especially while he still bears my father’s mark.
Except… Antony is still alive. He always made it clear he’d do what he needed to do to remain in Brutus’ good graces. That’s why Brutus gave him the club if he dropped out of law school – Brutus needed someone he could trust, and Antony had to prove he could be trusted. If what Noah says is true, maybe Antony is in deeper with Brutus than he ever let on to me.
“Why are you telling me this?” I rub my temples.
“The last time I was there, I saw Antony punish a guy who had crossed your family. He crucified him on a giant cross above the cage. Antony drove the nails in himself. One of the fighters told me dirty cops were there that night, being wined and dined by your cousin in the VIP suite. Antony has influence with the police, with city hall. Maybe it’s time he used it.”
A shiver runs through my body as Noah brings up the crucifixion. That was my father’s favorite punishment. Maybe I hadn’t been the only one learning from him.
“I need to talk to Antony.” I push off from the wall.
“I’ll go with you.”
“No. I need to do this on my own.”
“Claws—” Noah calls after me, but I’m already stalking down the hall.
I know Antony doesn’t have a class right now, but when I check his closet office, it’s empty. I hear something in the gym – voices talking, the squeak of shoes against the wooden floor. I shove open the roller door.
At first, I can’t see anyone. “Ant—er, Mr. Jones?” I call out.
He appears at the edge of the bleachers, shirtless, with a towel slung over his shoulders. “I was doing some weights,” he huffs.
“You talk to yourself while you work out? I heard voices.”
“I was playing music. That okay with you?” The sword-and-olive branch tattoo on his wrist flashes as he grabs the rings and starts doing pull-ups. My throat closes as I rub the skin on my own wrist. I would have got that same tattoo for my sixteenth birthday if Daddy had lived that long. Instead, I spent my sixteenth birthday watching horror films alone with my cat, while Antony worked at the club.
I’m a queen on the run, and the only family I have left is keeping secrets from me.
“I’m not here to bust your ass. Or maybe I am.” I debate how to approach this. I want to ask him about everything Noah told me, but I can’t find the words. For so long, it’s been me and Antony against the world. He’s everything to me, and I can’t destroy that bond we have.
I also don’t want to rat Noah out to him. I know my cousin well enough to know he won’t hesitate to kill first and ask questions never.
Antony glares at me as he sets his feet on the ground. “You’re supposed to be in class.”
I settle on making demands. I may be in hiding, but I’m still a queen. “I need you to find out what’s happening to Gabriel, if they’re charging him.”
“Even if I had that kind of power, I’m not using it on your pretty boy musician.” Antony dribbles a basketball along the edge of the court. I watch him with new eyes, searching for some sign that he’s this person Noah claims.
Did he crucify one of Brutus’ enemies?
If he’s in that deep with Brutus, what did Antony really do to make him go to ground?
Has Antony been lying to me this whole time?
But I can’t say anything without alerting him that Noah’s been at his club. Frustrated, I try the baby cousin routine, even though it probably hasn’t worked on Antony since I was seven.
“The thing is, I’m starting to wonder if you do have power.”
Antony snaps his head toward me. “What are you talking about?”
“Just some things I’ve noticed lately. You’re carrying a gun all the time. You’re at the club more than ever, and you’ve got an army of soldiers at your beck and call.” I put my hands on my hips. “Things have been different ever since you told me you took care of Brutus, that he’s left the city. But the more I think about it, the more I realize it doesn’t make sense. You’re a low-level soldier – what could you possibly have done to him? Where is he, really?”
Antony leans over, his nose inches from mine. He’s breathing heavy, and a vein above his eye throbs.