Page 14 of Reckoning

Meyer wore his wealth like armor, letting it shield him from criticism and culpability, but Anita treated it more like a friend. I got the feeling the thick black credit card in her wallet was more loyal to her than anyone she had in her life, except for perhaps her massage therapist and nail technicians.

Different as they were, their perceptions of money were still foreign to me. Growing up, we often didn’t have enough to pay both the rent and our grocery bill, but my parents always found a way to get me fed. I became adept at inviting myself to friends’ houses for lunch or dinner, though I suspected now that their parents knew what was going on in my home life. I went home with leftovers my mom refused to touch, insisting I use them for the next day’s lunch or freeze for a later date. When my parents surprised me with a brand-new dress for my sweet sixteen, I cried at the thought of how much they must have had to forego to afford it.

“When you were born, your mother told me how important this would be one day, Mads.” My father held me against his chest while I cried, unable to take my eyes off the sparkling pink gown. “I started saving that day. Sometimes, it was only a dollar a week. But it was worth it to see you like this.” He kissed my head and smoothed my hair back, then wiped the tears from my cheeks.

“No more crying,” he said with authority, which only made me weep anew. “Go try it on. I can’t wait to see my princess in her dress.”

I wondered now if Anita had ever been lucky enough to feel even half that amount of affection from her own family. Meyer certainly hadn’t. If he had been loved a little more, would he be more normal?

It isn’t worth wondering about, I told myself. With Conrad as his father, he was damned from the start.

I noticed Anita had stopped speaking and was snapping her painted fingers in front of my face.

“Are you there, Madeline? You look totally spaced out.”

I shifted my thoughts back to the room, and Anita’s face came back into focus. I suddenly felt suffocated, surrounded by A/V equipment and leather recliners that cost more than my entire house.

“Could I go outside?”

Her jaw dropped open as genuine disbelief played across her face. “You haven’t been outside since you got here?”

I bit my lip. No way I was telling her about yesterday. “Just the bedroom and that breakfast room.”

She shook her head, making a distasteful noise. “I can’t believe him. I don’t enjoy the outdoors myself, but I still know it’s inhumane to deprive someone of the sun. Come on.”

Meyer had hidden my shoes after we came back inside yesterday, but Anita dug out a pair of flip-flops she had left there at a prior visit and handed them to me. My heels hung over the back because they were a bit too small, but at least I could walk.

Feeling the sun on my face, unfiltered by windows and curtains and Meyer’s toxic gaze, meant more to me than it ever had before. I let my eyes close, turning toward the sun like a flower and feeling my heart bloom the smallest bit. I could smell ragweed on the wind and knew I would feel the brunt of my allergies later, but it seemed a small price to pay for this bit of freedom.

Anita fell silent for the first time since she had arrived. We walked in comfortable silence as the heat of the day pulled forth beads of sweat from the skin on the back of my neck. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail with an elastic I had magically been able to hold onto since I was first taken.

“How much of this land belongs to Meyer?” I was trailing my fingers along a wooden fence that was well cared for and stained a dark brown. It was warm from the sun.

“None of it, really. Daddy won’t let him buy it even though he’s offered to pay twice what it’s worth. Just greedy, if you ask me. I think he’s trying to lord it over Meyer to keep him in line until he dies, threatening to take him out of the will and whatnot.”

My heart shriveled; I felt a sudden chill despite the heat. Even when I was with Meyer, I was still under Conrad’s thumb. “So not even the house belongs to him?”

She shook her head. “He built the house with his own money, but the land and everything else on it still belongs to Daddy. At least he built it so far back on the property that Daddy doesn’t like to come out here very often, and when he does, there’s plenty of time to realize he’s coming. Relative privacy, given everything.”

I struggled to breathe normally. Conrad could come out here—wherever here was—any time he wanted. Meyer would probably know when he was near, but he’d never tell me. I had been counting my blessings at being Meyer’s captive, instead of belonging to his cruel father, but that was just a technicality. Conrad had full access to me. Meyer would never be able to protect me from his father, even if he wanted to.

I stopped walking and leaned against the fence, struggling to keep my composure. Thankfully, Anita didn’t seem to notice. She was telling me more about the protected wetlands and endangered species habitats on the acreage when I noticed we had drawn close to a large building. I straightened, cheered.

“That’s a stable. Are there horses here?”

“The only thing you’ll be riding is me, Mads.” Meyer’s voice caught me completely off guard, and I jumped as he laid his hand across my back, curling his fingers against my neck. I shrank away, but he held me firm. “Conrad doesn’t like animals. He distrusts unconditional love.”

I looked up, expecting to find those fierce blue eyes fixated on me, but he was looking at Anita with disdain. She was pretending not to notice, having pulled out her phone again.

“I told you, you’re not welcome.”

“Oh, come off it.” She didn’t even look up. I could practically feel the anger pouring off him.

“I mean it. You need to go.”

She looked up now, throwing attitude right back at him. “You’re being rude in front of a guest.”

“My guest,” he emphasized, moving his hand to my waist. I spun out of his grip and leaned against the fence, desperate to get out of his line of fire. He looked away from his sister for the first time to give me a once-over before turning back to her. “Leave. Now.”

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