Claimed: The Dark Christmases Trilogy

by Z. L. Arkadie

  “I grabbed his arm, holding it tight. There was something in me that wanted to fight for my life, so I just gushed,” Katie said.

  She told him that she didn’t have a father and that she lived in a house where women were forced to have sex with men for money. She had never known her real parents, had never gone to school, and didn’t even have a real name.

  The EMT believed her and radioed back that he couldn’t locate Katie. He gave her his address and asked if she knew how to find it. She was forced to admit that she couldn’t read letters, only numbers.

  “I probably should’ve been embarrassed about it, but I wasn’t even normal enough to get it. He told me to not leave that room. It was the office of a doctor friend who was out for the day. The EMT came back to get me, and we’ve been together ever since. He’s my boyfriend, Zach. He was an EMT then, but now he’s a resident doctor at Our Lady of Grace Hospital in Queens.”

  Zach had taught Katie how to read at a twelfth-grade level, and three years later, she attended adult school. She eventually received her GED. But they had to leave Tennessee to keep her in hiding. She had two names—one was Eve. It was the one she and Zach had made up. If someone were to come looking for her, using that name, she and Zach knew to get far away from where they were.

  “Holly found me. She called that friend of mine who overdosed when we were younger and asked about me. The only reason Zach and I didn’t skip town was because Alexia swore that Holly was harmless. Her mother, Nel, had liked Holly. Plus, when I googled her, I saw that she wrote two books that were real popular, so she wasn’t cut from the same cloth as Bam, the Arthurs, and the others.”

  Bryn and Katie had already discussed their father. Only Katie had known him as Arthur. Finally, Bryn had to ask the one question that made her want to throw up right there and then. “Did Arthur ever fuck you?”

  Katie shook her head. “He never fucked me, but he wanted to. Instead, he would fondle me.”

  Bryn clutched her stomach. That sick feeling was back as she recalled how Randolph had fondled her. “He tried that shit with me, too, but Jasper stopped him.”

  Katie narrowed her eyes at Bryn’s hand then looked into her eyes. “I felt sick too,” Katie whispered.

  They stared at each other. The fact that Katie was sitting across from her felt surreal to Bryn. Perhaps the time had come to tell her about their mother. If only she had a better tale to spin about the woman who had given birth to them.

  Bryn sighed and decided to just get on with it. “Our mother’s name was Amelia, and she was checked out my whole life. I mean, I might as well not have existed as far as she was concerned. I was raised mostly by nannies.” She said it so fast that now she was dizzy.

  Katie shook her head adamantly. “If your mom is my mom, then why did your brother’s girlfriend ask if I knew my mother? I mean, I thought that they must have thought I was the one who lived with our mother and you lived with our father.”

  Bryn’s mouth fell open. She was about to insist that Katie had heard Holly wrong when she remembered that before dying, Amelia had said she had nothing to apologize for in regards to being a shitty mother. Bryn wondered if what Amelia had slyly confessed was that she couldn’t apologize for being a shitty mother because she wasn’t Bryn’s mother at all.

  Bryn slumped in her chair, a bit weakened by the strong possibility that Amelia had never been her mother. Holly’s face came to mind. She had asked her to the Christmas mansion to pull the scabs off her family’s secrets, and shit—Holly had done that and more.

  “When Holly asked you about your mother, what did you say?”

  Katie hesitated, studying her. Bryn decided to sit up and take the truth like a strong woman.

  “I told her I thought my mother was someone named Beth,” Katie replied. ”But she wasn’t too different from the Amelia woman. It was as if Beth’s whole body was numb, and definitely, her brain and heart were.”

  “What did she look like?” Bryn was eager to know.

  “She had light hair, strawberry blond, like you and me. And pale skin.”

  “Also like us,” Bryn whispered.

  The heavy silence lingered for a few beats.

  “Amelia had dark hair and Jasper’s unique eyes,” Bryn finally said.

  Katie snorted. “He’s very…”

  “Beautiful,” Bryn finished for her.

  “Yes. I can hardly believe we’re related.”

