I swallowed down my raising dread as the town car pulled up to the sprawling estate I used to call my home. I scoffed at the thought. Who was I kidding? This place had never been my home. This was just the place I had been forced to grow up in.
Our driver was a man that hadn’t been in my parents’ employment when I lived here, as I had never seen him before. He had been waiting on us as we landed at JFK with a sign that read Donaleigh/Cruz. I’d rolled my eyes as we walked up to him. My mother knew my last name was not Donaleigh, but she just liked to keep digging in that knife any chance she got.
Thank goodness for Leo. If he hadn’t grabbed my hand and distracted me, I feared I may have tried to maim our driver. He’d pulled me to him and whispered in my ear that I shouldn’t worry about the name. Soon enough it would no longer be a question as to what name I had because he would be changing it to Cruz the first chance he got.
Our driver had driven us through the busy streets of New York as we made our way to the richer part of the city. When we rode further upstate, the changes in scenery always left me slightly breathless. Even if some of my worst memories occurred in this place, it never ceased to amaze me with its beauty.
When we reached the private drive that would lead to my parents’ mansion, our driver stopped at the decorative iron gate and typed in the code. As the doors swung open for us to venture further, my heart leapt forward as the car did.
I watched from my place between Leo and Tanner as the trees that lined the perfectly manicured driveway flitted past my vision. I could feel my stomach rolling the closer we came to the house as we drove across the pristine pavement. I knew deep down I was being ridiculous. I shouldn’t be having this visceral reaction to a place. But even common sense held no ground in a place like this. My body and mind knew this was a place it never wanted to be again and yet here I was.
Just when I thought about jumping from the vehicle, the big house finally came into view. I breathed in a sharp breath as I closed my eyes and fortified myself. It was almost time to meet with these monsters again. Only this time I wouldn’t be the scared little girl I once was. I had some hard questions for Daddy Dearest and I would be getting some answers.
I frowned when I noticed cars lining the half-circle drive. Were they having a party? It seemed odd they would be having a party given that it was still early afternoon. Even odder that they knew we were coming and still decided to have the party.
I risked a glance over at my brother. He looked paler now than he had at the airport and I was almost certain he had sweat through his t-shirt. His eyes darted from the front door to the driver in hurried movements as if he too contemplated jumping.
I reached over and gripped his hand in mine. It was cold and clammy as though there was no blood flow going to his fingers. He glanced at me and that’s when I saw a brief glimpse of fear in those hazel eyes. The car came to a stop but we didn’t stop staring at each other. Call it an unspoken bond siblings share or whatever, but we knew we would need each other if we were going to get through the next few minutes.
“Are you ready?” I asked, forcing a smile to my lips.
Tanner snorted and squeezed my hand. “That’s a hard no, you?”
I mimicked his snort. “Absolutely not.” I glanced at Leo who was looking at me with concern in his gaze. “Let’s get this over with,” I said as I squeezed Tanner’s hand one last time before releasing him.
We all exited the vehicle and made our way up the huge brick staircase that led to the front doors. To an outsider looking in, this place was like a dream come true. The beautiful white house was pristine and the manicured lawn and surrounding shrubbery were straight out of a magazine. Only Tanner and I knew the truth that lurked behind all this beauty. Lies, neglect, and mental abuse lay behind those doors.
As we crested the top of the staircase, an elderly woman with hard eyes greeted us. Like the driver, I’d never seen this woman before. I eyed her warily as we came face-to-face. At first, she said nothing as she looked at us with disdain plain in her gaze. Her eyes roamed over Leo first then me and finally landed on Tanner. The scoff under her breath didn’t go unnoticed by me.
“Gretta, so nice to see your sour puss again,” Tanner tossed her way as a mischievous light gleamed in his smile.
Gretta said nothing as she scowled at my brother. I didn’t think her face could hold any more disgust.
“Still as delightful as ever I see. You still haven’t taken my advice and gotten laid? I think a good cock would help turn that frown upside down, my dear,” Tanner poked.
I hid my smile behind my hand as I watched Gretta’s eyes squint at Tanner before speaking. “If you are quite done, Mr. Donaleigh, your father requests your presence in his study. He left explicit instructions to stay away from the garden, as your mother is entertaining guests this afternoon.” With that, Gretta turned on her heel and disappeared into the house.
