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“What are you then?” the word ‘you’ leaves my lips in a hiss. I won’t be lumped in with their kind.
“We’re innovators, champions, clothed in the idea of being monsters, so that we might make a change,” Dad sighs, leaning back in his chair. He lifts the whiskey glass to his lips and swallows the last of it. “Marrying Maddox is what’s best for you, although it may not seem like something you want right now. You’ll have a protector—”
“Dominic’s my protector,” I interject.
“Dominic’s a good man, but he’s paid to be at your side. Maddox is a man of strength and vigor, who’s always ready at my beck and call. Imagine what he’d do for you. This decision wasn’t made lightly, but I knew the moment he killed Vik, he was our man. Vik was a piece of shit; that much we all know, but he had powerful connections. Maddox was willing to put him down and suffer the risks that came with that. Now you’re here, unharmed, untouched… pure,” Dad stops speaking and looks off in no obvious direction. “And for that, I know the two of you will deliver the perfect child, to further our magnificent legacy.”
“A legacy I want no part of.” I hold back on screaming as long as I can. There’s no point. Dad’s got this idea in his head and there’s no way I’m going to change it. Brooding and disappointment might sting harder than letting out a rage-filled screech.
“One you will have no part in.” Dad inspects the glass in his hand before pouring himself another. After his pour, he shuffles through his drawers, and pulls out a long, thick cigar.
“What do you mean?” My brow furrows. This is the first thing he’s said that I’m actually interested in hearing.
Dad cuts off the tip of the cigar and jams the end between his lips, chewing on it. He searches for a lighter beneath a stack of papers.
“Once the child is born, your duties to this family are over. You’ll have no obligations, not even raising my grandson…”
What if it’s a girl? I wonder. I daren’t ask. The answer is probably ‘try and try again’, until I deliver the kid he wants. The thought makes me sick to my stomach. I’m going to be forced to deliver a child into this world, only for it to be taken away from me.
“If anything happens to me, Maddox is an ideal candidate to hold a position of power, until my grandson is strong enough to take his place.” Dad lights his cigar, puffing a few times off to the side. “Your life will be whatever you want it to be, while you are paraded as the wife of a powerful man.”
“I’ll be a prostitute,” I think out loud, although under my breath somewhat.
“Come again?” Dad’s eyebrows furrow up in annoyance.
“You want me to whore myself out to Maddox, pump out your heir, and then be a high-end escort to show the organization that everything is stable.” My hands ball into fists on my lap. If it was anyone else sitting opposite me, I’d have lunged at him by now. “You’re giving me to Maddox Braddock, as a prop, so that this criminal empire won’t collapse.”
“Call it what you will, but you’re going to marry Maddox, this Sunday.” Dad swings the cigar between his fingers, like a conductor orchestrating my demise. “Your life will never be easier. What’s the harm in playing along, when you never have to lift a finger again? You’re merely there, showing your face. Hell, I don’t even care if you two share a bed or not. It’s all for show. Enjoy yourself while he’s hard at work.” Dad snickers, the same, smug grin tugging at his lips.
I open my mouth and shut it again. I’m being used as a vessel and when they’re done with me, I can do whatever I want? Nausea takes hold of me, and I have to fight not to spill my guts on Dad’s shag carpet. I jump out of my chair and storm out of the room.
Dad doesn’t call after me or stop me from leaving. By the time I’ve made the short walk to the door, he’s already inspecting his paperwork, enjoying his cigar.
I’m fucked, and there’s nothing to do but run.
So be it.