  Bryn scoffed and smirked. “Jasper’s a rare bird in many ways. He had a tough upbringing. Our father was a monster, and he tried to make Jasper the same kind of fiend he was, but it didn’t take. I think it was because although Amelia was shitty to me, Asher, and Spencer, she treated Jasper as if he was hers.”

  “Maybe he was,” Katie said.

  Bryn’s body stiffened. Again, Katie had said something that made a lot of sense, but Bryn wouldn’t let herself believe it was true.

  “That guy, your father… my father…” Katie muttered the last part of that. She cleared her throat and readjusted in her seat. “He liked to fuck young girls. Did you know that?”

  Bryn’s mouth was caught open. Her mind raced back to that rank scent in the dark room behind the cabinet. She recalled her father’s fingers fondling her anthill-sized tits. Katie watched her, and Bryn felt it was time to admit the truth to herself.

  She nodded. “I knew,” Bryn whispered. “He never touched Amelia sexually or otherwise. She was fucking the butler, Nigel. He’s still around.”

  Katie snarled. “Yeah, Arthur was vile.”

  “Randolph. That was his name.”

  Katie’s disturbed gaze fell on her lap. “Yeah, that’s what I’ve been told.”

  Then Bryn remembered something. “You said ‘Arthurs,’ didn’t you?”

  Katie nodded. “There were two guys who called themselves Arthur.”

  Bryn asked Katie to wait as she rushed to her room to get the cell phone that she had snuck onto the compound. When Bryn returned to the room, holding the device, Katie gasped.

  “Jasper didn’t take that away from you?” Katie asked.

  Bryn smirked as she performed an Internet search. “I hid it in my hair.” She shook her head. “I wore a chignon.”

  Katie smiled at her. She seemed impressed.

  Bryn showed her a photo of Arthur Valentine. “Have you ever seen this guy before?”

  Katie took the phone from Bryn. She gasped as her eyes expanded. “Yes, that’s one of the Arthurs.”

  Bryn threw up her hands in excitement. “Shit, Katie. We have him. We fucking have him.”

  Katie wrinkled her eyebrows as if she were beyond confused. Bryn explained who Arthur Valentine was.

  “But he was with your—I mean our—father,” Katie said.

  “I don’t give a fuck. Do you?”

  “No,” Katie said, sounding offended. Then Katie held up the device. “But can you use this to call someone?”

  Bryn regarded her new sister shrewdly. “Zach?”

  “Yes.”

  “Absolutely,” Bryn replied.

  After that call to Zach, everything changed so swiftly.

  The news of Katie and who she was had somehow spread through the house like wildfire after lab technicians arrived to draw her blood. It was just like Jasper to be thorough no matter how impersonal things felt. After Katie’s blood was drawn, Spencer, who had been working in one of the offices, introduced himself to her. Ever since their father died, his whole demeanor had changed, becoming more subdued, as if he was taking a stab at behaving more like an adult. Bryn was certain the new him wouldn’t stick around for long.

  Once Zach knew where Katie was, he wanted to be with her. Bryn assured Katie that when Jasper returned, he would definitely bring her boyfriend to the compound. Then Dale came upstairs to meet Katie. He was blown away by the fact that Asher, Katie, and Bryn were triplets. He told them an interesting story about three brothers who had discovered they were triplets, but before he could finish it, Asher and Gina had
come to Katie’s room.

  When Gina learned that Holly was able to find the house in Chattanooga from her lead, she was able to give them the name of a madam who supplied the girls to houses like the one Katie had grown up in.

  “That old bastard,” Asher hissed. “I’m glad he’s dead.”

  The room went silent, probably because everyone shared the same sentiment.

  “We have to go see this woman—this madam,” Bryn said.

  Katie’s eyes widened with terror.

  “It’s okay, Katie. You’re with us now,” Asher said. “We’re going to make their asses pay for what they did to you—what they did to us…”

  “They’re going to be shitting pennies until the day they die,” Bryn said.

