“Ready to go downstairs? I’m really feeling lucky.” Sorin, Mircea’s brother adds. When we got to Mircea’s plane his brother was already there. I don’t know how I should’ve felt about it, though I suppose I should be relieved. It meant going on this trip to Vegas was more of a group outing and not a date.
“Sure,” I reply, turning toward him. Sorin is in a flashy gold suit with his hair slicked back. It screams bachelor. However, looking around his penthouse, I see Mircea is nowhere to be seen. “Is Mircea coming?”
Sorin nods, “Yes, he’ll join us later.” I sense the way the corner of his mouth lifts up in suspicion. If you ask me, he isn’t even sure if Mircea will be joining us.
“Handling something for the Clans?” I question, calling Sorin out on his horrendous attempt at lying to me.
His eyes focus in on mine. “I’m not at liberty to say.”
“I’m Bianca Petran and I’m ordering you to tell me what you know, Sorin Lazar.” I will never be someone who accepts less than what I deserve. If Mircea is working on something for the Clans, I should’ve known about it.
“He’s meeting with some people who might be able to help us find Kronid Masterson.” I blink, never hearing the name before. He said Masterson, and there’s only one Masterson I know of. The man who kidnapped my mother as a teenager and raped her. Also my biological father.
“Masterson. Any relation to Jonas?”
Sorin’s tight lip tells me everything I need to know. “I’m sure you’ve already connected the dots.”
“Yes. A son?”
He nods in confirmation. “Yes. We believe he might be the one behind the attacks. Mircea decided to reach out to a friend here in Vegas to attempt getting more information on Kronid. I was asked to show you a good time while he’s busy. So, let’s head downstairs and enjoy ourselves. Shall we?” Sorin holds his arm out to me and I take it.
Sorin takes me downstairs and we headed straight to the bar, downing a couple shots before going to the slot machines. I did okay there, so we went further into the casino to play blackjack. I did great there, so I played another game before I decided to call it a night. After all, luck tends to strike out here and I wasn’t looking to spend my own money and risk losing my winnings. Maybe two or three hours has passed us by and we’re now back in the bar area, in a secluded part away from a large portion of partiers.
Sorin sits across from me in the booth, closer to the edge. A pair of heels clicks against the floor, growing closer with each step. I take a sip of my ginger ale, opting for it since my stomach is feeling a bit odd. Looking up I see someone come into view and like a slow motion movie her hand flies across the air, slapping against Sorin’s cheek.
“You piece of shit.” Her tone is strong, callous like a viper ready to strike again.
But Sorin, oh, he smiles like this is nothing but a joke to him. “Bianca, this is my baby sister, Crina.”
Crina’s eyes widen when he says my name and she turns to look at me. “Bianca Petran, I can assume, the golden goose herself. Wow. What a day.”
“I’d prefer to be called a swan, but sure.” I chuckle, trying to lighten the mood a tad. Though, Crina doesn’t find it amusing.
Rolling her eyes, she looks back to her brother. “Stop digging into Charlie’s past because it’s none of your business. I don’t know why you’re digging . . . but you’re only stirring things up now. Things that should’ve been left alone. Shit, Sorin. I thought Mircea was going to be the problem. Not you. Especially not you.”
Sorin shuts his eyes for a moment and tightens his jaw, taking a sip of his beer before he responds to his sister. “I know the gist of what went on, but the gist will never tell you the whole story. I needed to know, Crina, so I won’t make apologies for it. Especially when it means I’m better suited to protect you.”
“Protecting me? This must be a joke. The only thing you’re doing is creating more problems. You turning over these stones is putting me in more danger.”
Sorin releases a scoff, “No. What’s putting you in danger is falling for a Beaumont. You have no idea the people that would kill you simply because of your association with him. I’m doing everything in my power to make sure you don’t die for your lover.”
“I’m sure this is all a misunderstanding,” I cut in, hoping to diffuse a bit of the situation.
Crina stares daggers at me, “Princess, it’s best you shut the fuck up. This isn’t any of your concern.”
“I’m not the only one digging into this and you know it. Don’t you?” Sorin asks her, forcing her to turn her attention back to him.
“I’m happy, Sorin. I figured Mircea was going to be the one fucking with my life, with my happiness, not you. Please, if you really care about me . . . stop looking for things. Please . . . you . . . you don’t know the things we’re going through right now. The shit we’re surviving through is hard enough, and I don’t know if we can make it if more comes our way.”
“If you want me to stop then you’ll be honest with me and tell me everything you know.” Sounds like a fair trade off. I’m sure most brothers would say something like this to protect their sisters.
Crina clenches her jaw in the same way I’ve seen Sorin and Mircea, but ultimately waves her hand, motioning for her brother to scoot over. He does and she takes a seat beside him, turning her body a tad to face him.
“Charlie’s dad was an important man in France, so
