“What the fuck did you do?” I snapped, watching her face turn from lust to surprise.
“What?”
“Don’t play innocent, it doesn’t suit you. What the fuck did you do?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she uttered again, glancing up at me and fluttering her lashes thinking that that shit worked on me. It never had before so like fuck it would now. I shook her arm, before dropping it hastily.
“You expect me to believe this bullshit.”
She rolls her eyes dramatically, eyeing her nails like she had all the time in the world. “Oh, you mean the photos of new girl? Poor girl, what an ordeal.”
I never contemplated nor ever condoned hitting a woman. But right now, all that came to mind was an image side by side of the bloodied body of Hendrix in that photo, and the smug-over-privileged one of Amber. I was so close to losing my shit, I didn’t know what I was capable of right now.
“You swore you gave me the only copy. I did what I said I would and made our union more solid and put Hendrix in her place. We made a deal. Our fathers - made a deal,” I hissed through clenched teeth.
“Paxy, I really don’t know what you mean? You think I’d lie to you? I swear I didn’t leak them. But who cares if someone else did.” She leans toward me seductively, noticing we were starting to cause a bit of attention, but I was having none of it. Not anymore. I’m no ones fucking pawn, least of all hers. So I shoved her away.
“Don’t Paxy me. Whatever deal we had. It’s done.”
Her eyes widened subtly glancing around at our audience, before seeming to think better of it and looking back at me all smug again. “You know you can’t. Our fathers…”
“Fuck our fathers!” I all but roared. I was so fucking done with any bullshit that my father was putting me through. I had my mother safe, but the girl who was stealing my heart – had been the fallout from the war. I failed to protect her. I would not fucking fail at fixing this too.
“Pax… you…. you know you don’t mean that.” Amber had the decency to look worried now, as her hands wrapped around her still-small waist. A waist that was growing some poor bastards child inside.
But it wasn’t just some poor bastard.
You see, I was always a step ahead. And she had no idea the things I knew that could ultimately blow everything up for her. And as much as a war was raging inside me right now, my head was still playing the game. So, I leant closer to her ear, to be sure our audience didn’t hear what I was about to say to her. It wasn’t time yet. But soon… Soon everyone would know everything.
“I mean that and more. So, you might want to tell your father that the plan of having me cover up your illegitimate bastard – is off. You tell your father, that the babys’ father - the poorer side of the Reed-family - will be publicly stepping up. Because I’m. Fucking. Done!” I pull away, noticing the utter fear on her face, as her hands go up around her throat.
“How did you….?” She starts, but all I do is grin sinisterly. Her place on that throne beside me was never hers to begin with, and I had only hoped to be playing my cards when I saw fit. Whilst that control was taken away from me, I still have the same hand. And right now, she needs to know that her life as she pictured it, is not going to be above others who deserve it more.
It won’t be above Hendrix.
And it won’t be with the protection of my name.
“Reed, get your ass in formation!” Coach barks, breaking the tension. I barely give Amber a second glance as I force my feet to move beside Austin, pretending to listen to Coach’s instructions.
“How did it go?” he whispered.
“Strike one for the daughter. She has nothing anyway, and strike two….” I pause, as Coach glares at me before continuing.
“Your father?” Austin asks, causing me to shake my head.
“Not yet. It won’t take long for him to hear I’m not making this allegiance stronger with the Westwoods, but he’s not who I’m focused on right now.”
Austin nods, glancing at me from the side of his eye. I could see the concern swirling in his gaze, worry for Hendrix, worry for me, and worry for what the fuck I had planned. And whilst I understood Austins concerns, the fury inside me was all I could see right now. There was only one person who needed to understand their place. One person who was involved in this and who would benefit from those photos being leaked. One person who blamed me for their pathetic life and who looked upon me with more hate than a person should ever hold inside themselves. And it was that one person I knew who would want nothing more than to see me implicated in something like this, to try and tear down my throne. Which is why I stared at Austin and muttered angrily.
“Tucker.”
A note from the author
Kathleen Maree’
I can’t believe how vivid this world was when it came to me. I love Arthur Academy, and hope you too, loved the beginning of Hendrix and Paxtons story. You can pre-order Golden Crown NOW on Amazon, which is the final book in their story.
For a sneak peek, keep reading to get the first chapter of Golden Crown AND don’t forget to grab your copy now while it’s on pre-order sale.
If you can please leave me a rating or review on my goodreads profile I would really appreciate it too!
Thanks for your time, your support and for your love of reading!
Much love,
Kathleen Maree’ XO
PS. Don’t forget to keep reading! ;)
Golden Crown
An Arthur Academy Novel – Book Two
Paxton
By Kathleen Maree’
Before
A golden crown is only what’s seen on the outside…
It’s funny the things you notice as a child.
Like the way people easily glance kindly at me whenever I catch their eye.
