by Daphne Dawn
I need to do something. Whatever is it. And I won’t stop until Percy’s ruined.
“What’s on your mind?” Carter asks me, sitting up on the bed, the sheets up to his waist. “If there’s something we can do to help…”
“Fuckin’ right. If you have a plan, we want in,” Kieran says, adding his voice to Carter’s. Running one hand through my hair, I let out a sigh and sit on the edge of the bed, resting my hand on top of Stacy’s.
“I don’t know what we can do yet,” I tell the three of them. “There’s only one thing I know for sure: we’ll stop Percy, whatever it takes.”
“Whatever it takes,” Carter and Kieran reply at the same time, and I can see a faint smile taking over Stacy’s lips. She can’t yet see a way out of the maze she’s trapped inside, but I know she trusts us to guide her out.
And I won’t fail her, even if that’s the last thing I do in my life.
Going up to my feet, I look one last time at Stacy and then I leave the room, suddenly feeling more confident about everything.
“I’m coming for you, Percy,” I whisper to myself, and I can’t help but grin at my owns words.
I got a plan.
Chapter 32
Stacy
I wander through the gardens alone, slowly walking under the dappled shade of the trees as I try not to think of Percy. Of course, easier to say than to do.
Percy has become this ever-present figure in my life, and I have no idea on how I can shake him off my mind. The only time I can stop thinking of the situation I’m in, is when I’m with Carter, Kieran, or Nolan. Or, really, whenever I’m with the three of them.
I still can’t believe that something like that happened between the four of us. I fought that the moment the limo drove through the gates of this mansion, that my life would be one of misery - instead, I found the three most perfect men. Forget about a Prince Charming - these three are so much better than that.
Ah, if only Percy wasn’t a part of it, my life would be absolutely perfect. But, then again, if Percy hasn’t stormed into my life like this, I would have never those three brothers. In a twisted way, I guess I have to thank Percy for introducing me to them.
“You slut,” I hear someone say behind me, and I turn around on my heels to meet Percy. He’s standing right behind me, and my gaze is almost immediately drawn to the flask he’s holding in his hand.
“Stop it,” I tell him, balling one hand into a fist. I’m tired of having him treating me like some used rag.
“Stop what?” He asks me, closing the distance between me and him and grinning wildly. The moment he closes in on me, I can smell the vodka in his breath. He’s drunk - the kind of drunk where you can’t help but stagger, stumble, and fall.
“You don’t like it when I call you a slut, huh?” He continues, his grin frozen on his lips. “Too bad, because that’s exactly what you, you bitch.”
“Leave me alone!” I cry out, taking one step back and preparing to get out of here. He moves fast, though, and reaches for me; grabbing me by the wrist, he forces me stop and pulls me toward him.
“You’re a whore, Stacy, why don’t you admit it?” He insists, his beady eyes locked on mine. “You’ve always been one… I remember watching you growing up, and I always thought that you were nothing but a slut.”
“What are you even talking about?” I try to release my hand, but his grip around my wrist is a tight one. “Let go of me, you loser!” I insist, and give him one hard push. “You’re a creep!”
“I’m a creep, huh?” He grows, his fingers becoming so tight around my wrist than I can feel my bones burning. “I think it’s time I start teaching you respect,” he lowers his voice then, and before I can prepare myself for it, he slaps me with the back of his hand.
His movement is so sudden and hard that I don’t even resist. I feel the force of impact and I stumble, my cheek burning. I look at him, lips pursed as I imagine what he’s going to do next. We’re alone in the garden, and even though he’s much smaller than his brother, I don’t know if I can take him on.
He starts walking toward me, his eyes narrowing into two slits, and he reaches for my hair.
“Come here, you lil’ bitch,” he whispers, and I can’t help but feel scared. I close my eyes, anxiety gripping me tight.
“Not so fast, you fucking asshole,” I hear Carter say, and when I open my eyes I see him holding Percy by the wrist. “What’s going on in here?”
