Sovereign (2 page)

It was Sin. Skirting around my periphery, always watching. He’d chased me, caught me, and trapped me in his web. Once I was snared, he ran.

The last time I’d seen him was stuck on repeat in my mind. That night. I shook my head. The last night before he’d left the house for good. I rubbed my upper arms, a chill rushing through me despite the warm breeze.

He was gone, but I haunted his room, sitting on his bed and staring at my paintings. He’d seen every bit of me, all of my weaknesses, my dreams, and my thoughts. Each piece of whatever made up Stella Rousseau was spattered across his walls like blood at a crime scene. I’d seen him too. Knowing there was a splinter of a good man left beneath all his darkness had done me no favors. All was revealed, the masks gone. He still shut me out.

There were no secrets anymore, not from me. I roamed the house as if I belonged in it, as if it were mine. When Lucius was gone on business, which was often, I had the run of the entire estate. A prisoner with the keys to the castle.

The only place I didn’t set foot was the third floor. I’d had enough of its occupant for a lifetime. Sin’s mother’s revelations were freeing, but they were also a cage, one Sin had been living in since being chosen for the Acquisition. Now I could see the bars clearly, examine each one for a weakness.

After the initial shock of what she’d told me, I’d become focused. Sin would win the Acquisition. Teddy would live. I would do everything in my power to protect him. Endure what I had to do and survive. My sacrifice for my father had been made through deceit. The one I’d make for Teddy was of my own choosing. I would fight for it. I would see him live a long, happy life. Then I would set my sights higher. Dismantling the Acquisition was no longer a wish; it was my true goal. The reason I still drew breath.

Dmitri flung his arm out in a vicious jab, catching Lucius in the mouth.

“Fuck.” Lucius darted back and spit a wad of blood into the grass. “That’s cunt shit.”

“Come closer. We see who is cunt.” Dmitri lumbered toward Lucius, the men unevenly matched in almost every way possible.

“Hang on.” Lucius held up a hand. “It’s hot out here.”

Dmitri stopped and waited. “I tire of hitting this clown. You ready for another round, Krasivaya?”

“Almost.” I sipped the cold water as Lucius unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off one arm. He began to pull it from his other arm then rushed Dmitri when he was halfway through the motion.

Lucius’ trick worked, and Dimitri groaned as the smaller man’s fist collided with his ribs.

“
Blyad!
Little prick.” Dmitri whirled and thundered after a retreating Lucius.

Lucius tried to spring back, but it was too late, Dmitri tackled him. They fell with a thud and Dmitri pinned him.

“Who is bitch now, eh?” Dmitri grinned and slapped Lucius playfully before squeezing his cheeks.

“Get the fuck off! You’re crushing my nuts.”

The Russian sat back and got up before offering Lucius his hand.

He took it and stood. “You need to lay off the fucking protein.” Lucius craned his head and tried to wipe the stray grass off his naked back.

“Protein make man strong. You too skinny.”

Lucius may not have had the larger build of Sin or the hulking Dmitri, but he wasn’t a small man by any means.

“Skinny huh? I’ll still kick your commie ass. Come on. Let’s do this.” He put his fists up, his abs and chest glistening with a light sheen of sweat.

“Again, then?” Dmitri shook his head but squared his shoulders.

“Okay, that’s enough of a pissing contest.” I stood and stretched, my muscles aching. “I need to get back to training.”

“She just doesn’t want you to get hurt, comrade.” Lucius dropped his fists and walked past me, plopping in the chair I’d just vacated.

I pulled the elastic from my hair and wrapped the strands around in a tight ball before re-tightening the band. Once satisfied it wouldn’t serve as an easy grip, I walked back out into the sun to take position.

I bent my knees and pulled my hands up. I was too small to win a straight-up brawl, but Dmitri had taught me to grapple and strike just enough to get my enemy into a submission move. Get them to tap out. But first, I had to get close enough. So far, I’d only gotten close enough to Dmitri to get my ass kicked. Bruises colored my legs, and no amount of warm baths and massages could erase the tenderness in my muscles from day after day of training. It was worth it. I had something to fight for. Something I would fight until my last breath to keep safe, as well as something to destroy.

