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“He is Katie’s foster brother, who is currently blackmailing her and me. Apparently, he has a video. From when she was a kid, a sex video. He is threatening to go public with it unless I give him a million dollars,” I say, looking at all my brothers. Tennyson rubs his eyes, and Ben is deep in thought.
“Like fuck he is getting any money. He spat at my guys, resisted arrest. The police want to interview you and Katie because he is charging you with assault,” Harrison says, and I nod. I already spoke to Ben earlier, so I knew that was the case.
“You will be charged. They have it on camera, but it will be self-defense and a small fine at best,” Ben says, and I am glad that it won’t tarnish our family and make an issue for my brothers. Especially Harrison.
“What about him?” I ask, because I want to bury him. Literally and figuratively.
“In possession of drugs, assault on Katie, blackmail… How old was Katie in the video?” Ben asks. My body stills. I haven’t had time to digest everything I have learned the past few hours, but I remember her age clearly.
“She was sixteen. It was nonconsensual. It was a group of men, and they drugged her, and her foster brother was the ringleader,” I grit out, the bitter taste on my tongue feeling like it is saturating my mouth.
“Fuck,” Tennyson bites out, leaning back in his seat in shock.
“Sixteen?” Harrison asks, his eyes wide, eyebrows shooting to his hairline.
“Sex with a minor. Video proof of gang rape, administering drugs without her knowledge. Fuck, this case keeps building on this guy,” Ben says, and I can see his mind ticking over.
“He is a fucking piece a shit.” Tennyson shakes his head, now sitting forward and cracking his knuckles.
“How long has he been blackmailing her?” Ben asks, and I see Harrison’s eyes narrow at me. It hits me then that he has probably been holding this over her since it happened. Close to ten years of her life. As she has tried to move forward, he keeps pulling her back. My shoulders stiffen even more, and I crack my neck.
“Since it happened, I think.”
“Shit,” Ben says.
“How was she ever going to get herself out of this situation?” Tennyson asks, and I rub my eyes.
“I don’t think she thought she ever would,” I say quietly, shaking my head in disbelief as I realize that Katie has probably lived a life in full flight-or-fight mode. My stomach feels heavy, my body tense, my mind racing, and I have no fucking idea what is going to happen. All I know is that she has me in her corner now.
“My team is calling,” Ben says as he stands and answers his phone. I watch him, trying to decipher his facial expressions, but he is a good lawyer, never letting anything show.
“I will be addressing the media tomorrow, first thing,” Harrison says, looking at me from under his brow.
“Thought as much,” I say, stretching my hand, trying to get my fingers working normally, even though they are swollen from my punch earlier.
“The fact that you assaulted a man outside the hospital has already been picked up online. We can’t let it go too long before I address it. Beth, Willow, and I are currently building a plan.”
“A plan?” I ask. I have no idea what he is talking about.
“As governor, I need to reiterate that Baltimore is a safe place, but my brother just hit someone. So, I also need to support you while ensuring I reiterate that violence is not the answer,” Harrison explains, and under normal circumstances, I would feel bad for putting him in this position, but I don’t. I would hit that asshole in front of the entire nation on prime-time TV if I had my time again.
“Willow already has things in motion,” Tennyson says, clearly proud of his woman.
“Like what?” I ask, wondering what he is talking about, my eyes flicking to Ben, who is walking a path in my living room floor while talking on his cell.
“Willow has seeded the media. She already has stories up about the drug issues in Baltimore, revenge porn, and sexual assault issues. Harrison will be addressing those in the morning, so in a roundabout way, he will be supporting you and Katie while reminding his constituents that, as governor, he will be putting new policies in place to support the citizens of Maryland with these issues. Everyone—man, woman, and child—has the right to feel safe, and he will reiterate that,” Tennyson says.
“Especially a child,” I spit out, knowing that no one was there for Katie when she needed them the most. Ben ends his call and walks back over to us. I look at him in question.
“As I said to you earlier, the police will be here tomorrow morning to interview you both. They have footage from the hospital security cameras. The audio isn’t too clear, but it is evident what happened. But…” Ben says, and I look at him sharply, waiting for him to continue.
“But what?” My eyes narrow.
“But that is just for the assault issue today. Given the history she has with her foster brother, she will need to sit with them for another session in order to bring charges against him for the earlier assaults on her,” Ben says as diplomatically as he can.
I let go of a breath as I think about how Katie will manage reliving the trauma she has endured. I know there is more, and none of it is probably anything she wants to repeat.
“There is one other thing we have forgotten that may cause issues…” Tennyson says, looking at all of us.
