Chaotic (L.O.R.D.S. #7) — Chapter no 12

TWELVE

EV ERETT

o you ever feel like you’re supposed to be some one else? ID was meant to be a boy. Even the doctors said I’d be a boy. So my father named me Everett.

It’s pre dom inantly a male name. When I was born with a pussy, he decided to keep it.

I’ve gone by Eve for as long as I can re member. It was a hard pill to swallow to find out that I’d never live up to my name’s expec ta‐ tions. Who I was supposed to be. Someone who’d make my father proud. The sad thing is that I wanted to for the long est time. To be what he wanted. To be accepted. I’ve never belonged to some one. I was born for a purpose but ended up being useless. Then I was tossed to the side and raised for evil reasons.

My life would have been different had I been born with a dick. Eas‐ ier.

At least I like to think so. A woman can dream, can’t she?

There’s a lot of my childhood that I’ve blocked out. Chosen not to re member. But after I tried to end my life the first time, I became useless to our world. So my father gave me away. No,threw me away is more like it.

I spent a year in hell before a man came along and saved me. I’ve called himDad ever since. He saved my life more than once. I’m lucky he came along when he did. Who knows where I’d be if not for him?

Dead. No questions asked. Be cause I would have done it differently the next time, and I would have made sure it worked. A person can

only take so much before they break. And I’ve been so close to bro‐ ken that death was the only alternative.

Accep tance is such a weird word. Like why do you need to be ac‐ cepted? Why do you want to be loved? It’s over rated. Love comes and goes and so do my mood swings. One mo ment I want to cry my eyes out to an Adele song, thinking I’ll be single the rest of my life, and the next I’m thanking my lucky stars I don’t have to answer to

anyone.

Life is all about bal ance.

Good and evil. Heaven and hell. Crazy and sane.

Why not be both?

Statis tics show that more than thirty-six murderers walk past you during your life time. Do you ever wonder why they don’t choose you? I do. All the time. Do they choose victims by their looks? How they act? Is it someone they know, or do they pick at random?

I’m a loner. I stick to myself. I’d be an easy choice, hones tly. No one would go looking for me. Well, that’s not true. My dad would no‐ tice. But other than that, no one would care.

That’s why I agreed to join him for dinner tonight. Something we never do. I stay away from him because he had another family that I had to hide from. Story of my life. It never bothered me before. But now he’s mar ried another woman and wants us all to be one big, happy family.

I pull my car up to the mansion and get out, straightening my dress. It makes me uncomfort able being here. I’m not used to this

part of their world.

The money.

The class.

I’m used to the basements, chains, and blood.

I grew up differently from most of the women in the society. I’ve watched behind the scenes for years as women became chosens and Ladies. The sad part is, I was jealous.

I wanted to be a chosen—be long to one man. But I was born for a purpose that I can’t even fulfill. Not anymore. It was a decision I had to make, and I’ve come to terms with it.

The front double doors open, and I sigh when I see the pretty blonde stepping out side onto the porch. “Everett, I thought that was you. Please come in.”

Giving her a fake smile, I walk up the stone steps in a pair of black spiked Louboutins. They were a gift from my dad. Said he saw them and instantly thought of me us ing them to kick a man in the balls.

Have to love a father who encourages your rage.

“Hello, Janice. It smells lovely,” I tell her, entering the house, though I know she didn’t make it. Her staff did. I can’t be mean to her, though. She’s been so nice and welcoming to me and the man I choose to call Dad.

“Thank you. Please make your self comfortable. Can I get you a drink?”

“Yes, please.” I’d take a whole bottle of whatever she has, but that would make me look like a lush. One drink can’t hurt. She did offer.

Janice walks off toward the kitchen, her heels clapping on the mar‐ ble floor, and I nervously slide my hand down my dress. A bad habit that I wish I could break. I hate looking weak or nervous, but I’m not a family type of girl. Yet here I am, willingly accepting an offer to have din ner with my family. At least, that’s what my dad called it when he phoned me yes terday. I couldn’t re sist. He wants every‐ thing to be perfect for his newwife.

So I obliged and promised to indulge him by show ing up to this din ner. I wish I had someone who cared about me as much.

The doors open behind me, and I hear laughter as I turn around to see two familiar faces. They don’t know who I am, but I know them.

“Oh, hello.” The bleached blonde smiles at me.

The man hold ing her hand looks me up and down with appre hen‐ sion. He knows I don’t belong. That I’m no one. “Who the hell are you?” he asks. His hard tone mirrors what I’m thinking.

