In Peace Lies Havoc (Midnight Mayhem #1)(76)

King steps forward, his head tilting and a cigarette hanging between his perfect lips. Lips I’ve felt on my body more than I can count. Oh God. He was always right. Even as a child, he was right. He always said that I’d be his last. Even if I wasn’t his first at everything, I sure as fuck would be his last.

He stops when he’s a breath away from me, and I look down at my feet. Converse versus military boots. It couldn’t be more accurate for us. He leans down into my ear and whispers, “We’ll be back, Dovey. I’ll hear you when you speak, I’ll see you where you dance. I’ll always be watching you.”

The glass I was holding falls to the ground, and I hear the smash from behind the ringing of my ears. “You’re The Shadow.”

“You gave me a pet name?” King steps back, assessing me. “That’s cute.”

My elbow veers back and I swing before I can stop myself. Pain ripples through my hand as it connects with his strong jaw.

He laughs, his face not moving. I go to swing again when he catches my hand and grips it so tightly I flinch. “The first one you get for free. The second one will have your ass laid flat out over my knees.”

“Fuck you,” I seethe, yanking my hand out of his grip.

He chuckles. “There she is.”

“Perse,” Keres interrupts. It doesn’t go unnoticed how effortlessly everyone is using my old nickname. Everyone called me Perse, except for King. I was simply P. It was his name and fuck if anyone else thought they were using it. “The reason you were King’s task wasn’t because we wanted to kill you. In fact, the reason why I killed your father was because of his lack of ability to keep you safe. King was the one who pulled the trigger on your mother, for obvious reasons. She was his first kill.”

“You’re the one who killed her?” I ask softly, my eyes connecting with King’s. There’s no denying the connection now. The bond, the absolute raw emotion that we both share. King is mine and I am his, but that doesn’t mean he gets away with every goddamn thing he ever did to me.

Fuck that. I’ll hate him for as long as I want to, and he can fucking deal with it.

“Yeah, P. Yeah, I fuckin’ did.”

I nod, as if thanking him, because I am. The bitch stole my sister. Now her murder that has acted as a nightmare inside my brain suddenly morphs into a dream. Bitch!

I remember that night like it’s a bad dream. I don’t remember seeing who shot her, but I remember the blood. I remember the taste and the loud screams of my mother. Then I remember running. I remember them not chasing me. I thought I got away, but I was so wrong. Some hunters don’t catch you right away; some love to watch you run before they feast on you.

“Why?” I snap, turning toward Keres. “Why was I so special? Because of our talent with dance and singing?” I ask, already knowing his answer.

“Yes and no,” Keres murmurs. “Midnight Mayhem is what keeps our name alive. It continues to act as a curtain to The Brothers and The Four Fathers of Kiznitch, but that’s not why. It’s because of the blood that runs through your veins.”

“So you steal us all,” I whisper as recognition slowly seeps in. “All of the ones who were on that yacht? They were part of Kiznitch one way or another, weren’t they?” I can feel my anger simmering to the surface.

“Yes,” Keres agrees. “We’re a talented bloodline. One that must remain pure. Not all of them are of direct line like you, but they’re in the line, one way or another.”

My head spins from everything, my eyelids heavy. I want to sleep for days, hours, and I’m thankful that at least this is happening during our break. I can’t imagine dealing with this and then performing the next night.

“You and your sister were special, P. You are Ashley Kournikova’s blood daughters. Kournikovas’ lineage is one of the highest rankings in Kiznitch. She married me, a brother, had Keaton, and then had the affair and had you and your sister. It’s why we always kept you close to the Axton twins. We thought it fate.” I wince, the memories so raw and undiluted. King and Kohen are twins, and all four of us went down in history. Keaton must also be some special hybrid breed if he has both a brother and whatever lineage Ashley is.

“But why did I think I was Dove and not Perse?”

Kaius steps into the conversation. “That is something we will never know. I tried to get it out of your father that night, but he never budged. He vowed he’d go down with that secret, and he did.”

My eyes flutter. “Probably because Dove was always his favorite child. Why not just let me take on her name and it’ll almost be as if she never died?”

Kaius shuffles his feet. My eyes connect with his. “I don’t think that’s it. I have my theories, all of which are far-fetched. We will eventually get to the bottom of it all, but for right now, we’ve hit a wall as to why he called you Dove and not your real name.”

I sigh, my head pounding from all of the information. “So, if I’m so special,” I bring my eyes to Keres, who seems to be answering more questions than Kaius, “why’d one of you almost rape me while I was in that cell?”

Keres freezes, his face falling.

Kaius stills, his hand short of his mouth.

Ashley steps forward dangerously.

There are muffled voices behind me, but the loudest is, of course, King’s. “What the fuck do you mean?” he sneers.