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“You’re my sister, so I could easily get around those laws.” Peter, he’d forgotten he was there, said it didn’t matter what she was to them. It was against the law. Merce had been an adult at the time. “Like you would know. Did you get your degree from a gumball machine? Just sit there and shut up while I talk to my family.”
“The only family in this room with you, Brock, is Dad and Grandda. I’ve already spoken to Harley, who took it better than you are right now. All he did was toss me out of his room and tell me he knew it all along. There wasn’t any way I had been related to you two, and he was finished with me. Which is just the way I wanted it. Nothing to do with either of you unless necessary.” Merce sat down in the chair next to the bed. “You can make this all go away if you’d just sign the paperwork that says you’ll leave me and my family alone. That you’ll not bother me or the Archer family, and you’ll not try and take Grandda away from us again.”
“Ha. I knew it. You’re lying. Do you think I’m stupid? That’s you. He can’t be your grandfather if you’re not related to Father.” She told him it was an honorary thing. “No, I won’t allow that either. You’re going to be my sister until I say differently. You’ve done all this to us. Made it so Harley has to slow down or die of a heart attack. I have to learn how to control my temper. I don’t have a temper. The doctors are as stupid as you are.”
Del laughed. “You’re one short fuse from blowing the fuck up right now. What is it with you and calling everyone around you stupid? Do you like that word or something?” Ignoring him for the moment, Brock noticed that his sister was wearing a ring on her wedding finger. If he could have, he would have snatched it right off her hand, finger and all. He demanded to know what it meant. “We’re getting married in two hours. In the event you were going to ask to go, I don’t think they’re going to allow you to be loose yet. Not with all the trouble you’ve caused around here in the last twenty-four hours.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He looked at the wall he’d been shoved up against when he’d tried to take out a nurse with an IV pole. Now he was on the psych floor, with a monitor on his ankle that he couldn’t remove. Also, he had to be tied down when someone came into the room with him. “That woman startled me, that’s all. I was going to see Harley when she told me I had to get back in my bed. I’m a grown assed man, and I decide when I’m going to go to bed or not.”
“Apparently, someone with more intelligence than you thinks differently. Thankfully for the staff here.” He thought his father’s tone was a bit snide.
It hadn’t yet sunk in that he was on a floor where his mother had spent a lot of time. He’d been to see her just the one time, and never again. He’d been afraid of her.
Father asked him another question he didn’t want to answer. “What are you going to do when you get out of here, Brock? There is no more business for you to run. The money you had stashed away has gone to your employees for their vacations they had coming to them. The building has been demolished, and there is some nice grass planted there for future use.”
“Father, you stay out of this. As soon as I am out of here, which will be sooner than you think, I’m going to have you committed like we did Grandfather. He will be in the room next to yours, wondering how it happened.” Father laughed, telling him that wasn’t going to happen. “We’ll see. I still have a lot of pull in this one-stoplight town. When I’m free from here, we’ll see who is going to be in charge of your wellbeing. You might want to think about that part. The worse you treat me, the same is going to be applied to you.”
The nurse came to tell them their hour was up. Brock said he’d tell them when to leave, and she stepped out of the room and was replaced by the big burly man that had “helped” him take his shower this morning. The others walked out while he stood there and said nothing.
Father was the last to leave the room. “You could have had a good relationship with us, Brock. Especially Merce. I hate to say this, but you’re just like your mother. Everything you do and say, it reminds me of her when she was first married to me.” He thanked him. “It wasn’t anything you should be striving for, son. She was locked up for the rest of her life, with nothing to show for it but two sons who think they’re in charge of the family. You’re not. You’ve never been. Merce is getting married in a little while. She’ll have a wonderful family and be happier than I ever was. You should be happy for her.”
“Why? She isn’t anything to be proud of, Father. She’s nothing but a whore and a slut. We should have let Mother kill her when she tried. Think how much better life would have been without her around. I know I’d be happier.” Father just shook his head. “You know you believe me. I’m the oldest, and what I say goes. Just wait until I get out of here, and I’ll show you.”
