Chapter 5 The Last Keepsake

"Eat first. I'll call in a specialist while you're eating and see if we can improve your treatment plan."

I froze when she said she had cooked the food herself.

Lexi was a neat freak. She had never cooked before. The only time she had ever made me a meal was when she drugged the chicken soup.

I never thought being with Lachlan would make her learn to cook so quickly.

What I had gotten was deception disguised as love. What he got was genuine care and affection.

Lexi went into the kitchen without another word.

For a moment, it was just Lachlan and me in the living room.

He looked at me and pulled a white jade pendant from his pocket. "Ryder, you really are generous. You'll give me anything. Can I have this too?"

My breathing quickened.

That was my mother's pendant. I had always left it with Lexi for safekeeping. How had it ended up in Lachlan's hands?

"I can give you anything else, but not this."

Lachlan raised an eyebrow. "If you're that attached to it, then I can rest easy."

A sense of dread washed over me, and I hurried toward him.

His smile grew wider. With a flick of his hand, the pendant flew through the air in a graceful arc.

The world seemed to slow down.

I lunged at his feet, reaching for the pendant, but I was still too late. I watched helplessly as it hit the floor and shattered before my eyes.

It was the last thing my mother had left me.

I lay at Lachlan's feet, staring blankly at the broken pieces, my mind completely empty.

It was not until I heard a quiet snicker above me that I came back to myself.

I lunged at Lachlan and punched him in the face.

All the hatred I had been holding inside came pouring out. I hit him again and again, tears streaming down my face.

He did not dodge a single blow. He took every punch without fighting back, the smile on his face only growing wider.

Then, all at once, Lachlan's smile disappeared, and he cried out in pain.

A moment later, Lexi screamed, "Ryder, what are you doing? Stop!"

She tried to pull me away, but I wanted to kill Lachlan. I could not hear a word she said.

In desperation, Lexi kicked me away. Her foot landed directly on the stitches from my surgery.

My vision went black, and for a long moment, I could not catch my breath.

Lexi only cared about checking Lachlan's injuries. "How could you be so stupid? Even if you didn't want to fight back, you could've at least called for me!"

Lachlan's face was already bruised and swollen. He gave her a weak smile. "I'm fine. I was afraid you two would fight because of me, so I didn't call you. Please don't punish him because of this, okay?"

His words reminded Lexi of me. She finally turned to look at me, sprawled on the floor and unable to get up because of the pain.

Her brow furrowed. She grabbed me by the collar and slapped me across the face. "Quit lying there and get up. Apologize to Lachlan right now. Otherwise, I won't let you off today."

My cheek burned.

I pointed at the shattered jade on the floor and murmured, "He broke my pendant."

Lexi said impatiently, "You've got boxes and boxes of this stuff. Do you really need to beat someone up over one piece?"

"It was my mother's!"

Lexi froze for a moment. "Even so, that doesn't mean you should beat up the man who saved your life. Just have it repaired."

The stitches from my surgery had torn open. Sweat seeped into the wound, making the pain even sharper.

When I had been tortured by our rivals in that basement, I had wished countless times for Lexi to come.

I had wished she would put an end to my suffering and stay by my side, gently caring for me as I healed.