Tanner smirked after her before he turned to me and Leo. Even though he looked like he was enjoying himself, I knew he was hating every second of this.
“Let’s get this over with,” he said as he extended a shaky hand toward the door. His tremor seemed to get worse as the hours ticked by. His body was trying to process not getting what it had gotten so used to—drugs.
Leo gripped my hand before we walked into the house. Nothing had changed with the interior since I’d left. The shiny wooden floors and staircase seemed just as disinviting as ever as we walked through the foyer. Our footsteps echoed behind us as we walked past the stairs toward my father’s study. The clean marble walls screamed luxury as I scanned my reflection in them.
I always thought looking into someone’s home was like getting a peek at that person’s soul. My thought proved true as I looked at this house. It was just like my parents—cold, hard, inhospitable.
As we stepped up to the door that would lead into my father’s study, I felt Leo grip my hand reassuringly. I looked up into that honey gaze before he leaned down and brushed his lips against mine. I released a breath I hadn’t known I was holding until now as I relaxed against him.
“That’s better. I thought you might pass out soon,” he murmured against me.
I chuckled as I put my hand against his chest. He pulled away to kiss my forehead as I fortified myself once more. After one last deep breath, I pushed the door open and stepped into the room.
This room was different from the rest of the house. It was dark with its wooden walls and dark plush carpet. It also smelled of the sweet cigars my father was always smoking. This was the only room in the house my mother never ventured to, so it stood to reason my father was always in there. It was almost comical that my dad held as much disdain for my mother as we kids did.
I let my fingers glide along the felt of the billiards table as we walked deeper into the study. The huge piece of furniture was beautifully hand-carved mahogany. The felt had been imported from some foreign country and added to the custom piece. During all the years I’d seen this table, I had never once seen anyone use it. It was like most other things in this house, just another show of the family’s staggering wealth.
“Emily,” an all-too-familiar voice sounded from across the room.
I moved my eyes away from the billiards table to the imposing figure that sat behind the matching desk. He looked as though he hadn’t aged a day. His thick strawberry-blond hair still had the same amount of gray speckling throughout. His mustache was trimmed to perfection, seeming to only draw attention to his sharp chin. His almost too-white teeth gleamed in the low light of the study as his dark blue eyes traveled the length of my body as if looking for any damage. As if he would care at all.
“God, you’ve changed, haven’t you?” he said as he stood from his seat behind his desk. He smoothed down the front of his black suit jacket before straightening his cherry-red tie. He was dressed for a party that was obviously happening today.
“I can’t say the same.” My voice sounded dull even to my own ears as he approached me. I gripped Leo and jerked him to me before Frank could come any further. Leo wrapped his arm around my waist and hugged me to his side.
Frank stopped his advance, his eyes moved to where Leo was gripping me tightly. His smirk almost pissed me off as he gazed back up into my eyes.
“I figured you would end up spreading your legs for him again. I tried to tell Patricia it was a bad idea to hire him. You always were a little slut when it came to Mr. Cruz,” he scoffed as he relaxed against the front of his desk.
Before I could retort anything back, Leo pulled away from me and started toward my father. A look of rage clouded his eyes as he clenched his fists together. I quickly pulled him back to me and forced him to look down at me. He clenched his jaw before yielding to me.
“Don’t listen to him,” I whispered as I smoothed my fingers along the scruff of his cheek. I needed to de-escalate the situation before Leo killed him. “You like it when I’m a little slut for you,” I teased, hoping to defuse the bomb that was Leo with sexual humor.
His eyes flared and his jaw twitched as he fought a grin. I knew how hard it was for him to let the disrespect go, but it would do him no good to beat the shit out of Frank.
“Way to welcome her back with open arms, Frank,” Tanner’s voice rang out. I moved my gaze to him as he fingered my father’s crystal decanters full of scotch. He pulled the lid off and brought it up to his nose for a smell. He gripped a glass and looked it over like he was going to pour the amber liquid into it and decided otherwise. He threw the glass over his shoulder and didn’t even flinch when it shattered against the wall. He smiled deviously at Frank as he plopped down in the plush armchair and took a long pull from the bottle.
