Xena''s POV


    "What do you want to show me?" Ryder pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it into the corner. William sighed and sat down. looking like he was preparing for the worst.


    "First, this was Xena''s idea. I just followed instructions, William said, cing his hand on his head like he was bracing for impact.


    Ryder frowned, walking toward the closet. I could hear him removing his pants, and then he came out wearing only shorts. He ignored uspletely as he walked into the bathroom and sshed water on his face.


    The tension spread through my body like wildfire. I wasn''t sure how Ryder would react. We had investigated his father without his knowledge, and that might make him feel betrayed. But the truth was necessary, even if it cost me his anger.


    When he finally emerged from the bathroom, he spoke. "What happened?" He sat beside me, pulling me tightly against him.


    I''ve been thinking about what your father might be hiding... Suddenly, this felt like a terrible idea.


    "And?" Ryder looked down at me, his expression unreadable.


    "No one was inside at the time. I had everyone outside waiting to be transported. Most of the warriors were with you." I nced toward William, my heart beating faster, palms beginning to sweat.


    "She asked me to look around your father''s office for anything suspicious," William quickly added.


    "You did what?" Ryder looked at both of us, shock written across his face.


    I saw a sh of betrayal in his eyes that stabbed at my heart. I didn''t want to hurt him, but I needed to know the truth.


    "We all know he''s hiding something. Your mom has been acting weird too. I saw an opportunity and I took it." My voice grew firmer.


    Ryder remained silent for several minutes, his face expressionless. "Did you find anything?" he finally asked, his voice low.


    His reaction was calmer than I''d anticipated, which came as a relief.


    William nodded and took out his phone. He found the photos and handed it to Ryder. Ryder pulled his arm from behind me and sat up straight. He zoomed in on the photo, reading its contents. His body froze. He even flipped through several different photos before looking at me.


    "Does your father have spies in Alpha Wiley''s pack?" I asked bluntly.


    Ryder looked at me, opened his mouth, then looked back at the phone. "I don''t know."


    "What happened tonight? Why wasn''t everyone more excited? The mood was almost somber." William leaned forward.


    Ryder raised his head to look at William. "Something felt off. There was no one there. We thought there would be people there, but there weren''t-it waspletely empty. Everything had ayer of dust on it, which means it''s been vacant for some time. We were able to go in, set the bombs, and leave. The bombs went off as expected. No guards or any type of security."


    "That''s weird for a building that''s supposedly a key money-maker for them," William frowned.


    "Was the intel wrong?" I asked urgently.


    "Father never allowed me to ess that information. I don''t know, I just epted what he told me." Ryder


    up and began


    pacing.


    wonder If my dad knows, or Logan,'' I said, looking toward William


    Maybe. Or maybe Alpha Benedict just got bad information." William yed devil''s advocate,


    "How many people know about this? Ryder asked.


    "Just the three of us." I answered quickly. Ryder tossed the phone back to William.


    ''Where''s Ama?"


    "She went to my dad''s territory with the rest of the pack'' members. In case we get attacked here," I said softly.


    Ryder nodded. He ced his hands on his hips, staring at something behind us. I couldn''t tell if he was angry with me or not. "William, go get some rest. We''ll continue this in the morning."


    William and I exchanged a nce before he stood up. "Alright."


    Ryder extended his hand to William, shaking it before walking him out. After closing the door, Ryder locked it and rested his head against it. He was trying to control his anger, but I wasn''t sure if it was directed at me.


    "If I overstepped, I''m sorry," I said quietly when Ryder didn''t return to my side.


    Ryder moved away from the wall and walked toward me. I held my head high because I didn''t regret what I''d done. "What if you had been caught?"


    "Then I would have fought him like I always do," I said simply as Ryder sat on the opposite end of the sofa. He turned to face me but made no attempt to touch me.


    "We need to be smart about what we do next. You asking my father that question in our office means he knows we suspect something. If he''s hiding something, he''ll cover his tracks even more. If you had been caught..." Ryder shook his head and looked


    away.


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