  She and Asher smirked at each other. It had always been that way. When the two of them decided on a plan of retribution, there was no stopping them, no point too low to sink to. Hell had to be paid. That was something their father had learned on the night before he took his last breath.

  It was three hours before midnight when Spencer called them all into the media room to inform them that Arthur Valentine had been financially neutralized. Spencer had been working with Jasper all along, which was probably why he was behaving more maturely than usual. Randolph had never allowed Spencer to get his hands on the family business. Keeping them afloat was supposed to be Jasper’s job, and Jasper was supposed to pass the torch on to his son—not a daughter, only a son.

  Spencer explained how Arthur Valentine’s father, Conrad, had violated a moral no-contest clause in the last will and testament of Thomas Valentine, the oil baron. Apparently, when Conrad Valentine faked his war-hero story, he’d violated that clause, which meant he had to pay the other inheritors 60 percent of the original distribution amount with 3.7 percent interest, which began accumulating on the day of the violation.

  “So Arthur Valentine is a thousand-aire and not even a millionaire. He’s done.”

  Spencer informed them that they still couldn’t leave until they knew for sure that Valentine’s power was neutralized to the point where everyone was safe. But it was too late—Bryn, Katie, and Dale had already made a plan. Bryn had transferred copious amounts of cash into Zach’s bank account. At midnight, the three of them, all bundled up and packed for a few days away from home, crept to the barn, saddled up the horses, and rode sixteen miles to the only road that journeyed past their remote location. The horses knew how to follow the trail. Once the three of them had ridden out, they sent the animals back. Asher was to have them put back in the barn, where they would be fed and watered.

  As the horses raced up the trail, Bryn was worried. She had given Zach a lot of money on the word of the twin sister she’d just met. What a relief it was to see the black SUV parked at the end of the trail. Not only was he there, but he was also intelligent enough to follow the Google Map pin drop to a T.

  Katie and her boyfriend kissed as if they hadn’t seen each other in years. There was a lot of passion between them—far more than what was between Bryn and Dale. Bryn had to clear her throat to make them stop. Zach then introduced himself, and as they shook hands, he seemed rattled by how identical she was to his girlfriend. He had made all the extra plans they’d discussed—the private plane, the rental car, and the hotel reservations in Nashville.

  And now, it was the next day, and they were on their way to a candy store on Fifth Avenue to meet a woman named Martha Lamb. According to Gina, she was the madam they were looking for.

  The bells on the door jingled when they entered. Bryn felt taller than usual, walking among barrels filled with all sorts of candy. A girl who looked to be in her late teens was behind the counter.

  “Welcome,” she sang, doing a double take and smiling when she saw the twins.

  When they approached the register, Bryn noticed that the girl was platinum blond, wore a boatload of makeup, and had on a tube top even though it was freezing outside. She was definitely sexualized, which made Bryn wonder if she was a prostitute.

  The girl looked caught off guard when all four of them stopped at the counter. “Is there something I can do for you?” she asked. Bryn detected a hint of trepidation in her eyes.

  “We’re looking for Martha Lamb,” Dale said.

  The girl frowned. “Mrs. Lamb?”

  “Yes,” Bryn said.

  “She’s not here. How can I help you?”

  Dale was about to speak when Bryn raised a hand to keep him quiet. The fastest way to handle the situation was Jasper Christmas style.

  “Could you please get Mrs. Lamb on the phone and give her an address?” She looked at Katie. “What’s the address of the house you grew up in?”

  The shop attendant’s eyes grew wide, and they expanded even more when Katie recited the street name and number of the place she used to live. Without another word, the girl started to search the top of the counter. Her hands were shaking when she picked up a phone and hit three numbers on the keypad.

  “There are people here to see you.” She paused. “They say it’s about…” She repeated the address. After a moment, she hung up.

  Suddenly, the door opened behind the girl, and out came a woman who looked like a pudgy, happy-go-lucky soccer mom next door at first glance, but the longer Bryn glared at her, the more she saw how the lines on her mouth were formed by too much frowning, as was the pucker of skin between her eyes.

  “My name is Bryn Christmas, and my father was one of your clients.”

