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She nods. “William and Bryan came inside for drinks. The boys heard Isabella screaming. Thinking quickly, William and Bryan grabbed their baseball bats from the garage, then snuck up the stairs and into the room where he had Isabella. He had just pulled his pants down when William hit him. Bryan followed his lead. If Isabella wouldn’t have stopped them, I think they may have killed the servant. Particularly William. He snapped seeing his mother about to be raped.”
Goosebumps spread over my skin.Then why did he violate me? I mean, I don’t remember anything other than kissing him when I was drunk, and then I passed out, but still… I shift uncomfortably on the ottoman, clearing my throat. My voice still comes out hoarse when I speak. “So, um… then what happened?”
Emma takes a long drink of water. When she lowers the bottle, her eyes are filled with sadness. “The three of them—Isabella, William, and Bryan—told Gregory what the servant did. He refused to believe them. This servant did anything Gregory asked. I’m certain he did many illegal things for Gregory, and he didn’t want to roll over on the staff member and risk getting in trouble. That led to more resentment from Isabella and William… and William and Bryan became closer because of what had happened. But then…” She pauses a few beats, her eyes vacant as she stares over my shoulder. “Gregory threw a big Christmas party that year, about a month after William turned ten years old. The servant was working at the party and he grabbed Isabella’s ass and tried to kiss her. She told Gregory, who refused to believe it. He called Isabella awful names—a liar, slut, and whore—in front of William. Isabella fled upstairs, humiliated.”
The look on Emma’s face suggests something terrible is about to happen. I lean closer, my hands clasped in my lap. At that moment, a gust of wind blows, turning our attention to the window. A tree branch shakes and scratches against the window, making both of us jump and grab onto each other. We let out a nervous chuckle, exchanging a glance, as we heave out a sigh of relief.
Emma’s face grows serious again as her fingers grasp her necklace, twisting the pendant on the chain over and over in her fingers. “Unfortunately, the obsessed servant was waiting upstairs for her. As she tried to flee, he pulled out a gun and shot her, and she tumbled down the steps, dying right at William’s feet.” Tears slowly drop down her face as she shakes her head. “William was devastated.”
My heart aches for Isabella and William, despite what William has done to me.
“Shortly after the funeral, William was sent to boarding school. Gregory sent him to a team of therapists and counselors, but by that point, it was too late. William was too resentful to want the help, especially after being torn from those who cared for him. I loved him like a son. He was such a sweet boy…” She pauses, her eyes distant, and her face hardens. “When William came home for breaks, he was different. Gone was the sweet boy I knew and in his place was someone much colder. As much as he tried to keep everyone at a distance, my son refused to be deterred by his frigid demeanor.” She lets out a long sigh and stops speaking.
Standing, I mute the television so we can hear William if he returns. “I’ll turn the volume up and run to the bed if he returns.”
Emma nods. “I’m nearly finished with the story.” She exhales and looks at me. “William returned to Heritage Hills, attending Anderson Academy his sophomore year of high school. Unfortunately for you, William and your brother became good friends, and once William saw you… well, you reminded him of his mother, Isabella. You both have long blonde hair and big brown eyes. You possess a sweetness, yet a fierce protectiveness of those you love.”
My mouth falls open and my hand flies to my chest as another piece of the puzzle clicks into place.That’s why he is obsessed with me. I always wondered, when so many girls clamored for his attention in school, why he wanted me. Mistakenly, I thought it was because he couldn’t have me.
But it’s more complicated than that.
Emma gives me a few minutes to compose myself. My thoughts whirl from all she’s told me about William’s messed up family.
After several beats, I take a long swig of water. Wiping my hand over my mouth, I study Emma. Unsure how to approach it, I decide to just blurt it out. “How did your daughter end up… dying?”
“My daughter grew into a beautiful young lady and I saw Gregory eying her.” She shudders, her face twisted with disgust. “He had an affinity for younger women, and Bryan noticed his interest in her. He wanted to make enough money to go to college and get me and Bristol out of that horrible mansion after my husband died.” Emma blows out a large breath, her hands clenching in her lap.
“Gregory asked my daughter to pick him up from the airport, unbeknownst to me. Bryan was with William and even though I knew he was selling drugs for William, it seemed that William was doing everything to protect Bryan from any trouble. And honestly, William was the lessor of the two evils. When William offered him a job instead… well, I hated what Bryan was doing, but I understood why. Of course, Gregory was pissed that William hired Bryan. Gregory took his anger out on my daughter.”
Tears course down my cheeks as I imagine all kinds of horrible things Gregory may have done to her.
Emma shakes her head, misery etched all over her features. “Bristol never came home that night. Gregory claimed she simply never showed up at the airport, but I knew better. Bristol always did what she said she was going to do.” Emma pauses, her head lowering to her chest as her shoulders shake.
I gently pat her knee, waiting patiently.
Finally, Emma looks up and says, “Bristol was found three days later. She’d been shot and left in the woods five miles away from the airport.” Her swollen, red-rimmed eyes look into mine. “I know he did it, but there wasn’t any evidence to pin it on him.”
My hand goes over my mouth and I shake my head, misery flowing through my body. I’m numb, at a loss for words.
“Did you quit working for Gregory?”
“He fired me before I could quit. But William paid for a place for Bryan and me to live. Once William graduated from high school, he moved us to California and hired Bryan and me to work for him. William rented a nice apartment for us and hired me to cook and clean for him. Bryan didn’t have the money for Stanford, but William generously paid for him to attend.”
My eyes widen. “Why would he do that?”
Emma releases a small laugh. “William has his faults, and as I told you before, I don’t agree with him lying to me about you and Max. But William has a soft heart lying beneath that tough, external veneer.” She pauses a few beats, studying me. “He’s very careful who he shows it to, because of the world he’s grown up in.” Emma leans forward, patting my hand. “William wasn’t going to let his father throw me and Bryan on the streets. Especially since we were more like family to William than his own father was.”
I sit there in silence, digesting her words. Flashes of high school flit through my head and in those images, William was protecting and defending me from the school bullies. I assumed he did it solely because of his romantic interest in me.
Inhaling a sharp breath, Emma’s story about Isabella nearly being raped whirls around with images of that fateful party. I went upstairs with William and was all over him. But there are no memories of anything beyond that for me, except for us kissing.
Is it possible…no, I can’t deal with this right now.
Emma continues, her voice low and gentle. “William hates his father and blames him for his mother’s death. He’s convinced his dad paid the servant to shoot his mom and take the fall for it.” She fidgets in her seat. “And he’s been trying to find evidence that Gregory killed Bristol.”
“In exchange for…” My voice trails off and I bite my lip. I probably shouldn’t have said it, but William doesn’t do things without expecting something in return. Not from all I’ve seen.
Emma’s eyes lock on mine. “He hasn’t asked us for anything, Irelynn. Well, other than asking me to come here and work for him when he left California.” She hesitates, biting her lip. “William has made mistakes, for sure. And I’m not entirely sure why he lied to me. The words I overhead, ‘necessary evil,’ suggest there is more going on than I’m privy to.”
