The Prince and the Pawn

by Reid, B. B.

  Her gaze narrowed as she seemed to think it over. I didn’t know what the hell it meant for me when her shoulders slumped, but a moment later, she made herself clear. “Say I agreed to those terms…” She peered up at me. “Can you honestly say you’d still respect me?”

  I started to assure her that I would when my mouth snapped shut.

  No. I wouldn’t.

  It was the same kind of relationship I’d had with every girl that came before her. I allowed them to pretend we had something deep and meaningful as long as I got what I wanted in the end. And when I was done… Hell, I usually pretended not to know them—sometimes while watching two girls that I’d screwed fight over me like dogs for a bone. It seemed cruel, but if my father had gotten wind of it, they’d both be dead.

  “Can you?” she pressed, making my frustration rise. We had bigger problems, like the fact that I might already be in love with her, yet she was worried about me fucking respecting her.

  “Tyra—”

  “Yes or no, Vaughn.”

  “No.”

  We stared at each other for a long while, waiting for the other to give in. For a moment, I thought she might, but then Tyra did something I didn’t think was possible. She stepped aside, making way for me to leave. I didn’t understand the strange feeling in my chest. It felt as if my heart had crumbled at my feet. My steps were slow as I made my way toward the stairs, giving her time to change her mind.

  She didn’t.

  I made it all the way down, locked eyes with Selena, and my jaw tightened at her salacious smile. She’d heard every word.

  I considered turning around and warning Tyra about her slutty sister, but my anger and the need to make Tyra hurt propelled me through the front door instead. As the summer sun beat down on me, I decided that Tyra was no longer my concern.

  I should have been relieved about that.

  “Son, you seem distracted,” my father observed as I sat across from him in his office. It had been a day, and Tyra hadn’t come crawling back yet. That had to be a record. “Is everything okay?”

  I almost laughed in my father’s face at the idea of him caring. Maybe he’d even break out his knuckledusters until the pain in my body numbed the pain in my heart.

  No, everything isn’t o-fucking-kay, Pop. I’m pissed. I’m pissed about the fact that Tyra had given up and pissed about the fact that you so clearly haven’t.

  “Fine.”

  “Good,” he said, not bothering to pry since he didn’t give a shit. “I have important business in Colombia that must be taken care of immediately.”

  Good riddance.

  “Fingers crossed your plane doesn’t crash on the way,” I responded dryly.

  He paused at that but then continued as if I hadn’t spoken. “As Father,” he said, referring to the moniker he inherited when he ascended, “you know that I am not allowed to take such liberties and risks by showing my face. The strength of Thirteen depends on it.” I’d been drowning out the sound of his voice until he made his next announcement. “You’ll go in my place.”

  I did laugh then, long and hard while my father simply stared at me. I wiped the tears that had slipped from my eyes, but it hadn’t been all from humor. “What makes you think that?” I finally asked when my laughter died.

  My father took the time to pick some invisible lint from the breast pocket of his suit before speaking. “Because your future, your real future, is inevitable. It’s time you accept that, son.”

  “What will you do if I don’t?”

  “If you prove to be no use to me, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

  “You mean, you’ll toss me off of it.”

  He chuckled heartily at that as if I’d told a joke. “More or less.”

  The next morning, I boarded a small, private plane to Colombia, and although I was empty-handed, I wasn’t alone. I was accompanied by four grim-faced men, three of whom I immediately recognized as Siko, Eddie, and Mr. Palmer. The latter was nearing his fifties and, as he liked to put it, “getting too old for this shit.” He was my father’s closest confidant, although he treated Mr. Palmer like a secretary more than anything.

  The fourth man was new, or at least he was to me.

  Ironically, the stranger seemed to be as interested in me as I was in him. Black hair, black eyes, and even blacker expression, Jeremy Antonov didn’t take his gaze from me for a second after the introductions were made. How was it possible that someone I’d never met wanted to murder me this bad? There was no question. It was more evident than the reason why. I tried to guess his age, maybe early to mid-twenties. He was tall, too, at six-four or six-five and muscular, although not as much as me. Somehow, I doubted, though, that I would walk away from a fight with him.

