“So what? She was just a random victim?” Disbelief drips from my tone. “I don’t believe in coincidences.”
“I don’t either, but it seemed unlikely they were involved.” Victor scrubs his hands down his face. “Discovering Carter is aware of your identities changes things,” he admits.
“How old was your sister when she was taken?” Bree asks.
“Ten.” I squeeze my eyelids shut for a few seconds. It pains me to remember her beautiful smiling face, knowing I may never see that version of my sister ever again. I cannot even consider the kinds of things she has endured since we last saw her.
“I don’t mean to be insensitive, but if you suspect she was trafficked, our father might be able to help,” Bree says.
“How?” I snap, blinking my eyes open.
Ash slides her arm around my shoulders and presses a kiss to my cheek. It’s surprisingly comforting, and I can’t decide whether I like it or loathe it. A part of me wants to shove her away from me while another part wants to cling to her and never let go.
I am not used to this.
We are used to fending for ourselves.
Attachments were never formed in any of the places we lived because we were never there long enough. Getting close to people invited too many questions, so we stayed in our own little bubble.
I know I don’t people well, and I don’t play nice because I’ve never had to.
I lived by myself from the time I was seventeen. Xavier is the only friend I made during my time in Boston. There were women. Girls I fucked and tossed aside, forgetting their names by the next morning. But I was still my own island. I was there to find leads to where my sister had disappeared to, and I didn’t have the time to form connections.
I never wanted to either.
I don’t get close to people, yet Ashley Shaw has wormed her way under my skin and into my heart.
It terrifies me as much as it pisses me off and excites me.
“Ares.” Ashley’s seductive tone wafts around my body like a security blanket. “Did you hear what Bree said?”
“Repeat it,” I command, staring at the woman I’m supposed to be saying “I do” to.
Bree purses her lips at my tone but doesn’t call me out on my shit. “Our family responsibility is Lust & Envy. Sex trafficking is something our family works to shut down, not to encourage.”
“We lure predators out using bait,” Jase explains. “And then we take them down and free the victims. If Carter or any of the other Luminaries were thwarting the rules and running their own rings, my father would know about it. It wouldn’t be tolerated.”
“Which is what he said when I spoke to him, just after Lili was taken,” Victor says. “Your father did some digging, and he found nothing. It was why I was so sure it wasn’t Luminary connected. Children are revered in our society, and though some rules are bent, I have never seen any evidence that this one has.”
“Please.” I scoff. “From what I’ve heard so far, those rules are made to be broken. The only ones who seem to be held accountable to them are the people below the Luminary rank.”
“Ares has a point,” Ash agrees. “And we know Carter is the biggest rule breaker of all.” She looks over at Jase. “Plus, he seems to have done tons of stuff the other Luminaries don’t know about. There is no guarantee your father would know. Not if Carter was able to cover his tracks.” Jase frowns as he considers her words. I turn sideways to look at her, watching her mind churning as she taps her finger idly on her chin. Her eyes lift to mine. “If Carter has known who you are for a long time, it’s not inconceivable he is behind Lilianna’s kidnapping.”
“Except my daughter isn’t a Luminary. She’s a plebeian,” Hera says.
“Maybe he took her as a warning,” Jase muses.
“Or to use as bait to draw you out,” Bree adds. Her eyes quickly meet mine before darting away.
“If he took her as some kind of leverage, why hasn’t he played his hand?” Vincent—Ash’s trainer—asks.
“He was biding his time,” Ash says. “Getting all his ducks in a row.”
“If that’s the case, then he’ll show that hand soon,” Jase says.
“I’m not sitting around waiting for it to happen.” I crack my knuckles as I growl under my breath. “We need to get my sister out now.”
“Ares needs to get into the prison to meet with Ruben. He could be the link we need to move forward quickly.” Mom looks up at Victor. “Can you make that happen now?”
