to offer him.
“Tristan was with me when Helena spilled the secret.”
My heart breaks for the second time tonight. I search my memories, trying to wrap my head around it. Tristan never said anything, but I knew something was wrong when I couldn’t find him after their fight.
The antagonistic relationship between Tristan and the twins makes more sense, but it also doesn’t. They’re not responsible for what their parents did, so why do they hate each other so much? And Alana—she’s his half sister. She didn’t do anything to him.
Aleksander pulls me from my thoughts when he says, “When I confronted Mom about it, she broke down. I’d never seen my mother cry before, not even when Dad beat her. She blurted out that Francesco had raped her. She swore me to secrecy.” His biceps bulge as he grips the back of his neck harder. “I never even told Aleksei.”
Compassion pushes my anger away, and my hand unconsciously wraps around his forearm in a gesture of comfort. What he said hits me hard because of what happened to my mother.
My rage flash-freezes to a bitter, icy cold when I think about how scared Nina must have been. Did my parents know thathappened to her? Did they do nothing, just like Papa did nothing after Gabriel almost killed Constantine? I know damn well the Society wouldn’t have lifted a finger to help her or to punish Francesco for what he did.
Aleksander’s chest expands with a single, ragged breath. “She said it happened when Dad was away that summer. He’d been in Russia on business. She discovered she was pregnant right before he returned. Mom said he never suspected anything.”
Nikolai Stepanoff must have been the most clueless man on the planet. Surely, he would’ve looked at the ultrasounds or gone to one of Nina’s appointments and had questions about the date of conception.
“If Nina made you promise not to tell anyone, then how did Helena find out?” I gently query.
A snarled curse leaps from his lips. “Somehow, Francesco knew Aleksei and I were his. Admitted it to my face. Called me a dirty little bastard. Said I was nothing but the unwanted result of a bad fuck.”
I still have questions, but I don’t push for more.
Taking a chance, I cup the sides of his stubbled face and force him to look at me.
“From what I remember of Nina, she was kind and always nice to me. I’m so sorry. For her and for you. But it’s not Tristan’s fault. You can’t blame him for what his father did. He hates Francesco.”
Aleksander’s cruel fingers claw into my wrists with an iron grip. “You’re so fucking blind when it comes to him. He’s the reason your parents are dead.”
“No, he’s not,” I snap.
Outraged by what he said, I struggle against his punishing grasp, trying to break free.
He lifts my scarred arm between us. “He’s the reason forthis. Why do you think your father hid you in Ireland? James made a deal with Francesco. You were supposed to belong to Tristan. Your mother found out and made sure that would never happen. Francesco retaliated. If Tristan couldn’t have you, no one else would.”
“Shut up!”
With a strength born from rage, I use his hold on me to yank him closer. Wrapping my legs around his torso, I push forward and pin him forcefully to the floor, but he uses the momentum of his large body to flip us over and trap me underneath him.
“Get the fuck off me!”
Aleksander’s weight presses down, trying to subdue my efforts to escape. “I promised you revenge. I can give you Francesco and Malin.”
His words reverberate enticingly, quieting my struggles, their allure too much to resist.
