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“I did.”

“Is your legacy a house of lies, Orlando? Is this why Ma had the affair, because you lied to her too?”

His head snapped up. “Watch yourself.”

“Or what?” I stood. “You keep telling me to watch myself. Fuck you gon’ do? Ship me off to boarding school again?”

I was done being the little boy whose father covered shit with bandages and called it protection. People were dead, lives ruined behind his lies, and all of it was because of his pride. He couldn’t handle an affair and a child that wasn’t his.

He put his hands on the arms of the chair and pushed himself up slowly.

“You wanna talk about your mother? Fine.” He was breathing hard now. “Audrey was born into this life and knew exactly who I was when we got married. Then, she got lonely and made a decision that I’ve been paying for every day since you’ve been born.”

“And that gave you permission to fuck everyone else over as a result?”

“You got a last name that opens doors in every borough.” He pointed at me. “I never raised a hand to you and never let one soul in this world look at you sideways. What did you lack?”

“The truth.”

“Truth would’ve made you a bastard and had the Table looking at you like a mistake. They wouldn’t have let you sit at the table. I handed you an empire, Cardez. That’s what I did.”

We stared at each other.

There was truth in his words. I walked through this world practically untouchable because I was Orlando Montague’s son. I’d led a charmed life because of it.

He still lied to my face twice.

“When did you know?” I asked.

He sat back down. “Before you were born. Your mother was six months pregnant and didn’t want to keep it a secret anymore. I put her out that night. Sent her back to her father’s house and told him to keep his whore of a daughter.”

“Not too much on my mother,” I warned.

Pops sucked his teeth. “You had seven years of memories with her, Cardez. She kissed and doted on you, because that’s what she was supposed to do—love you. I had to deal with everything else. So don’t puff up your chest talking about what I can call her.”

I let him have it because if I moved, I was gonna break something in the room.

“You tryna hear the rest or you want to swing on me?”

I nodded at him to continue.

“Felix called me two days later and said if I ever disrespected his daughter like that again, he’d put a bullet in my head.” He let out a small laugh. “Your grandfather didn’t give a damn that Audrey stepped out on her vows, because that was his precious baby girl. Plus, that nigga never liked me anyway.”

“So how’d she come back?”

Pops looked down and rubbed his knee. “I went and got her. Stood in Felix Perkins’ living room and apologized to Audrey, like I was the one in the wrong. Said I’d raise the baby as mine and never bring it up again.” He looked up. “I kept my word.”

“Until she died.”

“Because Solomon moved on with his life. And I was supposed to take care of his family after he got my wife pregnant? He was my right hand. What would you do if Marco betrayed you like that?”

“I’d put a bullet in him,” I said. “That’s the difference between us. You wanted Solomon to sit in prison knowing his people were suffering and he couldn’t do shit about it.”

Pops didn’t deny it. I sighed and went to the window, watching the rain start to come down on the people below.

“There’s one more thing.” I turned to him. “Why would Maxwell Haynes’ men help Solomon? His security flanked him when he came through those doors. Why would a member of the Table put everything behind your old consigliere?”

“Ask him tomorrow when you see him.”