Bound by the Mark of Lies (BL)
Chapter 78 - 73: Fun (3)

Chapter 78: Chapter 73: Fun (3)

As dinner was served in the grand dining hall of the von Jaunez manor, Gabriel found himself seated between Alexandra and Julian, still reeling from the unexpected revelation. The warm glow of the chandeliers cast a golden hue over the polished mahogany table, where his family members conversed easily over the fine meal.

Theo sat across from him, calm as ever, engaged in a quiet conversation with Charles. Elowen and Lucius were on the other end, exchanging knowing glances about something Gabriel did not particularly enjoy at the time. What he did care about, however, was that none of them had mentioned his newly acquired uncle status.

He placed his glass down with deliberate care and cleared his throat. "So," he began, his voice light but tinged with unmistakable mischief, "when exactly was someone going to tell me I am an uncle?"

His brother, the always-composed and rigid Theo, had children. The man who swore that he would give the title to any of the other siblings’ children. The man who refused to deal with Gabriel’s tantrum until he was an adolescent. Now he had two of them. A revelation that no one, not one single soul in this family, had thought to share with him.

Gabriel, of course, could not let that slide.

Placing his glass down with deliberate ease, he exhaled, gathering the full attention of the table before speaking in a tone of mock betrayal.

"So," he began, tapping a single finger against the rim of his plate, "when, exactly, was someone going to inform me that I am an uncle?"

A quiet settled over the table—not an awkward silence, but the kind that followed when one knew they had been caught in a most grievous oversight. And yet, not one of them looked particularly guilty.

Theo didn’t even blink, continuing to cut his meat with surgical precision. Lucius took an excruciatingly slow sip of wine. Charles remained occupied with his plate, the epitome of nonchalance. Alexandra exhaled, already bracing for what was to come. And Elowen, bless her, did not even attempt to contain her amusement.

Gabriel leaned back in his chair, looking between them all, expression equal parts incredulous and delighted. "Ah. I see how it is. A family conspiracy."

Julian, seated beside him and watching the scene unfold with open amusement, chuckled. "Don’t look at me. I genuinely thought you knew."

"Clearly not," Gabriel deadpanned before returning his gaze to his traitorous older brother. "Theo, darling brother of mine, tell me when you decided that this was privileged information?"

Theo finally set his utensils down with practiced patience. "I assumed someone had already told you."

Gabriel let out a dramatic scoff. "Oh, please. If I had known, do you think I would have let you go this long without relentless commentary?" He gestured wildly. "You, a father. A father, Theo! I feel like I have just discovered the world is flat."

Theo raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth twitching with the hint of a smile. "You can be quite dramatic, Gabriel. But the children aren’t a big deal."

Gabriel leaned forward, his smirk growing. "Not a big deal? Theo, you who vowed you would never be a father, now have two of them? And no one thought to tell me? This is an affront." He put a hand dramatically to his chest. "You hurt me, brother."

Elowen, unable to hold back any longer, burst out laughing, cutting through the tension in the room. "I told you he’d have a reaction."

Lucius, who had been pretending to be deeply absorbed in his wine, looked up with a sly grin. "You’re telling me, Gabriel, that you’ve never once thought about Theo being a father?" His voice was teasing, though the glint in his eye told Gabriel that he was enjoying his discomfort just a little too much.

"I thought he’d be the last person to reproduce," Gabriel replied with an exaggerated shrug.

Theo gave him a long, level look, but there was no malice in it. "It wasn’t exactly a secret, Gabriel. You were just preoccupied with... other things." His voice was calm and measured as usual, but something about his words bothered Gabriel. He knew what he was talking about, but was it really that difficult to tell him anything other than power struggles?

"Preoccupied with other things?" Gabriel echoed, his smile still remaining, but his sadness was unreadable. "Is that how things are, Theo? Everyone is living their own little lives, while I am left in the dark, trying to catch up?"

Julian nudged him gently, trying to keep the mood light. "Come on, you know they’re not doing it to exclude you. They probably figured you had your hands full with everything else."

"Ah, yes. The chaos of my life," Gabriel mused with a sigh, glancing at Theo once more. "I’ll admit, I’ve been a little busy. But really, Theo, a father? Now I have to figure out how to handle nephews?" He shook his head in mock disbelief. "This family will be the death of me."

"Don’t worry," Elowen chimed in, her smile too wide for her own good. "You’ll be a great uncle. I have no doubt you’ll spoil them rotten."

Gabriel’s lips curled into a playful grin. "Of course I will. It’s my duty. I’ll teach them all the tricks Theo never bothered to learn."

Theo shot him a warning glance, but Gabriel could see the slightest hint of amusement behind his calm exterior. "You spoil them, and I’ll disown you," Theo said flatly, though Gabriel could tell there was no real threat behind it.

"Oh, we both know that won’t happen," Gabriel shot back with a wink. "You need me too much."

The banter continued, light and full of playful mockery, but underneath it all, Gabriel could not help but feel sad about how life was going without him. This was a break from the nightmares that had been gnawing at him, a chance to distract himself from the creeping dread that was always lurking beneath the surface.

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