Page 55 of Run

“Crap.” Marcus turned away from her and clutched the edge of the sink, his arms straight, his head lowered.

“Abasi?” Elle’s voice trembled.

He didn’t reply; he was too busy staring at Marcus.

Her brother took a breath and turned to the room, his face a storm. “Would it be asking too fucking much to have a minute alone with my sister?” he growled.

Callum motioned for Ryan, Harvard, and Joe to step out into the back garden before he headed to the front hallway. Abasi hovered beside Marcus.

“You too,” Marcus told him. “Take Knight with you.”

Abasi shook his head. “Not going to happen.”

The two men locked eyes in a death-stare contest until David interrupted. “We’ll move to the sitting area. That’s as good as you’ll get from either of us. I’m not letting Elle out of my sight, and your man here won’t do anything less with you.”

“Fine.” Marcus spat out the word, and they moved to the other end of the open-plan room.

With a stream of curses, Marcus pushed away from the sink and paced the area between the counter and the island. It was clear that whatever he had to tell her was ripping him apart.

He rubbed his jaw again. “You were four when my father found out your mother was having an affair with a cop. It’d been going on for years.”

If that was the bombshell he was worried about, he shouldn’t have been. “I know,” she told him.

“No.” His dark eyes were pools of agony. “You don’t. Think about what I just said.”

Elle went over his words, but nothing stood out. “You need to be clearer… Oh!” He’d saidyourmother, notourmother. “We had different mothers?”

His jaw clenched.

Then the other part registered.Myfather.Notourfather. “Tommy isn’t my father?”

He nodded sharply.

Shock, closely followed by elation, stole through her body, and she shot to her feet. “I’m not related to Tommy?” And then it hit her. “I’m not related to you either.” She swallowed hard, her throat suddenly tight. “Why am I still alive? Why didn’t Tommy kill me when he killed my mother and her boyfriend?” She blinked. “Was the cop my father?”

Marcus gave a terse nod. “Yeah. Tommy ran your DNA.”

She was very much afraid that the full truth of the matter was beginning to fall into place for her. “He wanted to kill me when he killed them, but you stopped him, didn’t you?”

“You’re my sister, Elle. I was the first person to hold you after Tommy and your mother brought you home. You were tiny and purple and sort of prune-like. But you weremybaby sister. Blood never meant much to me.”

“It means everything to Tommy,” she whispered.

Marcus nodded slowly. “We made a deal—I got to keep you; he got to train me.”

“You were thirteen when he killed my mother. That’s when he started taking you out on jobs, isn’t it?”

“He would have done it anyway, Elle. He wanted an heir and didn’t give a shit if I planned on doing something else with my life.”

“I know Tommy; he’d have made your hands as dirty as possible as soon as he could, just to make sure you never got out.” She blinked away tears. “You were only thirteen. What did he make you do in exchange for saving my life?”

“It doesn’t matter. I was never getting out anyway, no matter what happened to you.”

“No, you would have found a way.” She knew it absolutely. “You’d have run as soon as you could, but instead, I kept you there. Damn it, Marcus. You’ve ruined your whole life to save mine.”

He stepped around the corner of the island to cup her cheek. “I’d do it again if I had to.”

The tears spilled down her cheeks. “I amsoangry with you.”