Page 52 of Don't Lie To Me

They leave via the front door, his eyes meeting mine for a split second just before he disappears out the door. I glare in his directionas I throw back the entirety of my drink. The burn down the back of my throat is just what I need to take away the pain he just left lodged in my chest.

Onyx and Romeo are at the bar within seconds of them leaving. “What the fuck was that, Sloane? I thought they were searching for signs of illegal prostitution or sex trafficking or drugs, not some missing girl,” Romeo asks, his voice filled with concern and confusion.

My head spins, and I take hold of the edge of the counter to keep myself upright. Fuck, I need another drink. I fill my tumbler again and throw it back until I feel strong hands on mine, stopping me.

“What are you doing? You think you can drink this shit away? Bet you’re about to pop some more fucking pills as well. We need to deal with this new crisis together. Not hide behind booze and pills,” Romeo tells me.

I pull out of Romeo’s hold on me. Fuck him for trying to tell me what to do, he has no idea what I’m going through right now. “What I put in my body is none of your fucking business.”

I quickly glance at Onyx—the silence between us heavy with unspoken words—and I know he understands we need to talk immediately. His expression is a stark reflection of my own dread. My soul hurts already, knowing he’s about to rip my heart to shreds with the truth.

“Give her some space,” I hear Onyx grumble at Romeo as I take off for my office. When did they start communicating?

As the door to my office clicks shut behind Onyx, a chill runs down my spine, making me turn to face him with a fresh wave of determination. “You knew all along, didn’t you.” I stare at Onyx in disbelief. I trust him more than anyone else in my life, even my brothers. But if this is true and he knew about it, he’s been lying to me forever.

“I promised your mom I would protect you at all costs.”

My chest heaves, each breath a ragged gasp for air as pain radiates through me. “Answer me honestly. Am I this missing girl?”

His head drops, and I feel the weight he’s carrying. “Yes,” he murmurs, his deep voice barely audible.

My legs give way, trembling with exhaustion so much I drop to my knees. Every moment of my existence has been a carefully constructed lie.

He reaches for me, but I pull away. “Sloane, you have to understand, we did it for you. To protect you.”

“To protect me? I grew up in a fucking brothel! With a dad who was dealing drugs and running a biker gang. Whatever you were protecting me from couldn’t have been worse than the life I lived.”

His eyes darken to scary, and I know it was.

“What?” I mutter, needing to know it all.

With a soft thud, he drops to his knees beside me, his breath catching in his throat. “Your birth mother was scared for your life. There had been constant threats on all their lives, and they knew they were running out of time. Your father wouldn’t listen. He thought he had the situation under control, but your mother knew better. All I know is in a chance encounter, she ran into Katrina Stryker, and she promised to take you and protect you as if you were one of her own. You know what your mother was like, Sloane, she had a heart of gold.” His thumbs gently caress my cheeks as his eyes bore into mine, a heartbreaking gaze that shatters me all over again. “One week after you came to live with us, your entire family was assassinated in their home.”

A crushing pain overwhelms me, constricting my chest and making it hard to breathe. “My birth parents?” I whisper, imagining the horror.

“Yes. Your mother saved your life by giving you up to us. This club and Ravens Hollow might not have been the lap of luxury you would have grown up in with your vice president father. But Katrina loved you with everything she had, and she protected you until the day she died like she promised your mother she would.”

My bottom lip trembles, but I won’t let the tears that threaten fall. “She died because of me, didn’t she?” A silent sob escapes me, and my heart aches so badly I can barely breathe. All this time I had blamed Syd, but that night they were after me as well. They said something had been stolen from them and Syd and Katrina had to pay because of it. I remember it clearly, their cruel words etched into my brain.

“All I know is when you were fifteen, your mother hired me to watch over you behind Syd’s back. I had been working for him for years at that point and had no idea who you were. Katrina must have known they were getting closer to you. She came to me one night frantic, said I needed to promise her I would never let anything happen to you. She told me all that she knew, and I swore to her you would be safe with me.”

“They were after me that night, that’s why you made us run away instead of staying to help her, because you knew.” My tortured eyes meet his. They are just as haunted, remembering what happened the night we lost her, the night I was nearly raped and killed as well. If it wasn’t for Onyx, I would have been.

“I had to save you, Sloane.” He pulls me onto his lap, his strong arms encircling me, the warmth of his body close to mine as he hugs me.

“After Syd died, why didn’t you tell me the truth?” I eventually ask him, still not pulling away. I need him close, I need him to take this pain away.

“We couldn’t. I was scared if you knew the truth, then whoever was after you would work it out as well and come after you. As Sloane Stryker, you should have been safe.”

“Why did they stop? When they didn’t get me that night, why didn’t they come back?” I ask, needing to know what I’m up against.

“Jagger said he took care of it.”

I stare at him. “What the hell does that mean?”

“Shit went down that night, Sloane, people died, and it shifted the power of the underworld. Finding the lost girl was less important.”

“Until Reef worked it out. He knows, Onyx, and the commissioner is looking for me. It’s just lucky it was him she gave my case to. I think he set this whole thing up to clear my name and get her off our case. I think he’s going to lie for me. But how long do you think he can get away with that?”

---