Until My Last Breath

by Tiffany Patterson

  I wouldn’t bother taking the time to explain to a man like Rick the pleasures of falling in love with the right woman. He’d learn himself or he’d go to his grave holding on to his current beliefs. Either way, it wasn’t my business.

  “I’m still tying up a lot of loose ends, however. Your father has a lot of secrets from what I can make out.”

  I snorted. “I’m coming to realize.”

  “There are a few details missing from the story, but I’m certain we’re on the right track and these are the major players.”

  “No.” I shook my head. “There’s one more involved.” I’d finally put two and two together.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Then

  Robert

  “Where’d you say this place was?” Jack questioned for the second time within the last fifteen minutes.

  I slowly turned my head from watching the setting sun through the trees as we passed over to Jack. We were in the back of my chauffeured town car. We’d been driving for about twenty-five minutes.

  “The cabin is about forty-five minutes outside of the city.”

  “I didn’t know your family had a cabin out here.” He glanced around, looking out the window, also seeing the passing trees and forest.

  “Yeah, my father brought me up here all of the time as a child to hunt, fish, and camp out. I haven’t been in about a year. You know, with the marriage and all.” I rolled my eyes, adding a sarcastic laced lilt to my voice.

  “Right. How’s that going? You still met with that lawyer this week?”

  A smile blossomed on my lips. “Sure did. He told me not to worry over the fact that I never got Deb to sign a prenup. He’d have no problem taking her to the cleaners if she ever even thought of trying to come after my fortune.”

  Jack nodded, seeming reassured. “I’m sorry it turned out like this, man. But I had to tell you the truth. When I knew she was still sleeping with my cousin, Cohen, I just couldn’t keep that information to myself. She was two-timing the both of you. Fucking whores can be so greedy.”

  My hands balled into fists and I strained every muscle in my body to keep from lashing out.

  “I hate to say it because you know how much I hate being wrong, but you were right. She’s a conniving snake just looking for her next fucking payday. I should’ve known better. I’m a fucking idiot for not seeing what was right in front of me.” I pounded my fist into my open palm for emphasis.

  “Don’t be so hard on yourself, buddy. Women are all the same. I mean, yeah you should’ve seen the likes of a woman who comes from fucking nowhere Kentucky, trying to find a rich sucker to marry. But smarter men have been fooled by cunts far craftier than Deborah fucking Tate.”

  My left leg began to jiggle, and I wrapped my hands around my knees, squeezing as I continued to listen to Jack spout off about cunts, bitches, and sluts. Glancing out at the passing forest, I surmised we were only about five minutes away from our destination.

  When I couldn’t take anymore of his ranting, I turned to him and said, “You know, I never did get the opportunity to apologize to you for what happened on our ski trip senior year and our engagement party.”

  He threw his head back, waving me off. “Don’t even worry about it.”

  “No, no.” I shook my head. “I need to say this. I was wrong. You were looking out for me, for my interests, and I turned my back on you. I believed in Deborah more than a man I had known since we were teenagers. That was the beginning of the end of our relationship, and I must say that I am …” I paused as the car came to a halt. I glanced around and pushed out a relieved breath, knowing we’d finally arrived. “We’re here. We’ll continue this conversation inside.”

  I stepped out of the door that’d been pulled open by our driver. I nodded at the driver, who then nodded back with raised eyebrows. I turned to see Jack descending from the car as well.

  “This is kind of a remote place to have dinner, isn’t it?”

  I patted Jack on the back. “It is, but I like to conduct most of my business out of the line of sight of others. You know what I mean? With all of the leaks that have been occurring at Townsend over the last few years, one can never be too careful.”

  Jack nodded, glancing around. “I know what you mean. My father has been keeping me abreast of what’s been happening at Townsend Industries.”

  I gave Jack what, by all appearances would’ve appeared to be, a genuine smile. “I’m sure he has. Let’s get inside. It’s chilly out,” I noted, holding my arm out for Jack to pass me toward the stairs of the cabin’s porch.

