Betrayal Is My End

Chapter 2

Timothy

My mind swam at this revelation, I felt like I'd been punched in the gut. Twin!? How can he be a twin? Does Jerome know? Surely not, if he had, we would have known. No it's- it's just Jake- just one. There can't be- "hey, hey focus-let's calm down," the voice was calm but it sounded like it was so loud in my mind. The noise exploded in my head and I whimpered, I heard someone sigh and when I opened my eyes, I saw Jake leaning against the doorframe looking utterly disgusted.
My field of vision was filled with someone. Who? My mind went blank as I stared at the newcomer. He looked just like Jake. No he wasn't Jake, what was his name? They'd just told me- my mind couldn't hold onto any facts they were flying around. Dylan! My mind screamed, that was his name, Dylan. I watched as his brows were furrowed and he looked worried. "Hey shh, it's ok."
He said calmly and pursed his lips before speaking again. "Let's calm down, uhh tell me five things you hear," I frowned and looked at him. I could see him much more clear, "uh-" I said and Jake scoffed, "five things you hear," his voice got a little louder as he tried to drown out his brother. "Four things you taste, three you can touch, two you can smell, and one you can see?"
My breathing was labored at the numbers he was throwing at me and I could see he realized the mistake. Just as he spoke, Jake cut in, "really? I can calm him," he said pulling out a knife. Dylan shot to his feet, "I've got it- let me help him." They argued quietly, and I forced myself to calm. I took a deep breath and swallowed back my panic. "He's not Sydney." Jake hissed out between his teeth, Dylan stopped immediately.
I turned to them shocked at that, Jake looked angry and Dylan just looked like he'd been slapped. With that, Jake nodded "exactly. Now, get the princess dressed and ready to be downstairs in five, or so help me, I'll come back here and ready him myself." The door shut and it was just me and Dylan. He sighed, before turning to me. His eyes were downcast and he looked utterly devastated but it went away in a flash. When he spoke his voice was low, "sorry. He means well, caretaking isn't his forte. But hey, look at you," he said gesturing to my now calm self. "You didn't even need me, you look calm now."
His smile didn't last as he paused and spoke lowly again, "you might want to get ready, he won't be kind if he has to come back."
I nodded and grabbed the shoes at the foot of the bed, "let's go." He nodded once and opened the door, "what are we going to do?" I couldn't help but ask, it was strange, knowing he wasn't Jake was like a breath of fresh air. He was a new person, he wasn't going to hurt me, it was never him. It was Jake. "We're gonna figure out how you can be useful to us. To Jake. Your friends took Johnny from him, Johnny was the only thing important to him, he's hell bent on revenge."
I swallowed hard and bit my lip, "I can't wait."
We walked through the halls and Dylan hovered near my side the whole time, I don't think he figured I'd run. He just didn't want me to focus on too much, I sighed and looked around. The halls were dark; pictures hung here and there of a little girl, Sydney. My body aches slightly and I frown but keep walking with him. The doors in all sides were closed, they were dark-expensive looking-wood, the walls were white and the floors were wooden as well. I shook my head, just as we reached the staircase and Dylan smiled. "Expecting more cobwebs?" He questioned. "Dust, uh torture devices?"
I chuckled, meeting his stare, he looked slightly amused and I couldn't help but feel amused myself. "I don't know, I mean- maybe? You did have me in a cell, with manacles, and skeletons." I could see the joy in his eyes as he laughed, "I am sorry." I shrugged, "it's ok, I know Jake wants my power but- I don't have it." I say with a shrug as if to accentuate my carefree attitude before turning to look around and not meet his gaze.
After a moment of silence, I spoke again. "So, I don't imagine I'll be of much use to him anyways, not to mention I was there when Sydney was killed. I wasn't in the room, but-" we'd reached the base of the stairs now and I heard Dylan's sharp intake of breath.
When I turned back to him I could see he had gone pale. His eyes were filled with shock and I feel my stomach drop as I realize he didn't know. I chew on my lip before speaking softly. "I'm sorry," he sighed, trying to check himself.
It was clear he wasn't comfy with how he held himself in my presence. When he spoke, his voice was soft and I could hear the raw emotion in it,"it's not your fault. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, thanks to her father." His voice had turned bitter toward the end and I frowned, "isn't he your brother?"
Dylan half shrugged and walked toward a room just off the main entryway.
