Page 33 of Flesh & Divinity

And I realize, with devastating clarity, that somewhere underneath all of it—the hatred, the fury and the blame—he is looking at me like he used to in the portraits that adorn the walls of the castle.

Like he sees I’m worth something.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

GUS

Her face is a mask of fury, the fire burning in her eyes could have scorched this island. She thinks she has a right to be angry. The entitled bitch is wrong. I may be confused by how I am feeling toward her, but one thing I’m not confused about is my need for vengeance.

I can’t force her to confess to the world that she lied, but I can make her life hell like she has made ours for two fucking years!

“Revenge is what we are owed.” The truth in my words bounces off the cave walls.

“What do you think I did?” she screams, her hands slicing the air, showing her frustration. “I never lied⁠—”

“You lied and sent us here!” Duke roars. She flinches and stumbles back a step. He moves to step forward. I should let him but I don’t. I grip his arm and hold him back, we agreed we wouldn’t disclose who we are to her but I changed that. He yanks free of my hold. I grab for him again but he whirls around on me. His eyes burn with bloodlust. I know him and I hate how much this fucking island has changed who he is. He’s no longer kind, soft and caring. He’s angry, jaded and hungry for vengeance. “You taking her side?”

I shake my head. “I’m always with you.” My tone is firm.

“You won’t destroy our family.” Jaq’s pained words have us turning to focus on him. He moves until he is standing directly in front of her.

“I don’t want that,” she whispers brokenly.

“Then tell me, Cinder Soot, why did you lie and send us to this island?” She jerks back as if he struck her physically.

Her mouth is open and her eyes are wide. “What the fuck are you talking about?” I can hear the confusion in her voice. She looks from Jaq to us and I see a flicker of something in her eyes a second before her face falls. “Holy shit.”

“What?” Duke pushes, but she ignores him as she covers her mouth with her hand and begins pacing the cave. My patience is at its end.

“Speak!” I roar. She freezes near the entrance of the cave and looks back at us with fury in those baby blues.

“You think I’m the one who sent you here?” She doesn’t pause to let us answer. “I don’t even know you! I mean, yes I know of you but I don’t even know you personally to want to send you here!” Duke bristles beside me but says nothing. This time when she looks at me and Jaq there is recognition in her gaze. “Two years ago, both the crowned heirs disappeared, with their best friend.” Her tone is knowing and I can’t help but stiffen. She stalks toward Jaq and doesn’t stop until there is only a sliver of space between their bodies.

She places her hand on his chest, making him shudder. “I heard stories about how the princes were inseparable, fraternal twins. Always by each other's side. Rumor has it, the king hated his sons because they challenged him.” Her tone is low.

“What’s your point?” Jaq grits out as he takes a step back and comes to stand beside me.

Her eyes are brimmed with anger but I see remorse in there. “Everyone searched for you.” Accusation is clear in her pained tone as she looks at Duke. “I helped look for you three for months. I may not have known you then but I saw you around town. You were kind, cared and wanted to make our home better. Not like your father, who only serves himself and his greed.” A shudder of disgust rolls through her at the mention of our dad. “I never lied about anything.”

I stare at her. Something isn’t adding up. I hear the truth in her words and I have this knot in my gut that I can’t shake.

“Our father told us you were the one to blame us for a heinous crime.”

“The only crime I committed against your family was turning your father’s advances down daily!” she spits.

Jaq yanks his mask off, making her mouth part in a silent gasp. Duke removes his next and she just stares at them both in astonishment.

“Holy shit,” she breathes out. “You three have been here the whole time,” she mumbles.

“My father tried to fuck you?” Jaq’s tone is cold and filled with warning.

She cringes and nods, then begins to tell us about her stepmother who burned their family home down and how they came to be living in the palace. “The night he threatened to chain me to his bed, I ran. My stepsister knocked me out before I could escape. The next thing I know I’m here with you three.”

“You expect us to believe that?” Duke grits out.

Her eyes narrow. “It’s the truth.”

“My father could have any pussy he wanted. What makes yours so special?”