  It was the beginning of November, and yet it was starting to feel like December. I glanced up at the darkening sky, and could make out some of the changing colors of the leaves. Inhaling the fresh forest air, I made a mental note to tell Deborah we needed to purchase a cabin in the woods or the mountains somewhere. For our boys to enjoy as well. I knew they’d love it just as much as I did.

  “Robert? Are you coming?”

  I turned back to Jack. “Sure am.” I caught up to him on the stairs and pulled the key from the pocket of my pants before shoving it in the keyhole. Turning the lock, I pushed the door open, stepping inside and moving to the side to let Jack enter.

  I knew as soon as he saw it. He yelled, “What the hell?” and turned to me, a horrified expression on his face.

  “Surprise, motherfucker,” I calmly said before knocking him out with one punch to the face.

  Frowning, I looked down at the pile of shit on the floor. “He always did have a glass jaw.” I was at least hoping for some type of fight.

  I heard heavy footsteps behind me as they scraped across the worn wood of the cabin. I didn’t turn around.

  “Most pricks like him do,” Rick remarked, glancing over my shoulder at Jack.

  I looked up and met the eyes of Cohen as he sat tied up, cloth stuffed in his mouth, nose bleeding and eye swelling.

  “Let’s play a little game, shall we?”

  Pushing the door closed, I locked it.

  Cohen’s eyes fell to the doorknob, the fearful expression on his face increasing as I turned the lock.

  “Don’t worry, you had no hope of walking out of here alive anyway,” I stated, moving closer to Cohen.

  I patiently waited for one of Rick’s employees to drag Jack’s unconscious body over to the couch, tie his hands behind his back, and gag him as well.

  “You have the smelling salts?” I questioned Rick.

  “Sure do.” He pulled a packet of the salt from the pocket of his jeans, tore it open, and waved it under Jack’s nose.

  A few seconds later, Jack’s eyes were blinking open as he shook his head. He tried to speak and that was the moment he remembered where he was. He also realized that he too—just like his cousin—had been bound and gagged.

  “Shh, shh, shh,” I hushed. “Don’t try to speak. I can’t stand the sound of your voice. It makes me sick.”

  Methodically, I removed the leather bomber jacket I’d worn and tossed it onto the armchair to my right. Sitting down on the wooden coffee table, I faced the two idiots who really thought they were smarter than me.

  “You know, they say two heads are better than one. But in your case …” I looked between the two of them. “Didn’t I say don’t fucking speak? Look what happened to Cohen when he tried to talk after I’d told him not to.”

  Rick came over and abruptly turned Cohen’s head so his left side profile could be seen by Jack.

  Muffled screams sounded as soon as Jack saw the bloody stump that was once Cohen’s left ear.

  “He couldn’t listen, so obviously his ear was useless to him.” I shrugged and Rick let go of Cohen who fell back against the sofa, somewhere between consciousness and fainting. “Don’t you dare fucking faint on me now, Cohen. The fun is just beginning. Besides, we’ve got plenty of smelling salts to keep both of you awake.”

  “So …” I began as I stood, “before we really begin, do you gentlemen have anything you’d like to sa
y?”

  I nodded my head in the direction of one of Rick’s men who then removed the gags from Jack and Cohen’s mouths.

  “What that hell are you doing, man? We’re fucking friends!” Jack screamed, terror reflecting in his eyes.

  I moved to stand in front of him, crouching low so he could see the gleam of disdain in my eyes. “Friends? Were we friends, Jack? Is that what the fuck we were?”

  “Yes!”

  “Really? So a friend plots with his father behind my back to topple my family’s legacy and business? A friend schemes with his family to try and take everything I have?” I moved on Jack, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, bringing our faces nose to nose. “Does a fucking friend lie about another man’s wife to his fucking face because he was pissed she wouldn’t let him into her fucking bed?” I released Jack’s shirt only to curl my right hand into a fist and land another blow across his nose. I didn’t even flinch when blood squirted out, landing on my face and shirt.

  I stepped back, taking a handkerchief that was offered to me by one of Rick’s men to wipe the blood from my face.

