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"I think you misunderstand. I'm here to protect you, not be your babysitter. Your father isn't going to do that to me when I’m protecting you from your own stupid decisions."
He stuck his hand out and waved impatiently. I glowered at him. "No one is after me. Damn it."
"It doesn't matter. Your father wants you protected, and that's why I'm here. I can't do my job if you keep doubting the authority I have. And besides, you wouldn't have made it past the elevators. The cameras would have gotten you, alerting the secondary guard outside."
My eyes went wide. "There's a secondary guard?"
"Have you met your father?"
That was accurate. That was just like my father.
Fuck.
"So, I suggest you get used to me, love. You're stuck with me."
Pouting, I put my to-go cup down. "Fuck." Then I handed him my phone and my keys. Because he was right. What choice did I have?
“Now that's a good girl. Do me a favor and wait right here until I get back.”
All I could do was fume and scowl as I watched him march back into his room. If I ever wanted to be able to search for my sister, I would have to make sure Westin St. James wasn't my guard. Which meant I was going to have to talk to my father whether I liked it or not. I just had no idea what angle I was going to take. Because the question was, under what circumstances would my father have Westin replaced?
You know what circumstances.
I did know the exact circumstances, but I wasn’t sure whether or not I was willing to play hardball.
7
Westin
9 years ago…
I wasn't hiding from her.
Sure, you're not. That's why you're in the wardrobe, hoping that she'll give up looking.
It was my birthday. I didn't want to celebrate my birthday, but I knew there was no way Nissa was going to let it go. She'd taken to coming down from the house when looking for a playmate. I wasn't always available because I had chores and, well, video games. And I had mates. School things as well. But whenever I was around, she liked to tag along. And she knew my birthday was coming.
I'd been waiting for her to finish looking through the house. Mrs. Pembry was up in the main house, and she wouldn't be home until this evening. She always liked to do a cake and some presents. Some, she claimed, were from my godfather.
I knew better.
My godfather would wish me a happy birthday, but it would be some stodgy, formal affair up at the house. I'd be expected to dress appropriately and comport myself properly, and then there would be a whole discussion about business, legacy, and all of that bullshit. It wasn't for me; it was for him. The last one had been so boring I almost fell asleep. Mrs. Pembry had snuck me a Coca-Cola in my glass.
My uncle always insisted on wine, but I didn't like wine. Luckily, he was all the way at the other end of the table, which he thought made him appear powerful. And he couldn't tell that the dark liquid in my glass was Coca-Cola. I loved Mrs. Pembry for that.
My birthdays never included Nissa. I had asked about her the year she came to live with him, but he said that she was always busy. I didn't think he knew about her little excursions. I didn't think he knew that she played with me. He wouldn't like it. It was almost as if he kept her clean and sterile, and I was the workhorse. The distinction didn't actually bother me, but I did worry about her. Which was odd. Because I was accustomed to worrying about no one.
Every day, she would sneak out of the house and come running down to the cottage. I promised I would show her the tunnels and the secret hiding places, but I never did. She didn't seem to know about the tunnels inside the house either, and I never told her. I kept them to myself because I liked having something that was just mine. It felt like a terrible secret I was holding, but I still couldn't tell her.
"You might as well come out of the wardrobe, Westin. I know you're in there."
I sighed and groaned as I opened the wardrobe door and stepped out. "How did you know?"
"Your shoes were by the door, so I knew you were in the house somewhere. Which meant you were hiding. Why are you hiding? It's your birthday. I'm here to celebrate."
"Look, I'm thirteen now. I don't want to play hide and seek. I want to go play video games."
She sighed. "Then the new PlayStation I got is of zero interest to you?"
