The Ritual

“A rat?” My father scoffs at Ryat. “Are you serious? He’s no longer a Lord. He’s on the run, been stripped of his title. This is passed that. Matt has put your wife—my daughter—in the hospital. Why do you think I forced you to choose her in the first place? Huh?” he demands. “I didn’t want her near him.”

“And he will pay for that,” Ryat growls through gritted teeth.

“Or why I didn’t take the money when you offered to buy her hand in marriage.”

I narrow my eyes at Ryat for that one, still a little sour.

“I was honored to give Blakely over to you,” he adds, softening his tone.

Fuck, they act like I’m not even here.

“You knew this whole time.” Ryat shakes his head with disgust at his father, who doesn’t deny his words.

“Matt needs to be taken down. And you still have the opportunity to do that.” My father sighs. “All you have to do is tell us—”

“I didn’t work this damn hard, devote my life to the fucking Lords to lose my credibility because of Matt!” Ryat shouts, interrupting him.

“So, you will risk your wife?” My father shouts in his face.

Ryat’s chest rises as he sucks in a deep breath. “No.” He shakes his head, lowering his voice, and my father smiles, satisfied with his answer. “I won’t be like you.” His words make the smile fall from Dad’s face. “You were the one who chose to keep secrets from Blake. You were the one who chose to risk her life by allowing Valerie to continue with the arranged marriage.” He looks him up and down with his lips pulled back. “That woman treated her like shit! And you couldn’t be a damn man and stand up for your daughter!” Ryat snorts. “And you call yourself a Lord?”

“Listen here!” He gets in Ryat’s face, but my husband doesn’t back down. “You don’t know what I did for my family!”

“I don’t have to.” Ryat takes a step back and points at me, sitting up in bed. “I know what you didn’t do.” His green eyes find mine. “I’m sorry, Blake.” My pulse races at the sincerity of his voice. Ryat never apologizes. “But your father has been lying to you all your life. Valerie isn’t your mother.”

“What?” I ask, my eyes going back and forth between my husband and my father. “Ryat?” I whisper. “Why … why would you say that?” The room falls silent, and Mr. Archer runs a hand down his face. “Daddy?” My eyes shoot to his. “Tell him he’s wrong.” My chest tightens as the silence lingers. As much as I hate my mother on most days, they wouldn’t lie about that. Would they?

CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

RYAT

I SHOULD HAVE fucking known! I should have demanded to know more. The fucking Lords kept me from getting all the information. You can’t question them.

I know you killed an important bitch! Is what Lincoln had yelled at Matt afterward before putting him on probation and throwing him out of his office. LeAnne was important because Phil Anderson made her important. Mr. Mayes wasn’t that high up on the Lords ladder. That’s why I never questioned why he needed to die. He betrayed his oath. It was simple.

“Why would you say that?” Blake asks me, her bottom lip quivering. “I … I don’t understand.”

I run a hand down my unshaven face. “When I threw Valerie out of your apartment, I ripped a piece of her hair out and had it tested with yours.” I received the results when I was sitting in her father’s office downtown Dallas after she ran from me. I haven’t had the time or concern to dig into who her biological mother is.

Her wide eyes stare up at me, unblinking. “No …” she whispers.

“I knew about the arranged marriage. It’s just par for the course of being a Lord,” I add quickly. “I had a hunch.” Surprise, surprise, they weren’t a match, but I had no idea her biological mother was LeAnne until now. After Phil said her name, it took me a couple of minutes for my mind to put it all together.

“Blake.” I walk over to her bed, and she pulls her knees up to her chest, her eyes now on her father, pleading with him to explain everything to her. I’ll fucking do it! “Blake?” I sit on the side of her bed and pull on her arms, unwrapping them from around her knees to take her hands in mine. Slowly, her watery eyes find mine. “Junior year, Matt and I were partners for an assignment. It was our initiation. We were handed a name and a location. To take out a Lord who had betrayed his oath.”

“I don’t …” she whispers, swallowing. “What does this have to do with … my mom—LeAnne?”

“Something …” I’m not going to give them the benefit to hear me tell them what exactly happened. “Went wrong and his wife was also killed.”