Page 63 of Married to Lies

Jude: Please?

I wasn’t above begging.

Another read.

And more silence. Not even the text bubbles of unspoken words.

Anger born of injustice, of crippling envy, ripped through me. Why was I continually the one falling on the sword while everyone else got what they wanted?

My phone rang with a call, and my heart quickened with idiotic hope that it was her. But then I saw the name on the screen. Aaric. The peacemaker, here to tug the group back together once more.

“Yes?” I answered roughly. Lights flickered in through the windows, casting orange lines across the dark leather in front of me. I watched it while listening to his reply.

“Jude, I’ll be direct because I know that’s what you prefer.”

Just him saying he’d be direct was, in fact, indirect, but I didn’t point that out.

“Why did you try to vote Bryce out?” he asked.

The words wound into my ears and through my skull like needles. Too fine to destroy, but sharp enough to cause a searing, lingering pain despite all the alcohol I’d consumed. “I’ve told you, he was distracted. The app is the most important part of the company, and we need someone dialed in.”

“You’re lying.”

My head jerked back in surprise, almost wondering if I’d misheard due to his accent. But he stood firm, silent in anticipation of my response.

When I didn’t speak, Aaric asked, “What’s the real story, Jude? You can tell me.”

I ground my teeth together, giving only a portion of the truth. “What percentage of the voting shares does Simon have?” I paused while waiting for him to respond.

I answered after a few moments of silence. “Thirty.” It was stupid deal we entered into in order to fund MyHome, still wet behind the ears, especially without a succession plan. But here we were. “So if Simon’s three children each get 10% voting shares, and four of us have 17.5%, instead of five with 14%, do you think we have a better or worse chance of overpowering them?”

“So we need three of us on board instead of two to overpower them,” Aaric argued. “We could still come out on top if we remain a team, whether there are four or five of us.”

I sighed at Aaric’s persistent positivity in a world that showed me hope was a fool’s mental salve. “We’ve disagreed before, and Simon’s children are experts at manipulation and division.”

Aaric countered, “It seems we’ve divided ourselves just fine on our own.”

“Then thank me for using the vote to keep them from voting one of us out for the next year and a half,” I snapped.

When Aaric didn’t reply right away, I said, “Good night,” and hung up.

I threw my phone down at the chair. No matter how much I might want to, I couldn’t tell them the truth behind my actions without putting Twyla at risk. As soon as I heard she existed, I knew the only way to keep her and her mother safe was getting as far away from them as possible.

That meant Bryce needed to leave. Father would seek revenge if I was voted out and find a way to punish me if I resigned. Having a son at this level meant more to him than I ever did.

Pressure built in my chest, rising to sting my eyes, and I inhaled sharply. “Take me to the hospital where Simon’s staying,” I said to the driver.

He confirmed the change in destination and drove toward the hospital, where my surrogate father lay in a hospital bed. I hadn’t been able to visit, being in Prague, but since getting home this morning... I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

What would I see when I arrived?

Ever since Simon told us of his prognosis, this fear had gripped me. That I’d lose him as a father figure. That fear warred with unbridled rage that he’d force me into a dangerous decision that couldn’t be undone.

And yet, in a twisted way, he was all I had left of the original MyHome right now. Bryce was more enemy than friend, and the others weren’t happy with me either. Yet, Simon had been with us all along as a mentor and a supporter, sturdy and unwavering as his last name implied.

The driver let me out in the front circle, and I walked inside through the sliding doors where a security guard was stationed.

“I’m here to visit Simon Stone,” I announced.