Page 90 of Sinner
“Isn’t it already too late for that? Everyone has seen the video. They know I shot West Corleone. Not even a Royal Consort has the power to turn back time, Mr. Monroe.”
“I’m not talking about that.” He inhaled and went for it. “I’m talking about what you did last year. We know that you’re the one who murdered the Emperor and her Royal Consort. You think the world hates you now? Wait until they find out about that, or about how shooting him wasn’t your first attempt on West’s life.”
“What the hell are you going on about?”
“If you kill me, they will catch you, and then they’ll release all of the evidence we’ve collected to the authorities. Murdering me is already considered treason, even if I haven’t held the position for long. But when it’s revealed you killed—”
“Wait.” Hendrix held up a hand—it just so happened to be the one with the gun, but he wasn’t aiming it at Nix in any case. “Do you really think you can make up some preposterous story to, what, scare me?”
He seemed…legitimately confused.
Nix thought back on all the evidence they had. “…Have you…ever exchanged emails with Dew before?”
“Who?”
“Dew Seaborn? He was a student here.”
Hendrix pursed his lips. “Oh, is that the one who threw himself off the roof?”
“Yeah.”
“Why would I contact him? I have no clue who that even is, or why you think he’s suddenly important. This is ridiculous—”
Well.Fuck.
“It must have been Demitrious.” Of course, Nix hadn’t really expected a full confession. There’d been a fifty-fifty chance of one, since it was obvious the guy intended to kill him, but Hendrix’s reaction was too realistic to be an act. He wouldn’t bother putting in this much effort to convince someone he was going to silence in a moment anyway.
Which only left one other person as a possible suspect. The man who’d tricked Nix into coming into this room in the first place.
Someone who had even more power than Hendrix.
Someone who could hide behind others, because it didn’t appear as though he’d have anything to gain from their deaths.
Someone willing to poison their own son in order to ensure they were never suspected—and it had worked, because not once had any of them stopped to think that perhaps the reason the poisoner hadn’t killed West too was because he’d merely been a cover-up.
They’d all hated Demitrious, but they hadn’t thought him capable of risking the life of his one and only heir.
“That’s it.” Nix was sure of it. “Demitrious must have been the one responsible, but he made it look like it was you.” He didn’t have time to explain everything. “More of a reason not to work with him. I figured it out, but Lake and the others haven’t. They won’t let you go for hurting me, and Demitrious must know that. He’s planning on pinning it all on you!”
Then he’d sweep in and pretend to help pick up the pieces. While things were crazy, he’d try to worm his way back into Lake’s good graces and “help” him adjust to being emperor. Nix could see it now. With him gone—
Wait, no.
Nix being pushed aside wasn’t enough.
That’s what Demitrious had meant when he’d mentioned Beck. He was going to have Beck take West away.
Then what about Yejun? If Demitrious was willing to get rid of his own son, there wasn’t a chance he was going to risk leaving Yejun behind.
“He wants to alienate Lake.” He’d get him all alone, with no other support system, and ensure Lake only had him to rely on. “He’s using you now to do that, just like how he’ll use you to take the fall for the poison.”
Hendrix, to his credit, appeared to be at least mildly disturbed, but it was clear he didn’t want to believe it. “Is this how you seduced the Demons? You convinced them of a bunch of nonsense?”
“It isn’t nonsense. I can prove it. We just have to talk to one of them.”
Hendrix aimed the blaster at him and moved forward until the barrel of the weapon was pressed against the center of Nix’s forehead. “Don’t even think about touching your multi-slate. I know what you’re doing. You’re trying to tip them off.”
“They’ll find out it was you no matter what.”