The woman softly slaps his chest in a warning to be nice, but I don’t act bothered. It’s only fair that he asks that question. Since this is his mother’s house.

“Everett, but, please, call me Eve.” I hold out my right hand to her because that’s what you do when you want to get to know someone.

The woman smiles, taking her hand from his in order to shake mine. “Elling ton,” she intro duces herself. “But you can call me Elli.”

Then she places her hand on the man’s chest, smiling proudly. “This is my husband, Easton.”

His eyes narrow on mine, as if he’s heard of me. Then he looks me up and down again, but this time he’s sizing me up. Seeing how hard it’ll be for him to snap my neck. After how easily Kash ton took me to my knees, I know it wouldn’t take this man much.

Elli drops her hand to her grow ing belly, and I look over her halo wedding ring. This is one of the families that Kashton warned me about. Easton is one of the men who will throw me into the fire to save his loved ones. I can’t blame them for that. I wish I had some‐ one who loved me enough to sacrifice someone else.

But as I learned at a young age, not everyone deserves to know

what it feels like to be loved.

KASHTON I sit in the office with Haidyn and Saint. We’re still not on the best terms. We all seem to be ignor ing the elephant in the room, and I’m allowing it. If they don’t want to talk to me, I’m not going to force them.

The door to the office opens and Jessie enters, clear ing his throat.

“You guys have a vis itor,” he an nounces and then steps to the side.

We all sit up straighter when Sin walks in behind him. Last time he was in this room, he was here on official Lords business—to kill Adam.

“What’s up, man?” Haidyn asks, giving him a hand shake hug. I stay where I’m at because he’s still not speaking to me. “How’s Elli do‐

ing?”

“Good,” he an swers with a faint smile.

“Why do I have a bad feeling about this?” Saint asks, falling into his seat.

I point to the chair across my desk, and Sin takes it, running a hand through his hair. “As I’m guessing, you all know Kash came to see me about Adam. You’re all aware that I didn’t kill him.”

I frown, wondering why he’s here wanting to discuss it now. I’ve tried to talk to him about it, and he’s done nothing but blown me off.

“Have you heard from him?” Saint asks, sounding hopeful. Placing his el bow on his desk, he leans forward.

“No,” Sin answers. “I haven’t had any communication with Adam. I don’t even know…” He trails off and then sighs. “I didn’t know any of you even existed until Ryat over heard that Elli’s dad was at Car‐ nage.” He rubs the back of his neck. “But I know Bill.”

Haidyn nods, and I wonder why he’s telling us this. We were just talking about Bill in Tyson’s office. Maybe he didn’t want to give too much information away with so many people in the room.

“I trusted him. Bill helped me with Elli. I was going to marry her but knew our families wouldn’t allow it. I went to Bill; he came to our house and snuck a mar riage license into the stack of paperwork she was signing to add her to the house. Deal done. We were mar‐ ried. Husband and wife. The Lords found out…”

“You think Bill told them?” I wonder, cutting him off. He said he trusted him. Something tells me he doesn’t anymore.

He sighs. “I don’t know.” He stands and starts to pace the large of‐ fice. “A Lady getting an as signment to prove her loyalty isn’t any‐ thing to think twice about. But no one knew other than Bill and me.

Not even Elli knew at that point.”

“What about Chance?” Haidyn asks.

“I…I called her my wife once to him, but he didn’t know it was offi‐ cial. He knew that was the plan, but I kept it a se cret.” He takes a deep breath. “The Lords made me put her through hell. She didn’t have to kill some one or do anything for them. However, they pretty much wrote her off, said she couldn’t be a Lady, but that if she proved herself to be faithful to me, I could ‘keep’ her,” he growls, walking to the floor-to-ceiling windows. Crossing his arms over his chest, he contin ues, “It didn’t matter what they wanted me to do; I was going to make sure she stayed my wife. Even if that meant making her think I didn’t love her.” He turns to face us. “They made Chance test her and she passed. She was mine. Forever. But I knew there was a timeline for how long I got to keep her. Be fore I gave myself over to you guys, I went to see Bill again. He set me up with papers to make sure Elli was taken care of. Since I’d bedead.” We all re main silent as we let him get whatever is bother ing him off his

chest. “I was in his office a few weeks ago getting stuff together for the babies. Elli and I want them to be twins on paper…from birth. No adop tion. No bullshit. In case some thing happens to me. He was setting it all up when I got a text. An assignment…”

“Adam,” Haidyn guesses when he trails off.

