Page 74 of Secret Betrayals
Then she shifts gears. “As for Demon and the Satan’s Keepers…”
She turns to look at Pop. He gives her a quiet nod before rising from his seat and walking toward me.
What the hell is going on?
“Pop?” My voice is sharp. “What about the Keepers and Demon? What don’t I know about that slimy son of a bitch?”
He doesn’t answer. Instead, he nods to Axel and Nitro. They get up too, flanking me like I’m about to lose it—and they know it. The realization hits fast and hot. Iknewmy brothers had been hiding something. And now it’s clear—they fucking were.
Pop puts a heavy hand on my shoulder. “Listen to what she has to say, son. Don’t fly off the handle.” His voice is low but firm. “She’s about to tell you something that’s gonna piss you off. But it’s the truth. Hound’s verified everything. He and your brothers dug into it while you were down. I forbade them from saying anything until you were home and strong enough to handle it.”
I glare at Hound. He nods once. No shame. Just confirmation.
I let out a long breath and leaned deeper into my chair. The tension’s coiling tighter around my spine. “Alright. Say it. Let’s hear whatever bullshit is supposed to make me lose my shit.”
But it’s Gabriella who answers.
“Demon’s real name is Dustin McCormick,” she says. Her tone is quiet. Steady. Like she knows that moment is a live wireready to snap. “He was married to Donna McCormick. They had two children—David and Heather McCormick-Masterson.”
She doesn’t blink. Doesn’t look away, and for a beat, I don’t move. It doesn’t register—until itdoes. No.No fucking way.My whole body goes rigid. Heat floods my chest. My heart’s thundering in my ears. There’s no way. Absolutely the fuck not.
Heather?
She wouldn’t do that. She couldn’t. We might not have a love story, but I’ve been good to her. I take care of her. I take care of our daughter. Why the fuck would she betray me? I feel myself shaking. Rage tightening around every nerve.
“No. No fucking—no. There’s no way. I would’ve known.” I push up from my chair, but Axel and Nitro shove me back down. I growl, eyes locked on Gabriella.
“We vetted her. We did a full fucking background check! Hound fucking tell her. You’re the one that fucking did it.” My voice booms as I stare over to him, his eyes are steady on mine, and I see the truth I refuse to accept. No! My attention turns back toher.
“You’re a goddamn lying bitch.”
The room is dead silent. Tension razor-sharp.
I laugh. It’s hollow. Disbelieving.
“This is your play?” I sneer. “You spin this shit to get back in my family’s good graces? And what—I’m supposed to fall at your feet? Be grateful?” I glare at her, fury pulsing in every word. “You manipulate my Pop, my club, and think we’ll just let it happen? You’re pathetic. You’re just pissed I choseherover you.”
And then—her silence. Her calm.
It only makes it worse.
“What the actual fuck is this?” I growl.
Pop sighs, running a hand over his face. His voice is low and full of disappointment.
“Christ, kid. Sometimes I fucking wonder.”
Twenty
Everything is all rainbows and fucking butterflies until the past comes back to bite you in the ass.
There’s no way Heather is related to that slimy piece of shit—let alone be his daughter. Right? She told me her family died in a car accident. Hound Senior backed it up. Said her mother and brother were gone before she ever came around. But thinking back… she never once mentioned a father. Not even a passing comment. And I never fucking asked. Not once. That’s on me.
Shit.
Fuck.
Damnit.
