Inevitable (King Crime Family #2) - J.L. Beck Page 0,27
scared of it.
Passing the leather couch, I take a seat in a chair in the corner. The cushion is soft, and I sink right into it.
Training my eyes on his, I say softly, “I want to know everything. I want to know what happened and how we got where we are. So much shit has taken place in the last month, and I don’t know who to believe and trust. As of right now, I have nothing to lose but my own life.”
He smiles, casually taking a seat across from me on the couch. I wonder what our father looks like. If he looks like Jared. But most of all, I wonder where he’s been all these years. Why I’ve never heard of him, and what he was doing when my mom was dying of cancer?
“First, as weird as this is… it’s pretty cool to have a sibling. Granted, the death of John is hard on you right now. You have to know he wasn’t your father, though. I know Enzo killing him made it harder than ever to deal with it, but there is more to it than what he just did to Enzo. As it turns out, John was my uncle. Well, technically yours too.”
“Uncle?” I question. What the hell is he talking about now? My father told me he was an only child. I never met my grandparents because they were dead. When Mom died, it was just Dad and me.
Scratching at the back of his head as if worried, he looks at the ceiling. “Yes, uncle. As in my dad, I mean, our dad and John were brothers. It explains why it was possible for him to pull off you being his daughter. Now see... I know your mind is spiraling out of control, but just breathe.”
I couldn’t wipe the shocked expression from my face. My jaw was practically hanging open, and an outpour of anger radiated from somewhere inside me. My whole fucking life has been a lie. A big huge fucking lie.
“My whole life was a lie…” I murmur as if in a trance. This has to be a dream, a sick and twisted dream. I’m just waiting for someone to come and wake me up.
“Don’t look at it like that,” Jared pleads. Lifting my gaze, I stare off into the distance. John wasn’t my father, but my uncle and Jared–Lorenzo’s right-hand man or driver, or whatever the fuck he was, is my brother.
“Did Enzo know?” It wouldn’t surprise me if he did. He knows everything. Secrets are kept deep in his mind, behind tightly closed lips.
Shaking his head, he says, “No. He didn’t. There’s more though. Just know none of us knew anything about this. I mean, hell, I didn’t even know, Amara. Believe me when I say I’m truly sorry. I never meant for any of this to take place, and I know you have already had so much heartache this year, but know you’re not alone.”
“Alone,” I huff out, almost wanting to laugh a hysterical laugh—not out of laughter but craziness, because honestly, I feel like I’m losing my mind.
“I mean, I know you lost John and your mother, but you have me now and our biological father. He wants to meet you.” The way he says it makes it seem like I should be happy. I should understand and accept it. To be grateful to have lost so much because I’ve gained two people.
Taking a few deep breaths, I rein in my anger, knowing it’s misplaced with Jared. It’s not his fault my parents are dead. He has been nothing but kind to me.
“How? How did this happen? What the fuck took place for this lie to spiral years and years out of control?”
Smiling, Jared stands. Where the fuck is he going? “Tell me everything,” I cry out as he walks into the open kitchen and grabs a bottle of something with brown contents. My guess is whiskey.
“I think we need this,” he says, walking back into the room to hand me the bottle. He has no fucking clue. Unscrewing the bottle cap, I tip the bottle back and take a huge swig.
The sweet whiskey hits my senses, and instead of a burn, I feel a deep warmth radiate through my insides, settling deep in my belly. The drink calms me slightly, so I decide to take another swig.
“Let me start at the beginning…” Jared says, watching me wipe away the excess whiskey. I sit the bottle on the table