Or the way a stranger seems to smile awkwardly at other children, but when I say hello, their smile looks eerily happy like they just won a prize.
That’s how my young life is at home - but not when I come here with my mother.
Not with these people in this town anyway, that is much different to where we live.
The streets here are much dirtier than the wide streets outside our home, and they aren’t lined with the big palace-type buildings or manicured gardens I was used to seeing outside my window either. Instead, the street was filled with rubbish and large holes that caused our drivers car to bounce with every single one, and fragile-looking homes made of wood instead of brick. Everything here had a strange smell too, the same way day-old bread had before Nancy, our housekeeper, tossed it out. And even when I caught a glimpse of a family of eight coming out of their much smaller house, I wondered how a family that size would even live in there. Our house was at least a hundred-times that size and it barely had room for my family and staff. My mother said this was where she grew up, in this town a few hours away from ours. It was where my Aunt still lived and where we came to visit sometimes. My mother said she was lucky to fall in love with my father, that he saved her from a life she would much rather forget. She said she was happy that she could give me, her son, an actual future instead of what would have lied ahead for her instead.
I didn’t understand all of it. The only thing I understood, was that whilst the people here looked friendly enough, especially when I glanced at them – it only made my mother grip my hand much tighter in her own.
“Where are we going mother? Aunties house is the other way,” I asked, as she tugged me briskly down the street.
“Just to the store Pax, I want to grab Aunt Poppy some food from the store.” I nodded in understanding. The two times before when we visited my mothers sister, we were met with no butler, or housekeeper, nor much food either like we would when my parents had guests. I guess without staff, you were unable to buy such things I suppose.
“It would be nice for them to have more food in their house,” I muttered, before eagerly adding, “Can we get some chocolate for me to share with Tucker?”
“Hi,” I chirp as we approach one another. Her big hazel eyes widen in surprise, and an automatic smile crosses her tiny face. In that moment, her eyes trail down my body like she’s looking at something much more interesting than just me, and so I take the opportunity to do the same. My eyes frowning when I see the bruises down her legs and the bloodied toes on her bare feet.
“I like your shirt,” she replies warmly causing my eyes to move back to hers. She had such a kind gaze that it surprised me. The kids I played with at home didn’t look at me like this, let alone complete strangers. We were taught not to show emotion as my father says that makes us weak. The only thing my friends gazed at like this was the new 5000-piece lego set they got that no one in the stores even had yet. But this girl? I got the feeling that she didn’t get the shiny new things that I did, and that alone, made my heart ache for some reason.
“Paxton,” my mother hisses softly, shuffling me to her other side, which meant I was farther from the girl and her mother than before. I stole a glance at the girls mother, noticing her hissing something at mother – her teeth bared, angrily. When we pass, I can’t help but look over my shoulder to the girl once more, feeling a shift in my chest when she does the same. Her smile – it’s so open, vulnerable, infectious. For someone who didn’t even have shoes on her feet, it was like I was her sun shining down on her. The only person that ever smiles at me that way was mother when we were away from my father. She had a different kind of smile on her face when he was home. But this girl was making my skin heat with a warmth that only my mothers affection gave me. That made me smile widely at her too, before she trips landing heavily on her knees and crying out in pain.
“Mother wait!” I cry, tugging my mothers hand, my eyes staring at the girl weeping on the ground. The girls mother snaps angrily, yelling at the girl who is cowering before her as she bends to her hands and knees and starts tossing the discarded groceries that were now scattered on the ground – back into the bag. I see the girl start grabbing the groceries too, crying and saying sorry over and over, until something in her eyes goes cold.
“Mother?” I ask softly, not understanding what I was seeing.
“Oh Pax,” my mother whispered sadly. “Come on, we can’t stay here.”
“But…?” I ask, glancing from the sad eyes of my mother to the broken girl on the pavement. I didn’t understand what I was seeing, but I knew what feeling completely helpless was. It was that feeling of being in the shade when the warmth from mothers’ smile dimmed.
It was a feeling I felt when my father yelled at her. Yelled at me too.
It was a feeling I knew when I walked into the kitchen and saw him take a backhand to mothers cheek as well, whilst I stood there shocked into silence.
And it was the same feeling I was seeing as the girl with the huge warm eyes gazed back at me with nothing but pain. As it was that intense pain from inside, that I knew was not from her grazed knees. And when she pulled her gaze away when her mother tugged harshly on her hand – I felt her fire fizzle out with every step she was pulled away from us.
And that alone made me wish I was still her sun that was shining down on her.
Chapter One
Paxton
“You wanted to see me?”
I held my breath as my father barely-turned at the sound of my voice. You never knew what mood you caught him in these days, but since I was big enough to fight back, he only tried hurting me when he knew he could away with it.
Which was when I let him.
