Chapter 5

Thorn University

Steffan

The door slams shut, and I watch as my brother stomps his way upstairs. I let out a frustrated breath. None of us are doing well. We're all handling things in our own way. But my brother, damn him, he doesn't know how to be rational. We both want answers. I'm trying to be subtle and stealthy, while Soren charges like a bull into places beating answers out of everyone he can get his hands on.

At least Little Mouse isn't getting caught in the crosshairs of all this. Taylor is with her parents, and as much as I hate having her away from me, I know she needs some time to process. She needs to coax her parents into not taking her away from here. My frustration grows just thinking about it. But I can't fault them for it. Numerous murders and the killer still on the loose. Honestly, I judge their parenting methods, and care for her, for not coming after her sooner.

If I'm going to keep her safe, I have to solve the mess that's surrounding me. Something is missing from the puzzle that I can't quite put my finger on. A detail, a tendril of evidence is just out of reach. And the whole time I stand around looking at the evidence, pouring over the clues, time is slipping away.

The door opens and closes again, and this time Jose walks in. He looks like a combination of what Soren and I are feeling. Calm on the outside, but the storm raging in his eyes suggests he's one word away from pulverizing someone.

"What happened?"

Jose's head whips toward me and he shrugs. "Your evil twin had some feelings he wanted to express."

"Were there any damages to properties, or anyone seriously injured?" I ask, cocking my head to the side. I can't handle a clean-up right now. The FBI is already poking their nose in our business.

"Allison had a snack," Jose replies and walks into the room, sitting down in a chair across from me.

Dammit, Soren. I know he's behaving this way because he cares. He's reckless and a loose cannon, and that's a valuable asset when we're in a fight. But when the cops, FBI, and college administrators are breathing down our necks, it's a liability.

My head drops forward. I don't need this right now. Worse, he won't talk to me. It'll be another fight over how I'm a pussy and don't care enough. Meanwhile, he is making matters worse by flying off the handle.

Jose comes to stand next to me. I clear my throat and pretend to not be affected. He's a pledge, and I'm the president of this fraternity. I must appear in control and strong. In silence, we both look over all the pictures and the timeline Taylor and Chanda had been working on.

"It's not as though I can ask my dad, or even Lee's father, about any of this. They've already been wiped from the board."

Jose leans forward, his hands clasped in front of him. "You can't ask your uncle either."

I frown. "Was he the snack?"

"Allison didn't think he was much of one."

I shrug. "Eh. My aunt always complained he left her unsatisfied as well. Allison will be the last female he disappoints." Jose and I snort at our warped humor. I rub between my brow with the tips of my fingers, a headache is coming on. Exhaustion is heavy in my voice as I ask, "Why did Soren go after him?"

"He wasn't very forthcoming with information. Soren didn't believe him, but he also thought he needed to be eliminated from becoming a future threat to you."

"Fuck. That's no reason."

Jose bows his head and gives it a slight shake. "He was protecting you. At this point, Soren is wiping out any potential threats."

"I know he means well. His psychotic black heart is in the right place."

Succo nods. We're quiet for a moment and then he breaks the silence. "I think we need to look at this year." He points to a mark on the paper. "Something happened the year the Boudreaux family fell off. What was it that caused the alliance to shift so drastically?"

His words turn over in my head. It was a question I had been asking myself for a long time, but my father was never a great communicator, and my mother always clams up. Ever the faithful Illicit wife she is. "What has your father ever said about it?"

Jose glances at me. We rarely talk about his father, or his family. For so many years my family worked against his to keep their numbers down. The Succos survived from pure determination not to go extinct.

"Nothing. He refused to talk about them, only mentioning your families. Once when I was little, he was drunk and rambling, but all he kept saying was that he did what he had to do. My ma would get angry when he was like that. She would cry. As if it hurt her."

I run my fingers over my jaw, thinking about my own parents. "Did your dad give your mom his tie?"

Jose's brow furrows. "How would I know that? I assume so. They've been married for almost thirty years."

"But did she get the tie before, or after, the marriage?" I press.

Jose shrugs, "I'm not sure. How would we find out?"

"The book. We need the records." I get up and walk over to the laptop and hand it to him. "Hack into the database. Find out where they keep those records."

He takes it from me and opens it. Within seconds his fingers are flying over the keyboard. I keep glancing between him and the timelines. Soren eventually makes his way downstairs and leans against the wall. He doesn't talk, and I don't press him. When Jose stops typing, his eyes jump to mine, and he swallows harshly.

"They're kept with my family."

"Guess we're taking a trip to the Succo family mausoleum then," Soren finally speaks, his blue eyes jumping from me to Jose.

"Home, sweet home," Jose manages to respond.

I gave it twelve hours before we were arriving at the Succo family home. Jose didn't give his father a warning, at my request. This information needs to be confidential, and I am not so sure that my father, Lee's father, and Mr. Succo didn't partake in something nefarious that they've been trying to cover up for years.

