AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Have you considered what this will do to Maverick’s business?” Gage asked. “You’ll be next to take over, right? Unless Nate fights you for it.”
Nate was my uncle, my father’s brother. He worked for the syndicate too. He’d always been more of a yes man than anything else, happy to do whatever my father told him. He wasn’t a decision maker or a businessman.
“I haven’t thought that far ahead yet. Right now I needed to make sure my father can never hurt Raina again. I’ll deal with Nate later.” I parked behind the blacked out luxury sedan that my father drove and got out of my car. I needed to get this over with.
At the front door with its large arches and fancy flower pot arrangement, I flipped through the keys on my keyring until I came to the right one. I let myself in and quickly disarmed the alarm. The code was still the same. As much as the fucker seemed to despise me, I appreciated that he hadn’t felt the need to change the locks or the code. His mistake.
We stepped into the huge entryway. The interior décor was all white. Too harsh for me. My mother liked it. She’d been the one to make those choices.
A white baby grand piano to the right sat next to a flower covered sofa and chair set. The white marble floor sprawled throughout the house. Straight ahead was the kitchen and living room. The spiral staircase with the gold railing to the left led upstairs. Beyond the staircase was the hallway that led to the library and dining room.
My sister emerged from the kitchen, a bag of chips in hand. She perked up at the sight of me.
“Hey, butthead,” she greeted me with a smirk. “What are you doing here? Mom didn’t say that you were coming for dinner.”
“Hey, dumbass,” I replied, trying to keep my tone light. “I’m not here for dinner. Where’s Mom and Dad?”
Star jerked her head toward the kitchen, her black ponytail swinging. “Mom’s in the kitchen making her famous lasagna. Dad’s upstairs in his study, like always.”
“Cool. I need to talk to Dad about something important. Stay down here, okay?” I gave her a teasing shove toward the kitchen. I really didn’t want to do this with my mother and sister in the house. Unfortunately, I had no choice.
Star frowned, slapping my arm for the shove. “Hands off, jerkwad. If you stay for lasagna, I’m taking the edge pieces.”
The little shit only said that because she knew those pieces were my favorite. After I finished upstairs, nobody would have an appetite.
Leading Gage up the stairs, I braced myself. We passed under the elaborate chandelier overhead. It lit up the family photos adorning the wall. I couldn’t bring myself to look at them.
At the top of the stairs, the hallway ran in two directions. The left led to my old bedroom as well as Star’s. To the right was my father’s study and the master bedroom. Sucking in a deep breath, I went right.
I nodded to Gage and pulled the gun from the back of my pants. Gage followed suit, pulling his as well. Stepping quietly so as not to tip my father off to our arrival, I touched the doorknob. Not locked. Whenever he was in there, he was either working, drinking, or both. Probably watching the occasional porn video as well. I doubted that he’d seen us come in on the security cameras.
I shoved the door open with one hand, holding the gun raised with the other. Unlike the rest of the house, my father’s study was done in dark browns. From the carpet to the walls and even the furniture. My father sat at his desk at one end of the room. A fireplace and mounted TV was across from him on the other end.
He glanced up in surprise at having been interrupted. He’d been in the middle of a call. When he saw the two guns leveled on him, he said, “I’m afraid I’ll have to call you back.”
“Hands up,” I said, my tone low and even. I was ready for this. “Don’t even think about reaching for a weapon. I’ll put a bullet in your brain before you can get off a shot.”
He frowned, sitting back in his chair as he raised both hands. “What the hell is this about, Christian? Have you lost your mind?”
I shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe I’m just sick of your shit. Gage, get closer. Make sure he doesn’t try anything.”
Gage moved to do as I said, pressing the barrel of his gun against my father’s temple. I paused to close and lock the door before coming to stand in front of the desk. I wanted to look this motherfucker in the eyes.
“You’re really crossing a line here, son,” Maverick warned. I couldn’t even think of him as my father anymore. He was a monster. A liar. The worst kind.
“Oh, I’m crossing a line?” I laughed bitterly. Leaning across the desk, I jammed the barrel of my gun against his forehead. “Tell me everything about you and Nikki. Tell me what happened to Jenna. I want to hear all of it.”
Maverick cleared his throat and slowly lowered his hands to the top of his desk. Utter loathing gleamed in his dark eyes. “Nikki and I planned to get Desmond and Raina Monroe out of the way. As the widow, Nikki would inherit everything. Then she and I together would take over the Monroe organization.”
That part I already knew. I nodded, wanting him to tell me what I didn’t know. “And Jenna? Where does she fit into all this?”
My father hesitated a moment before saying, “I hired Jenna to help keep an eye on you. I told her to attend your parties and do whatever it took to get close to the three of you. I wanted eyes on the inside to make sure you didn’t fuck shit up. You have before. I know you don’t tell me everything. For instance, your infatuation with Raina Monroe.”
Teeth clenched, it was all I could do not to pull the trigger. Still too soon. “Keep talking, asshole. Finish the story.”
Maverick sighed. “Once Raina came to Ravencrest, Jenna grew more territorial. She felt threatened, understandably so. She demanded that I make arrangements for the two of you to marry after graduation. She wanted into the family. She made the mistake of threatening to tell you that I’d hired her. So I killed her and used her to scare Raina, hoping it would drive her away from you. I didn’t like how close she was getting.”
I’d always known my father was a ruthless bastard, but this I hadn’t seen coming.