Sin nods and confirms. “Adam. I’m reading the text and think ing what the fuck? I didn’t even know the Spade broth ers existed six months ago, and now they want me to kill one of you? Bill could tell I was stressed. Asked what was wrong. I told him, and he said he could help.”

I stiffen and Hai dyn stretches his neck while Saint lets out a growl.

We’re starting to understand why he’s so confused.

“He calls Adam up right then and there and puts him on speaker. I sat there while they put together this plan for me to make it look like I killed him.”

Saint stands and runs a hand down his face.

“How did Adam know Bill?” I won der.

“Through his boss?” Haidyn guesses. “Bill and the detective seemed very close on the private jet that night. And then there was that sketchy phone call the detective got…” He shrugs.

“It’s fishy. Adam’s been hid ing for four years, then makes an ap‐ pearance, and all of a sudden Bill wants to help him.” Saint shakes his head. “I’m not buying it.”

“I didn’t think much about it at first,” Sin goes on. “I just knew I didn’t want three Spade broth ers on my family because I killed one of them.”

“And now?” Saint questions. “Why come to us about this now?

What’s changed that’s got you questioning Bill?”

“My father and mother-in-law are both prisoners here at Carnage.

My father-in-law and Tyson traded them for me.”

“You’re not getting anyone back,” Saint re minds him. “What we did

for you was a one-time thing.”

“I—”

Saint goes on. “You can choose one thing when it comes to Laura, but that’s it. She stays here. She re mains ours after she delivers, and so does your father.”

“No.” Sin raises his hand. “I don’t want either of them. You can bury them both alive for all I fuck ing care.”

Haidyn leans back in his chair. “Then what do you want?”

“My mother called me yes terday, wanted to have Elli and me over for din ner. We’ve kept our distance…after we found out what my fa‐ ther did to my wife…” He swallows. “But Elli urged me to go. Said she wants the babies to have a family. One that she never had. So we went. And Bill was there.”

Haidyn frowns. “Why the fuck would he be at your mother’s house?”

Sin sits across from me once again and his knees begin to bounce.

“Elli recognized him, of course, because he was at our house when she signed the papers, but after we left my mom’s, she said she re‐ membered him from her mother’s house…the night she mar ried Lin‐ coln.”

“He was friends with Laura or Lincoln?” Saint asks.

“I don’t know.” Sin sighs. “But it got me think ing. What if Bill set all this up?”

“You’re going to have to be more specific.” Saint lets out a long breath.

Sin turns to look at Haidyn. “Bill knew Charlotte’s fu ture at Doll‐ house be cause of Isabella. Bill also knew that you had a deal with Isabella for Adam. What if Bill wanted you to fall in love with Char‐ lotte, knowing you’d leave her with your broth ers, who would then go af ter you, knowing you’d lead them to Dollhouse?”

Haidyn scratches the back of his head.

“Bill did tam per with Charlotte’s IV treatments to make sure you knocked her up.” Saint nods at Haidyn.

“He could have burned Dollhouse to the ground at any time but chose to let you sit there for a week,” Sin growls.

Saint shakes his head. “No. Bill said he thought he knew where Hai‐ dyn was, but that he was waiting for confirmation he was there.”

“Maybe he lied.” Sin gives a humorless laugh. “Not the first time a Lord has lied for his own bene fit. Be sides, who is the insidesome one that he was awaiting confirmation from?”

The room falls silent, and Haidyn leans forward, placing his head in his hands. “What does any of this have to do with Bill being at your mother’s last night?”

Sin sighs heavily. “Like I said, my father is here. He’s dead to the world and to the Lords.” He turns to face Haidyn once again. “And so is Isabella—Bill’s wife—Charlotte’s mother.”

Haidyn slowly gets to his feet, his face sharper, his jaw harder. “Get to the fuck ing point, Sin,” he growls, not liking the fact that Sin brought up his wife.

“While at my mom’s last night, she announced that she’s been

regifted…to Bill.”

Fuck.

The room falls silent, but everyone might as well be screaming with

the way you can hear our minds working.

“Sin—”

“How much do you trust him?” Sin demands. “Be cause I thought I could, and now…” He jumps up and shoves his hands through his hair. “Now he’s my…step dad? Putting himself in my mother’s life. And Elli—what the fuck is he do ing?”

“Lords don’t get to choose who they are gifted,” Saint says softly.