  “Aw, don’t worry about Rem,” Eddie, who looked like a younger Michael Peña, teased after he sat next to me on the leather sofa. He was one of the few men who sat around my father’s round table and executed his orders. Up until a few months ago, he and Siko had been serving as my father’s spies while trying to herd Nathaniel Fox out of hiding. “And don’t take it personally. Bastard’s always in a foul mood.”

  Not that I gave a shit, but I found myself asking anyway, “Did I do something?”

  “No.” He scratched the stubble under his chin before adding, “At least not yet, anyway.” My wariness grew after hearing that. I was already piecing together Jeremy’s problem when Eddie spoke again. “Jeremy’s impressed a lot of people in a short time. He’s got a lot of, uh, special talents. Everyone thinks he’s the natural pick when your old man kicks the bucket.”

  “Except, my father wants me.”

  Eddie met my gaze, looking serious for the first time since meeting him. “What your father is planning goes against all of Thirteen’s rules and could get him killed. The round table, as you like to call it,” he whispered with a rueful grin, “has total authority over who succeeds Father. Franklin’s reigned the longest and accomplished the most of all Thirteen’s leaders. Naturally, he believes that it should remain under his control. For good.”

  My heart pounded as I recalled the morning nearly a year ago when my father cornered me in my room the first day of senior year and revealed his plans for me. It was the same morning I met Tyra, but I wisely decided not to fixate on that. “He’s creating a dynasty.”

  Eddie nodded in confirmation. “And without you, he’ll fail.”

  Not just me, I wanted to say. My father fully expected me to produce an heir so that he could force the same life on my son. He wanted to crush his hopes and dreams and rot him from the inside out. “So why don’t you stop him?” I snapped. I was damn near in a panic at the possibility of that future. “What’s in it for you?”

  “That’s an odd question to ask, considering I just told you this could get your father killed.” Eddie eyed me curiously, but I didn’t bother making any excuses. There was no love lost between my father and me, and I didn’t give a damn who knew it. Sighing, Eddie looked away for a moment as the plane began to taxi down the short runway. “He made me a generous offer, and I’ve never been one to make waves.”

  My eyebrow rose at that because it sounded to me like Eddie was a coward in disguise. “And the others?”

  “I wouldn’t worry about them. Siko and Mr. Palmer are both too afraid and too greedy to ever say no. Everyone except Rem.” He looked at me then. “Antonov sits at the table now. If he catches on to what Father plans, Rem can kill him with impunity.” Eddie considered his claim for a moment before adding, “As long as he can prove his reasons.”

  “Sounds like a risky gamble.” Or a deadly game of chess.

  “It is. Especially now that your father has the rest of us on board.”

  That left Jeremy Antonov the odd man out and as good as dead if he made a move. Now knowing why he hated me, I found myself meeting his gaze where he sat at the back of the plane and felt my blood run cold at the promise in his smile.

  “Don’t worry about him,” Eddie naï
vely assured me. “He’s too smart to do anything without proof. Even if he knocked the entire round table off, he’d still have Thirteen to answer to.”

  I didn’t bother responding as I took a huge risk in leaning my head back and closing my eyes to sleep. My father wanted to hand me what rightfully belonged to Jeremy. I’d say Antonov had plenty of reason to kill me.

  The first black stain on my soul had set, and the blood on my hands could never be washed away. I hadn’t been the one to pull the trigger, but I’d done nothing to stop it, either. When my father told me he had business in Colombia, he failed to mention that business included ambushing a man he considered a traitor and killing him.

  Even now, I had a hard time keeping the bile rising in my throat from spilling as I watched Siko and Eddie load the crate containing Jacobo Jiménez’s remains onto the plane. Amid my dark thoughts, I wondered how they planned to explain the dead body and cocaine to customs. Diego Jiménez, my father’s new supplier, had happily looked on as Antonov put a bullet in his older brother’s brain. I’d never been more grateful to be an only child.

