Page 10 of Burn it Down

He slams his beer bottle down on the table narrowly missing my father’s hand. The sound is sharp and jarring, and my father’s eyes flash with something akin to surprise for a second before he masks it. “I didn’t know this establishment serves anything in a bottle.”

Caiden doesn’t smile. “They’ll serve me whatever I ask for. Just like everyone else on this fucking mountain.”

His tone is meant to incite my father, but his eyes are locked on Matthew.

He’s silent, but his message is loud and clear. It’s a warning. A promise.

Matthew stands. “Run along, cowboy,” he says. “She belongs to me, not your little friend.” I suck in a breath because people have called Riven Kozlov a lot of things over the years, but at six-foot-five, little has never been one of them.

Caiden grins, slow and cruel. “I think we all know who Miss Lakynnn belongs to. And it’s not anyone at this table.”

My father sets his wine down with a hard clink. “You’re not one to overstep, Grey. You need to remember the rules you impart on everyone else on this mountain, don’t you think?”

Caiden turns his head, deliberate, unbothered. “Am I?” He shrugs. “You should be honest with her. Tell her where Riven really is.”

My breath catches. The room shrinks.

My father’s expression darkens. “That’s not your concern.”

“It is when she’s being fed lies to keep her quiet,” Caiden replies, voice low and deadly. “You think it’s smart to double-cross the monster you created? You think he’s going to sit around while she’s forced to play house with this asshole?”

Matthew bristles. “You don’t know a thing about me.”

Caiden doesn’t even glance at him. “I know she flinched when you touched her. I know she looks like she’s planning her own funeral. I know that dress wasn’t her choice, and neither was this dinner.”

“You’re making a mistake,” Mr. Kozlov growls. “I have complete control over Riven, and you need to remember that.”

Caiden leans forward, bracing his palms on the table. “This mountain is my business, old man. Every forest path. Every back road deal. I know everything. And if you think Riven is still under your thumb, you’re in for a big surprise. You took away the only thing that will ever control him and now you’ll pay the price.”

“Enough, Caiden Grey. You have absolutely no right trying to ruin my daughter’s night,” my mother snaps, rising from her chair, voice shaking. She’s trying to save face and doesn’t see that everyone is on the same page with each other, yet a completely different book than she is right now.

The illusion is shattered, and I swear it feels like something in me cracks open.

Because Caiden didn’t come here to start a fight with my father, that was just a fun little bonus for him. He came to send a message from Riven.

The air leaves my lungs, heat rushes up my neck and floods my face.

Caiden looks right at me and says, “Tell Riven I said hello when you see him.”

The floor feels like it tilts beneath me.

He’s coming.

Riven really coming back.

Caiden turns and kicks my father’s chair hard enough to knock it backward. The legs screech across the floor. My father goes down, stunned and sprawling.

Caiden pours the last of his beer over top of him in one last act of humiliation before he walks back to his table without a glance back. All of the men at this table and none of them, not even Lucas or Matthew, are willing to stand up and defend him. None of them are willing to go against Caiden.

The silence that follows is absolute.

Until my mother snaps, “What in God’s name was that?” She’ll spin her narrative and everyone at the table will agree with her, pretending that we didn’t all witness Caiden’s little show. I block it out. I can’t focus on anything other than Caiden’s voice echoing in my skull.

Tell Riven I said hello.

He’s coming back for me.

LAKYNN

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