“He chose Isabella, didn’t he?” Sin snaps, glancing at Haidyn. “After you murdered his best friend. Her husband.” Haidyn says nothing to that. “We just found out weeks ago that our wives are founders…so I’m not sure what the truth is anymore.”

“I…I don’t know.” Haidyn exhales.

“We know that Bill is high up. Maybe he pulled some strings to get to marry my mother,” Sin suggests.

“Why would he chance his rankings with Adam?” Saint frowns. “If the Lords find out he’s help ing him…he’s as good as dead.”

“Adam didn’t seem to trust him, and it made me second-guess why he took the deal,” I add.

“What do you mean Adam didn’t trust him?” Haidyn wonders.

“We weren’t the nicest to Charlotte,” Saint informs him.

“What?” he snaps.

I wave him off. “Adam was pro tective of Charlotte. Told her to stay away from Bill because he didn’t trust him. Then not much later,

we’re on a private jet, Adam isdead, and he’s made a deal with Bill.”

“What do you mean, you weren’t nice to my wife?” he demands, getting to his feet. “I left her with you to take care of.”

“You have to see it from our point of view,” Saint growls. “She was the daughter of the woman who tortured us.”

“She’s my wife,” Haidyn barks.

“Can you guys figure your shit out later?” Sin snaps. “You’re no longer at Dollhouse,” he points out to Haidyn. “And your wife is safe.

It’s my wife I’m worried about.”

Saint snorts. “I can’t see him going after Elli. What would he bene‐ fit from it?”

“What about Kira?” I dig, trying to look at it from all angles.

Sin shakes his head. “Although I love my sister, I’m not that con‐ cerned about her. She’s moved out of the house, engaged to my friend. I don’t see why Bill would want anything to do with her.”

“How did your mother act?”

“She seemed happy with him. It was awkward how comfortable they were.” He shivers. “Like she had been seeing him. They got mar ried last weekend on some beach but are planning a big re cep‐ tion at the house in a few weeks with friends and family.”

“Did you speak to her about it?” I ask.

“No. I didn’t get the chance. We didn’t even stay to eat. I could tell Elli wasn’t comfortable. So I made up an excuse as to why we had to go, and we left. I planned on going back later but didn’t get the chance.” He sighs. “But there was also a woman there.”

“A woman other than your mother?” Saint frowns. “Who was she?”

“She intro duced herself as Everett.”

I stiffen.

“As in Everett Sinclair?” Saint’s eyes widen. “The woman the detec‐ tive was talking about?”

“That’s the first thought I had.” Sin nods but doesn’t say anything

more.

“And?” I ask nervously.

“And she’s Bill’s daughter.”

Haidyn shakes his head. “Bill doesn’t have a daughter.”

“He does,” Sin argues.

“No. You’re mistaken. He practically raised Charlotte these past six years—after I killed her father that night on theIsabella. If Bill had another child, Charlotte would have mentioned that. She would have been in their lives.”

Sin opens his mouth to argue, but Saint speaks first. “After what we’ve learned, I don’t see it as that far of a stretch that he has a child no one knows about. But it is weird that all of a sudden, we hear her name twice in the same week.”

Haidyn picks up his cell and brings it to his ear. “Can you come to the office? … Okay.” Setting it down, he speaks to us. “Charlotte will be here in a second. We’ll ask her.”

“I’m going to get eyes on her,” Sin states. “I want to know every

move this Everett makes.”

Fuck.

“See what I can find out and what she knows,” he adds.

“About what?” I ask, getting to my feet, needing the move ment.

“About my wife. The dead bodies that were found. Hell, for all we know, she works for Isabella or LeAnne.” He shakes his head. “I’m not taking any chances.”

I run a hand ner vously through my hair, trying to figure out what the fuck to do about this. I’ve asked her all these questions, and she told me no, but she could easily have been ly ing. Saving her ass.

“All I know right now is that she’s popped up too many times for it to be a co incidence.”

I can’t argue with that, but I say, “I’ll han dle it.”

Sin narrows his eyes on mine. “That sounds like your ‘I’ll look into it,’ and I don’t believe it any more now than that bullshit.”

I lean my ass up against the edge of my desk and cross my arms over my chest. If I want them to trust me, I have to tell them. No better time than the present. “I know her.”

“Everett?” Saint inquires.

I nod.

“Of course you do.” Sin gives a rough laugh. As if some how, I’m in‐ volved in a con spiracy to hurt his wife.

“Actu ally, we all do.”