We were in a house, I realized with a start, "this was Johnny's," he must've seen the shock as it clicked. I opened my mouth to ask a question and he continued cutting me off, "it's where he was raising Sydney. Now it's ours," he paused for a moment clearly in thought, he smiled and shook his head. "I feel lame saying hide out-" he shrugged again, "but, it is. We come here to regroup and figure out our next move. Come on, Jake wants to brief you," with that, he walked through the door way.
Brief me? Am I officially on the team? I frowned trying to figure out his gameplan. Jerome didn't brief- or debrief- us until we actually proved ourselves. Said there was no point in the work if we didn't show the resolve.
I couldn't shake the feeling but decided to focus on the space around me instead. The whole house had an old but new vibe to it, the walls were a crisp white color and the floor was dark wood that looked so slick you'd fall but it was just polished to the nines. The furniture, I noticed, was all the same. Sleek, modern, comfortable, and all a deep onyx color. Everything popped, but then it all went together. As I turned to follow Dylan, I saw the fireplace was adorned with beautiful wood work that depicted lions mid-roar.
The fireplace took up most of one wall in the living room. There was sleek black furniture and a glass table in the center of the room. Everything just screamed money, it was a little overwhelming. I dropped my gaze so as not to stare for too long. I didn't want to show how much my mind was being blown. When I did, I saw I was standing on a soft- looking rug.
There was a floor runner- or, is it a rug?- in each room with one recurring image. It was definitely a family crest, but it was off. It radiated power and made fear rise in my gut. It was the shape of a shield, and was sectioned into three parts. Two squares on top and one big one on the bottom, with black and red outlining it, and flames coming out around it. Five stars sat in the top right corner within the shield , in the left was what looked like a kangaroo holding uneven scales almost like you see in the supreme courts.
Across the bottom of the 'shield' was the thing that made chills run through my body and bile rise in my throat as I looked closer.
Lining the edge of the crest were four stakes, on the stakes were four heads. Three of the heads looked painfully familiar, two of them nearly identical , and one had the slicked back, black hair I'd seen hundreds of times. The fourth, though, I couldn't place. The detail in this was terrifying, I wanted to stare but couldn't stomach it any longer. Instead, I sighed as I looked around the room.
It was absolutely beautiful, but something was missing.I brought my gaze around again and that's when it actually hit me.
I finally noticed what was missing, warmth. This was just a place to make plans, to sleep, but not to actually live. Maybe I can help- I stopped in my tracks and felt the shock that ran through me. What the hell? Help? No I'm not- "hey, you ok?" It was Dylan, he paused in front of the sleek black love seat and was watching me with a peculiar look. Dylan, I've learned, was an observer. He knew where to hit, and how hard to hit because he watched you for signs of weakness.
He was watching me now, it's dangerous to be weak in front of him. Don't let him study too much. I shook off my shock and shrugged, "just a lot to take in." I muttered and he smiled softly, I found myself staring at everything around me. Every surface was either glass or marble, it was almost unsettling how formal it felt. Walls were white and trimmed with black that went around the ceiling, and the fireplace had a sleek formal air to it.
Everything screamed money, and new. But there were also old things that complimented it, like the glass table that had beautifully ordained blown glass decanters filled with different types of beverages. It was like it was in a show I'd watched with my mom years ago. The mob bosses always had whiskey? Or was it scotch? On hand for any meeting.
I turned slowly, still not paying attention to my surroundings when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I couldn't help but jump. I heard a chuckle but it was for only a second, before I was shoved down to the loveseat. It wasn't hard but it definitely got my attention. I looked up and saw Jake standing in front of me with a smirk on his face.
Dylan sighed, "can we not screw with him? It's quite early," he said and leaned his head back against the couch. I frowned at that and Jake shrugged stepping back. He had a type of weapons belt on and it was laden with different knives, daggers, and even a switch blade. It shouldn't have gone together but, somehow, it worked on him.
He sighed and held one small knife in his hand, it was with a silver handle and had some rubies set into the hilt. The blade was deadly sharp and beautifully shined.
He held the tip of the blade on the tip of his finger and the handle in his right hand and spun it almost absentmindedly. "So, what's the choice? I know you have reservations but, us or them?" With that, he plopped down on the sofa across from Dylan and I and leaned forward staring at me eagerly. his elbows rested on his knees and he stared at me openly, awaiting my answer. I opened my mouth to answer but no sound came out, and he scoffed.
