Fourth Debt (Indebted #5)(30)

“You’re not going anywhere.”

Both our heads whipped up to face Jasmine. She’d rolled closer, sitting with her hands in her lap. I didn’t trust for a second she was as meek as she seemed. She probably had hundreds of weapons hidden in her blanket.

“I’ve given you time to say hello. I’ve given you time that I didn’t have to give. But now you have to come with me.”

Vaughn stiffened. “I don’t have to do anything.” Grabbing my hand, he squeezed. “I’m taking my sister, and we’re leaving.”

“No, you aren’t.” Jasmine’s face darkened. “You’ll do what I say.”

I froze. Once again, my loyalties split. I used to belong to Vaughn entirely. He was blood. He was the exact replica of me in every way. But my heart had replaced him with my chosen one.

The one I thought was dead.

We would never be as close because we would never need each other as much as we once had.

It was both sad and freeing at the same time.

“She’s right, V. We can’t leave. Not yet.”

Vaughn’s eyes popped wide. “What the f*ck does that mean?” Raising a finger, he pointed at Jasmine. “Wait a minute…who are you?” His voice slipped into a hiss. “Are you one of them? Because if you are, so f*cking help me I’ll wring your neck—girl or not.”

Jasmine didn’t back down. She didn’t even flinch. “If you’re asking if I’m a Hawk, the answer is yes. If you’re asking if I love my brothers as much as you love your sister, then the answer is yes. And if you’re asking if I’m on your side, the answer isn’t so simple.”

Vaughn let me go, pushing off the bed to tower over her. He stumbled a little, but it didn’t stop him from sucking in a breath and whipping the room with temper. “If what you say is true, then you know what I feel and I’ll do anything to protect my twin. I won’t put your needs before hers. Ever.”

Jasmine gritted her teeth. Her eyes flashed with frustration for Jethro and Kes. The longer we argued, the less time we had.

They need us. Now. Before it’s too late.

“Vaughn, listen to me—”

“No, Nila, you listen to me. I don’t know how she brainwashed you, but it’s over. They’re all noxious; therefore, they’ll all die.” He took a step closer to Jaz. “And if you don’t move out of my f*cking way, you’ll be the first to go.”

Her eyes pinned him in place; her elegant throat poised with defiance. “I’ll tell you something you don’t know, Mr. Weaver. And then we’ll see if you’ll do what you’re told.”

V snorted but Jaz ignored him.

“Your sister has survived my family for almost six months. She’s the one who stood up to us. She’s the one who helped my brother all because she believed in him. She had the power to destroy him, but she didn’t. And if anyone deserves to kill those who deserve to die, it’s her.” She swallowed hard, forcing herself to continue. “Seeing you together is hard. You both look so similar. Twins in every sense. My brothers and I might not be the same age, but we share something in common. We share a desire for freedom. And I won’t let you take that away from us.”

Her eyes fell on me. “Have you told him, Nila? Have you told him who Jethro is to you? Or did you continue to let him slander his name in social media when you left us?”

I flinched.

She’s right.

While trapped at Hawksridge, I lived in truth far more than I ever did in London. I hadn’t had the guts to look my father or twin in their eyes and tell them that I was in love with a Hawk. That I belonged to him and him to me. That I was a traitor to my family name.

“What is she talking about, Threads?” Anger glazed V’s eyes along with a faint hint of fear. “Tell me.”

“V, I—”

How could I tell him that I loved Jethro as much as I loved him? How could I tell him that it was no longer simple between us?

“She took him from me, Vaughn,” Jaz said quietly. “She fell in love with my brother, and overnight, I became second in his life.” She gave me a twisted smile—half-accepting, half-unwilling. “He doesn’t belong to me anymore, just like she doesn’t belong to you.”

Vaughn shifted, running a hand through his dark hair. The beard he’d sported in London had been shorn, but a few day’s growth shadowed his jaw. “I don’t—I don’t understand.”

“One day, you’ll end up belonging to someone you love. But for now, you belong to me. I’m the one who’s come to rescue you. I’m the one who holds your life in my hands. And I’m the one who says you’ll do what I ask.”

My shoulders hunched. “Probably not the best way to make him help you.”

She glared at me.

I shrugged.

I’d been on the receiving end of Jasmine’s willpower—her perfect deception. She could spin any tale—give life to any lie. She’d completely fooled me at the meeting, and I’d never underestimate her again. I still couldn’t shake the hatred I’d felt. But she didn’t know my brother or how pig-headed he could be when told to do something.

V turned to me. “Threads…is that true? You fell in love with that bastard?” His face fell. “Is that why you slept with him?”