Deceit (Gallows Hill #1)

48. Chapter Forty Seven

Chapter Forty Seven

Asher

M y knuckles turn white from the grip I have on the steering wheel. It’s taking everything in me not to shoot Griggs right in the head. Blow his brains all over this fucking car, because the world would be much better off without him in it. Fuck knows Skyla would be.

Liam had to physically pin me against the seat to hold me back. From the instant I saw him pinch her face like that, I was ready to kill him. Coming from the man that is so goddamn concerned about her safety, so protective, he sure is fucking rough with her.

No doubt, that comes from the double life he leads. It must be hard to murder people in cold blood, literally rip them to pieces then take a quick shower and be forced to obey normal social constructs.

Oh, did you think I was being sympathetic? Fuck no, I’m being sarcastic as fuck. Develop a split personality disorder if he has to, go to therapy, fucking whatever it takes, but something I will not tolerate is him letting that side seep over into my fiancée’s life. Absolutely the fuck not.

We ride the rest of the way in silence and thankfully, we get to Ronan’s in no time. I throw my door open first, stepping out as everyone else does the same.

“Siren, can we talk?” Griggs asks, his tone surprisingly gentle.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Liam says.

“I agree, fuck that,” I add in.

He shoots us both a dirty look, before softening and looking back at her. She bites the inside of her lip and nods, pressing a kiss to Liam’s cheek before moving over to the front yard of Ronan’s for some semblance of privacy.

Liam and I seem to be on the same page, neither of us wanting to give them privacy, though, and Skyla turns to us with a tired huff.

“Go inside. We’ll be there in a minute.”

We share a ‘hell no’ look with each other before she adds on an exasperated, “Please.”

Liam blows out a frustrated breath as he claps my shoulder.

“Come on, let’s let her and her boyfriend figure this out while we drill her other boyfriend as to why the fuck he’s been avoiding my girlfriend.”

I give him a sideways glance as we make our way up Ronan’s front steps.

“You realize how fucking weird that sentence is, right?”

He shrugs as he pushes his way through the front door, not bothering to knock. I steal one more glance at Skyla only to find Griggs on his knees before her, his head hung in shame as she looks down at him, before I shut the door behind us.

Good. Little fucker.

Ronan is in the living room, a glass of scotch already in his hand as he nods in greeting.

“Hey. How you guys doing?” he asks.

Liam scoffs. “We’re fine. Skyla is the one that’s been fucking spiraling.”

“Why?” Ronan asks, as concern instantly takes over.

“Because of you, dumbass,” I scoff as Liam continues.

“You practically ghosted her, with no reason or explanation. She was freaking out, man.”

He frowns, nodding as he looks down at his drink.

“Where is she?”

“Making up with Griggs,” I answer.

Ronan lifts an eyebrow.

“What did he do?”

I shake my head, not feeling like getting into it.

“What’s up with this cryptic shit of ‘meet me at my house’,” I ask.

He sets his drink down, scratching at the back of his head as he looks at us.

“I have to tell you guys some shit and I’ve been trying to keep it to myself. I just…needed some space.”

My eyebrows pinch together, and my mouth screws up at that.

“You’ve got less than two minutes to polish up that apology, because that shit isn’t going to fly with Skyla.”

Nodding, Ronan looks up at the ceiling and shakes his head when the door opens, Griggs and Skyla walking hand in hand.

That was fast. Times up, Ronan.

They shut the door before she pauses, and Ronan stands. He moves to her but stops about a foot shy.

“Hi, baby.”

She stares at him, slowly blinking for several seconds.

“Hi, baby? Hi, baby. Is that really all you have to say to me? Ronan, what the fuck! One minute you were by my side, the next you were gone. I couldn’t reach you. I couldn’t see you. I was convinced you didn’t want to be with me, or you fell in love with someone else. Something! Anything, to explain why the fuck my boyfriend who professes his love daily would disappear on me like that?”

Shit. She’s torn into Griggs, me, and now Ronan all before ten in the morning. Liam better watch his back, the princess is on a warpath.

“Never, baby. You’re my everything. I just, I need to tell you some things and I’ve been fucking dreading it. I wanted to wait until the last possible minute because I didn’t want you to sit here and waste away worrying, but I couldn’t continue not being honest with you…” he says, trailing off with a shake of his head.

“Can you sit down?” he asks.

She nods, taking a seat on the couch opposite of him. Vincent takes his seat beside her, a possessive hand latched around her thigh as Ronan takes a seat on the coffee table. I sit in the armchair, in perfect view of Skyla and Ronan while Liam plops down onto the other couch.

“So, tomorrow,” Ronan begins, “Is your commitment ceremony. None of you have ever attended one, though, right?”

We all shake our heads as Ronan runs a hand through his hair.

“Traditionally, it occurs after the wedding, at midnight specifically. Though, yours has been moved up to before the wedding.”

“Yeah, we know. Get to the point,” I say.

Ronan cuts me an irritated look before turning back to Skyla.

“It’s so important that you’re a virgin on your wedding night, or in this case on your ceremony night, because there will be a doctor to verify before the ritual.”

“Ritual?” Skyla echoes.

He nods.

“It’s custom that when an Elder or Legacy takes a bride, he…deflowers her before all the Elders.”

