by Tijan
I was done.
I was done with all of it.
There was nothing more to say.
I turned and caught sight of a gun on the table, beside the projector.
Another gift from Kai, I had no doubt.
I choked up, knowing he had left it in case I wanted to do the deed, but I didn’t have it in me. Ironically, I think I would’ve if Kai hadn’t taken everything in me that worked and left it in pieces. I might’ve even enjoyed pulling the trigger, then feeling sick about it.
I glanced at my father. He was still frozen. Not a sound left him as he continued to watch my mother with her new family. I had a thought… I shouldn’t, but… What did I have to lose?
I cut a slit in the rope by his hand. It was small, but enough to give him slack where he could pull it free, if he wanted. Then, I moved the gun closer to him on the table, and I left.
“What the—”
I paused, my back tensing before pushing through the door again. Guards waited for me on the other side. They began to go in, but I stopped them. “No. Wait.”
“For what?”
For… I didn’t know. I wasn’t sure until: BANG!
For that.
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
A month later
I’d returned to my childhood home.
Claude had been there, welcoming me home with tears in his eyes. He’d hugged me for a full five minutes. A few of the maids were still employed, and they were all happy to see me, but I was different. They saw it. They’d expressed well-wishes to me, then lied as they expressed their condolences after my father’s body was found.
Everything had happened as Kai said it would. Every. Single. Thing.
I’d been declared alive and welcomed back into Milwaukee’s high society. They’d thrown me a party. All the while, I was on automatic pilot. I barely remembered what happened day to day.
I knew my father’s old management team had all been fired. Not by me. Kai likely sent the orders down—a new accountant, a new business manager. Every person I would need to help me manage my father’s empire had been replaced. It was an all-new regime.
At home, I kept Claude and the staff I enjoyed and remembered.
On week three, Claude came to the office I’d set up. “A Mr. Bennett is here to see you, mistress.”
Mistress. I flicked my eyes up, standing, and trying to ignore the pit in my stomach. “My name is Riley, Claude. Riley.”
“Shall I show him into the first parlor?”
The first parlor? I wasn’t even sure where that was, but I nodded. “Yes, thank you.”
“As you wish, mistress.”
“Claude!” I yelled after him, but if I could have smiled, it would’ve been then. I hadn’t smiled since Kai had broken me.
I didn’t know if I could get through this meeting, or why Kai was even here, but I forced myself to go. Once I got to the hallway, I stopped. I couldn’t. My feet refused to move. Would he come in search of me if I refused this meeting? Could I do this? Could I see him after what we had shared?
I’d have to leave.
He would look for me in the house, so that meant I’d have to physically remove myself. But I wouldn’t be able to hide. Those were the stipulations. Kai owned me in every way except sexually now, and I couldn’t leave. He would kill Blade and Carol. He was the monster I’d always known he was; I’d just gotten used to his disguise.
I was turning, ready to ask Claude to bring a car around, when the door opened behind me.
“Riley.”
I sucked in my breath, relief flooding me. It wasn’t Kai.
Turning, I saw Tanner in the doorway.
Kai had sent Tanner down to help with running the company, but after only a few days in the office, I let him take over.
Why had I thought it was Kai here tonight?
My stomach dropped—because I had wanted him to come. I wanted him to try, for me.
I was so stupid.
“Yes.” My voice shook. “Hello, Tanner. Hello.”
He gave me a knowing look. “He won’t come unless he absolutely has to.”
I folded my head down. “Of course.”
He was still in me. I felt him. I loathed him now, though. The hatred I’d long harbored for my father had a new target.
Shoving all that down, I cleared my throat, my head rising. I moved past Tanner, extending a hand to one of the couches. “Would you like something to drink?”
His gaze followed me everywhere. He shook his head. “Your butler already offered. I’m not here for a social call.”
Of course. They’d gotten what they wanted from me. Now I was dispensable.
I drew in a pain-laced breath and asked, almost not even realizing it until the words were out, “Once I sign the company over, will you kill me?”
I wasn’t looking at Tanner, but I heard his soft intake of air. “No. Why would you think that?”
I looked, feeling the robot that had inhabited my body take over. “Because you’ll no longer need me, of course.”
He frowned, his eyes narrowing. “Is this because you and Kai broke up?”
Broke up. I almost laughed at that.
“We didn’t break up. Kai had no more use for me, or desire. He ended things.”
“What? He did?”
I waved my hand in the air. I felt a hole opening inside of me, and if possible, I could feel my rotting insides starting to spill out. I didn’t want that, for my own pride. Embarrassing myself, letting his brother see my weakness, I couldn’t do that.
I had to have something he couldn’t take from me. Some amount of pride, at least.
“Riley, that doesn’t make sense—” Tanner moved forward, shaking his head.
“It doesn’t matter.” I raised my voice, wincing at the shrill note at the end. “You said this wasn’t a social visit. Why’d you come?”
“I…” He eyed me, confused. Then he blinked, and it was gone. His hands went into his pockets. “I wanted to tell you Brooke’s asked to come stay with you.”
