The Secrets We Hide

Chapter Three

Derek felt a wrenching pain in his chest as he watched his little brother break into his arms. He instinctively wrapped his arms around him, enclosing him in a warm and secure embrace. It filled Derek with emotion, his throat tightening with the effort to hold back his tears. He never wanted to see his brother in this state - but he knew he needed to be strong for his family.

"You are stronger than this, Alec. You must not break. Your wife and son may not be here, but they would not want you in this state." Derek's hoarse voice whispered into his brother's ear.

"Brother.... I didn't kill them... I... love... them..." He wept through his tears.

"I know... I know you didn't." Derek rubbed Alec's back in a circular movement. "But your wife needs you to be strong. She needs you to avenge her death. You were both wronged and now you are both suffering. The people responsible for your pain need to be held accountable." Derek said in a firm, authoritative voice.

Derek knew his brother needed a reason to survive. For the people he was living for no longer roamed the earth. Derek calculated the only way to keep his brother alive, which was what their father taught them - Revenge. He knew it was enough to keep the fire burning inside his brother, to help him find an alternative path. He watched as his brother's lifeless eyes lit with something beyond pain. There was a burning fire of anger and hatred as he whispered the name "Malia".

His brother already knew about the woman who had turned his brother's life upside down. For he had already ordered his men to capture her and bring her to the compound, where his brother could inflict whatever pain he wanted on the bitch that ruined his wife. It was a shame that his men could never find her and she was still someone that they were searching for seven years later.

His brother had come in the nick of time, and it overcame Alec with emotion, knowing it had saved him from taking his own life. He vowed to assist him in his quest for retribution against those who had destroyed his life. Alec felt a sense of belonging and no longer wanted to run away from the family business at that moment. He desperately wanted to hold on to the small piece of family he had remaining. Derek thought his brother was going through a difficult time and that his passion for the family business had faded, but Alec consistently challenged his assumptions.

Alec became something he or his father could never imagine. He was a killing machine. Alec was swift and brutal. He showed no mercy. There was no second chance. There was a blood thirst in him that was more dangerous than the deadliest assassins that they had hired. As the years passed, Derek developed an overwhelming sense of pride for his brother. For he lived for the family that he left behind. Derek entrusted him with everything, and soon he became the second in command.

Alec used his conglomerates to front the Mafia. Derek was in awe of the way the family could transcend to the highest point together. Derek was a formidable leader and his brother's increasing power could have threatened him, but he knew he was loyal to the bone. The brothers shared a strong connection that transcended familial ties.

"That will be all, gentleman." Alec's crisp voice responded to the teleconference. "I will email you with your tasks. Complete them before the end of the week. You know what happens to those that fail." The threat was apparent before Alec ended the conference call. He grabbed his mobile from his desk and marched out of the office with purposeful strides.

______________________

A fog of smoke hung in the air, clinging to every surface in the club. It was the original club of the Adam's family. Derek and Alec's grandfather had set up the bar when the Kray twins were terrorising London. The place was central to their business, but also held sentimental ties that they would never discuss.