Chapter 251

The static in my earpiece cuts out entirely, leaving a complete dead silence in my bedroom. The mic link on Eli’s end went dark the second he walked out of range, but every single word spoken in that warehouse is still echoing through my skull like a siren.

​You’re my son, Elias. I need you to choose your family.

​I stand up, smoothing down the front of my silk robe, though my hands are trembling so hard I can barely knot the sash around my waist. The front door of the main house clicks open downstairs, followed by quiet footsteps on the stairs.

​I pull my bedroom door open before he even reaches the landing.

​Eli stops in the doorway. He looks hollowed out. He doesn’t make a sarcastic remark. He doesn’t offer a half-hearted smile to deflect the weight hanging between us.

​“I heard,” I say quietly, stepping back to let him into the room.

​He steps inside, and I shut the door, locking it out of pure reflex. He sinks onto the edge of my bed, lea