Page 56 of Reckoning

“Is that so?” The hand released my hair and moved to my chin, holding my jaw too tightly. “Does he fancy himself in love with you?”

My heart sank. Get back on track. “He doesn’t know how to love, thanks to you.” I didn’t believe that, but Conrad’s eyes continued to darken with every word he spoke. He was too close now; my heels bumped the baseboard as he continued to encroach upon my space. But there was nowhere for me to go, no way for me to fight, and he knew it. He could overpower me in a second, and there would be no pleading with him. No magic word to make him stop. This had always been his endgame, no matter what he might have told Meyer. He wanted me for himself, and Meyer was just the tool to help him get me.

“I bet he hasn’t even fucked you.” His other hand went to my hip, thumb digging into the soft flesh of my belly. I closed my eyes and swallowed back my disgust as he forced one leg between my thighs, sliding up until he could go no higher and grinding his knee against my core, bruising the tender flesh. “He was always too soft. I knew he wouldn’t have the guts to do what was necessary.” I turned my head to the side as he ducked to kiss me, his lips landing on my ear. He opened his mouth and bit me.

“You don’t deserve to be his father. He’s a good man!” I should keep my mouth shut. Should play into his game and keep him busy until Meyer or Joshua showed up. But Meyer had suffered so much abuse already; I couldn’t stand him taking any more. Not when I could stand up for him. “You did your best to ruin him, but it won’t be enough. His eyes are opened wider every day. You can’t keep him under your thumb forever, Conrad, and he’s going to leave you someday. You won’t be able to stop it.”

Conrad grabbed my face with both hands and gripped my jaw hard, sending my teeth sliding around my mouth. “You don’t know my son. Don’t ever presume to be a part of this family because you are nothing. Worse than dog shit on the bottom of my shoe. You are the worthless daughter of a faithless whore, and you’ll be a whore yourself before I let you leave.”

“Since when is she yours to let leave?”

My heart stuttered at Meyer’s voice as my eyes flew to meet his, standing in the doorway with his hands in fists at his side. He was here. I’d made it. My legs went weak, and I had to remind myself that this wasn’t over; I couldn’t collapse quite yet. But the panic I’d been fighting back continued to claw its way to the forefront of my mind, sending stars to my vision. I coughed to try to clear them.

Conrad seized a handful of my hair and wheeled me around to stand in front of him, pushing me over awkwardly. “Since when do you allow your toys to talk back so rudely?”

“She doesn’t talk back to me.”

All I could see were the polished toes of Meyer’s shoes, standing still too far across the room to be of any help to me.

“He tried to kill me,” I blurted out, but Conrad put his foot into the back of my left knee, and I fell to the ground, only for him to yank me back up to that stiff, bend-over position.

“You would be so lucky,” Conrad said, “considering what I have planned for you.”

“It’s not your plans she should worry about, though, right?” Meyer’s feet moved toward me a step, one foot slightly in front of the other. “Because you said I was in charge of this operation. You gave your word.” He was trying to sound confident, but even I could hear the undercurrent of fear in his voice. He cleared his throat. “If I need your help, I’ll ask for it.”

Conrad finally let me go, pushing me forward so I fell into Meyer’s hands. He cupped my chin and raised me to face him, studying my face briefly before pushing me to the side and taking another step toward his father and sliding slightly in front of me. “Is there something I can help you with?”

I walked back against the bed, watching father and son face off in the bedroom on this chilly fall day. My face felt cold where Meyer had held me, but it faded too quickly.

“You are slacking at work.” Conrad frowned as he picked his jacket up off the bed and slipped into it, pulling the fabric tight across his shoulders. “I wanted to make sure I didn’t give you too much responsibility.”

“You wanted me to break her. It’s not my fault it’s been so much fun. I stayed late last night and was in early today, as you insisted.”

Conrad smiled out of one side of his mouth, but there was no warmth in it. His eyes glinted hard and cold. “Perhaps I overestimated your ability to multitask.”

“Did I not land a five hundred-million-dollar contract last week?”

I quavered at the amount. Amnesty Abroad would kill for that kind of money while Meyer would use it to build weapons of mass destruction.

Conrad feigned indifference, but he was shaken by the reminder. He looked away as he adjusted his perfectly knotted tie. “Let’s make sure that trend continues. I’d hate to have to take away your plaything.”

He walked toward the door, bumping shoulders with Meyer, who looked at me for only a moment before turning to follow his father out. Alone in the bedroom, I sighed and let my shoulders relax, then massaged my aching jaw. Every muscle in my body released, and the panic I’d been fighting off was allowed to resurge.

My breath, which I’d been tightly controlling, came faster and shallower while I dug my fingers into my knees. Get a grip. It’s all right. He’s gone.

That had been too close, and I knew it would happen again. Conrad was going to come back here for me, one way or another. I suddenly wondered if he might kill Meyer in order to do it.

Meyer came back into the bedroom a moment later, carefully locking the door behind him. When he turned to look at me, I crossed the room swiftly and grabbed his arm.

“What the fuck? You let him kick me again!”

His jaw tightened, and I became aware of how tightly I was gripping his forearm, my fingernails digging into his skin through his jacket and shirt.

“Let go of me.” He whispered the words, but it wasn’t a threat I heard. It was fear.

I’m afraid all the time.

I peeled back my fingers one by one and smoothed the fabric, then held his arm more loosely. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

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