“What?”
“Would you like her to come?”
Did I want to see Brooke? She’d been demolished by her brother as well. We could commiserate together, but she was Kai’s sister. She was a part of him. She even looked like him. Having Tanner here, even knowing he was in the same city as me was painful enough. Feeling Kai’s presence hanging over everything in my life, literally everything, was starting to wear thin. So did I want another appendage of him inside my home? Or more than whoever was reporting to him from the staff, because I knew someone was.
“I’d rather have Blade and Carol come, to be honest.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Really?”
I nodded. “Or if I could visit them?”
“Kai doesn’t want you to leave, you know that.”
Of course.
“I’m getting sick of your brother’s hold over my life.” Resentment was filling me up, and fast.
“I know,” he admitted, turning away. Grabbing the back of his neck, he let out a sigh. “You’ve lost weight.”
“I’ve been sick.”
“Do you want Jonah to come?”
I scoffed, shaking my head. “Your family is unbelievable.”
I wanted to wake up from this nightmare. I wanted to be free of Kai’s hold over me. I wanted to live my life in freedom, actual true freedom. I wanted to decide where I went, how I went, who I went with. But I knew my prison was here. I was to be used, after all. I had literally stepped into my father’s shoes, except it hadn’t been greed that put me there. It had been love.
“I know, and for what it’s worth, I am sorry. Whatever happened between you and Kai, I know he’s hurting too. If that helps at all—”
“It doesn’t,” I snapped.
How dare he? How dare Tanner? Kai wasn’t allowed to hurt. He’d seduced me. He’d done what he intended to do, then tossed me like a piece of trash.
“What can we do, Riley? How can I help you?�
�� He motioned to me. “It’s obvious you’re hurting too.”
I snorted. “How can you help me? You can release me from this gilded prison your brother’s put me in. You can buy me out. Take the entire company. I don’t care. I want out! I don’t want anything to do with this place. I want to see my friends. I want my old life back.”
I wanted to hide.
I wanted to nurse my wounds alone, out of his spying eyes.
I wanted to survive him. That’s what I wanted.
Tanner’s mouth turned down. “You want out? For real?”
“Yes!”
He paused, studying me, then he nodded. “Okay. It’s been a month, but the other board members aren’t resisting me speaking for you. I’ll talk to Kai. We’ll buy out your share, give you a good price for everything.”
I was shocked.
My mouth thinned. “Are you serious? I can’t—I can’t take being jerked around, Tanner. Don’t jerk me around, not about this.”
“You really do want out?”
“Yes. Please.”
“Then we’ll buy you out.”
“Out of everything?” My father had other businesses he had invested in. I didn’t want to be connected to anything he had.
“Everything. We’ll take care of it. I’ll make sure. I’ll have Eduardo make a list of all your father’s holdings. Is there…is there anything else you’d like from me?”
“I already told you.”
“I can help with the business and investments, but I don’t think Kai will allow your old roommates to come down. We’d have to work it for them to request a transfer. They won’t come on their own. They can’t, but even if they did or we did…” He hesitated, and I knew why.
It would give me a stronger hold on my old self. I would be getting support from someone who wasn’t on Kai’s payroll.
My heart tore in half, having this small thread of hope taken away from me all over again. I turned, not wanting Tanner to see my tears. My back to him, I crossed my arms over my chest. My eyes closed, though I could feel the tears sliding down. I made a move to wipe them clean. I made sure my voice was clear of emotion. “Fine. That’s fine.”
“Riley?” I heard him move for me.
“The businesses then.” My voice rose, sharp. I didn’t want him to see me hurting. “The businesses will be fine then. I’ll make do.”
“Okay.” The floor creaked under his weight. When he spoke again, his voice a little farther away. “What about the homes your father owns? There’s a good list of them.”
God.
The homes too. Did I want to give him everything?
I could handle the homes. I could talk to a realtor, have them sell everything, unless there was one I wanted to keep.
“No. I’ll handle the homes.”
“Okay.” I still heard his hesitation, but then I heard his footsteps on the floor, down the hallway. I could hear a slight murmur from the distance as Claude met him at the door, and a moment later, Claude was speaking behind me.
“Is there anything you wish of me, mistress? A nightcap, perhaps?”
My stomach rumbled at the mere mention, and I pressed on it. “No, thank you, Claude.”
“As you wish.”
He was leaving when I rounded. “Claude?”
He paused, and to his credit, he didn’t flinch when he saw the tears on my face. “Yes?”
“Can you put a list together of the household staff?”
“Of course, mistress.” He started to leave.
“And list their family dependents?”
“Ma’am?” His eyebrows pinched together.
I almost smiled. Almost. I’d never seen Claude confused. And to hell with it. I spoke clearly. “I need to know how many families depend on my father’s money to get by. I’d like to know, if you can add this to the list, even though it might be an invasion of privacy, how much in need everyone is?”
“Ma’am?”
He still didn’t understand.
“Just make the list, Claude. Please.”
“As you wish, mistress.”