“You do that. But also know that I’m not coming back here. I won’t go anywhere you are for what you’ve just shared with me. To think that at one time I worried for you. Worried that you and Harley were going to be hurt by your own mother. Turns out, you’re no different than she was. Just a little more vocal about your plans.”
Father walked out the door and didn’t say anything. Brock was fine with that. He knew he’d be back. He was his oldest son, after all.
~*~
They were packed into the office of the judge like marshmallows in a bag. Del didn’t want to pull at his tie again, but he was hot, nervous, and wanted to just be able to take a deep breath without knocking one of his brothers to the floor. When Judge Marcel came into the room, he paused at the doorway and laughed.
“How about we take this out of my chambers and into the main courtroom?” Del nearly knocked everyone over to get out of the stuffy room. As soon as he was able to take a deep breath, he felt immensely better. “You all right there, Del?”
“I am now. I was having a bit of claustrophobia in there.” Laughing, Marcel told him they were big boys. “We are at that. I’m also a little nervous about this. Not that I think this is the wrong thing to do, but I don’t want her to change her mind.”
“She won’t. My goodness, she’s a pretty little thing. My wife came in today to see your mom again. They were fussing over Merce a little too much, and she sent them packing. I love that she doesn’t seem to have a filter between what she thinks and says.” Del said that was very true. “Well, now that we’re all a bit more comfortable, how about we get the two of you hitched up? Before I forget to thank you again, I want to tell you how much I appreciate you taking Judy under your wing. She’s always been a good girl, and I knew as soon as she married that ass she was going to be in trouble.”
“I just wish I’d known sooner. I can understand why she kept it quiet, but if she’d come to us sooner, we would have made sure she didn’t end up in the hospital so much.” Del didn’t mention the numerous miscarriages she’d had. It was hard on Judy, and he thought the fewer people who knew about them, the better she’d feel. “I’m ready anytime you are, sir.”
It didn’t take nearly as long as he thought it would to be married. Del had taken longer to figure out a suit to wear than it did for them to be pronounced man and wife. But Merce looked beautiful. He would never forget the first time he saw her in her wedding dress for as long as he lived.
It was a beautiful white lacy dress with no sleeves and short. The small veil she wore had been his mother’s. Grandda had given him the wedding rings that had belonged to his love, and they had been set in all departments when his brothers gave Merce a bouquet of blue violets and baby’s breath to hold. She kissed each of them before the service, then again after. Del couldn’t have been happier than he was at this moment.
Tomorrow they were going out to see her grandparents. Peter had given them all the information he had found out about them, and they were about as prepared as they’d ever be. He was nervous about meeting them and what they’d say to her. But if they both turned them away, they’d have a good time seeing the sites and taking their honeymoon.
“Well, Mrs. Archer, are you ready to be my wife?” Merce told him it was a bit too late for her to back out now. “Good. I plan on spending the next few hundred years or so making you the happiest woman on the earth.”
“Few hundred years? I don’t know what sort of drugs you’re taking to make that happen, but as long as I can spend them with you and your family, I’m game.” He kissed her again as they waited for their table to be ready for their celebration. “I love you, Del Archer.”
“And I love you, Merce Archer.” Yes, Del thought, this was about as perfect as life could be.
Chapter 6
Ronny went to the door to answer it. Telling his butler, Cody, that he had it had the man standing nearby anyway. He didn’t know why the man thought he couldn’t answer his own door, but he’d been with them for so long, they were more friends than an employee to employer. Pulling
the door open, Ronny stood there for several seconds, staring at the woman standing there until she smiled at him.
“Mr. Judson?” He nodded, not sure he could speak right at the moment. Instead, he didn’t even turn to look at Cody as he told him to get Lily. “My name is Merce Lowery Archer. I’ve only just…do you think we could come in out of the rain?”