Mr. Succo stands at the open door when we arrive. His eyes lose their warmth when he sees Soren and me trailing behind his beloved son. That's fine. We're most likely sharing mutual feelings—distrust and suspicion.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of having Soren and Steffan Carmichael in my home?"

I give my most polite grin, before stepping forth to offer my hand. He shakes it, after a beat of uncertainty.

"We have some questions that pertain to the murders on campus. Since my father and Mr. Concord can't answer them, we are hoping you can help us, Mr. Succo."

His deep brown eyes trail over me and my brother before landing back on his son. "I don't know if I can help you, Mr. Carmichael, but I will give it my best shot."

"Oh, I think you'll be able to help us," Soren drawls, his face giving away nothing.

Mr. Succo stiffens slightly, but with a nod of his head he motions us to follow him inside. After Jose and his father, I follow, taking in the home they have created. High-vaulted ceilings. Lavish décor. The house has a mixture of Mediterranean and contemporary elegance. The latest smart devices and security, a kitchen that would rival any restaurant, and spacious hallways and rooms. Staff scurry about to keep the place immaculate. I immediately recognized why the Carmichael family felt threatened by the Succo family. Despite being a dying family, they're thriving.

Mr. Succo leads us to his impressive office to which Soren shuts the door, standing guard.

Sitting behind his desk, and picking up a tumbler of liquor, he asks, "What is it that you seem to think I can help with?"

"Dad, we've been looking at old records, and one thing we were wondering about is the tie-ceremony."

Mr. Succo raises a brow. "I thought I explained that to you, son. Surely the Carmichael boys are aware of it as well."

"Yes, sir." Jose answers his father. "There's a book, though. My research indicates the book is here. We need to see it."

Mr. Succo looks from his son to me, and back again. "Enlighten me on what an old list of couples has to do with murders?"

Jose clears his throat, and coughs, before clearing it again. His hands rub together and then he explains. "Not what they have to do with the murders, but how they have been built around the families. There was never an official tie-ceremony in The Illicit until after we were born. Why is that?"

Mr. Succo clears his throat, "I don't believe that's true."

"Are you sure?" Jose presses.

"Walter Dupree had his own ceremony," his father declares.

"Yeah, except we asked him. Mr. Dupree gave his tie to his wife because he didn't have a ring."

His father looks proud. I'm not one to get jealous over such things, but I can't help but envy Jose. Such a simple thing and he's rewarded with a prideful smile from his father. Approval. Soren and I never got so much for so little in our lives, and never would.

Jose continues. "She wasn't his first choice, and he had already bought a ring for someone else."

"That's absolutely correct."

"So when did it become the symbol it is today?"

"It's more a promise, oath, dedication, and more or less what comes before the engagement ring for our fraternity lads. The book is in my private study downstairs."

Jose gets up and leaves the room and then it's just us. I can tell the man looks torn, but I give zero fucks right now. I'm even more annoyed to see that this is one of the founding families and they have a civilized relationship. Jose has a father who respects him—hell, might even like him. My father did nothing but pile on more and more responsibilities and pressure. Never satisfied. Jose gives a minor history lesson and he looked at him like he hung the moon.

"Look, Mr. Succo, I'm not going to sugarcoat this for you. The rumors about my own father and his death are true. Mr. Concord, same. He ran after he killed his wife in order to protect whatever secret he was hiding between himself, my father, and I'm guessing… you. There's a chance the killer has you in their crosshairs next, and we need to know why. Our fraternity is being torn apart. The Illicit is under fire. We need to look at this from all angles."

Soren's voice carries from his post at the door. "And what we've gathered is that it's tied to a child who was born the same year as us and Lee Concord, and that child was surrendered at a nearby hospital, but not our hospital."

Mr. Succo's face pales and his eyes drop to the glass in his hand. There it is. I saw the slight tremor of nerves in his hand. We've struck something. A nerve. A chord. Gold, perhaps? Is this the big secret?

"That child was born a month before the Boudreaux family was dismantled. Is that a coincidence as well?" I press. "We know illegitimate children are not unheard of, but the surrender stands out. Jose found out that the child's birth certificate was essentially empty."

Mr. Succo stands suddenly, pressing his palms to his eyes. "You don't understand what that time was like. You think we're hard on the women in our families, now? You have no idea what it was like twenty, forty years ago."

"Dad," Jose steps back in the room, a dark, leather-bound book in his hand. "What aren't you telling us?"

"Son," Mr. Succo's voice breaks off and he sighs heavily. As if years of guilt have been festering and growing.

Jose opens the book and holds out the page to his father. I watch his hand shake slightly. "Rhett Carmichael's ceremony was two years after his wedding. Amir Concord, five years. Your tie ceremony with mom isn't even logged."

I grab the book and my eyes trail over the dates. Everyone except my family, Lee's and Jose's ceremonies were dated before actual weddings. Which is the sequence of events we've been told about our entire lives. Family is hinged on the tie. Love is symbolized by the giving of the tie. Mr. Succo was trying to play it off earlier, like it wasn't a crucial ceremony, but I know better. We all do.

