Page 253 of Chaos Kills

This is going nowhere fast.

Levi is never going to agree to anything. Why he’s here… we’ll obviously get to that after, but this is starting out to be one of the longest dinners of my life.

If we even get that far without metal flying in the air.

“There’s no need for additional bloodshed,” Emilio states calmly, running his index finger down his glass. “Haven is the peace we’ve all been looking for.”

“What does that retirement look like, Wildes?” Levi presses. “It doesn’t include that fifth seat, does it?”

“I have no interest in holding anything.”

“Except me,” Levi emits. “With her, you’ll know I’ll blindly follow. And I’m guessing you’re gonna use me against her.”

Emilio narrows his gaze down the table. “You don’t know anything of what I’m planning to do. I’m handing down my seat and kingdom to my daughter. The same thing Roger did for you. Why would I destroy what I’ve been waiting decades to find?”

Levi opens his mouth, but Torin beats him to it.

“And what of the risks and buy-in that my brothers and I are supposed to put in?” he solicits, his tone a level away from breaking through his stone-cold exterior and flipping this damn table over while his tawny eyes pin me to my seat. “I could’ve killed Wallace before, but decided against it. I’m almost wishing I had.”

And how would I feel about that?

Probably the same as Torin.

More than likely, with the same level of animosity and murder running through my veins as he has for me with Judah.

I would want him dead.

“What do you want to know?” I ask, folding my hands into my lap. “Not that it’s going to matter. Not that it’s not going to change anything.”

“I want you to tell them everything,” Torin replies. “Everything that’s happened between you and me.”

He’s testing me.

Or he’s being too cocky in this moment.

I spill his dirty laundry and the ocean drop-off, and he’s dead.

He’s so fucking dead with Levi at the table.

“That’s hardly dinner conversation, Pretty Boy.” His brows pinch at his nickname, and yes, I needed to be petty for a moment. “Drink your drink and shut up.”

Torin’s face slowly rises, catching onto the fact I’m not going to do it. I will not be participating in his kamikaze mission. “Is that your first order for me? You think I’m going to blindly follow you after I?—”

“Shut up, Torin,” Cairo clips out at my side, and I’m happy he knows what’s at stake here. “The more you speak, the longer we’re all sitting here.”

Pretty Boy doesn’t remove his heavy gaze from me, and between Cairo and Ozzy, I feel safe.

Tack on that Levi would jump this whole table to protect me, and Torin doesn’t have a leg to stand on.

Leaning a bit closer, Pretty Boy’s golden eyes fall to my lips, and I hope he reads them loud and clear. “I won’t tell him if you won’t.”

His lips slowly coil into an arrogant smirk. “Imma get you killed one day, baby.”

Not that he’s going to kill me.

But that his being around is going to do it.

He shoves his chair back and plucks his glass from the table, ready to take off from this so-called get-together when his father shuts that shit down.

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