This time, I didn’t correct him. It wouldn’t matter soon anyway.
CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
Two months later
Everything was nearly done.
Tanner was back to conclude our business, and he had been right. Kai gave me a decent price for everything. I was shocked at the number when I saw it.
“I told you he’d give you a good price.”
“Yes,” I said faintly.
He could’ve cheated me. He knew it. I wouldn’t have been allowed to sell to anyone other than him, but this number, it was at least double what I could’ve gotten from someone else.
“Just sign here.” Tanner showed me all the places.
There was a lot of paper, a lot of different holdings Kai was taking over. I began signing.
“Are you sure you don’t want a lawyer to look everything over?” he asked.
I paused, shooting him a look.
“Right.” He laughed. “I got it.” He nodded, stepping back. “Sign away. Do you want coffee? I was going to grab a cup while you’re doing all that.”
I shook my head. “No, thank you.” I hadn’t had coffee for three months, at least.
“I’ll be back.”
I was nearly done signing when a soft knock sounded at the door. My realtor came in, flashing me a smile. “Hi! I called your butler, and he said you were in here for the day. Hope it’s okay I came? I wanted to tell you in person.”
“Yes. Of course.” I sat back, surprised. “What are you doing here?”
Shannon Caldriss, mid-thirties. She was someone Claude said he trusted, so I’d been working with her over the last couple months to methodically price and sell every house my father owned. I wanted all of them gone quickly, and to her credit, most of them were. There were three left to go: the main home, a cabin my father owned in Colorado, and a lake cabin north of Duluth. I hadn’t traveled to either of the last two, mainly because of Kai’s no-leaving-Milwaukee clause, but she had. She walked me through them on her phone, so I felt familiar enough to know that I didn’t want to stay in either place. There’d been talk that maybe I would keep one for myself. It was looking more like I would sell all three, though.
She shut the door, folding into one of the chairs, her eyes lit up. “So.” A bright wide smile. “I have good news. No.” She held her hands out, shaking them in excitement. “I have great news, actually! Phenomenal news. A buyer approached us and offered on both homes.”
“Both?”
“The Colorado one and the Minnesota one.”
“What is it?”
“I’ve talked it over with both other realtors, and we all feel it’s a really good deal. They want to offer ten million, so basically five for each home. There might be some back and forth with the agencies because the Colorado team is already vying, saying it’s fifty-fifty, so that means more of a commission to them than they normally would get, but that’s between us. We’ll figure it out. It’s not something for you to worry about.”
Her eyes darted down to where I was sitting in the chair before looking back up. She folded her hands together, her elbows on the table, and almost danced in her seat. “That’s a great price, especially for both of them. The Colorado one was priced at 3.8 and the North Shore was at 6.4. This is just under our asking, which doesn’t happen all the time. We all recommend you take it.”
“What are the stipulations? How quick to close?”
“Oh yes! I forgot that. Thirty-day close, cash offer, and you leave all the furniture behind. That’s it. This is a dream offer. Dream, Riley.”
I was in a daze.
I agreed and Shannon left, promising to send over the paperwork. That left me one more home to sell—the hardest one yet because when this house was sold, all the employees were without a job. Initially I’d had it in the paperwork that the new homebuyer needed to take on the staff, but after the first home was purchased and the sta
ff was fired about a week after closing, I knew I was foolish to keep that in. I’d never met the staff for the other homes anyway, but in the main house, I had grown up with some of those people.
They had fed me, raised me, cared for me when my mother hadn’t been able to.
They were family to me, in a small way.
“You almost done?” Tanner had returned, coffee in hand. He took Shannon’s chair. Putting his coffee on the table, he yawned, stretching. “Man, I’m tired. Lot of traveling over the last few months.”
I eyed him, returning to my signing. “Really?”
I didn’t want to hear.
I didn’t want to hear how Kai had him going everywhere.
I didn’t want to hear about Kai at all.
The burn was less than it had been two months ago, mostly because I was distracted, but it was there. I tried not to think about him, about anything really, but I knew all those emotions were still locked up inside of me. They were still churning away, just waiting for me to lift the floodgates and let them spread.
I was determined not to do that. I didn’t think I could handle it if they did. I had other things going on, other people who were depending on me.
Tanner nodded, finishing his yawn and pressing a closed fist to his mouth. “I have to head to Vancouver after this. I’ll probably sleep the whole way.”
A noncommittal “hmmm” from me.
I had five more sheets to go.
“So.”
I tensed, feeling him starting to focus on me. He’d been distracted before, but I heard in the way he spoke that word that he was zooming in. I realized then, feeling a shiver go down my back, that he was the same as his brother. I could sense their shifts in a single word.
I hated that I knew that.
I shouldn’t know that. I didn’t want to carry that knowledge.
“How’ve you been, Riley?” Softly worded. Almost like he cared.
I knew better. “I’m fine.” I felt tense all over, just wanting this to be done.
Four sheets.
He lifted the cup. I heard him take a sip, placing it back down. “You look…like you’ve lost more weight.”
I heard his disapproval.
