My father paled. His eyes danced between me and Rowan. “Amy…”
I turned to Ronnie. “Did you know?” Ronnie looked around the room, but refused to meet my eyes. I laughed, but it was full of pain. “Of course you did. You are his best friend.” I turned back to my dad. “Any other secrets that you want to fess up to while we are here,father?” He winced at the name.
A new thought twisted my stomach, and I pulled my phone from my pocket. My dad tried to reach for me but I held up a hand as I hit the screen. The phone rang as I glared at my father. “Hey baby.” My mother’s voice rang out from my phone. “Everything okay? How’s your dad?”
“Did you know?” My voice was flat as I stared at my dad.
“Baby?” My mom’s voice turned worried. “What’s wrong?”
I ignored her question and just asked again. “Did you know?”
My dad winced again. Rowan stepped closer to me. “Amy, can we just talk?” His words hit me like a punch.
“What is going on?” My mom’s voice started to get agitated. “Someone explain. Now!” Her commanding voice made a few of the men around the room reel back.
My dad shut his eyes. “Ainsley…”
“Gavin Maclean, you need to explain to me what is going on.” Her voice took on a little edge, but I cut in before my dad could say anything.
“Did you know Thoth was Rowan?” My voice was still flat, but I had a tiny little spark of hope in my chest. Please, Goddess, please tell me not everyone in my life kept this from me. I heard a quick breath on the other side of the call and I knew. I knew everyone had kept the truth from me. I laughed then. The tears sprang to my eyes in a flash and I had to just shake my head.
“Fuck me, I guess eh?” I closed my eyes and I felt a tear tremble on the edge, which just pissed me off even more. Because I refuse to cry in front of these men. I forced my eyes to open. “Thank you for showing me exactly where I stand.” I hung up the phone as my mom sputtered and slipped it into my pocket as I turned.
“Amy, wait.” My dad tried to grab my arm but I slammed my aura out, not holding anything back. Everyone in the room dropped to the ground.
“Don’t fucking touch me.” I growled out. I turned to look back at my father, who was barely staying upright. But it was Rowan that surprised me. He was sweating to stay up, my power pounding against his own, causing his knees to tremble a little. That gave me a little bit of satisfaction. “You had no right.” I allowed him to see all of my hurt. “He might be your king…but I am your daughter. You don’t get to play me like a fucking puppet and think I will just be okay with it.” He winced at my words.
“It wasn’t like that.”
I laughed, “That’s all you got?” He stared up at me but I was already leaving. I was backing away from him. “I did everything you wanted me to do. I followed your plan for my career, my life, everything I gave up to be the dutiful daughter.” I growled as a tear slipped out. But my aura slammed out so hard that the other men in the room had to press their face into the carpet. Only Rowan and my father got to see my tears. “I put my pain on the back burner to follow you. But this?” I waved my hand. “This is fucking bullshit.” I glared at him for another second before I turned and stalked from the room.
I raced down the stairs and slammed out the front door, shifting instantly into Nix, allowing her to take over. She made a beeline for the trees and ran out of there. She wove through the trees, diving under a fallen log as I heard the distant slam of a door. But I stopped caring. I curled up against a tree in my mind and just focused on breathing.
Nix ran for a few minutes longer before she called back. “Someone is following our scent.”
I turned to Megan. “Shut it off.”
Megan stared at me for a second before she nodded. She ran to the clearing, and I heard the telltale sound of a vacuum. I shut my eyes as I banged my head off the tree, whispering to myself. “So fucking stupid.” I felt the tears burn behind my eyes again and I pushed up from the ground and whirled to face the tree. I punched it over and over, screaming my anger. “So fucking stupid.”
Megan made her way back over to me as I pummeled the tree. “Amy?”
I just kept hitting the tree. But the tree never splintered, never broke, and that pissed me off even more. “FUCK YOU.” I punched harder, waiting for the blood, the pain, but nothing came.
“It won’t.” Megan called out.
I whirled. “WHAT?”
“The pain…it won’t happen.” Megan nodded to the tree. “That tree isn’t real, Amy.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” I dropped my hands to my sides. My chest was still heaving from attacking the poor tree.
Megan just stared at me. “You’re mad.” She shifted closer, her words throwing me off.
“Of course I’m mad.” I shook my head. “But what does that have to do with anything?”
“Our dad betrayed our trust. So did mom mom.” She changed topics again, and it was confusing my anger-addled brain.
“Aren’t you?” I screamed back.
