Page 11 of Sinner
If the person they were after was Hendrix, that would make sense. Not only did he have the kind of power needed to orchestrate something like that, he also knew how West and the others operated. Even if they’d never been close, he was still Lake’s uncle, had watched them grow and, in a way, had a hand in helping to raise them.
He could have attempted to get West out of the way first, with his next target being Yejun. Or, perhaps, he’d even wanted to weaken Demitrious’s station in the Club by removing his heir. The two were constantly clashing since Demitrious notoriously backed Lake’s claim to the throne.
Nix had little to no doubt in his mind that this was something Hendrix was capable of—He’d shot West at point-blank range, hadn’t he? It also made sense that he would have been too scared to risk another attempt. After the deaths of the emperor and the Royal Consort, he would have chosen to lie low for a time.
“If it is him, that would be a good thing, wouldn’t it?” Briant asked. “He’s on the run for attacking one of your Demons, and by doing that, he’s given up all rights to the throne. There’s no way he’ll be made emperor, even if Lake is removed. I doubt they’d give it to his son either. If you suspect him.”
“Do you?” Beck was close with West and Yejun, and Nix had witnessed his reaction after the guy’s dad had shot the boxer.
Beck had been genuinely distraught.
“I don’t know,” Briant replied. “I don’t know these people like you do. But at this point? I wouldn’t trust anyone if I were you, Nix. Juri claimed none of your other friends were involved, but I don’t know if I’d believe him. Anything he said about himself, sure, but others…We can’t rule out that he was simply trying to protect them.”
The way Branwen had protected Juri, despite believing he’d betrayed her.
Nix nodded. “I need to think.”
“I know this is a lot. It should have been me. I should have been the one to come here. She was my sister.”
“She left me the letter.”
“Yeah,” Briant exhaled, “Because she knew you’d drop everything for her. And look? You have. You were always like that. Loyal to a T.”
“Only to her.”
“You only had her. Before. Now you have them. I’m glad.”
Nix quirked a brow, and Briant chuckled.
“I wasn’t before, but I am now.”
He believed him.How odd.
“What are you going to do?” Briant asked.
Nix rested his head back against the window, staring up at the domed ceiling and the dark sky outside of it. “This instant? Let’s just sit here a while longer.”
Eventually, he was going to have to leave this room, go get the others and tell them everything he’d just learned, but that could wait an hour, maybe even two. He was at the end of his rope, and he feared if he pushed himself, he’d well and truly break this time.
He couldn’t risk that. He had to keep himself together.
For them.
For their future.
“All right, cousin,” Briant’s soft voice drifted to him as Nix’s eyes closed. “I’ll be here for you as long as you need. You aren’t alone.”
No, he wasn’t. Briant was here in the room with him, and the Demons were downstairs.
His cousin was right; he had them now.
And he’d do everything in his power to keep them safe.
Chapter 4:
Lake had been waiting for this moment practically all his life. From a young age, he’d been groomed for this position, told time and time again that one day he would wear the crown.
One of his earliest memories was of the coronation of the late emperor. He’d only just turned four years old and had been made to stand at the head of the room with the rest of his family. He’d spent most of his time daydreaming—not about toys; even at that age, he’d already been taught how an Imperial composed themselves. He’d pictured his ceremony. What it would look like when he took the stage, and the people who would be up there with him.