It was just like Tanner to distract our parents’ negative attention away from me. He always found a way to do something so off-key to drag their engagement toward him instead of me. Even when we’d been kids he had protected me from their harsh scrutiny.
“You look like shit, son,” Frank’s voice held all the disgust his expression showed.
“Awe, I missed you too, Dad,” Tanner said as he pulled another drink from the decanter. “Ah,” Tanner sighed after he swallowed. “You did always have the good shit, I will give you that.”
Frank practically vibrated as he stalked up to my brother and ripped the bottle out of his hand, sloshing the liquor all over him and the chair. Tanner simply dragged his fingers across his shirt and slurped the wet digits into his mouth before smiling back up at our father. I snorted at the show of annoyance directed at the one person in this room we both hated.
“You little prick. You’re a good-for-nothing druggy and I’m not wasting this good scotch on someone like you.” Frank’s face turned beet-red as he slammed the crystal back onto the little table by the chair.
“Whatever, Frank. Let’s just get this over with so I can get the fuck out of here. Which rehab are we going to try this time?” Tanner picked at his nails, not bothering to look up.
Frank balled his fists up before he grabbed my brother’s collar and ripped him out of his chair.
“Hey!” I yelled and started toward the two when Leo pulled me back.
“You think I’m going to waste any more money on a piece of shit like you?” Frank seethed. “You’re going to pay me back every cent you stole, you worthless little fucker. The only reason I had your sister go and get you is so I could do this in person,” he said right before he pulled back and punched Tanner in the face.
The sound that left me was pure rage as I tried to push away from Leo. He held me to him too tightly as he pushed me toward the wall.
“Let me go!” I said as I watched Tanner shake off the hit.
“Stay here and I will take care of this,” Leo growled.
He released me and I stayed where I was. I watched as my big brute of a man took two big strides toward my father and gripped the back of his suit. Frank’s eyes grew to the size of saucers as he released Tanner and went flying.
Leo threw him back until he hit his desk with a thud. He then gripped his collar, lifted him, and slammed him down onto the desk. Pens and papers when flying as Leo bore down on him.
I felt a smile of pure delight as Leo pulled back just to give Frank the same treatment he had given Tanner. Frank yowled in pain as blood gushed from his nose. He kicked and flailed his arms just to come up short. Leo looked savage as he bared his teeth and held him still on the desk.
I rushed over to Tanner and helped him off the chair. His cheek would be sporting a bruise tomorrow but other than that he’d be fine.
“Get the fuck off me! You work for me,” Frank screamed at Leo as Tanner and I approached the desk.
“Actually, no, I don’t. Consider this my formal resignation.” Leo smiled down at him before winking up at me.
“I will fucking ruin you, Cruz. You’ll never find work again,” Frank seethed.
“Not before we ruin you first,” I said with a grin.
Frank stilled on the desk as he looked up at me, disgust written all over his face. I made sure to get down to his level before speaking again.
“The jig is up, Dad. We know all about your employment with Chris. I know you were on the verge of bankruptcy before you took a deal with the Devil. We know all about his embezzling and we have proof you were his right-hand man,” I said. Up until now, everything I was saying was a pure educated guess. After today, I would know the whole truth.
“How?” he gritted behind clenched teeth as he squeezed Leo’s wrists.
“You hired the best PI money could buy, that’s how.” Leo smiled down at him. “I do my homework on everyone that hires me.”
“We know you’ve been working with Chris this whole time. We know you’re the one that told him about Leo being hired to dig up dirt on him.” I tapped his nose with my finger to solidify my point. “Clearly, you twisted it to make it seem like I was the one who hired him when he confronted you. Why did you do that to me? Was it just a desperate attempt for you to weasel your way into Chris’s circle and happily take the money that came along with it?”
Frank glared at me, then at Leo and back to me again. “I told that fucking bitch this would never work,” he spoke as if to himself. “You don’t know as much as you think you do.” He smirked at me. “Chris never confronted me because he never knew I was the one that hired Leo. I never told him you betrayed him.”
I furrowed my brows in confusion. If Chris had never confronted Frank about hiring Leo, then who told him I was the one that hired him?