“Ready, Krasivaya?”

“Bring it.”

CHAPTER TWO

S
TELLA

T
EDDY DIES
.
T
HE WORDS
lingered as I woke in a sweat. Like I did most mornings. Another dream—blood on my hands and screams in my ears. I rose from the bed, not content to stay where my fears manifested in my subconscious. Stripping, I walked to the bathroom and climbed into the shower.

The warm water rushed down my body, waking my senses and washing away the terror of the dream. It was always Teddy. His innocent brown eyes staring at me, lifeless. His blood coating my hands, seeping into my white dress from the last trial. I swore I could even taste it, coppery and hot.

I leaned my head against the cool shower tiles, willing the feelings away. Instead of fear, I put resolve in its place. I had a month. One more month of training. One more month before the spring trial. What would it be? I wasn’t sure. All I had to go on was Renee’s memories about her year—a physical competition of strength and stamina. She never told me how it ended, only that I needed to be stronger and faster than she had been.

And so I trained. Weights, swimming, running, and sparring. I couldn’t guess what Cal had cooked up for this year, but I knew it would be worse than what happened to Renee. Cal always made it worse. I could see why Rebecca had chosen him to reign. He was the perfect Sovereign, cruel and calculating. The system needed a firm hand to rule it, and Cal didn’t hesitate to crush anyone who stood in his way.

I finished showering and dressed in what had become my uniform—a sports bra, t-shirt, and gym shorts. Snagging my tennis shoes, I pounded down the stairs to the breakfast room.

Laura served my usual fare of eggs, smoothie, and a flax seed waffle. Dmitri was already seated and powering through an immense pile of sausage. He’d stopped shaving his head since he’d moved in, and his dark hair was finally laying flat. It made him look younger and a little less intimidating. But it didn’t matter. I already knew he was a big softy, with or without hair.

Lucius strolled down the hall, his voice carrying as he talked business. “No, I don’t give two shits what the distributor charges, the price of sugar doesn’t change based on some dipshit middleman. I’ll handle it.”

He walked into the sunny breakfast room dressed for travel in a navy suit, light blue shirt, and dark tie. His medium brown hair was cut neatly and smoothed back. Professional and suave, he fit perfectly as the business head of the family. Sin was wilder—something in his eyes, or maybe his bearing, gave him away as a threat.

Like water circling a drain, my thoughts always found their way back to Sin.

I shook my head slightly, as if that could erase memory of him, and took a drink of my banana, strawberry, and protein smoothie. “Where you headed?”

“New Orleans for the next few days.” He sat across from me and flipped his tie over his shoulder as Laura served him. “Contracts and lawyers and shit. Nothing interesting.”

I pointed at him with my fork. “Don’t forget Saturday.”

“I won’t. I’ll be back with bells on.”

“Bells?” Dmitri stopped mid-chew and drew his thick brows together.

“Just an expression. He means he’ll be sure to be here for Teddy’s birthday.” I reached behind me and felt along my left shoulder, the tenderness bothering me more than when I woke.

“Why don’t you go easy today?” Lucius texted with one hand and ate with the other.

I stopped rubbing my shoulder. “Because I can’t.”

“You haven’t had a break since…” He stopped texting and looked up.
Since Sin left.
“You need a break.”

“No, I don’t. I need to keep getting better. I’m still not strong enough. What if I have to climb, what if I have to swim for hours, what if—”

“Stella.” Lucius glanced to Dmitri and went back to texting.

We’d told Dmitri I was training for a triathlon and wanted to throw in some self-defense just to help with coordination. He went along with it, though I often felt he suspected there was more to it, especially when he ran his hands over the scars along my back.

“Just think about it, okay? You can’t keep going like this. You’re a rubber band that’s about to break.”

“I’m not going to break. That’s the last thing I’ll do.”

Lucius stopped texting again and caught my eye. “I know the heart inside you believes that, but you’re just a person. You’re a body, a mass of organs and muscles and whatever the fuck else Teddy studies in school. Your heart may stay strong, but the rest of you—” He let his gaze slide down my body then back to my eyes. “—doesn’t have the luxury of whatever it is that drives you. Your body can be broken.”