“Deflowers?” Liam asks with a screwed up face, as Skyla’s face pales and my stomach twists.

“L-like sex?” she stutters. “In front of everyone?”

Ronan nods as she shakes her head.

“I can’t do that. I won’t do that. That’s so…disgusting! Humiliating. Embarrassing. In front of my dad?! In front of Asher’s?” she asks, her panicked eyes coming to me as if to ask, ‘Did you know about this?’. I shake my head as I continue staring at Ronan in disbelief.

“Once the…task,” he grits between clenched teeth, “has been performed, Asher will take the bloodied sheet before completing the next step. You’ll be able to go home after that. The next day you’ll be expected to move into your home, together.”

“We don’t have a home yet,” Skyla says.

“Actually, we do,” I say.

She whips around to look at me with a confused gaze.

“My father gifted it to me when he announced our official engagement,” I say, pulling out my keys and lifting up the one that goes to our new house.

“It’s not decorated yet, I wanted to leave it blank for you, so that you could make it your own,” I say with a shrug.

At least that’s the version that I go with. Truth is, it was fully decorated. I paid someone to furnish it when school began. Since that night at my father’s, the night she took care of me, I had every single piece removed and returned. She has lost so much freedom, so much say, even more than me. I wanted her to be able to control one piece of her life, at the very least.

“That was nice of you,” she says, though her voice is devoid of any emotion as she stares at her hands.

Her throat swallows roughly as she looks up to Ronan, tears brimming her eyes in a way that aches my fucking heart.

“I have to do this? There isn’t another way?”

Ronan shakes his head sadly.

“I’m sorry, baby.”

“W-what if I refuse?” she chokes softly.

Vincent’s hand squeezes her leg tightly before he shares a look with me, Liam and then finally Ronan.

We know what will happen if she refuses, and we all know that the task of removing her would be left to the man that is currently holding onto her like she is his life raft.

“You can’t, Skyla,” I say, speaking for everyone. “They’ll kill you.”

A strangled sob escapes her as she buries her face in her hands.

“Why does everyone have to be there? If we have to do it, why can’t we do it in private?” she asks, blinking back some of her tears as she does.

“To ensure the ritual is completed properly,” Ronan says diplomatically.

“No, it’s so a bunch of fucking perverts can watch!” she snaps.

Ronan doesn’t disagree, and it makes my blood boil. This is fucking bullshit. I knew there was going to be an expectation for our wedding night, obviously. You’re not gifted a virgin bride and told you can handle her however you see fit. But no one ever told me I’d have to take her virginity in a room full of people. It’s going to feel uncomfortable enough for me, but her being the only woman in the room, no doubt naked. My stomach rolls at the thought.

“There’s more,” Ronan continues.

Of fucking course there is.

“You all will be there as well,” he says, looking at Liam and Vincent.

“What?” Liam asks.

Ronan turns around to look at him as he nods.

“All Elders and Legacies of appropriate age. The last ceremony was over six years ago when you all were too young to attend. Now…you’re not.”

“All Legacies of age?” Vincent clarifies.

Ronan nods and Vincent stands.

“Where are you going?” Skyla asks as he heads for the door.

“No one can watch you if their eyes are plucked from their fucking heads.”

“That’s a fucking stupid idea!” I call out as Skyla shouts for him.

“Vincent! Please! Get over here.”

His name on her lips forces him to pause, his hand gripping the door handle tightly before he spins to face the room. His chest is heaving, his eyes wild and crazed. I’d imagine this is what one of the best eliminators for the Brethren looks like when he’s on the verge of a kill. Like a wild blood thirsty animal ready to be let loose.

“This is the shit that cannot happen,” Ronan says as he gestures to all of us. “You cannot allow your emotions to get the better of you. Too many eyes will be in that room. One move like that,” he says, as he points to Vincent, “and all of our lives could be at risk. Most of all hers. So, you lock it down, you space out. You sing fucking show tunes in your head. I don’t give a fuck, but you cannot react.”

Liam, Vincent and I all share looks of frustration and concern as we nod.

“You think this is going to be easy for me?” Ronan laughs bitterly. “Do you think I enjoyed keeping this from you? It’s been fucking killing me, but I knew you would all freak out, most of all you, baby,” he says to Skyla. “And I knew there was nothing any of us could do. I’ve talked to my brother and…it didn’t go well. This is happening or people are dying. And if you die, I die,” he says as he reaches for Skyla’s hand.

She lets him take it as she stares at him and shakes her head.

“I can’t believe this.”

“I know and I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry, baby. If there was anything I could do, I would. I’ve already tried and failed,” he says on a pained rasp.

Skyla nods numbly, but doesn’t say anything, none of us do apart from Ronan. He goes into detail about what tomorrow will look like for her, and what she will be expected to do once she’s in the room. When he’s finished, she stands up, her face looking pale if not a little green.

“Excuse me,” she says, as she makes her way to the bathroom. Liam and Vincent both stand but she waves them off as Ronan hangs his head.

Once Skyla is out of the room, he turns to me.

“There is more you need to know. For your ears only.”

I stand, gesturing for him to take the lead as he stands. We weave through his house before coming to one of the rooms on the other end of the house. When we’re inside, he begins walking me through the expectations from my end for the ceremony and what will occur after. I know I need to pay attention, but honestly, I’d rather not.