26. Kage

Chapter 26

Kage

I was standing in the dimly lit room, my heart racing with a mix of anger and anticipation. Troy, Silas’s brother, was hanging from his wrists in front of me, his clothes torn and bloodied. My hands were clenched into fists, aching to unleash the fury boiling inside me. He was one of the three men who attacked Camille, and for that, he was going to pay.

Ryker and Declan stood nearby, their expressions grim. We were a united front, bound by a common purpose—punishment. Despite my recent injuries, the adrenaline pumping through my veins made me feel invincible.

Just like I felt after I finger fucked Camille earlier that night.

Troy, however, was proving to be a tougher nut to crack than his brother. Even in his beaten state, he started laughing, a sound that grated on my nerves. He spat a mouthful of blood on the floor then glared at me.

"I'm tougher than Silas ever was," he said, blood dripping from a split lip. "I'm not going to beg like the little pussy did at the end. I'm willing to sacrifice myself for the cause."

I stepped forward, my vision tinted red with rage. "What cause?" I demanded, grabbing his chin and forcing him to look at me. But all he said in response was, "We shall endure."

He'd said that phrase, those three words, repeatedly, hinting that Silas's actions against Ava and Camille had been about something deeper, more organized than a simple burglary gone wrong. Troy's willingness to endure pain and torture without breaking proved it—a commitment to something greater than himself.

The realization that our fight wasn't just against a group of thugs out for gold but possibly against an organized cause with unknown objectives made my stomach turn. Troy's endurance was remarkable. Whatever he believed in, he was willing to not just die for but suffer unimaginable pain.

Fuck it.

I pulled out my switchblade. "Say goodbye to your dick, Troy.”

The motherfucker just laughed.

He was even more psycho than I was.

"He doesn't think you'll do it," Ryker said.

" Then let's get everything out in the open, eh? Starting with every single limb and appendage I can chop off."

I stepped closer and shredded his shirt. As I trailed the blade to his waistband, I suddenly slid it into his side as easily as if I was cutting butter. Troy snarled but didn’t cry out.

"Oops," I said as I dragged the knife down, cutting him and his pants in one go, splitting the skin down to his shins then repeating the motion on the other side. This time, the motherfucker screamed, the sound echoing around us.

Blood-stained fabric, both jeans and boxers, fell, revealing his unimpressive little prick and an oak tree tattoo that matched the one Silas had sported.

I ran the metal blade over Troy's cock, flicking it with the flat side.

"We...will...endure," he stuttered.

"Endure what? Who are you working for?"

He let his head hang down, and if I thought I'd defeated him, I was wrong. He began to laugh hysterically. "We will endure." He kept saying the words through his laughter.

"You really wanna lose this Vienna sausage, don't you?" I snapped, digging the knife into his thigh, just below the hip, next to his tattoo.

"What does the fucking oak tree mean? Tell me!"

"You..." he coughed. "You don't..." His eyes closed as his body began to convulse.

"Fuck! Get the defibrillator, get---"

But it was too late. Before I could even finish issuing the command, he was dead.

Camille

I let out a gasp as my eyes flickered open, and I bolted upright in bed. My heart raced, a reaction to the now-distant memory of a nightmare I couldn’t quite remember.

As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I gasped again. Kage leaned against the door jamb, watching me. Watching us .

How long had he been there? He looked freshly showered, wearing only pajama bottoms, his chest glistening against the soft glow of the moonlight peeking in through the curtain. His surgery scar stood out in stark relief along with the bruises from the car crash still written on his body.

Dante stirred in his sleep, his grip on my waist tightening as he spooned me from behind. I watched Kage, waiting with bated breath to see what he was going to do. How would he react to seeing me in bed with Dante? He stared at me with a stony expression. After a few moments, I realized he was staring through me. The look on his face scared me because he'd worn the same expression right after he slit Silas’s throat.

What the hell had happened after he left me at the Halloween party?

“Kage?”

At the sound of my voice, Kage jerked and blinked. His gaze dropped to Dante’s arm, which was still draped around me. Slowly, he walked toward me until he stood next to the bed.

“Kage?” I whispered. “What’s going on?”

Dante shifted behind me. He squeezed my arm, kissing the tip of my shoulder. “I’m going to go,” Dante murmured. “Kage needs you?—”

“Stay,” Kage said. He turned his attention back to me. “I just needed to see you, to hear your voice.”

I reached out, took his hand, then scooted back, bumping into Dante, who shifted positions. I pulled at Kage. "Come into bed."

"I can't. Tonight..."

"I don't care what happened tonight. I mean, not right now. Come lie down next to me. Please."

With a heavy exhale, he did as I asked. I wrapped my arms around Kage’s waist and held him against me. I hated seeing him like this, but I didn’t know how to fix it because I didn’t know what was wrong. I didn’t know what to do to make him feel better. There was hardly room here for the three of us in the bed but being between Dante and Kage felt like the safest place in the world for me. I wanted to give that feeling to Kage.

I lowered my mouth and kissed Kage. He returned my kiss with raw, desperate urgency, like he was trying to erase something from his mind. When he finally pulled back, the pain in his eyes was still there. He looked defeated.

“I changed my mind. I need to know what happened. You’re starting to scare me.”

“We can talk about it tomorrow,” he muttered, so softly I almost couldn’t hear him.

“Kage, please?—”

“Tomorrow,” he promised, snuggling against me. “I’m so fucking exhausted…”

"But—"

"Let him rest, Peaches," Dante murmured in my ear.

I bit my lip then nodded. The three of us shifted, getting more comfortable, me holding Kage, Dante’s arm loosely snaked around my waist.

Slowly, I felt the tension seep out of Kage’s body, his breaths becoming deeper and more even. "Sleep," I whispered, my fingers gently combing through his hair. He sighed contentedly, the sound mingling with the quiet of the room.

"That feels so good," he murmured, his voice laced with a drowsy satisfaction. Then, with a hint of a pout that made him sound years younger, he added, "But I bet what you guys did earlier felt even better."

I was so shaken, I couldn't even laugh. I hushed him gently even though I blushed. I wasn't sure I'd ever get used to them acknowledging they shared me so openly. But Dante wrapped his arm more securely around my waist, giving me a reassuring squeeze. "It's okay. We're all going to be okay," he said.

"Yeah. It's going to be okay. Every chance I get to be with you is a blessing." Kage's words were soft, but they held a weight and honesty that made my heart swell. His sincerity cut through the awkwardness, grounding me.

The moment was intimate, a delicate balance between the three of us, each touch and word weaving a stronger connection. Dante's presence, far from being an intrusion, felt like a natural extension of the bond Kage and I shared.

"Just make sure you save some of that pleasure for me next time, you bastard," Kage murmured.

Dante chuckled, the sound vibrating against my back, and this time I couldn't help but smile.

"Trust me, Peaches here is more than one man can handle, so I'll do that.”

The banter between them was a welcome surprise. At that moment, I felt something shift inside me.

I understood then: I didn't have to choose. I was theirs.