  “Don’t ever tell me we were friends. My wife turned you down in college. You were pissed that the pretty rich boy charm every other woman fell for didn’t work with her.” I crouched low again. “It wasn’t that she wasn’t good enough for you. She’s too good for you and you knew it.” I threw the handkerchief against his chest.

  “And you used your son of a bitch cousin as part of your little scheme.” I moved over to Cohen, ignoring Jack’s moans of pain as the gag was stuffed back into his mouth.

  “T-this was all h-his fault,” Cohen stammered out, obviously not looking for anymore trouble.

  I would’ve told him it was much too late for that, but I wasn’t about to waste my breath.

  “You’re still trying to blame someone else for this, huh?” Chuckling, I shook my head. “You’re a grown fucking man,” I sneered. “You were fucking jealous she left you for me. And I get it.” I shrugged, casually, giving him a sympathetic look. “I’d be fucked up in the head too if she left me. The difference, Cohen, between you and I, is I’d never give her a reason to leave me. She’s my soulmate. My wife. And mine to protect. You could never comprehend the magnitude of what she is to me. You’re just a fucking selfish, spoiled brat who didn’t get his way. Try as you might, you’re no different than him.” I gestured to Jack, whose head was now slumped over, blood slowly dripping from his nose. “You talk a big game about hating the wealthy, but it’s because deep down you know you don’t measure up. You’ve never worked for anything in your life. No wonder she didn’t want to be with you.”

  Shaking my head in disgust at both of the losers in front of me, I pulled the gag free from Jack’s mouth.

  “My father will find out about this. He won’t let you get away with this!”

  I gave Jack a sardonic grin. “Well look whose balls decided to show up. Bravo! One last attempt to instill fear to get us … me to let you go.” I gave him a slow clap as I glanced around the room at Rick and the two men with him.

  They all appeared unworried. Rick actually looked slightly bored.

  “Sorry to inform you, but as we speak, your father is being handcuffed and carted off to a federal prison for corporate espionage. Meanwhile, his dear ol’ son is boarding a private plane to the South of France, along with his cousin, Cohen.” I turned to Rick. “That is where we booked the flights, correct?”

  Rick gave a head nod. “That’s right.”

  I held out my hands, turning back to Jack and Cohen. “See, so while you guys are living the life in Europe, partying it up, your dad and uncle will be rotting in a prison cell believing you sold him out and then bailed.” I inhaled deeply, and then let out a satisfied sigh. “Let’s quit wasting time and get this over with.”

  The two men stood both Cohen and Jack up.

  “W-wait! I d-didn’t do anything! We were never g-going to hurt anyone!” Jack insisted as we pushed them toward the back door.

  I moved to stop in front of Jack, pulling him up by his hair so he could see my eyes. “Never going to hurt anyone? You tried to set up my wife, you fucking buffoon! To make it look like she was one of the main conspirators behind this shit! And don’t think I’m fucking naïve enough to believe you would’ve let her live to tell the truth! You think I don’t understand the depths of your deception, you fucking idiot?”

  Jack began flailing, crouching down and eventually falling to the ground as I reigned punches along his face, chest, and body. I’d learned the levels to which he would’ve stooped to carry out this outlandish scheme of his. Rick had discovered Jack’s wire transfers to another PI who’d worked with him to follow Cohen and have him ‘accidentally’ bump into my wife on the street and at the Crown Jewel, taking pictures of them to make it appear as if they were in a relationship. Jack was to present me with this information, which he had weeks ago when he’d invited me to lunch. Once the divorce proceedings began, he was going to make it seem as if Deborah had been behind the espionage in partnership with some other employees at Townsend. Then he and Cohen had planned to do God knows what with Deborah before discarding her.

  The very idea of these two fucking turds laying a finger on my wife sent me into a violent spiral. Once Jack had passed out, and my anger hadn’t let up, I started in on Cohen. I even went so far as to untie his hands so that he could put up a real fight. But like the pussy he was, he merely cowered to the floor.

