Chapter Twelve

XAVIER

I 'm lying in a pool of my own blood, but that's not the worst part. The worst part is, it's not even the first time.

This isn't the first time I've been this beaten up. I'm not the first person Xander has tried to kill. But it is the first time my own brother has done something so heinous. My hands are bound, my feet are tied together, and they're dragging me across the sand. They're not even trying to be careful.

And I haven't even seen my brother yet.

My brother, the man who used to be the one person in the world who understood me, who I could always rely on. Until now.

The wound on my face is bad, and it's still bleeding. But I can't feel anything, and when I reach up and touch it, there's no pain. The knife that pierced the soft skin under my eye was sharp and clean. Heath pumped me full of drugs before I left to up my adrenaline levels, stop me from feeling the pain of my lost eye. I think he gave me enough morphine to take out a horse.

But I didn't want to be numb. Not then, and not now. I need my wits about me to take down Xander.

When they finally drop me on the floor, I groan. The blood has started to flow from my face again, and the pain is starting to creep in, even through the layers and layers of opiates.

"Fuck," I groan. "Fuck, fuck."

"Brother," comes a voice, a sickeningly familiar voice.

"Xander," I growl. "Show your fucking face."

"No," he says. "I don't think so. Not yet."

His voice booms through the room, so much like mine. I haven't seen my brother in decades, and despite the hatred bubbling under my skin, I can't help but miss him.

"Come out," I demand. "Prove you're not a pussy, hermano."

"You're the pussy, brother," Xander laughs. "How is Tallulah, by the way?"

"Don't mention her," I growl. "Keep her name out of your filthy mouth, you piece of shit."

"That's no way to talk to your younger brother," he laughs.

"You're not my brother. Not anymore."

"No, you're right. I'm not. Now, we're equals."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"Look at the two of us," Xander laughs from somewhere above me. "Two brothers, equally damaged."

"I'm nothing like you," I hiss.

"But you are, hermano," Xander laughs. "We're exactly the same."

"We're nothing alike," I hiss.

"We have the same face, brother. The same voice. The same soul. You and me, we're the same. But you just couldn't let me have what was mine, could you? You had to take it from me."

"It wasn't yours," I snap. "It was never yours. They should have picked me. They would have."

"Maybe," his voice says, echoing in the room. "Or maybe not. It doesn't matter, because you fucking tricked them all, didn't you, hermano? You took my place in that family. You were their prodigal son. Tell me, Xavier... did the Gunns even know what you did? Heath's father, his grandfather... Did they know you took my place?"

"Shut up," I hiss. "Just fucking shut up and stop hiding, you goddamn coward."

"You want to see me?"

"If you dare show your face," I snarl.

"Oh, no, I won't," Xander laughs.

"What, are you afraid of your big brother now?"

"No," he says. "I'm just not done torturing you yet."

"I've had enough of this shit," I hiss, trying to free myself from the ropes.

"Oh, don't leave just yet, hermano. I haven't told you the best part yet."

"Go to hell."

"I will. You'll wait for me, won't you?" His cruel laughter rings through the room. "I bet you thought they were all dead, didn't you?"

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Oh, the Gunns," Xander chuckles. "Your family, the ones who took you in. One of them is still alive, hermano."

"Bullshit."

"No," Xander laughs. "I'm not lying. It's a lie you told yourself to sleep better at night, brother. You're the only monster left."

"Lies," I hiss.

"They're not," Xander snaps. "But now, thanks to you, they're all going to die. The Gunn family will be extinct soon enough. And that's all because of you."

"Stop it."

"Make me," Xander challenges.

I try to rip free, but the ropes are too tight. I can't move, no matter how hard I try. And that just makes me angrier.

"I'm going to fucking kill you," I hiss.

"Good luck with that," he laughs. "But for now, we have a lot more time to spend together, hermano. I want you to know how much your brother hates you."

"I can feel the love," I sneer. "I hate you too."

"Not as much as I hate myself," Xander adds. "For trusting you."

"Well, that's not my fault."

"No," he sighs. "You're right. It's mine. I'm a fool, hermano. A blind, fucking idiot."

"I wouldn't go that far."

"Wouldn't you? You took my place," he hisses.

"I was born first. They would have taken me anyway. That's the rules."

"They were going to make me king," he roars. "But then you happened. You were always so fucking jealous. Are you jealous now?"

Suddenly, he starts walking down the grand staircase in the front hall. My eyes are glued to him as he emerges from the shadows step by step. The light reveals more and more of his familiar features, but when he finally reaches me, I gasp.

It's like looking in a mirror. A broken one.

"Xander," I gasp.

"Brother," he says.

"I'm... sorry."

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" Xander sneers.

"You were supposed to be king," I say.

"Yes," Xander nods. "I was. I will be. Once you're dead."

He kneels on the tile next to me, his face dangerously close. I can feel his breath on my cheek, and it's almost calming. I can't tear my eyes off his face, the familiar features of the brother I loved once.

"I can't forgive you," he hisses.

"Don't," I manage. "You shouldn't."

"No," he nods. "You're right."

"Do what you need to do, hermano," I add.

"Oh, don't worry. I will."

He raises his hands to my face and strokes the wounds. It feels strangely good, and when his thumb moves closer and closer to the wound over my eye, I can't help but lean into his touch.

"Please," I mutter. "Do it."

"Gladly," he says, before ripping his thumb into the open wound.

The pain is searing hot, but the morphine is still coursing through my veins. It's a different kind of pain, a familiar kind.

"Fuck," I manage as blood pours down my face.

"Hush, brother," Xander soothes.

"Kill me," I groan.

"No," he whispers.

"Why not?"

"Because then it would be over," he smiles. "We have a lot left to do, Xavier. Just you and me."

He pulls his finger free and wipes it on my shirt with a serene smile.

Suddenly, the front door flies open and my groans of pain die on my lips.

"No, Santiago!" a panicked voice cries as I focus my gaze on the pre-teen on the doorstep. "Come back here!"

The boy's backpack drops to the ground as he stares at my brother.

"Papa?" he asks. "What's going on?"