Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 123575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 618(@200wpm)___ 494(@250wpm)___ 412(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 618(@200wpm)___ 494(@250wpm)___ 412(@300wpm)
He raises his hands in surrender, but his eyes narrow—like he sees something that he wants to investigate or ask about. “No need to be defensive. All I’m saying is you look at her differently than you have any other girl. Like she’s a prize to be earned and not some fuck toy.”
Again, if only I could spill the truth to him, but I can’t. I need to finish this and get out before I slip up any further.
“Lilian is nothing to me, not outside of being my stepsister,” I lie, feeling this strange possessiveness to keep what she might or might not be to Aries and me a secret.
“Sure. Whatever you say.” He rolls his eyes and then continues onto something else. “I meant to tell you but didn’t get the chance. Your parents called me. They’re worried you’re spiraling again, thinking about what happened—”
“They called you?” My voice is definitely not Aries’s now. It’s darker, harder—
Lee steps closer standing in front of me now with worry in his eyes. “Yeah, last week. Said you’ve been talking about your brother again. The one who—”
“Died?” I cut him off, and a bitter laugh escapes my throat. “The troubled twin they sent away for everyone’s good? Is that what they told you?”
I close my eyes against the memory.
I’m trying to spend as little time with Patricia and Richard as possible, but that fucking house is where I’m going to get the most answers. And I always have to go when summoned.
Patricia, vapid, stupid even, only concerned with her status...brushed me off when I showed up at the house. Once we were all settled in Richard’s office, I casually mentioned dropping flowers off at Arson’s grave, and I swear you could have heard a pin drop in the silence as they both stared at me.
“Aries?” Lee takes a step forward, then stops as I turn to face him fully. “You’re starting to scare me, man.”
Good. He should be scared. They all should be. I’m this way because of them.
Think of your plan, of the time, bargaining, of the energy spent getting to where you are.
Don’t slip up. Don’t react.
“Hey, I’m sorry,” I say, smoothing my voice back to my brother’s careful tones. “I’m just stressed about all the up-and-coming changes.”
I know he doesn’t believe me. I can see it in his eyes. He’s caught a glimpse of me, the real me, the version that doesn’t match his best friend’s behavior.
“I should get going,” I say, shouldering the duffel bag. “I have a meeting with my father to prepare for the company position.”
The lie tastes bitter—another piece of the life they gave Aries while locking me away. Lee’s scrutiny is becoming dangerous, making me want impossible things. Like genuine friendship. Like someone knowing who I really am.
“Since when do you call him Father?” Lee blocks the doorway, his features twisting with a mixture of disgust and confusion. “You’ve called him Richard since the day he tried to buy your silence about those illegal imports.”
Fuck. Another detail I missed in my research.
“Move,” I demand, and this time I don’t bother hiding my real voice.
“No.” Lee stands his ground, loyalty to his friend overriding his instincts. “Not until you tell me what’s really going on. Is someone threatening you? Is it about what happened with—”
Snapping, I grab him by the shirt and slam him against the doorframe. For one fractured moment, I let him see me—really see me. Not Aries with his careful control, but Arson with a decade of pent-up rage and pain.
“I said move.”
His gaze widens as realization dawns on him. I’m the stranger who looks just like his best friend but isn’t.
“You’re not—” he starts, but then stops, like he’s thought better of it.
I release him, smoothing his shirt with Aries’s habitual gesture. “I’m not what?”
He swallows hard, self-preservation warring with loyalty. “Nothing. Just... call me, okay? If you need anything.”
In another life, this kind of friendship might have saved me. Might have made me something other than the monster I am today.
“Goodbye, Lee,” I say softly, letting him hear the finality in it.
I brush past him, taking the stairs two at a time. I hope he doesn’t think he can save me or him. By the time anyone acts on their suspicions, it’ll be too late. There is no saving Aries, just as there is no saving me.
Once outside, a strange emotion settles deep into the dark crevices of my chest. For a few months, I had what Aries always took for granted—a true friend. Someone who gave a shit if I lived or died. There’s no way to lie to myself. I’ll miss having Lee as a friend, miss having him as someone who gave a shit about me when no one else did.
After acknowledging the thoughts I shove them deep into the box of feelings I keep locked tight. Sentiment is weakness. Friends are a liability. The only thing that matters right now is revenge. It’s time to put my plan into motion, starting with sweet, innocent Lilian. Time to find out why she decided to pay me a visit last night.