  “Jesus, I think they’re both dead!” one of Rick’s men said when I finally let up, breathing heavily, covered in their blood and other fluids.

  “You fucking did our jobs,” the second one added, sounding slightly resentful.

  “They’re not dead, just close to it. A bullet to the back of the skull will take care of them, and we still need to take them to the farm,” Rick reminded his guys.

  I nodded, still breathing heavily and stepping out of the way as Rick’s men placed two bags over Cohen and Jack’s heads before carrying them outside.

  “Pig farm isn't too far from here,” Rick mentioned.

  “I’ll go.”

  “No, yo—”

  “I’m going,” I stated with finality. I wanted to see this finished with my own two eyes.

  “Fine. You’ll need to change your clothes first.”

  I took the sweatpants and shirt Rick handed me and headed to the first floor bathroom for a quick shower and to change. Once dressed, I met Rick and his men in the town car that Jack and I had driven to the cabin in. I was on automatic for the five minute drive from the cabin to the pig farm that was actually owned by my father, as was the cabin.

  I didn’t watch Rick’s men as they stripped Cohen and Jack, and fed their corpses to the feeder that would provide the ‘meat’ to the hungry pigs. I wasn’t that fucking depraved. However, knowing the two were disposed of and would never be a threat to me or my family again did give me a sense of satisfaction. A weight had been lifted off my shoulders. But I wasn’t ready to go home to my wife yet. I wouldn’t defile her presence with the actions I’d just carried out.

  Upon returning to the cabin, I called and informed Deborah that I had to take an emergency work trip to California for a few days. She was either too tired from the early stages of pregnancy, work, or both to ask too many questions. She did ask if I would be back in time for her doctor's visit, informing me that we might be able to get to listen to the baby’s heartbeat.

  My own heartbeat quickened just knowing that. It was an appointment I wouldn’t miss for the world.

  “There’s one more thing we need to take care of,” I told Rick.

  “You want to be CEO.”

  I nodded. I was coming for my father next.

  ****

  Present

  Robert

  “Jesus Christ! A pig farm,” Tyler sputtered as he, Joshua, and I sat outside on the back porch at Townsend Manor. We’d brought the conversation from earlier back home, once Joshua’s work day had
ended. They both begged me to finish telling them the story. And I’d made a vow long ago not to lie or hide any part of my life from my boys once they became of age. Besides, they’d all inherited some aspect of my revenge streak.

  “Does Mother know she’s been married to a psycho all of these years?” Tyler quipped.

  Joshua snorted. “You’re one to talk. Didn’t you tie a guy to a tree and use him as a punching bag? Or is my memory failing me?”

  Tyler looked over at his brother. “That was different. That fucker came into my house and attacked my wife and children. And don’t get on me when you’re the crazy nut who fights underground and—”

  “That’s enough,” I intervened, waving my hands as if to wipe the slate clean. “The point is, we all do what we need to do to protect the women in our lives. That’s my job first and foremost.”

  “One you’ve done well, I might add.”

  All three of us turned to see Deborah standing at the opened glass sliding door, arms folded as she peered at us. Her eyes hit mine and my body instantly reacted. Hers likely did as well because a few seconds later, she was strolling in my direction, wrapping her arm around my shoulder as she slid into my lap.

  “You were eavesdropping on our conversation, princess?”

  “Ah man, here he goes with that princess stuff,” Joshua mumbled.

  Deborah giggled as she glanced over at our two youngest. “You two leave your father alone.”

  “All we want to know if is you realize you’re married to a crazy man?”

  Instead of directly answering Joshua’s question, Deborah turned to me, smiling as she gazed into my eyes. “I’ve been married to this man for forty years. There isn’t one thing I don’t know about him.”

  I turned my head upward and she lowered, pressing a kiss to my lips. Tightening my arm around her waist, I pulled her body into mine as she turned to look back at Tyler and Joshua.

  “Besides, he hasn’t even told you the entirety of the story yet.”

  “There’s more?” Tyler asked, wide-eyed.

  “A hell of a lot more,” I responded.

  “Do tell.”