I downed my smoothie and stood, pushing my chair back with a harsh scrape. “I know my limits. Dmitri, you ready?”

He gestured to his half-full plate.

“Fine. I’ll get a head start on stretching. Meet me on the porch when you’re done.” Without giving Lucius another look, I strode through the hall and into the foyer. The chandelier caught the morning sun and sent fractals of light glinting in all directions.

Lucius followed, and it wasn’t long before he grabbed my shoulder. I turned, staring up into his sky blue eyes that never seemed to give me any hint of truth.

“What?”

“Why are you doing this?”

“You know why.” I swiped his arm off my shoulder.

“No. This isn’t for Teddy.” He gripped the collar of my t-shirt and pulled it to the side, getting a look at the bruises along my shoulder from sparring. “You don’t have to run yourself into the ground.”

“Stop.” I shrugged him off.

“No.” He stepped closer and glared down at me. “You’re acting like an idiot.”

“Trying to save your brother’s life is me acting like an idiot?” I tilted my chin up, giving him nothing but disdain.

His jaw tightened, the sinews in his neck thrown in sharp relief. “That’s not what you’re doing.”

I could have fought him. I didn’t. Something about his words disturbed the numbness I’d drawn around myself like a cloak.

He grazed his fingertips up my arm and gripped my chin lightly between his thumb and forefinger. “I know you. I’ve seen you. I…” He paused and leaned closer. “You aren’t mine. It was foolish to think you could ever belong to me. Even so, I don’t want you hurt, self-inflicted or otherwise.” His gaze bored into me, and he let his hand drop to my waist. “Lay off for a day. Please. That’s all I’m asking.”

He was pleading with me as if we were equals, as if he had some say in my life other than the simple illusion of ownership.

I fought the urge to slap him, claw him, make him hurt just so his cries could blot out the turmoil that ruled in my mind. “How many times do you think Gavin or Brianne begged ‘please’ while your friends violated them? Care to hazard a guess?”

He cocked his head. “Is that what this is? Don’t blame yourself for all that, Stella. You didn’t—”

“Shut up!” I exploded, his words like a match to a barrel of gasoline. “You don’t know what we did, what happened. You weren’t there. You didn’t leave Brianne behind. You didn’t send Gavin off alone. You didn’t—” My voice cracked and I quieted.

His expression softened and he put his palm to my cheek. “No. I don’t know. I wasn’t there in the woods. But none of this is your fault.”

“Whose is it, then?” I challenged. “Sin’s? Your mother’s? Whose—”

His phone rang in his pocket. Biting out a curse, he pulled it out and checked the number.

Glad for the reprieve, I sat on the bench by the front door and pulled my shoes on. “I’m training. You can either help or stay out of my way.” I tied my laces, not even looking at Lucius as he answered.

“Yeah. Hang on.” He turned and strode down the hall to Sin’s study. I knew who was on the phone. It was as if I could sense his presence even across the miles separating the two of us.

Dmitri hadn’t emerged from the breakfast room yet. I opened the front door and slammed it shut, though I still stood in the foyer. Then I crept down the hall toward the sound of Lucius’ voice. The runner quieted my steps, and I eased to the closed study door.

“It’s taken care of. I just have to go make a show of negotiating, sign the final contracts, and then I’ll be done… No more than two days.” His voice quieted, as if he were pacing away from me.

I pressed my ear to the door.

“Fine. Well, not fine. I mean she’s training, but she’s not being smart. It’s like she, like she wants it to hurt. I don’t know… Yes. Saturday.” His voice grew nearer and I side stepped, hugging the wall.

“Do you think that’s wise? I fucking don’t.” Lucius voice turned darker. “I’m not telling her shit. You need to sack up. I’ll put her on the phone right now… Coward. You know what this is going to do, right? You know what Stella will… Fine. I
know
she’s yours. Jesus fucking Christ how many times… Yeah, go fuck yourself, too.” Something crashed, and then the room fell silent.