Page 92 of Royal Havoc

Hendrix follows his lead, pacing around the tables to the window, staring at her Jeep.

“Why would No —”

Hendrix turns. “What was the teacher's name?” he asks, pulling his phone from his pocket.

“Brickman,” I answer.

“Tell us what’s going on,” Zeke presses when Hendrix and Dad refuse to look at us.

Hendrix drops his phone on the counter before slamming his hands on the surface. Dad steps in front of his back, blocking him from our view, giving him a minute to pull his shit together.

Dad crosses his arms, pulling in a deep breath. “Owens cut a deal with Rowland, sending his daughters to The Row. Rowland made them disappear, and Owens got his seat. But Rowland forgot to calculate Opal’s selfish plans. Instead of allowing him to pair her with Owens’s son, Chase.”

“She picked me, thinking everyone would be forced to bow at her feet. Including me,” Hendrix recovers, turning around and leaning on the counter. “When she discovered I wasn’t going tolet her control me. Or worship the ground she walked on. She went crying to Daddy, but we were already expecting our first child.”

“It took her nine years to get a clue?” I question.

Hendrix swallows. “Our first daughter… Amethyst.”

Zeke and I glance at each other in confusion. Neither of us has ever been told anything about Onyx having a sister.

“Why didn’t she tell me?” I argue, refusing to think she’d keep such a huge secret hidden from me all these years.

“She didn’t know,” Hendrix confirms, proving my suspension.

At one point in our lives, Onyx trusted me with her entire soul. Someone broke that trust over the years. If I find them, I’ll have their head. Regardless, she’s mine. Hate or love, I’ll take whatever she gives me.

“And, where’s this daughter? How’s it possible none of us knew about this person?” Zeke questions, stealing every word from my brain.

“Shit settled down, and Opal seemed happy. Her daughter idolized her, which is what she always wanted. Someone to worship her after growing up with Rowland as a father,” Hendrix explains, ignoring Zeke’s question.

“But?” I urge, wanting to know what he’s telling us, and worried we’re wasting precious time we could be using to find Onyx.

“Rowland was pissed we didn’t have a son, because he thought he could strike a deal, forcing me to take the Sterling name. Which would gain him a seat. He even went as far as blackmailing to gain money to try and throw the ranks.”

“That’s pure ignorance,” Zeke chimes in.

“He talked her into wanting another child. I loved my daughter. Having another wouldn’t have changed anything. She was the one who never wanted more —”

“What happened when you had Onyx?” I blurt, anger coiling in my gut.

Hendrix smiles, and I swear his eyes turn glassy for a second. “She was perfection, and Opal hated it. She didn’t worship her like her sister. Onyx was her own feisty-independent-tiny person.”

Our eyes meet, and I don’t need instinct to know what he’s about to say. I think somehow I’ve always known but chose to ignore it. Now, I’m done living blindly.

“Which one hurt her?” I growl, squeezing my fists until my knuckles crack.

Hendrix starts to say something until his phone rings. His jaw flexes as he swipes it from the counter, raising it to his ear. “You get one chance to redeem yourself,” he rasps evilly into the phone. “Where’s my daughter…”

forty-eight

Colors Of Petals

Tulip: 2024

Bolton always said watching was learning. “Why isn’t she moving, B? Is she breathing?” I ask out loud, leaning closer to gaze at the monitor.

“Watch her eyes. You’ll see her blink,” he tells me, pointing over my shoulder at the monitor.

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