"Nothing happens with illegitimate children," Mr. Succo finally speaks, a slight tremor in his voice. "But an illegitimate child from two families can't exist."

My lungs spasm. I glance at Soren and his face is a cold mask. "Was my father the father, or was it Amir Concord's child?"

Mr. Succo glances between us all. "History has a funny way of repeating itself sometimes."

He knows about our relationship with Taylor. Mr. Succo and Jose seem extremely close by Illicit standards, but I don't see Jose risking becoming a full member by betraying our trust while still a pledge. Clearly, somebody is keeping tabs and whispering back to the elders.

"Was it yours?" Jose pins his father with a glare, his eyes hardened. I can feel his respect for his father leaving his body. He's becoming just like us. Daddy isn't so perfect.

His father shakes his head no, but then shrugs. "We weren't sure who the father was."

"Are you saying you, my father and Amir shared a woman?" Soren asks with the biggest fucking smirk.

My stomach feels like a pit of darkness is growing inside it. All three of them with a daughter from an Illicit family. That would be a scandal today. I can't even imagine twenty years ago.

"Would that really be unheard of?" Mr. Succo glances between us. "I heard you have your own situation going on. You think that didn't freak out your father, or Amir? To see history repeating itself, and then to find out someone was hunting members down."

They've been discussing us. I expected as much. Soren is still snickering in shock and awe. "I just can't believe that asshole would share anything. And Mr. Succo, no offense, but you seem so uptight. You don't look like you have it in you. And Amir? Actually, he is the only one who checks out."

My conversations with my father before his death replay in my mind. He was always so bent on our family being united. Strong. He was wary of Soren and his moods, but I chalked that up to what happened when Soren was young. When Taylor entered the picture, he picked up interest in her, and wanted to dictate mine and Soren's lives even more. I just thought it was because she wasn't like us.

My parents were never overly romantic or loving, and I attributed that to the lifestyle. If my father never loved my mother, but chose her as a formality, an afterthought with the tie-ceremony, then who did he love enough to give his tie to? Then to share with his friends? Was this mystery woman the reason they have a secret rivalry and power play?

"Who was the mother?" I meet the man's eyes and see his own shame reflected back.

"She was a Boudreaux," My twin supplies. "Wasn't she?"

Jose falls into a chair. "Dad. You didn't."

"I did what I had to do!" Mr. Succo stands, pacing the room, angrily. "Two families with an heir? Three possible fathers. A mother an heir of her own name. It was unheard of. The power imbalance would have been astronomical. Of course, the elders would have wanted to get DNA testing to figure out who the child belonged to. Or they simply would have killed the child. I couldn't do that to her."

"Who was she?" I grit my teeth together.

"Soleil Boudreaux. She was the family's heir, and ultimately was betrayed by her blood. She agreed to give the child up to save us. She would've died for the family. She did. Her family. Our miniature family. The Illicit family. I helped her. I did it for her, for us."

"What about Mom?" Jose's chin quivers.

"I love your mom. I do. Soleil was in my life before her. We were all in love, but we couldn't share it. Rhett, Amir, we all took wives who were good for The Illicit. Convinced it would save Soleil from scrutiny. Then she was pregnant, and somehow they knew it was one of ours, and it all fell apart. She gave birth and entrusted someone to take the baby. A month later we were called to a meeting with her father, and us. He knew everything. He threatened us, our power, our wealth."

My head bows, my fingers gripped tightly together. "They killed her." I'm used to knowing I come from a monster, but hearing the stories are another form of torture. I would never dream of hurting Taylor.

"Amir did. We weren't right after that. Rhett took out her father as vengeance. And we all claimed it was a murder-suicide. The family was embarrassed. Crushed. It was easy to topple their empire from there and for them to lose a spot in The Illicit with their heir gone," Mr. Succo, runs his hands over his face. His chest heaving at the same time. I can't look at him. I don't want to associate his pain with love or sacrifice. You don't sacrifice the ones you love. You sacrifice the world for them.

"I think we're done here," I reply and get to my feet.

Soren opens the door and we start to leave, but Jose hangs back, his empty eyes on his father. "Was the baby a boy or a girl?"

"Girl," the man answers, his throat bobbing.

"The murderer is avenging their mother. Even if you tried to help her…the Angel of Death is sparing no one," Jose warns him, a gesture of grace.

"I've made peace with death a long time ago, Son."

Jose nods. A look passes between them before Jose walks back to us and follows us out of the room. We make our way to my vehicle and get in. I speed to the airstrip, and we board our plane, heading back to Alabama. Back to our girl. The need to hold Taylor is so strong, I might break teeth from how hard my jaw is clenched. I hate my father. I hate the despicable things he did for money, for power. I didn't expect anything different. I just never want to be like him. I will protect Taylor with my life.