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My upper body sways, and Nick holds me tight against his chest. I can’t seem to process his words. “Your grandparents…they could see their demise coming a mile away, and I have to give them credit; they played it smart. They tied you to an insurance policy, one so intertwined—well, it pissed me the fuck off. Once you turned twenty-one, you were to inherit Oakley Global Enterprises, and if anything were to happen to you at any given time, all Oakley holdings would go directly to charity. I couldn’t let that happen, now could I? When you turned twenty-one, you were to inherit all of the wealth.” He stops pacing the floor and locks his gaze with mine, sending a cold chill down my spine. “The bottom line is I couldn’t allow you to get the upper hand on me. I had to find a way to get you to sign all holdings over to me once you turned of age.”
“Holy fuck,” Nick whispers in disbelief beside my ear.
“So, you see, I was in a bit of a quandary, but Nick here came along at the right time and I found the perfect solution. Nick said this drug, Blyss, which I’ve invested in, would be the drug of the century. He went on to explain about his high-end operation, and how not only being a captive, but also a subservient one, would have these women obeying their master’s every command. So I’m sure you could see I found the perfect solution to my dilemma.”
All I can do is shake my head in dazed shock and utter, “No.”
My dad stops his pacing to smile at me. “You’ll soon realize this is a win-win for all of us. I could’ve done something far worse to you,” he says, giving a quick jerk of his chin toward Nick behind me, “but I’d say he’s a pretty fine catch. Wouldn’t you?”
“What the fuck is going on here?” a deep voice bellows from behind. It’s Jake. All of us turn to see Jake, whose nostrils are flaring. He stalks into the room, his biceps stretching the confines of his dress shirt as his hands clench into tight fists, ready to strike at any moment. I tug to break away from Nick, but he’s not letting me go.
“Jake, help me,” I cry out, “please…”
Nick holds me tighter as Jake heatedly flicks his eyes between both my dad and Nick, assessing and digesting the scene. It’s then I notice Jake stalking in with a limp, and my heart squeezes. He took a bullet trying to protect me. My dad holds out his hand in a halting motion, as if that’s going to keep Jake from advancing, limp or not. “Stop right there, Jake. This doesn’t concern you.”
Jake stops within a couple feet of all of us, his upper lip twitching with intense hostility. “The fuck it’s not my business. Julianna has always been my business. You said your delusional shit was under control. What’d you do, Lance, pay off your fucking psychologist, or did you learn to get batshit-crazy within your delusions?!” Jake bellows.
A pained whimper escapes me, and my chest constricts. I can barely breathe the words, “You...you knew?”
Jakes shifts his gaze to mine and shakes his head, remotely softening his eyes. “I didn’t know this, Jules, I promise. I only knew of his paranoid schizophrenia. His parents hired me when you were just a little thing to watch over you, and to keep tabs on Lance.” He turns, eyeing my father up and down with passionate enmity. “He had to go through a series of medical treatments a good while back. It was one of the reasons why I had to send you away to boarding school while he was going through therapy. It was for your own protection.”
“That’s enough!” my dad barks.
“What’s the matter, Lance? You worried your daughter will think less of you for having a severe mental disease?” His voice drips with a loathsome rage. “Afraid you would appear less of a father if she knew? Well, I think you’ve just topped yourself.” He takes a step closer to my dad, pointing a finger in his face. “You fucking promised you’d tell me if you got those feelings again, and it’s been what? Almost six years since your last episode?” He shakes his head in disdain, acute revulsion radiating off his entire body. “All this time, I thought you had your shit under control. Turns out you were only lying dormant as you had this shit planned out for years. No wonder you’ve been acting so normal all this time; you thought you had the ace in the hole.”
“Correction, I hold the ace,” Nick arrogantly chimes in.
Jake whips around to face Nick with bared teeth.
“And you…you sick motherfucker,” he grits out with narrowed eyes filled with rage, “you can let her the fuck loose, right the fuck now. There is no fucking deal.”