“None of your business, Carter! She’s my wife, and I’ll do whatever I --”
“If I were you,” Carter says, his tone a threatening one, “I’d think very hard about what you’re going to say next.”
Percy seems taken aback at Carter’s words, and so he just sinks down into a sunken silence.
“Is this how it’s going to be?” Percy says, finally managing to find his voice again. “You’re going to choose this whore over your own brother?”
That does it for me.
The moment I hear the word whore leave his mouth, I don’t even think - I just act. I take one step back, allow my right leg to swing back and then I launch it straight at Percy’s crotch. I feel my ankle smashing right between his legs, and all blood leaves his face in a fraction of a second. He becomes as pale as a snowman, and when Carter lets go of him he just folds onto the floor.
“I told you not to call me that,” I tell him, leaning in and looking straight into his eyes. There’s pain there - pain, confusion, and surprise. But there’s also rage, a desire for vengeance. After what I just did, I know that my time’s running out.
Percy will come after me, and he’ll pull no punches.
Oh, well, if that’s how it’s going to be…
Without even thinking about what I’m doing, I reach inside my purse and take out my can of mace. I point it straight at his eyes, and before he realizes what I’m doing, I mace the fuck out of him.
“ARGH!” He screams out, covering his eyes with the palm of his hands as if they were on fire.
“That’s the lesson of the day,” I tell Percy, suddenly feeling more confident than I’ve felt in weeks. “Don’t fuck with me.”
With that I turn on my heels and, arm-in-arm with Carter, start walking out of the garden. We leave Percy behind us, crying out of in pain.
Well, this is it.
Retaliation is coming.
Chapter 33
Carter
“Where are you? We need to talk. Right fucking now,” I say into the phone, my fingers wrapped so tight against the damn thing I wouldn’t be surprised if it shattered into a million little pieces.
“In the house. Meet me in the leave in the ballroom,” Kieran replies, and he knows that by the tone of my voice that I have no time to answer all of his questions. Not over the phone at least. This is too important, too serious.
After what just happened with Percy, the clock is ticking fast. War’s coming, and we need to be ready for it. Percy’s going to start moving fast, and he’ll bury us in a matter of hours if we’re not prepared for it.
Lucky for us, I don’t think he knows who the fuck is dealing with. Sure, he’s known all of us since we were kids. But from the top of his arrogance, I doubt he’ll expect us to counter his moves.
He think he still has Nolan under his thumb, and he doesn’t know that we’re aware of what’s in the will. He fancies himself as some kind of master manipulator, and that’ll be the end of him.
Thing is, I’m still not sure of how we’ll get out of this mess. As confident as I am on our ability to pull through and rescue both Stacy and our family’s fortune, it’s a fact that we still don’t have any kind of plan.
And without a plan, we’re at his mercy.
“What happened?” Kieran asks us the moment he sees us walk inside the ballroom, and I notice his eyes darting straight to Stacy’s face, where Percy’s fingers have left a mark. Swear to God, just thinking of that is enough to make me want to kill him. I can’t believe the fucking asshole dared raise his hand agai
nst Stacy. I should’ve broken his arm right there and then, fuck the consequences.
“What happened is that we need to move against Percy. Right now,” I tell him, and Kieran just nods. He has seen the mark of Percy’s fingers on Stacy’s face, and he doesn’t need me to explain what went down.
“Where’s Nolan?” He asks me then, while at the same time he takes his phone from inside his jacket and starts dialing. “He’s not picking up.”
“Fuck,” I mutter. “Doesn’t matter. Just call Ardmore and tell him we need to meet right away,” I instruct Kieran, and he starts calling the family’s lawyer right away. He hasn’t put the phone up to his ear when Percy stumbles inside the ballroom, pushing both doors open at the same time.
His hair is dishevelled, and his eyes are red and swollen. It’d almost be a comedic sight if it weren’t for the fact that he has us all by the balls.
