Page 66 of Deadly Little Games

With the necklace in Dominic’s office and the affair with Alec’s girlfriend, Mia, there’s no denying he killed my brother. He took him away from me.

A subtle knock echoes through the office, and I freeze in Gage’s arms. Fuck. We have to get out of here. Gage lets me go, and I take several deep breaths.

My phone buzzes against my hip. Lifting up my dress, I pull it out. There’s a text from Amirah.

Dominic is on his way over here. Get out now. I’ll try to distract him.

Part of me wants to just stay here and confront Dominic, but the other part of me values my life. He will deny it all, and then I’ll have a target on my back. I need to play this smart and figure out what to do with the information I have.

Moving back to the desk, I pull out my phone and take photos of the text messages, then my hands start to shake uncontrollably. My breathing comes in and out at a rapid rate. I place the phone back where we found it, under the papers.

“We need to get out of here. Now,” I say, and Hazen takes the lead. I follow behind him with Lucas and Gage trailing behind me.

When Hazen opens the door, Amirah is no longer there, and we come face to face with an enraged Dominic, who is accompanied by four intimidating security guards.

Dominic smirks, and I picture him holding a gun right in Alec’s face, then pulling the trigger and taking him away from me.

Anger roils inside me, and I finally snap. Taking two steps forward, I cock my arm back, ready to deliver a punch to Dominic’s face. Fuck the consequences.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Hazen

Coming through the door from my father’s office, I immediately lock eyes with him, his stern expression giving away nothing. There are only a few people in this world who can scare me, and my father is one of them. He has that power to bring me to my knees, to make me feel like a little boy who can’t stand up for himself. I fucking hate it, and I hate that I let him do it. That I feel like I have no control.

He killed Alec. Part of me knew it but the other part didn’t want to believe it. Death isn’t something I’m shocked about; it happens every day for me. I’m surrounded by death. But he took away someone who means something to me because of her. Before her I didn’t believe in love—it didn’t exist for me. I had no idea what it even meant or how it felt. The only glimpses I’ve had are from my little brother and sister. They rely on me to protect them and care for them. Now she’s who I want to protect.

With lightning speed, Freya rushes past me, ready to confront my father with clenched fists. I position myself in front of her, preventing her from reaching him. With a strongshove, she tries to move me, but I stand my ground. From behind, Gage grabs hold of her, pulling her backward, but she fights back by clawing at his arms. There is a predatory look in her eyes, a longing to do him harm, and I can’t fault her for it. He murdered her brother, the only family she could rely on. I’d do anything to protect my little brother and sister—and I do. I keep them away from him.

Dominic’s laughter resonates from behind, his breath caressing the back of my neck, and my body tenses.

“Best get a leash for your girl, Hazen, before she causes a scene and ends up like her brother,” he says with a slight chuckle, but I know him well enough to know when he’s not joking.

“No, Dad, this time you’ve gone too far,” I say, folding my arms over my pounding heart.

“You will all pay for this, starting with you.” He points at Freya, and I step forward.

“It was my idea and I—” It all happens so fast that I don’t have a chance to react.

I am being forcefully dragged away by someone with their arm wrapped around my neck. Despite my fingers digging into the security guard’s hand, he maintains a firm grip on me. As he tightens his grip further, my lungs beg for air, and I gasp for breath. Everything becomes a hazy blur as my vision fades, but I can still hear the chilling scream that Freya lets out and our eyes lock in a moment of shared panic. She struggles against Gage’s tight embrace, but he refuses to release her. I did this, I broke into my father’s office, and I’ll take the blame for it—not my brothers, and definitely not her.

Pain rips through my stomach, over and over again. My eyes blink open and he’s there, standing over me. The bright lights of the shed blind me, and I want to shut my eyes again and go anywhere else—but that’s weak.

My father spits, and it lands on my cheek, rolling down my face.

“How fucking dare you sneak into my office without my permission! I should kill you for this. All of you,” he growls, kicking his boot into my ribs.

My body jolts backward and I swallow down the pain. He never hits me in the face because he doesn’t want anyone else to see heirs of The Brotherhood looking weaker than them.

“I know you killed Alec,” I say, staring up at him and he laughs.

“Believe what you want, boy. It doesn’t mean shit to me. That boy got himself killed, doesn’t matter who did it.”

“It matters to me,” I say, and he laughs, moving back a step.

“Fucking hell, son. Have I taught you nothing about women?” He shakes his head. “Pussy makes men weak. The Brotherhood always comes first.”

“What about Mia?” I ask, biting back.

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