New Orleans

32. Last Will And Testament

"If you can't, it's okay Annabelle..." Reece whispered, carefully tucking my hair behind my ear.

"I have to." Exhaling loudly, I continued down the stairs. The heavy oak doors swung open and my body tensed. Glaring at the entrance, I clenched my jaw.

"Annabelle...he wanted-" Pushing away from Reece, I stormed towards Kevin. Stilling at the threshold, he went ramrod stiff. Breaking into a short sprint, I threw my arms around his neck.

"You came back..." I breathed, fastening my hold painfully. He audibly swallowed and my eyes instantly glazed with tears. Cautiously, he wrapped his arms around my frame and drew me closer.

[WEEKS EARLIER]

Reece finally broke the charged silence surround us. "Annabelle, you could have killed him, or hurt yourself-"

"He doesn't deserve to fucking live!" My head buzzed with dizziness and even so I seethed with violent intent. My throat felt raw from screaming, the pain in my body keeping me from giving into unconsciousness again. Having been sedated twice—due to my violent outbursts upon waking—the hospital was unable to offer any more morphine. My rage kept the pain in check.

Marco stepped forward, tucking a hand deep into one of his pockets. "You don't decide that, Annie-"

"I thought I told you to stay the fuck out of this." Reece snapped, barely containing his own anger.

Watching his son for a moment, he fixed his icy glare on me. "I've sent Kevin away, for a while." Marco's voice was frustratingly calm. He spoke with such control that I almost wanted to laugh.

"Then you're a fucking traitor too!" For a split second, I saw that control he maintained so well falter; a flicker of rage sparked behind the green in his eyes. He gathered himself just as fast, a picture of discipline once more.

"Your anger is understandable. However, it's directed towards the wrong person." His jaw tightened and I saw Reece's frame pivot slightly.

"My anger is understandable?" I spat, my fingers curled into my palms and I winced.

"Easy..." Reece swallowed, eyeing my bandaged hand with concern.

"Tanner heard everything and used his last moments to tell me." Grinding my molars, I recalled his final words to me. "Kevin was working with Max and fucking Bianca. The trap Reece walked into was planned as some sort of sick tribute to Kevin." I wanted to scream, Kevin's betrayal felt like a heated blade slowly carving into my heart.

"He was doing his job, Annie." Marco's gaze bore into me. "His only mistake was going rogue for you, it got him shot." My eyes widened, confusion joining the bitter cocktail of emotions surging through by defeated form.

"Y...you're lying! You're trying to protect him-"

"Annabelle..." Reece's eyes remained glued to the floor. "When Kevin and Bianca's were returned to the club, she told him something was going down. He tried to push for more information and got made. Bianca shot him, and left him for dead. He had managed to stash his phone in her ride before getting shot. Before he blacked out he dragged himself to the landline and call my father." Reece finally met my gaze. "We were barely holding it together when the Sons arrived. I thought for sure we were going to die. Kevin saved us." Reece explained, his words laced with concern and respect for his little brother.

The oxygen suddenly left my lungs in a searing gush; tears pricked at my eyes. Shoving the covers off myself, I pushed out of bed. Before I could take a single step, Marco blocked my path to the exit. "Like I said before, he's gone." His jaw clenched and something almost sorrowful flashed across his tired features. It was clear in that moment that on some level; in his own way, Marco Trammel cared for his children—loved them even. "Years of training, inflicting every single form of torture there is on my sons-" laughing once without humour, he cursed in his mother tongue, "- and it's a single fucking girl that destroys them both." My chest tightened and staggered back into the bed. Guilt forced my knees to buckle and I sank to the floor, praying Kevin could find a way to forgive me.