“Feeling special, are we?” He growls, looking around the room like a caged tiger. Usually he’s always cowering in fear, but I think that his boiling rage has gotten the best of him. It won’t end well for him if he decides to take a swing at us - sure, his treacherous tricks might have us against the wall, but if he decides to trade fists with any of us...well, that’ll be a whole new conversation.
As for me, I almost want him to take a swing at him. Let him come. I’ll punch him so hard his teeth will be pinned against his brain.
“What the fuck do you want, Percy?” I growl right back at him, digging my fingernails into the palm of my hands so hard that I almost draw blood. “Haven’t you learned your lesson?”
“I think you’re the ones that haven’t learned the lesson,” he continues, lowering his voice menacingly. “You fucked my wife, and now you think you’re on top of the world, huh?”
“I was never your wife!” Stacy suddenly cries out, standing between me and Percy. Her cheeks are flushed, but there’s a certain determination in her eyes. She’s breaking the chains that Percy has her jailed with.
I just hope we can save her family.
“Oh, is that so, Stacy?” Percy whispers, taking one step toward her. “Too bad your father will be sorry about these words,” he continues, wiping the spit out from his lips with the back of his hand. “All of your family will be sorry about that.”
“Don’t you fucking dare lift a finger against her or her family, motherfucker,” Kieran joins the fray, and I actually have to place my hand on his chest to stop him from knocking Percy out cold. He’s aching to bury his fist against Percy’s face, and I totally get it - I feel exactly the same.
But we can’t make the situation even worse.
“You’ll regret this,” Percy says, looking around the room as if he was shooting lasers out from his eyes. If hate could murder, I venture to say we’d all be dropping dead right now. “You’ll fucking regret it,” he continues, taking his phone out from his pocket. “Your father’s done,” he then tells Stacy, and I watch as all blood drains from her face.
This is it.
We’re fucked.
“NOT SO FAST, MOTHERFUCKER!” I hear someone say as the doors to the ballroom swing open, slamming against the wall. Nolan storms inside the room fast, stalking toward Percy, and he snags the phone out from his hands.
With a grin on his face, Nolan drops the phone to the floor and then crushes the heel of his shoe over it, smashing the screen.
“Someone’s done, alright,” he tells Percy, looking straight into his eyes. “But that person’s you.”
Chapter 34
Nolan
The look on Percy’s face is priceless.
Swear to God, I’d spend a fortune just so I could capture his expression of surprise. He wasn’t expecting me to storm in like this, and he sure as hell wasn’t expecting me to take the phone out of his hands.
His eyes are wide, so much that they’re bulging out of his sockets. There are beads of sweat on his brow, and his lips are a thin line of disbelief. Just like I said: priceless.
“What do you think you’re doing?” He asks me in a subdued whisper, taking one step back. I close the distance between us, grab him by the scruff of his shirt and push him back until he’s pinned between me and the wall.
“The tables have turned,” I growl, leaning in and smelling the fear. My blood’s boiling, and I’m more than ready to move in for the kill.
“What are you talking about?” He insists, looking toward the door, almost as if he’s looking for a way out. No such thing right now. He had us all trapped for so long, but now he’s the one cornered.
“You’re lucky we put up with you for so long,” I continue, and Kieran and Carter join my side. I look from one to the other, and return the smile on their faces. “The only reason we put up with you for so long, was that we didn’t know the reason behind this bullshit marriage story of yours.”
“Fake marriage? That’s not-”
“Shut the fuck up, Percy,” I tell him, and then I just slap him. I don’t even dignify him with a punch. No, I just slap him with the back of my hand, doing it as if he were a little bitch. Well, not as if he were – he truly is a little bitch.
“Your debts-”
“I don’t give a fuck about my debts,” I continue, cutting him short once more. And slapping him again, of course. Fuck, this feels good. More than good. “I know all about your bullshit, Percy. I know you have nothing on me. It’s all smoke and mirrors, motherfucker. I’m free from your grasp.”