“Sit,” he all but commands. I grind my jaw, knowing full well when to bite my tongue and when to let it unleash, so I do as he says but don’t bother shutting the door behind me. It’s small, but I know it gets to him when his eyes narrow and he all but stalks slowly to the door behind me and clicks it closed.
“So, as you are aware, we have a bit of a mess to figure out.”
I keep my face stoic, not letting on I know what he’s referring to. But when the image of Ambers lifeless body flashes suddenly in my mind, I find it hard to keep my façade as uninterested as I need it to be.
“I’m not sure I’m following,” I mutter, as he stops before me standing over me trying to exude his power over me like the bully he is.
“So you mean to tell me you haven’t noticed your fiancée absent from blowing up your phone all weekend? Yes, I do know how much that girl is obsessed with you. In fact, speaking of such, she was last seen in the afterhours of your stupid game. Friday. With you.”
I ignore his statement, and straighten my shoulders confidently. “She may be my fiancée on paper, but I don’t give a fuck what or who she does. So no. I haven’t noticed.”
We stare at eachother heatedly, waiting for the other to crack first. But nothing gives. The silence is deafening for a moment until he takes the seat in his leather chair, and steeples his hands in front of his chin as he reclines thoughtfully.
“I see.”
I settle back in my seat, feigning comfort, widening my legs arrogantly like I haven’t a care in the world. “So, this is why you called me in here? To ask about some missed phone calls all weekend?”
I could tell he wasn’t sure if I was telling the truth or not, a skill I actually have him to thank for, but after another moments silence, he seemingly goes along with my bluff.
“No it wasn’t to ask you why that girl hasn’t been around. I know why she’s not. So this meeting was actually to thankyou for making the Westwood deal stronger than ever.” The sinister smile that crosses his lips causes shivers to ripple my skin.
“I don’t follow.”
“Yes, well, it’s one thing for me to think you had tried to wiggle out of this deal you wanted no part in now your mother is in her facility, but even I wasn’t heartless enough to end the poor girl.”
That flash came at me again, and my cool façade cracked another fraction. Thankfully he chose that moment to pour a glass of bourbon at his bar, before stalking back to his seat. To anyone else this would be an odd conversation their father would have with their son over a glass of whisky, like we were discussing basketball or whatever; but sad to know in my world – it was more than normal.
“End? As in… Ambers….” I started, not sure I could utter the words a second time to my father without completely losing control. I only showed the real me to a few people, the newest one being the first to hear me utter those words mere nights ago now.
“Dead yes,” he states, picking up the paper in front of him and beginning to read from it out loud. “Severe force to the skull with a blunt object, yada-ya. Cause of death due to bleed out from the skull, yada-ya…. Found in her home’s poolhouse by the cleaner in the early morning of Saturday.” He tosses the papers to the table before bringing those vacant eyes to me.
“No cameras?”
“Down for renovations apparently. Whoever did this had probably spent a many rendezvous’ with the girl in that pool-house to know as such.”
“So it’s obviously not just me who finds her hard to deal with then,” I add coldly, whilst my stomach churns.
“Potentially not,” he replies coolly.
The silence descends on us once more, before I take a breath and continue. I needed to know what my father meant by thanking me for strengthening this deal
, but I couldn’t just come out and ask him that. He’s far too cunning for that shit. But I’ve learnt from the best.
“Well I can imagine the chaos at school when the girls realise there is a vacancy for Arthurs Queen Bee.”
He slams his fist on his mahogany desk with such force, I jump slightly in my seat. “There will be no such thing. No talk of this. To anyone – do you understand?!”
“I’m pretty sure everyone will hear about this. The gossip spreads faster than the cleat-chasers, and she’s the only heir of the Westwoods’ name.”
“Not anymore.”
I ignored the sinister smile on his face that appeared a second time, and shook my head.
“I don’t follow.”
He stands, stalking to the front of his desk in front of me and leaning onto his hands behind him as he gazes down at me.
“The Westwoods’ are more than keen to proceed as it means their future as an elite, will be backed by the other four families. Including the power that comes with the Reed name.”
“And how does that work without our union, because I draw the line at marrying a corpse.”
“No one will hear of this. Amber was due to leave the school anyway this semester to hide her growing baby bump, and the Westwoods’ have paid off the police to ensure this doesn’t get out. To anyone.”
“So the Westwoods’ are more interested in their status than finding out what happened to their daughter? And I thought we Reeds were cold.”
“Paxton what have I taught you?” he scolds, rolling his eyes like he finds this conversation redundant. “It’s business. If anything, you should be happy. You can still fuck around and not have to deal with the girl you couldn’t stand – discreetly ofcourse. It’s an easier transaction on your side now. Which is why I called you to thankyou for making this more seamless now.”
Broken Wing (Arthur Academy Book 1) Page 25