  “Boss’s son or not,” Jeremy said as he came to stand next to me under the hot Colombian sun. “If you faint, I won’t hesitate to leave you kissing the pavement.”

  “What makes you think I’m going to faint?”

  He shrugged, and the simple gesture somehow seemed uncharacteristic of a man I just witnessed kill in cold blood. “Call it a hunch.”

  The way he spoke, slowly and with a great deal of concentration, didn’t escape my notice. I wondered if English was even his first language. Judging by the accent he was trying to conceal with an American one, my guess was Russian. “Twelve hours isn’t enough time to have hunches. You don’t know me.”

  “It’s plenty when you’re not daddy’s little bitch boy. And no, I don’t know you, but I know what you and your father are up to.” He robbed me of having the last word when he swaggered away before I could respond.

  Moments later, I felt a slap on my back as I watched Antonov board the plane and found Siko—blonde, in his thirties, and completely crazy—watching him as well. “He’s not all talk, you know. Whatever he said to you, I’d believe it if I were you.”

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  Jeremy hadn’t actually threatened me, but I guess a man like him didn’t need to. The icing on the cake was Antonov didn’t seem to be afraid of my father or the repercussions of being openly hostile to his heir. I didn’t know yet if that was a good or bad thing.

  Someone more ruthless than I would have recognized a potential ally. How easy would it be for me to provide Jeremy the proof he needed and rid myself of my father once and for all? Knowing that it meant getting my father killed kept me silent. I may not have any affection for Franklin Rees, but I was no cold-blooded killer.

  Thinking about Jacobo Jiménez, a man whose life I stood by and watched be taken, I boarded the plane, but home was the last place I wanted to be. I didn’t know yet that it wouldn’t matter where I ended up. The rot was already spreading, devouring everything I was and hoped to be, and after today, I’d never be the same.

  WHEN THE DAY CAME TO make the three-hour trip to some never-heard-of town near the Poconos, I was a ball of nerves. I’d thrown up my breakfast at the thought of seeing Vaughn. It had been nearly a week since he stormed out of my father’s house. I didn’t know what to expect. I told myself that I wouldn’t be intimidated or upset by his presence, but that was before the hours and minutes leading up to our little road trip ticked down to zero.

  “So tell me again why we’re going to some little dirt patch to watch people drive through mud?”

  Tomorrow was Four’s second pro-am race, and up until now, I’d been excited. “It’s called motocross, and it’s pretty cool,” I reiterated for the third time since I invited her to come along, “they race off-road on these bikes that—”

  “Whatever,” Selena interrupted as she studied herself in her little compact mirror. “Seems boring.”

  “It’s not, but even if it was, it’s important to Four, so it’s important to me.” Also, you didn’t have to come. I chose to keep that thought to myself.

  “I know she’s your best friend but…why? It’s not like you two have anything in common.”

  Despite it being dangerous, I took my eyes off the road to gage whether Selena was serious or not. I couldn’t really tell since her oversized sunglasses shielded her gaze from me. “How would you know? We’ve only known each other for a couple of weeks. Less actually.”

  “Because I’m your sister. We share the same blood. Besides, we’re not only the same on the inside, but we’re the same on the outside, too. You don’t think that matters to them and everyone else?”

  My stomach twisted and turned as I picked apart her words. As much as I wanted to brush them off and pretend they never happened, I knew I couldn’t. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, they’re white, Tyra, and you’re not.”

  I slammed on the brakes despite being in the middle of the tree-lined road leading to Four and Ever’s. “Shut up!” I yelled, my lips parted in mock horror. “You mean they’ve been white this entire time?”

  I watched her lips purse as she sat with her arms crossed. “You don’t have to be a bitch, little sis. I’m just trying to open your eyes and help you see that you’re just a token to them.”