"I- I can't leave my friends! They're my family they-" he didn't say anything, just raised a brow in question at me. I felt myself silence instantly at that look. It was filled with mirth like he knew something I didn't, hell, he probably did!
His eyes flicked from me to Dylan beside me and back, "look, I get where you're coming from but- can you hear me out?"
My eyes were downcast but at his words, I flicked them up to meet his, there was something in his tone of voice. Some sincerity. When I met his gaze, I saw the truth in his eyes, he wasn't angry or even mocking anymore he was sincere. It almost scared me more than his anger or cruelty. Slowly, I nodded, "I'll listen, but I'm- I don't know why you want me. I'm useless without my power," he rolled his eyes then and scoffed, "right- powers are everything." His tone had turned back to mocking and I felt my body sag in relief.
He set the knife down on the table in the center, and reached into his pocket, my body tensed slightly but when he pulled his hand out, in it, was a phone. I blew out a small sigh of relief and he smiled, "someone's jumpy," I glared at him and turned to Dylan but he just seemed to be observing. These two are going to be the death of me.
"Ok so, you've been here over a week. As we've discussed," he said meeting my gaze again, "when it came time to get others,- Jerome didn't hesitate." His voice had taken on that of a teacher. As though he was giving me a history lesson and I was in school, instead of being in captivity.
Such a strange one, how fast he flips, is mind blowing. "He jumped to action. When it came time to get you," he shrugged, pursing his lips "he didn't budge. Even when I cut your finger(s) off, it didn't rile anything in him to come help you."
I frowned "yes it did, he just hasn't moved yet. Jerome- he, he makes his moves smart he's not just gonna jump, he expects more out of me." Jake didn't say anything, just handed his phone to me, his tone was low and filled with something that almost sounded like regret,"just hit play."
I looked at him for a moment before looking down to the screen, on it was Jerome. I started as I watched, he was talking to someone- a boy- who was blonde and looked angry. Jerome looked his usual self, calm collected, and bored even. He leaned against a wall with his arms crossed and the boy screamed at him, he shook his head, and shrugged. It enraged the boy who took a swing at Jerome, he deflected it and put the boy down on the ground in less than a second. The video stopped soon after that and I felt confusion, "what was this? I don't understand," Jake had his hands to his lips and was watching me intently.
Just when I thought he wasn't going to answer, Dylan spoke up. "It's a video I filmed, that boy is-" Jake smoothly cut him off, "a new member. They've already replaced you, they took him from the lab when they got those kids out. This video was filmed two days ago. The boy is arguing that they should come after you, Jerome said no. He's refusing, and honestly, moving on."
I felt my heart drop through my stomach, I thought I was going to throw up. I took a deep breath and felt my hands shaking, I clenched them in fists to stop them and center myself. "Well," I said shakily, "I- I can't say I'm surprised. I mean, without my power I'm useless to him." A tear ran down my cheek and I bit my lip hastily wiping, Jake tilted his head to the side not breaking eye contact.
That's what scared me about him, he never showed emotion other than anger. Sometimes curiosity but it was like he was incapable of anything else. "You really think that? Because you don't have a power, you're useless?" He wasn't mocking, only curious. It was almost scary how fast he switched between moods. "Power doesn't equate to useful. You still hold power over them, no one else can access what you put away- right?"
I nodded stiffly and he smiled, "ok. Well, I don't have a power. Neither does Dylan." My head snapped at that and he smirked and only the devil could match a smirk like that at me. He knew he had my attention, "what? You- your knives!" I said gesturing to the one on the table and grabbed it, he didn't move just watched me, "yes a lot of people think I have some crazy good power that makes me scarily good with knives. I don't."
He spoke matter of factly. He shrugged and eyed me as I held his knife and turned it in my hand, so he doesn't have a power, maybe he can go down quickly.
"I grew up on a farm," he said slowly and Dylan groaned beside me. Jake only continued as though Dylan didn't make a sound.
"Me and Dylan, Johnny wasn't around he stayed on his own. Our father was a butcher, family trade, so when I was six-I learned how to properly butcher a pig." I felt nauseous at that. "When I was eight, I could butcher any animal put in front of me." His eyes were far off now, he wasn't staring at us or the wall behind us, instead he was seeing the farm.
He took a deep breath, "when we were twelve, these men came to our farm and beat our father within an inch of his life. Apparently, he owed money he couldn't pay back, he took a loan for something and they came for payment. It sucked but they poisoned the animals, murdered our whole flock and set fire to the place. They destroyed us."