“I’ll fucking ruin you, I’ll destroy all of you!” He shouts, looking around the room with scared eyes-
“You’ll do nothing of that sort, Percy.” I finally let go of his shirt, and he just slides down the wall to the floor, crumpled like an empty paper bag. “You know what I did before coming here? I called the fucking cops.”
“The cops?” He asks me in a whisper, his voice so low that I can barely hear him. But I don’t need to hear him – I just need to smell the fear.
“The cops,” I nod. “I did a little digging you see. I made a few phone calls, dug through a lot of financial files, and discovered a few things about all these shell corporations you’re involved with.”
This time he doesn’t say a thing. He just looks up at me, cowering, and both his hands start trembling at the same time. He knows I’ve got him. He knows there’s no escape.
“Stacy’s father isn’t in any real trouble, is he? The companies you used to buy a majority stake in his company are all bullshit. The money you used was all fraudulent, and a good portion of it funneled through money laundering operations. I always knew you were a pathetic weasel, but I was actually surprised to find out just how much of a fucker you are.”
“That’s…that’s a lie!” He sputters, talking so fast that spit starts dripping down his chin. He wipes it with the back of his hand and then tries to go up to his feet, using one hand to support himself against the wall.
“Well, you pulled through,” Kieran says, patting me in the back.
“You did, man,” Carter adds in, placing one hand on my shoulder as well.
“All I needed was some direction,” I tell them all, taking one step back from Percy. “The moment I knew what was going with Stacy’s father, it was just a matter of doing some digging.”
“You have no proof, none at all!” Percy continues to sputter, his eyes focused on the door. I know that, given the chance, he’ll just run for it. Tough luck for him, though – he’s not going anywhere.
“You’re wrong, Percy,” I whisper, enjoying the way I can’t stop smiling. I reach inside my jacket and remove a couple of folded documents from the inside. “Here’s your proof,” I continue, throwing the papers against him. They float around his body, drifting down to the floor, and he just stares at me slack-jawed.
He doesn’t need to see the documents.
He knows I have him.
“NO!” He cries out, doing it like a girl, and then starts racing toward the door. Moving fast, Kieran reaches for him and grabs him by the collar of his shirt. He pu
lls on him hard, and throws him over the large table.
“Not so fast, asshole,” Carter adds, closing both doors and locking them. “You’re stuck with us now. At least until the cops get here, that is.”
Percy gets up from the floor, looking around the room for an exit. For a moment, I almost think he’s going to jump through the window. I dismiss that thought almost immediately – a coward like Percy would never do something like that. I can imagine him going down on his knees and begging us not to turn him in, but it’s too late for that.
We could’ve been a family, the four of us, but Percy never wanted that.
He’s my brother, yes, but that’s just on paper.
My real brothers are Kieran and Carter.
“Is this real?” Stacy whispers, coming up to me and hugging me tight. I look into her eyes, and smile as I see them brimming with tears – tears of joy.
“Yes, it is…as real as it gets, Stacy. You’re free.”
Chapter 35
Stacy
You’re free.
The moment I hear these words, I can’t stop the reaction sweeping through me. I feel the tears coming, and I don’t even bother with trying to stop them. I let them run free down my face, ruining my makeup, but I don’t even care about it one bit. This time they’re tears of joy, and it feels good to have them run down my face.
Hell, it feels more than good. It feels absolutely perfect.
“Please,” I hear Percy whisper, and his voice is weak, frail…and pathetic. Just like he is. It’s almost funny, though - I can’t believe I’m hearing him like this. It’s such a far-cry from his arrogant ways. I probably shouldn’t feel like this, but screw it – I’m enjoying each and every single second of this.
“Please?” I repeat back to him, walking up to him, my voice so harsh it sounds foreign to my own ears. He’s sitting on one of the chairs, his hands tied behind it, and his eyes are wide with desperation. We really didn’t have to bind him, but I guess we kind of wanted to see him like that. I know I didn’t want to pass up the chance to see him tied and on the verge of tears.