“Charlie,” I growl, grabbing fistfuls of my long hair in frustration.
He walks to my bed and sits down, patting the space beside him. “Please, sit.”
“Did you not hear what I just said?”
“I’ll take my chances.” He pats the bed again.
I sit my butt down as far away from him as possible, and his face drops. “I’m on your side, Abby. And I’m doing everything I can to help you. Why the hell else would I broker a deal with your father to save Kai’s life if it wasn’t about helping you? It’s not as if I like the asshole. He’s stolen you out from under me before I had a chance to show you how good we could be.”
“Don’t do that.” I can’t handle emotional blackmail right now.
He scoots a little closer. “It’s the truth.” His hands twitch at his sides and I can tell he wants to touch me, but he’s holding back. “I love you, and I want to spend my life with you, but if he’s your choice, I will let you go.”
I examine his face for evidence of the truth. “I thought you wanted to marry me and give me a good life.”
“That is still on the table. And we can do that in Rydeville or far away from here. We can get married and disappear, if that’s what you want.”
“You’d leave your family to run away with me?” Skepticism laces through my words.
“Yes.” He doesn’t hesitate to respond. “It’s what I was planning to do the night of the shootout.”
“You said Oscar was meant to take me to Xavier’s warehouse that night and we would flee to Europe, but how did you know to plan that in advance?”
“I knew it wouldn’t take you long to figure it out.” He runs his hand through his black hair as worry lines form on his brow.
“If you want me to trust you, Charlie, you need to be honest with me.”
“Telling you this places you in greater danger, but I don’t see there’s any way of sheltering you from it now.” He moves closer until there’s only a small gap between us. His emerald green eyes penetrate mine. “Most everything that’s going on is connected to changes happening within the order, and at Parkhurst.”
“What is the order?”
“It’s the hierarchy within the US elite structure. Drew can fill you in on it, but changes are coming, and my father wants out before it happens. A couple years ago, a faction within the elite contacted him, concerned about your father’s agenda and the level of support he was garnering. They asked for his help, and in exchange, they promised to grant him freedom. To let him leave the elite. Leave Rydeville. And put it all behind him.”
“Why does your father want that?”
“Because he’s never wanted any part of it. He inherited it. It was his legacy, but it’s never been what he’s wanted for his family. He’s gone to extreme lengths to shield Mom from the worst excesses of the order, and, occasionally, he’s flouted the archaic rules, even though it was risky.”
He crosses his ankles. “When your father and Christian Montgomery orchestrated Atticus Anderson’s demise, Dad realized he was stuck. That there was no way out, and he tried to toe the line. But your father is power hungry, and the more he gains, the worse he becomes. When the offer came from enemy quarters, it didn’t take him long to decide to help them.”
A light bulb goes off in my head, and my eyes pop wide. “Holy shit. Your father’s been working with Atticus Anderson, hasn’t he?”
Charlie nods.
“And that means—”
“That I’ve been working with the new elite from the beginning.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
That must’ve been what Kai was about to tell me back at the hotel. I dig my nails into the comforter. “You’re all motherfucking lying bastards.” Every muscle in my body tenses. “Was Drew in on it too?”
“No. Drew knew nothing until they took you to Parkhurst, and then I confided in him. It’s one reason he’s pissed with me. Why I’m on the outside now.”
“You knew there would be a face-off that night at the party.”
“I did, and I knew it would get messy, so I’d pulled Oscar aside earlier that day and explained. He agreed to stash his car near the old rear entrance and to get you to safety until I could come for you.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