His eyes held a glint of anger now and I felt as a shiver ran down my spine, I looked to Dylan who was lounging calmly on the couch beside me. He seemed unbothered but, there was something about it that didn't sit right with me. He was too calm, Jason did it too, they can feign calm but if you knew them, or looked too closely you'd see they were lying. I licked my lips, studying Dylan for a moment longer before turning back to Jake. When he spoke, his words were nonchalant, "anyways, it was me and Dylan. We were in the city and I remember seeing one of the men who'd hurt my father." He paused and I could see a smile on his lips, "and, I don't know, I just followed him home. He was my first human kill."
His eyes lit up at this. I could see bloodlust there now and I swallowed thickly. He smiled softly as he recalled it, "I threw up, and shook and when they found out who did it they came after us. Dylan was furious of course," he said gesturing to his brother fondly. Dylan didn't answer, only shook his head, and he continued.
"I had a choice, either back down and let them kill us, or stand for myself and defend us. I defended us and killed them all, I felt no regret. I felt myself awakening." His voice held a sense of wonder and wistfulness to it now, clearly this had been an amazing thing for him.
Dylan, on the other hand looked withdrawn, he'd been there. Fearing for his life, because their father and then his brothers bloodlust.
I felt bad for him. I bit my lip and felt myself jump slightly when Jake spoke again. "When I was finished, a whole calmness washed over me. I felt so serene. I remember Dylan was terrified but alive and I felt proud of myself." He chuckled softly, " I remember Johnny walked in, he was in a suit and looked every bit the mafia boss he was." His eyes softened now and I could see the pure joy and adulation at the thought of seeing his brother.
"I don't remember how long I sat there before he came in, but when he did, I remember feeling a sense of relief. I knew surely if anyone could fix the mess I'd caused, it'd be Johnny. He took one look around the room and smiled and told me 'looks like I've got some use for you after all.' After that, me, him, and Dylan stuck together, building his empire. I became the monster I am, not because Johnny forced me, but because I protected my family. I don't have a power that makes me strong, I made me strong."
When he finished we sat in silence, I was absorbing everything he said and couldn't wait to be alone to truly think and sift through everything.
"What about Jerome?" I had to keep him talking, I had to learn everything I could, for Jay Jay. He smirked, "Jerome didn't know how to handle my charm. We parted ways pretty soon after we met." He took a deep breath and blew it out and I could see clear lines of exhaustion on his face, I wonder when he sleeps.
"So," he said after a moment. He blew out a breath before standing and stretching. "I'm gonna give you one shot, if you can kill me you can go." My eyes snapped to his again and in them I saw an amused sort of glint, he truly thought he was unbeatable. Dylan grunted, and when I looked to him, I saw he looked annoyed. I sighed, "I won't hurt you, Jake. I want to, but I won't- I'm not stupid you're going to get me to get my guard down and hurt me again." The look in his eye changed from amused to impressed, "you are a smart cookie. Ok, so no need for kiddy gloves then." He stretched his arms above his head leaning back slightly and that's when I moved. Faster than he could react, faster than Dylan could track, and faster than I knew I could.
I lunged up and forward, over the table, and onto his chest before plunging the knife in. I made sure to look him in the eye as I did, his eyes widened and he paled.
We fell back slowly and I felt my breath coming faster and faster as the shock of what I'd just done washed over me. I moved off of him and sat in front of the couch on the floor with my head in my hands. I tried to calm my breathing and forced myself to look to make sure no one was going to murder me. When I did, I saw Dylan, it was strange how like Jake he looked.
His head was cocked to the side and he studied me with interested eyes. But he didn't move, he sat while his brother lie bleeding out on the couch. What is wrong with this f- behind me I heard a quiet laughing. I felt as the couch moved and felt as a cold sweat broke out over my skin.
"That was good, I'm impressed. But, I have to know," I looked up at him now, Jake was sitting just beside me. His skin was pale still and his shirt bloodied, his hand shook slightly as he raised it to the knife protruding from his chest. It was his eyes though, that scared me, no longer were they calm and calculating. Now, they were dilated and a barely veiled excitement filled them. "What did you plan to do once you stabbed me?" My mouth dropped open and I croaked out what sounded like a word before I was punched in the face. I grunted in pain as fear exploded through me, I was down on the ground curling in a ball trying to protect my body and head when I heard it.
