think, husband? Maybe it was the bullshit on Riot Night, which I still think you had a hand in, even if Kody and Steele don't believe it. Or gee, maybe it was just the fact that you purchased me like a fucking broodmare and married me without my knowledge or consent. Maybe, just maybe, it was the secrets on lies on more secrets. Maybe I just think you're a despicable human being who isn't worth my time or energy. Take your fucking pick, Sunshine."
He didn't immediately respond but sipped another mouthful of pinot gris while seeming to consider what I'd said.
"Alright," he eventually said, leaning forward and placing the half-empty bottle of wine on the coffee table. "That's fair. Let's talk some of this shit through, shall we?"
I blinked at him in confusion. "Sorry, what? You want to... No. This is a joke or something. I'm not fucking talking it through with you. If you need therapy, go and pay a professional. You've burned this bridge so hard there's not even any ash left. Go to hell, Archer."
Deciding to take Cass up on his offer after all, I started to stand up from my armchair. Archer moved shockingly fast for such a drunk bastard, though, grabbing my wrist and yanking me onto the sofa beside him.
"Running scared, Princess?" he mocked with a sneer. "I'm so shocked. It's not like that's your signature move or anything. Oh wait. Yes, it is."
Outrage heated my cheeks. "Excuse me? What the fuck would you know?"
Archer just shrugged. "Get some bad publicity, run to Cambodia for a year. Find out you're wrong about your hate campaign, run away to a hotel. Finally get the answers you want, run off to Aspen. You run so much you should invest in some proper sneakers or something. You'll break a damn ankle running in those high heels you wear."
He was rambling. Totally rambling. But it was hard to focus on his words when his hand still gripped my arm, his thumb stroking little lines over my inner wrist.
I let out a shaky laugh but couldn't seem to pull my hand away. "You're a piece of work, D'Ath. You know that? I didn't get bad publicity. I was accused of violent crimes I didn't commit, then got sent away. That was not my choice. In fact, it was probably yours, considering how you're pulling Dad's strings now." I leveled an accusing glare at him, but he just shook his head.
"Nope, nothing to do with me," he murmured. His gaze dropped away from mine, his eyes falling to where his fingers still circled my wrist. "I did know those cops would pick you up on Riot Night," he admitted in a quiet voice. "But I didn't plant that key on you."
Drawing a deep breath, I extracted my wrist from his grip and counted to five in my head to keep from punching him in the teeth—only because I knew it'd hurt me more than it'd hurt him.
"You planned to have me arrested? Why?" It was taking all my self-control to keep my cool. But I was smart enough to recognize alcohol had loosened Archer's tongue, and this might be my only opportunity for real answers.
He dropped his head against the back of the couch, exhaustion leaking from his pores as his eyelids drooped. "Because it would have kept you safe. If you were trapped in the back of a squad car or in a holding cell, you wouldn't be on the streets that night." His voice was rough and... sincere. What the hell?
"You knew what was going to happen that night?" I bit my lip, running through it all in my mind. Violence and death at the Laughing Clown when the Reapers and Wraiths clashed were just the tip of the iceberg. All across Shadow Grove, damage had been done. Arson, vandalism, assaults... It’d been a total mess.
Archer just yawned and nodded. "Bullshit between Zane and Charon, sorting out some border disputes and balancing the power. Your dad took advantage, though, and cashed a few insurance claims out of it."
I drew a deep breath. Of course my father was neck deep in that whole mess. And yet Archer had tried to keep me safe?
Reaching out, I snagged the bottle of wine and quickly drank the remainder of it. I was way too sober for this kind of conversation. When it was empty, I got up from the sofa and went back to the fridge to find something else. There were