Page 24 of Stormhold

Arkane smiled, like he already knew the answer. “Patience, Bella.”

I nodded. He still kept calling me Bella, and for some reason, I let him.

Just then, Mikhail subtly whispered something to Arkane, which made the latter’s lips ghost with a smile. Mikhail then stepped back to his designated position at Arkane’s eleven o’clock. It put him in the perfect position to have a wide view of every blind spot in the room.

In the next seconds, the air sang with a certain stillness, the kind that sent a chill of fear through the crowd. I watched as they parted, and low murmurs spread through the hall as a man walked in, grinning, with a certain twinkle in his eyes. Only his eyes were fixed on Arkane.

Harvey Walters rushed to the man’s side and greeted him like the man owned him or something. But the man didn’t even spare him a glance as they made their way toward us. The stark contrast of his hair gave away his identity. There was only one man in the Twins who had the tips of his hair dyed blood red with an infamous, wicked smile—Killian Glen, a famed kingpin in the Twins known for his psychopathic tendencies.

“Isn’t that Killian Glen?” I frowned. “What’s he doing with Harvey Walters?”

Arkane smiled at me. “Killian Glen is the White Hand, Bella. Of course, he’s here.”

I didn’t let the surprise show in my eyes but gave Arkane a look that said a little heads-up would’ve been nice. But it only made his smile widen. It did make perfect sense for Killian to be the leader of the Covent. In fact, I wondered how no one, not even the authorities, had put two and two together. Maybe they did, and it really didn’t matter.

As soon as Killian arrived by our side, the energy between the two men bristled with heavy tension. Every person in the gala averted their eyes and went back to their own conversations. Even the host family, the Galianos, knew it wasn’t wise to greet Killian right now.

“Arkane,” Killian said with a wide grin. Only it was unfeeling and as cold as ice. “Didn’t expect to see you here, cousin.”

My eyes widened. Did I hear that right? Did he say cousin? So if the rumors were true, Kenny Stormhold, Victor Stormhold’s twin, must still be alive. And Kilian Glen must be his son, although I wonder why he didn’t share the same last name. Was it because he was the Stormhold family’s dirty little secret?

I couldn’t believe Arkane hid such an important fact from me. Taking him in, Killian did look a bit like Arkane in a way, but at the same time, he didn’t. If Arkane was evil on a full moon night, Killian was evil on a moonless night. He was as tall as Arkane, with frosty-blue eyes that somehow made him look like death reincarnated.

Arkane threw him an even colder smile. “Shouldn’t I be here, cousin?”

Killian threw his head back in laughter like it was the funniest thing he had ever heard. Only the sound of his laughter was so high-pitched and gaudy that it felt arctic. I didn’t even have to speak to him to know that there wasn’t anything normal about this man.

“Mr. Stormhold.” Harvey nodded in respect to Arkane. The slight smugness in his face brought out the underlying leer in his eyes. “Quite the honor to meet you in person, sir.” There was nothing humble about the way he said it.

Arkane stared at him but didn’t acknowledge a word he said.

Harvey flushed a bit and slid his curious eyes to me, and my fingers traced along the smooth metallic lock of my clutch.

If he recognized me from all those years ago, he didn’t show. I wasn’t a spitting image of my mother either, so he wouldn’t connect the dots unless he did his research—that my father’s middle name was now my last. But a man who followed another man’s rules was never smart.

Harvey Walters was just like in the pictures, a plain man in his late thirties, with a crooked nose, thin lips, coarse hair, and sturdy build. Except for the ominousness of his chopped index fingers, he was the kind of man you would overlook on the street for a blue-collar dad. The kind you would never guess to be capable of taking an innocent life without hesitation.

I recalled him being the diligent follower among the five men, the one who didn’t question his leader’s orders, no matter how vile the command. The Surman woman next to him kept her laser-focused attention on us. There were two other guards behind Killian, who also kept a close watch on the surroundings. They were all Surmans, given their strong build and cunning eyes. Even their stance suggested they were ready to take us in the blink of an eye. But the good thing about mercenaries was that although they were great killing machines, they didn’t have one sharp intellect in their bone to pick up on anything else.

Looking at Harvey Walters now, I felt nothing—not anger and not resentment. This man had no power over me. Nothing was going to change what happened. I accepted that many years ago. I was simply killing him because he took a life that wasn’t his to take.

Killian’s laughter finally died in a cold stop. “You’re funny, Kane.” He shook his head at his cousin before tilting his head toward me. “And who might this beauty be?” he asked, licking his lips as his suggestive eyes raked over my body. “Introduce us, Arkane. I would love to know the woman who has entranced you.”

I stayed stoic, giving nothing away.

Arkane’s touch on my waist remained tight, but he subtly shifted forward, putting his body before mine. I didn’t know if he did it intentionally, but it brought me a strange sense of comfort. “Not necessary,” Arkane said coolly, disregarding him.

“Oh, come on. Don’t be selfish.” He nodded toward me, smiling smugly. “Share the Valerian goddess with the rest of us mortals. My men would go mad just to catch a glimpse of the beauty scouring the late-night streets of Twins. Must be my lucky day to see her in all her glory.”

Oh, so he knew who I was. This territory was so unfamiliar to me. It was like everyone knew everything about everyone and hated each other with every fiber of their being, yet they did not even show an ounce of it outside.

Before Arkane could say anything, I stepped ahead, my clutch now open. “Bellerose,” I said with a polite smile. “Nice to meet you, Killian Glen.”

“Likewise.” Killian’s eyes sparkled with interest. “Tell me, Bellerose—”

“What is it that you want?” Arkane interrupted in a tone that conveyed he was already bored with him. After witnessing enough conversations tonight, I learned that Arkane had two manners in which he spoke. He was either pleasant and respectful or cool and nonchalant, depending on the company. And he also had a perfect mask for every person he met. Made me wonder whether what he showed me was another one of his masks too.

“How’s your mother?” Killian attempted a solemn expression, only for apathy to glint in his eyes. “Being in a coma is such a shame. I’m truly sorry.” It was almost as if he was mentioning Arkane’s mother just to get a rise out of him.