Saint and Haidyn both shake their heads.

“Yes. You do. Well, you might not have met her in person, but you’ve seen her.” I look at Saint. “She was the bleached blonde on theIsabella the night of our junior initiation.”

“The one you were drooling all over when the old lady gave you the gum?”

“That’s the one.” Then I look to Haidyn. “She’s the woman from the cathedral.”

He runs a hand through his hair and sighs. I just confirmed what he assumed at the meet ing at Blackout.

“She was on theIsabella?” Sin growls. I ignore that since I just told them as much. “And you’ve been fuck ing her,” he as sumes with a snort. “That’s just great.”

Technically, I haven’t fucked her yet…but that would be splitting hairs, so I don’t deny it. “Like I said, I’ll take care of it. Understand?”

Silence falls over the room. No one better touch her. If she’s been planted in our lives, I’ll find out the reason. And if that’s the case, I’ll also take care of her. How I want.

The door opens and Charlotte steps inside the office. “What do you need?” She looks at her husband.

He walks over to her and pushes her dark hair off her shoulder.

“Did Bill have other kids?”

She frowns. “No. Why?”

Haidyn looks at Easton. “Be cause Sin swears that Bill has a daugh‐ ter by the name of Everett Sinclair.”

Charlotte shakes her head. “That name doesn’t sound familiar.”

“Their last names aren’t the same,” Haidyn points out the obvious.

“If he’s been hid ing her, it makes sense to not give her his last name,” Saint offers. “Charlotte had a fake name. Plus, Isabella and LeAnne legally changed their names to hide the fact that they are twins.”

“I’m telling you, she’s his daughter. She called himDad. My mother intro duced her to me and Elli as my stepsis ter. She belongs to him,”

Sin argues.

She does have a daddy, the re altor had said. Was Bill the man who’d bought her house? If so, why would he do that for her?

Charlotte nib bles on her bottom lip. “I guess she could be.” She looks up at Haidyn. “I mean, my mother has a twin sister, and I thought she was her best friend all my life.” Shrugging, she looks at Sin. “What did she look like?”

“Bleached blond with green eyes. Maybe five ten and around our age.” He shrugs.

“I have a picture of her,” I say, re moving my cell from my pocket and pulling up one I took of her one night outside the cathedral.

Show ing it to Charlotte, she nods. “Yeah, I’ve seen her at the

cathedral.”

Everyone turns to me.

“Blowtorch girl.” Haidyn nods, then looks at his wife. “When were you at the cathedral?”

“It was a long time ago. Be fore my father died. She was sitting in the very back of the pews with us. I thought it was weird because she wasn’t wear ing a cloak or mask like the rest of us.”

“Who else was there?” Saint demands.

“It was full of Lords,” she answers. “It was an offer ing.”

“What the fuck was she doing at an offer ing?” Sin snaps, looking at me as if I know her life story.

But it makes sense, consider ing she was sewing up the man that Haidyn and I were there to collect after a confes sional. So I don’t neces sarily see that as a red flag. Confes sional and an offer ing are pretty much the same thing. Either way, you’ve betrayed a Lord.

“LeAnne was there,” Charlotte adds, and I run a hand down my

face. “She was running the offer ing.”

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Sin looks at me, and before he opens his mouth, I raise my hand.

“I’ll fucking handle it. Do not lay one hand on her.”

With out another word, Sin turns and storms out of the office, slam‐ ming the door shut behind him.

“Was this the woman who stapled the letter to your back after you spent the night in a cemetery?” Saint asks.

My silence is all the an swer he needs.

“Fuck, Kash,” he growls. “I’m guessing it’s the same cemetery where the body was found. You had to have recognized it. Why

didn’t you say anything?”

I walk around my desk and sit back down, ignor ing him. Haidyn takes Charlotte’s hand, exiting the room.

I try and think of my next move. If she’s Bill’s daughter, how long will it take for word to get out? Why hide her all these years? Why bring her out now? Maybe LeAnne is her mom? I mean, she was gone for years. I wouldn’t be surprised if she had a child with Bill.

Lords share their wives with anyone who wants a taste. It makes sense that they have illegitimate children with one another.

“Kash—”

“I’m not in the mood, Saint.” I cut him off and stand from my desk.

Exiting the office, I head up to my room. I’ve got to make my move.

Too many people want her head on a platter, and if that’s going to happen, I’ll be the one to do it after I’m done with her.

I’ve waited too long for my chance with her to give up now.