Page 49 of Dollhouse

With my arm around her shoulders, we walk downstairs toward the kitchen where King stands in front of the stove cooking breakfast.

Eli’s sitting on the barstool in front of the island and the moment he sees Tate, his face lights up and he holds his arms out for her.

Odd.

Day by day, she’s getting them more and more wrapped around her little finger. King is already head over heels for her, and I see Eli getting closer and closer to the point of no return with her. He adores her, and now it’s only a matter of time until he too gets in her bed.

I’m not judging; I think it’s just my jealousy speaking. I’m jealous because I loved her first and I want her to be the same way with me as she is with the two of them, but I can’t let go of the past. I can’t stop hating myself for everything that I did to her. She doesn’t hold it against me—she didn’t then, and she doesn’t now.

But I do. I haven’t gotten over it even if she has.

Tate has always been forgiving and has always looked on the brighter side of any situation, no matter how fucked up the situation may be.

“So, we have a lead as to who shot you. Obviously, it wasn’t WD since Malakai and Marco are both dead,” Eli says as he stands and moves to the dining table as King carries over the plates of food. “Vlad checked up on a couple of the guys that were shot, and only one of them has gang affiliation.”

“Wait, so you’re saying that they weren’t working together?” I ask, lowering myself into my seat and filling my plate with food.

He shakes his head. “Nope. I think someone hired them to take us out. The Disciples are falling apart since Malakai’s death, but King and I are going to talk to his cousin to find out everything Malakai wasn’t telling us. We know they weren’t the ones that wanted Tate, and I’m guessing whoever does is the one who assembled the team to ambush us,” Eli continues speaking, and I watch as Tate’s eyes widen.

“No, this can’t be about me. Who the fuck would be so interested in me that they drafted a crew to ambush you guys?” She shakes her head, shoveling bacon and pancakes into her mouth.

“I don’t know, but we’re going to find out. So, I think it’s time that you tell us why you returned to the city,” King speaks up with a raised eyebrow.

“My past has nothing to do with any of this. There’s no one looking for me, and no one who would even care enough to go through all this trouble,” Tate defends, rolling her eyes.

“I think you’re wrong. Whoever wants you, doesn’t know that you changed your appearance and name. They know you as Lee, and that’s what Malakai knew you as too. Lee with blonde hair,” I say, reaching over to take a lock of her black hair in my fingers.

Her eyes are ready to burst out of her head with the assumption. “You need to help us, Tate. We’ll keep you safe, but to do that, we have to know who’s so interested in you,” King adds. She sits back in her chair with a sigh. I can practically see her mind racing and realize that there are things she isn’t telling us.

Hence the fact she’s back here.

I knew that Eli had been looking into the ambush. The three of us were aware that the Westside Disciples were using Tate to trade, just like we had planned to do at first. But what we didn’t know was what they were getting out of it.

Are they trading her for money? Drugs? Or something else entirely?

We’re in the dark about what they were hoping to gain. All we know for certain is that there is someone in the background pulling the strings.

As for who that person is, only she can help us find the answer.

“Come on, Tate. Talk to us. Tell me why you came back here,” I say, taking her hand in mind. Her eyes meet mine and slowly she nods with a small sigh.

Isit there at the table, speechless.

They want me to tell them about my past and my reason for coming back to the city.

They think somehow it could be connected, but I’m not so sure. I know there’s no way Sebastian is connected to this.

If he knew where I was, or that I was still alive, he’d come for me himself and not hire someone else to do his dirty work. He’s always been very hands-on when it comes to me, so there’s no way he’d suddenly stop now.

No, he’s not behind this. This…I know for a fact.

However, with hesitation, I agree to narrate my past to them.

I agree to tell them the story of how I killed myself.

Eli is cleaning up breakfast since King cooked, and the rest of us are sitting in the living room, waiting for him to join us before I tear myself open and share the hell that I escaped from.

I’m standing, pacing the room, when Eli joins us in the living room and sits beside Rowen on the couch. King is sitting in the recliner, all with their eyes on me.

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