Page 15 of Jordan

“If you weren’t doing illegal shit, no one would have had to shoot anyone to keep me safe. Fuck, what’s it going to take for you to stop this?”

“It’s not that simple.”

“You refuse to put your weapons down. To stop what you’re doing and go legit. But what the fuck ever. I shouldn’t expect any different. Not when you murdered my mother right in front of me.”

7

VAIL

No matter how busy I tried to make myself in the kitchen, I couldn’t stop listening to the conversation taking place between JJ and Jordan. There was no other sound to drown them out. Dexen and Greer had gone quiet as well. They were still seated at the table, ready to stand at a moment’s notice. With this being a big open space, the living room flowing to the kitchen and the dining area next to it, there was no way not to hear their words.

“You don’t understand what you’re talking about,” Jordan said dismissively.

“Then maybe you should tell me,” JJ replied.

“Leave it be, Jordan. I invited you for dinner, not round one in a ring.”

“This is just like you. Let’s not address any of the issues. Instead, we’ll avoid the hard topics and never move on. We’ll stay stuck in the past. That sounds healthy.” The sarcasm in JJ’s voice was easily heard.

“Is that what it will take for you to stop looking at me like a murderer? For me to go into the dark recesses of the past and explain everything to you?”

“I want the truth. You murdered her in front of me and said it was because she cheated on you. I believed you, but as I got older, I wondered if that was the real reason you killed her. Why not throw her out?”

“You weren’t supposed to be there,” he whispered.

“Did it really matter? I was and saw it all.”

“She didn’t just cheat on me.”

I stopped what I was doing, frozen in place. There was no point in pretending I wasn’t listening to the conversation now. Everyone went silent. I think the fucking heat even stopped pumping through the vents.

“When you turned three, I suggested your mother throw a party for you,” Jordan began. “She laughed and told me I should do it myself. I wouldn’t know where to begin. She was the one who enjoyed doing things like that, never asking for my help before. It was the beginning of her downward spiral. I won’t tell you every indiscretion, but let’s just say her fucking someone else wasn’t the entire story. I struggled a lot, trying to get my business off the ground.”

“The illegal one.”

“Yes, Jordan, the illegal one. One of my competitors was giving me trouble and I hadn’t built up a powerful organization yet. Your mother, hating me with every fiber of her being for not falling at her feet like I did when we first met, decided she would get revenge on me. She slept with the adult son of my competitor. During their time together, it became… more. She devised a plan where her family would be taken out of the picture, and she’d inherit the wealth I had built to that point. She’d take over what I had already created. When that happened, she’d combine forces with the man trying to keep me from succeeding.”

“Wait, you said take out your family.”

“Yes, it wasn’t only me.”

“But… I was a child.”

“Three years old,” Jordan murmured. “You were still so small and vulnerable.”

“No, she wouldn’t do that.” JJ’s voice rose. I could hear him moving around the living room but didn’t dare look in their direction. Instead, I went back to my task of preparing dessert.

Dexen and Greer were on their feet though. Not moving toward JJ yet.

“You’re making it up,” JJ accused. “You hated her for cheating on you. You killed her because she was ruining your reputation.” His words became frantic, each sentence coming out faster. “She was a good mom. I remember her reading to me in bed. She’d turn out the lights and brush my hair off my face as she picked up one of my favorite books.” Tears welled in my eyes at how broken he became. I shouldn’t be here. I shouldn’t be listening to this. But I couldn’t leave now. I’d draw attention to myself. It was clear they needed to talk.

“She was a great mother to you,” Jordan said calmly. “Until she wasn’t. Ella loved when I lavished her with attention. I thought it was because we were newly in love, but then we got married and she still wanted all my focus on her. It wasn’t easy since I was working. I tried though. It wasn’t good enough for her. Then we had you and things were better for a while. She doted on you and planned her days around activities the two of you could do, no matter how small. Until that wasn’t enough either, and she started getting angrier and angrier because I wasn’t doing everything for her. Paying for whatever she wanted. Giving in to her every whim. I spoiled her in the beginning, and she kept coming back for more, no matter the cost. It got to the point where I couldn’t be and do everything she wanted, so she took matters into her own hands.”

“I can’t believe you’re telling me this.”

“You wanted to know. It was her or you, and I will always choose you.”

“Did you even try to give her an out before you killed her?”

---