“Debt must be repaid.”
“Betrayal—”
The door banged open.
“Dad!”
Alec’s voice cut through the room. He strode in, still in his practice hoodie, sweat darkening his collar. His eyes locked on the way Dad’s hand gripped my chin, on the tears streaking my cheeks.
“What the hell are you doing?” Alec demanded, shoving his backpack down.
“Teaching her,” Dad snapped, his hold tightening. “She needs to know the code.”
“She’s a kid!” Alec pushed forward, his body sliding between us. He shoved Dad’s hand off my face and planted himself in front of me like a shield. “You don’t teach her like this.”
Dad’s nostrils flared. “You want her to end up soft? You want her to get crushed when the world shows its teeth? I won’t have it. She needs to learn.”
“Not like this,” Alec hissed, his fists tight at his sides. “You can’t just hit her.”
“She failed.” Dad’s voice was ice. “And a Spade does not fail.”
“She failed a test,” Alec snapped. “Not the family. Not the code. School doesn’t matter.”
For a moment, I thought Dad might hit him too. The air was thick with it, his fury radiating in waves. But then, with a sharp breath through his nose, he snatched up his glass of whiskey and stormed out of the kitchen, muttering curses under his breath. The front door slammed a moment later, leaving silence in his wake. I sat frozen in my chair, my cheek still burning, tears dripping down my chin. My whole body shook.
Alec crouched in front of me, his hands gentle on my arms. His face softened when he saw the redness on my cheek. “Emmy…hey. Look at me.”
I blinked at him, chest heaving. “He…he hit me.”
“I know.” Alec’s jaw tightened, his voice breaking. “I know. And I’m sorry.”
“I didn’t know about…the code. I didn’t even know?—”
“Shhh.” He pulled me against him, his arms wrapping around me tight.
I buried my face in his hoodie, sobbing into the sweat-soaked fabric.
“You’re okay. I won’t let him do that again.”
“But what if I fail again?” My words cracked apart with fear. “What if I?—”
“Then I’ll take the blame.” Alec leaned back just enough to look me in the eye. His expression was fierce, protective, older than his years. “You hear me? I’ll take it. I won’t let him break you.”
“But the code?—”
His mouth twisted. He hesitated, then lowered his voice. “The code is real. And yeah, one day you’ll have to know it, even if I want you nowhere near the club life. But you won’t learn it like this. Not from him. Not tonight.”
I searched his eyes, desperate. “So what do I do?”
“For now?” He brushed a thumb across my damp cheek. “You keep your head down. Go back to school after the break and continue with your studies. You try. You fight for yourself. And when it gets too hard…” His hand squeezed mine. “You come to me. Always.”
I nodded, clinging to his hand like it was the only steady thing in the world. The kitchen was still heavy with smoke and anger, but Alec’s presence cut through it, anchoring me. He couldn’t erase the sting on my cheek or the words Dad hadforced into me, but he made them feel less suffocating. And that night, as I lay awake in bed, those words looped endlessly in my head.
Family before all. Debt must be repaid. Betrayal is punished by death.
The code. I hadn’t asked for it. I hadn’t even known it existed until tonight. But it had been carved into my bones the night I was born, and I would have to abide by it if I wanted to survive in this world.
The family code haunted me in dreams. Not whispered, not chanted, butcommanded. My father’s voice was sharp, brittle as glass, breaking the silence of my dreams. He stood behind me as I kneeled at that old kitchen table, reciting lines I didn’t understand, each word scraped across my tongue like barbed wire.Family before all. Debt must be repaid. Betrayal is punished by death.