It was a horrible squishing sound, followed by a shocked breath, and then a thud. The kicking stopped, slowly, I lifted my head to look around. Jake stood, rolling his shoulder while Dylan was in front of him checking the wound, mumbling a lot of ugly words.
I bit my lip and tasted blood, I didn't bite that hard, Jake smiled, "oh I wouldn't do that. Looks like you got some on you. Sorry- I was trying to keep the splatter down." I felt myself grimace as I took my sleeve and wiped at my face, "listen kid, you did something today that not a lot of people have been able to do," against Dylan's protests Jake took a step towards me
I kept my eyes up so as not to see the body of the person he'd killed, but it was hard. My hands ached at my side as I clenched my fists trying to stay calm, suddenly my vision was filled with Jake. He was taller than me, not by much, so he looked down slightly and he put his hand on my shoulder. His eyes were sincere and practically glowing, "you- not only did you hit me but you actually stabbed me, I mean-I am impressed." He said smiling to Dylan who rolled his eyes and sighed before slowly pulling the body from the room.
"And secondly," Jake said catching my attention, dragging it away from Dylan back to him, "you surprised me. No one, and I mean no one, has been able to do that for years." His eyes dimmed slightly and he took a deep breath before speaking again. His tone had changed now, it was laced with sadness and as he looked at me, I could see regret in his eyes. "Look, I'm sorry about your family- truly I am. I know what it's like to lose a brother, to lose your life, but I also know what it's like to rebuild."
I felt my inner walls start to break, I didn't want to trust him but I also didn't want to not trust him. He was right, he had been through this, Jerome had abandoned him when he'd proven too much. He was alone, but, I sighed "you had a brother to go through this with you though."
I turn and see Dylan come back from the hall, his shirt is messy and he looks slightly winded but otherwise fine. He smiled softly at me and raises a brow to Jake who smiled, he stepped back from me now and stood beside Dylan. "You're right. I did have Dylan to go through all of this with. Not only my brother, but my twin." He says and lightly punches Dylan in the arm. Dylan just rolls his eyes but doesn't speak.
"But I did lose the light in my life, I did have to learn to turn myself into a weapon for people who used me until I had nothing left before they abandoned me. I broke, the monster you've heard stories of, and seen, are what they created."
His eyes burned with intensity now and I couldn't look away. Here he was, my enemy. The one I was told to stay away from or never be caught alone with. After everything that's happened, my brother dying, me being kidnapped, beaten and abandoned, here he was.
Jake was the one that kept me safe, he made sure I had food and water, he made sure my hand never became infected when Jerome hadn't come. He'd given me clothes, and offered me a place to stay, it was Jake who understood my loss. Sure, he was the one who'd taken me, and sure, he's the one that cut my fingers off but, why?
He'd done it because of Jerome. It all lead back to that backstabbing man. If Jerome hadn't killed Johnny, none of this would've happened. Jake wouldn't have had to hurt me or Jason, he wouldn't have had to send messages to Jerome or hurt me, the beatings, none of it was Jake's fault. All of it, and I mean all of it, landed at Jerome's feet. He's the one who set all of this in motion.
My vision blurred for a moment as I took it all in and accepted what Jake was saying, because in that moment, I knew- he was right.
"I- I can't help much without my power." My voice came out small and almost timid. Again, I felt the fear washing over me threatening to envelope me. Just as I was about to break down, I felt them. Arms wrapping around me pulling me to something soft and warm, and firm.
I clutched onto it as though my life depended on it and let my body shake as the sobs overcame me. I fell to my knees still clutching the thing my face buried into it. It was silent for a long while before he spoke again. "You are your power, Timothy," his voice was soft, barely above a whisper. "No one can take that from you. You are everything you are because of you. Not your brother, not your family, and certainly not some power. We can train you in other things, show you how to be better- you just have to let us."
I sniffed slightly as his words washed over me, slowly I let go of the fabric in my hand and leaned back. The arms loosened and as I looked, I saw it was Jake holding me, not Dylan. He was the one who pulled me to him and comforted me, he allowed me to cry on him. Jerome would never do that, not just him either, Kai and Davi? Those two would push me away and mock me before ever letting me near them. Tsu and Julia, would save face, and tolerate me but they too, would abandon me.
Jake was here, he was solid. Jason was gone, I needed to decide. I took a deep breath, "where do we begin?"