“Your mother was the one that told him you hired Leo. She knew we were broke and she didn’t think the way I was doing it was going to work. The cunt never did trust me. She said that if I had absorbed Chris’s company like I intended to, I would run it into the ground as I had mine. She also said if Chris found out I was the one to hire a PI he would’ve shown no mercy. You knew the man, did he seem like a merciful guy? We would have been completely ruined,” he admitted with a sneer, as if talk of the past put a bad taste in his mouth.
“He never even spoke to me until after you left and it was all over. I was as much in the dark as you were, Emily. She’s the one that made the deal with him and didn’t tell me. It was a mutual take, he got info about his treacherous wife and we gained his trust. She told him you were looking for any way you could to get out of the marriage so you were going to blackmail him. He bought it. That’s when he let me in on his scheme and started making me millions.”
All the pieces fit so nicely together now. Leo had guessed wrong but the outcome was the same. I’d been betrayed by my mother this whole time. She knew the way Frank was handling things would end badly for them so she threw her own daughter into the flames. She was the mastermind behind it all.
I thought after all these years that she couldn’t hurt me anymore. I thought everything I had experienced in my childhood had hardened me against her. I was wrong, as I felt a deep sadness form in my gut. I knew I would never have a mother/daughter relationship most had gotten but that didn’t stop the heartbreak that was happening as I pushed away from my father’s desk.
I covered my mouth to smother my sob before Tanner wrapped his arms around me. He held me from behind as I squinched my eyes closed. He gripped me tightly as if to hold my pieces together before I completely fell apart. How could the person that brought me into this world be so truly vile?
I heard a scuffle and a thunk before I felt another set of strong arms around me. I sighed and leaned into Leo as his familiar scent surrounded me. Tanner released his hold on me but kept his hand against my back nonetheless.
“The past is the past, Emily. It’s time to get over the things you can’t change,” Frank’s voice pulled me back into the now and I pushed away from Leo. “Honestly, you should be thanking your mother. You still get to cash in on the family’s wealth because of her,” he spat.
“You want me to thank that monster? Because of her lies, I was kicked like a dog and beaten. I lost the last three years of my life because of her.” It was true. If she hadn’t set all this into motion, I would have never left Leo because I never would’ve thought he lied to me.
Frank did what he did best and blatantly ignored me. “Tanner, I expect my money back in full in a month. Otherwise, I will be speaking with the authorities. Stealing is not something I take lightly. And as for you, Mr. Cruz…” Frank sat down in his desk chair and straightened his rumpled jacket as he stared at Leo. “You’ll be hearing from my lawyer before the day is up. Assault is a real thing, young man.” He sniffed.
Leo gripped my chin and smiled before capturing my lips for a light kiss. “Totally worth it,” he murmured.
I turned toward my father and scowled at him. “None of those things will be happening, Frank,” I said sternly.
“The fuck if they won’t,” Frank scoffed.
I held my finger up as I reached into my purse and dug around for the thing I was looking for. Once I found it I pulled it out with a broad smile.
“You see, you aren’t going to do shit. Because if you do, I’m going to release this.” I pressed “play” on my phone, and Frank’s voice filled the room. “That’s when he let me in on his scheme and started making me millions.” I smiled as I paused the recording. I reveled in watching the blood drain from his face.
“You will go to jail for a very, very long time,” I said and smirked.
“Why, you little bi—”
His next words were cut off as Tanner rushed him and decked him across the jaw. Frank immediately slumped over, knocked out cold. Tanner shook his hand in pain as he grinned like a loon.
“Totally fucking worth it!” he preened.
I snorted at him as I turned to Leo. “Let’s go home,” I said before looking back at Tanner. “All of us.”
Tanner grinned at me before grabbing the scotch decanter and heading toward the door. I rolled my eyes as Leo gripped my hand, leading me after Tanner.
“He’s going to be a handful,” I muttered
Leo kissed the back of my hand as we walked back into the foyer. “We can deal with him together.” He grinned.
I smiled as I glanced back toward the entrance that would lead to my escape from this terrible place. I almost made it to the door when I noticed something I’d missed before. I stuttered to a stop as I read the words on the big sign propped on the easel. Could they really be this cruel?
Emy, what is—” Leo’s words were cut off as he too saw the sign.
Christopher Hasting’s
&
Brittany Siphon’s
Engagement Party