Iniquitous (The Marked #3)(75)
“Really?” I snorted. “You heard what Engel said to me and you knew it was true, and you lied right to my face about it! Pretty sure that makes you a boldfaced liar.”
He rose from his chair and slapped it out of his way. “That isn’t how it happened and you know it,” he said, glowering at me as he threaded over to where I stood, stopping just inches from my face.
“Back up,” warned Trace, but Dominic staunchly ignored him.
“I never once claimed his words to be untrue or otherwise,” he said, his eyes flaring with black fire. “I simply pointed out that he was using them to play with your mind, which he was! You formed the rest of it on your own.”
“Semantics.”
His features sharpened. “You ought to be thanking me.”
“For what?” I scoffed. “Chaining me to you for the rest of my life?”
“For keeping you alive,” he growled out and then wiped out the remaining space between us. “Go ahead and punish me for not allowing you to chase after your dead mother and get us both killed, but I stand by what I did and I will not apologize for it. And I’ll tell you another truth, angel cake—” His face was so close to mine that our lips were nearly touching. “If I had to do it again, knowing what I know now, I would do it the same exact way.”
“And that’s why I will always loathe you, Dominic Huntington.”
“Because I don’t placate you,” he challenged.
“Because you don’t care a damn about me or my feelings.”
“We both know that’s as far from the truth as you could ever get.” He put his hand against the wall, barricading me against his body as if he somehow owned me.
My breath hitched.
“I said back up!” growled Trace as he pulled Dominic off of me.
Dominic stumbled back a step, but his eyes never strayed from mine and his sly grin never faltered. He knew his words had rattled my emotions and he loved every minute of it.
I steadied my breathing as I smoothed out my shirt. This had gotten way out of control, and I wasn’t even sure how it happened or why it escalated so quickly.
“I think we all need a breather here,” said Gabriel, standing in between Dominic and Trace with his arms outstretched towards them. “Try to remember we’re on the same side.”
“You better start controlling him,” warned Trace. “I’m getting real tired of watching him paw all over my girlfriend. Put a muzzle on him or I’ll do it for you.”
“I’d certainly like to see you try, Romeo.”
“Oh, my God.” I threw my hands in the air. “Here we go again.”
“Anytime, dead boy. Any time.”
“No time like the present time…”
Screw this, I thought as I pushed off the wall and stormed out of the kitchen. I wasn’t about to stick around and watch them maim each other again. This was going to get us nowhere and we still had a million miles left to run before we were anywhere near being out of the clear.
Despite my anger over being lied to about my mother, I wasn’t going to let it hold me back from what needed to be done. Right now, the fire in my heart was the only thing I had propelling me forward and I was going to put it to use for once—to use it as fuel to push me forward and do what I had to do, because the fact of the matter remained the same; my mother was dead and I needed her blood. Being outraged about it wouldn’t change the truth or mitigate what had to be done.
“Where are you going?” called Trace from somewhere over my shoulder.
“I’m going to see my uncle.”
“What?”
I heard the three of them hiss and object in unison, albeit poorly timed and unharmoniously. I stopped walking and turned around. Blank faces stared back at me with a mixture of surprise, frustration and confusion.
“He owes me an explanation.”
“He isn’t going to give you one.” Trace shook his head as he took a cautious step towards me. “You know that, right?”
“I’m not giving him an option. I need answers and I need the sire blood, and he’s the only one that can give them to me.” I was determined to stay detached yet focused on what I had to do.
“What makes you believe your uncle would help with either of those things?” asked Gabriel, crossing his arms.
“Because I’m the Daughter of Hades.” I shifted on my feet as the remainder of my tolerance went up in smoke. “Because the Morningstar bloodline is dominant in me and I have the Amulet. All of that makes me a threat to them and I think it’s time they found out just how big of a threat I really am.”
“You can’t do that,” said Trace, worry creasing his brows. “You can’t just go to war with The Order.”
“I’m already at war with them, Trace. I just didn’t realize it until now.” Taking a step to him, I gently touched my hand to his cheek. “Look, I’m not going in there like a deranged lunatic. I’m giving him a chance to join sides—to help me seal the Realms for good and work with me so that I don’t have to be a threat to anyone anymore. If he knows they can’t get rid of me, maybe he’ll actually start working with me instead of against me.”
The truth was unavoidable; they had more resources and information than all of us combined. If there was a way to make it to the end of this in one piece, without destroying the entire world in the process, the Order would have the answer.