  Stunned into silence, I collapsed against my seat, forgetting about the fact that I’d stopped in the middle of a road.

  “You don’t even know them.” My argument would have been more meaningful had my voice been stronger. Disappointment ripped through me. It wasn’t because I believed her words held even an ounce of truth. It was because I began to wonder if a relationship with Selena was truly possible. The people she’d judged so harshly after a mere meeting, I’d spent the last year getting to know. I never once had reason to doubt them the way I did my own sister right now.

  “No, but I have twenty-one years of being discriminated against to tell me all I need to know.”

  “So that’s it then? You just lump the entire race together? What if they did that to you and me?”

  Removing her sunglasses, she met my gaze. “What makes you think they haven’t?”

  I shook my head as I stared out of the front windshield. My father had once claimed that many people of color were also prejudiced and felt justified in being so. Until now, I didn’t think that was possible—just as two wrongs didn’t make a right, fighting hate with hate never once created love.

  Sighing, I slowly pressed on the gas until we picked up speed. I refused to let Selena’s skewed views bully me out of the best friends I’ll ever have, and I didn’t care if they were white, black, or purple.

  But I also wouldn’t give up my only sister so easily, either. Not when I’d only just found her.

  I couldn’t change Vaughn’s mind about us being together, but I had all summer to try to change Selena’s. Not fully knowing her story and how she came to these conclusions, I refused to be as quick to judge her as she had my friends. By seeking me out, Selena had given me another precious piece of the mother I never knew. Realizing this, I gripped the steering wheel tighter, determined not to take my sister or this gift for granted.

  “Hey, hold on a second.”

  Selena’s plea had me pausing when I started to climb into the Mercedes Sprinter Ever’s father had generously rented for the occasion. The black passenger van wasn’t the sexiest, but it was better than having to take separate cars. Unlike last time, everyone was here, even Wren and Lou. I’d yet to lay eyes on Vaughn, who was already seated inside. I tried desperately not to stare too hard at the outline of his body through the tinted windows. It was quickly becoming a losing battle.

  Wren was busy tossing our bags in the back while Jamie and Ever loaded Four’s bike on the trailer hitched to the van. Four, Bee, and Lou must have still been inside the house because I hadn’t seen them, either.

  Sighing, I let Selena pull me to the
side out of earshot.

  “You probably don’t think much of me right now,” she began as she tucked her straightened hair behind her ear while staring at the ground, “but I wanted to apologize for earlier. I shouldn’t have said that.”

  Still feeling a little vulnerable, I crossed my arms over my chest. “Why did you?”

  “I don’t know…jealous, maybe?”

  I frowned at that. “Why?”

  “Because I’m your sister, and they know you better than I do?”

  “That’s not their fault,” I scolded. “It’s not yours or mine, either. Our parents lied to us, and when my father comes back, we’ll get to the bottom of it.”

  “I know.” Selena stared at the ground, her shoulders bowing in shame. “And I’m sorry I implied that you and Four have nothing in common. As much as I might not want to, I can see why you like her. She seems sweet and genuine—not to mention a total badass.” She gestured toward Four’s bike that Jamie and Ever were still fighting to secure.

  “She is, and you’ll like all of them if you give them a chance. I don’t know what you’ve been through, and I know that you’re older, but I’m here now, and I’d never let anyone hurt you.”

  She smiled at that before pulling me into a hug. “Ditto, baby sis.”

  Arms linked, we headed back to the van, all smiles.

  “You know you girls could pass for twins?” Jamie observed. He was now leaning against the side of the van near the sliding door, loudly smacking on what I was sure was nicotine gum. I guess he’d quit smoking again. “I’ve never fucked twins,” he purred, surprising me. I didn’t think there was anything Jamie hadn’t done. “Not at the same time, at least.”

  “Well, that’s a shame,” Selena said before sticking her hands in the back pocket of her shorts. It made her chest, which was a little bigger than mine, stick out. “Maybe we could rectify that for you someday.”