The Gender Lie (The Gender Game #3) Bella Forrest (most read book in the world TXT) 📖

grinned, unable to contain it. “No, but you’ll always be my baby brother,” I said, managing to slip my hand through his defenses and ruffle his hair gently.

The look he gave me was mutinous, but his eyes sparkled. For just a second, everything that had happened to him slipped away, and I could imagine that this was how my brother would have been, if he’d never been taken in the first place.

“Happy for you… and Viggo,” Tim said excitedly. “Training is good. Skin hurts, but I’m… controlled. Friends. It’s good.”

“I think so, too.” I rested my head back against the wall, feeling content for a moment, when the problem with Desmond began worming its way back into my mind. What would I do if she decided to never meet with us? I couldn’t force her to sit down, despite my earlier statement to Viggo. And Tim was starting to take root here. It wouldn’t be fair to drag him away from his brothers.

I sighed, irritated.

“What’s wrong?” Tim demanded.

“I’m sorry, Tim. I’m just… I’m having a hard time dealing with some stuff right now.”

“Like what?”

“It’s… I don’t really wanna talk about it.”

“Violet… not following the rules,” Tim said, his eyes drifting toward the floor as he shifted nervously.

I looked at him, confused. “What rules are you talking about?”

“Viggo’s rules! Whenever you feel something…”

“Stop,” I repeated thoughtfully.

“Then look,” he replied.

“Then talk about it,” I finished.

He nodded.

“When did you get so grown up?” I asked.

“Dunno… But you should follow the rules.”

I groaned in a comical fashion and he chuckled. “Fine, smart guy. You win! I’m a bit stressed out because I’ve been trying to have a meeting with Desmond, and she’s been putting me off.”

Tim gave me a side-long glance, not directly making eye contact.

“Don’t like Desmond,” he said after a moment.

I paused, frowning. “What? Why not?”

He hesitated, screwing his face up as he thought. “Comes here… Talks to us.”

“About what?”

His shoulders went up and down. “Matrus. Patrus. Says… they’re bad. They’ll hurt us.”

“Does … she say why?”

Tim met my eyes and gave another shrug, but he looked… sad. “Says we’re different. People hate us.”

My frown intensified. “She shouldn’t be saying that. It’s the governments who have done bad things… not the people.”

Tim nodded, his brown locks bobbing. “More. Jay hates her.”

I racked my brain to remember who Jay was. “You’re going to have to help me out, buddy. Jay?”

“Ber…trand?” he drawled, sounding it out.

Realization dawned on me.

“Desmond’s other son?”

He nodded emphatically. “He’s… scared.”

“Uh-huh,” I replied, rolling that bit of information over in my mind. I knew of Desmond’s second son but had never been directly introduced to him… But why would her kidnapped son be afraid of her? That… didn’t make any sense. Wasn’t she doing this to help him?

I rose to my feet. “I’m going to find Viggo. See what he thinks about all this.”

Tim nodded, holding up his hand with his index finger and thumb connected in a circle. He had just started picking that up from Viggo.

“Okay. If you see Desmond again… maybe come find me?” I said.

He repeated the gesture and I chuckled, waving at him. As I walked away from the room, however, I felt a prickling unease settling in under my skin, as if warning me that something dangerous was coming.

I had no idea what yet, but it was both disconcerting and vaguely familiar.

31

Viggo

I pushed through the door leading to the boys’ area. Shortly after Violet had left to visit her brother, I had gotten a note passed to me by Henrik, who told me it was from Ms. Dale. It only had four words scratched on it: We need to meet. Curious, but not overly alarmed, I had gotten up and dressed, then made my way downstairs.

Everything was becoming much easier as the days went on. I was walking again, and was even able to jog for a small period of time. I was careful not to push myself too hard too fast, but even as I made my way downstairs, I had noticed the change. It was like I was settling back into my own body again, and needed less breaks and rest stops than before. I had even managed to work up to doing some pushups and sit-ups in the morning—with Dr. Tierney’s permission, of course.

I made my way along the ramp to Ms. Dale’s cell with a nod to her guard—not Henrik; he was off shift now.

Ms. Dale watched me as I entered, her eyes wary and her face tight.

Dusting my hands, I placed my back against the wall and slid down it until I was sitting across from her. She gave me a wry look.

“You know, I think you might be sending love letters wrong,” I commented. “You were supposed to give it to me to give to Henrik.” I rubbed my hands over my pants with a congenial smile.

She rolled her eyes at me. “Please, as if I’d be interested in that old coot.”

“He’s certainly interested in you, considering he went out of his way to play delivery boy on your behalf. Practicing a play from your Patrian seduction book?”

If looks could murder, I would have been vaporized in an instant, given the way she was eyeballing me. She took a deep breath, relaxing the hard edges of her face, and nodded at me. “How are you recovering?” she asked.

“Is that why you brought me down here?”

She gave me a stern glare.

“Better,” I replied. “I’ve started doing some jogging and I feel stronger.”

“Good… We need to start moving with alacrity,” she said, her voice grim.

I arched a brow. “Alacrity? Sure you don’t want to try moving with obfuscation first?”

Ms. Dale shot me a disdainful smirk and leaned forward, draping her arms over her knees. “Mr. Croft, big fancy words aside, we have a problem.”

“What’s up?”

Her eyes glittered dangerously. “Surely you’ve noticed the change in the boys by now, right?”

I frowned, my mind racing through recent events. My work with the boys