  Martha studied them with an intensified frown then finally she scoffed. “Randolph Christmas. I heard he died.”

  Bryn sniffed. “If there’s a hell, then that’s where he is.”

  The woman kept a straight face.

  “I just learned I have a twin sister, here, who used to live at a property where you placed our mom.”

  “Beth,” she said without hesitation. “I remember the triplets. Your father only needed two, a boy and a girl. Which one of you lived in the house in Chattanooga?”

  Bryn and Katie looked at each other. The woman was so casual while talking about dastardly circumstances.

  “I did,” Katie said in a small voice.

  “You weren’t supposed to be messed with sexually. Were you ever touched?”

  Katie looked as though answering that question made her soul ache. But she shook her head.

  “But it doesn’t change the fact that you’re fucking scum,” Zach growled.

  “Listen, y’all,” Martha said as if she’d already had enough of them. “I take it you came here because you want to find Beth. I’ll let you know where she is, and you get the hell out of my store.” She scratched the back of her head, watching Bryn with raised eyebrows. “And if I were you, I wouldn’t try nothing funny. Spencer and Asher—well, they may not fare so well in a court of law.”

  Zach aimed his finger at her. “There’s no way you’re getting away with running a whorehouse in—”

  “Katie, shut him up, please,” Bryn said. She had little patience for Puritanical grandstanding.

  Zach jerked his head, apparently surprised by Bryn’s iciness. When they returned to the SUV on their way to the motel where Beth McConnell worked, Bryn felt she had to apologize in order to keep the good energy flowing between her and Katie. She yielded with a sigh after watching Zach pout while driving. “Listen, Zach, I’m sorry for what I said back there.”

  He didn’t respond.

  “You’re a good guy, and I’m really happy the sister I never knew found you. I believe both of you are good people, but the world isn’t fucking black and white. And what you saw in there was a shade of dark gray. Your girlfriend’s a Christmas, and there’s nothing she can do about it now.”

  “Bryn, we don’t need a lecture in how fucked-up your family is. And my last name is not Christmas,” Katie said.

  Bryn was shocked her sister had spoken up. She cracked a smirk. “You sure are talking like one now.”

  Katie glared at Bryn, and Bryn winked. Katie sniffed and chu
ckled. “Maybe it’s in the genes.”

  “Oh, it is—believe me, it is,” Dale said.

  Katie and Bryn’s laugh carried a bit of heaviness.

  “But I want you two to understand something…” Bryn said after their laughter simmered down. “Don’t worry about madam soccer mom back there. She’ll get hers. You can count on it.”

  “Shit, now I’m shaking in my boots,” Dale said.

  Bryn punched him on the arm jokingly. Then she became distracted by a text from Asher. “Shit,” she hissed.

  “What is it?” Dale asked.

  “Jasper’s on our asses. We have to hurry up and get there.”

  “What if we did what we talked about?” Dale asked.

  She cocked her head and grimaced as she considered what Dale was proposing. “We’d have to move fast.”

  “I know some people in Nashville.”

  Katie turned to the back seat to look at them. “Now I’m curious. What are you talking about?”

  Bryn’s eyes shifted from left to right as she considered the consequences of doing just what Dale had suggested. “We’re talking about telling the truth for once.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  He could definitely be president, I thought as I watched Jasper through the small round window of the aircraft. His strides were long and sure as he strolled toward the ramp. He was having a conversation with the pilot on one side of him and his security chief on the other. It was clear who was in charge: the man in the middle.

  For a second, our eyes connected. I smiled and waved at him. He winked, and his acknowledgement made my soul flutter. Sometimes it was hard to believe that Jasper was only thirty-three—he carried himself like a man ten to fifteen years older than that. But on rare occasions when he smiled, he looked younger. I couldn’t settle on which version of him I liked most. When making love, I certainly preferred the man. No boy could bring my body such divine pleasure. Also, it was the man who paid attention to how I felt at all times. However, it could have been the scared little boy inside that motivated him to do so. I felt that Jasper feared losing it all—not his money or power, but the love of all those he fiercely protected.