Page 42 of Take My Throne

“No, sir.”

“So then why would you tell my enemies information I gave you in confidence?”

Without warning, my father lunges forward and grabs a fistful of Dave’s hair. Pulling on it hard, he forces Dave down to his knees.

“Urgh!” Dave grunts. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, I swear! I haven’t told anyone anything.”

“Oh, Dave, Dave, Dave.” My father tuts. “It’s pointless trying to maintain this façade. I have irrefutable proof that you are the mole. The only thing I want to know is why? Why turn your back on me when I’ve treated you like one of my own, cared for you and your family? You’d have wanted for nothing if you only stayed loyal.”

“But I have!” There are tears in Dave’s eyes from the pain of my father twisting his hair.

“I suppose I’ll have to spell it out.” My father sighs dramatically. “I knew that someone was passing on my secrets, but I didn’t know who, so I gave out a number of false stories to different people. Depending on which story made it out to the rumour mill, I’d know who couldn’t keep their mouth shut.” He casually slaps Dave across the face. “And it turns out that the lucky winner is you. You are the only person who thought I was going to sell my plane.” He looks up at me with a smile on his face that says, isn’t that ridiculous? “Like I would ever be without my plane when I’ve got so many more trips to Italy planned. I knew my darling daughter was still talking to my enemies, so I relied on her to let me know which story had made it back to them. The second she told me, I knew it was you. And I have to say, Dave, I’m disappointed. Of all my guards, you were the last I thought would betray.”

“But I didn’t, I promise.” Dave is begging, and it breaks my heart to see him so pitiful. “All I did was have a chat with Archer Knight during the party. I didn’t tell him anything he didn’t seem to already know.”

“And yet no one else thought I was selling my plane.” My father shrugs. “But thank you for your honesty. I suspected Archer was still managing to weasel information out of my daughter and it doesn’t surprise me he was able to play you like that, although I had hoped you had sense enough to resist.”

He let go of Dave’s hair and helps him up, kissing him on both cheeks.

“So I’m forgiven?” Hope shone in Dave’s eyes.

“Of course.” My father pulls out a gun from his shoulder holster and shoots Dave square in the forehead. “Not.”

I scream as Dave collapses to the floor.

“Let that be a lesson to you, Ivy.” My father calmly returns to his chair as if nothing happened. “Be careful who you trust. Not everyone is who they appear to be. And now that you have a husband, I have a second heir, so be careful who you choose to associate with in the future. It would be better for you if you became pregnant sooner rather than later to guarantee the continuation of my line. Take that as a simple piece of fatherly advice. You may leave.”

He waves me away, and I am glad for the opportunity to escape. I edge round Dave’s body, trying not to get any blood on my shoes as I practically run to the door and up to my suite.

“Is everything okay, Ivy?” Lucas is already in our rooms and he immediately comes over to hug me when he sees my face.

“No, everything’s not okay.” I am shaking uncontrollably. “My father just shot Dave.”

“Dave? Security guard Dave?”

“Yes, Dave. Dave with the two kids who was one of the few people in this prison who treated me like a half decent human being. That Dave.” I am practically screaming hysterically. I know my father is a monster, but this is something else.

“Calm down, Ivy.” Lucas holds me by the shoulders, looking me straight in the eye. “Breathe with me. Come on. In… and out… In… and out…”

I hate having to rely on Lucas, but without him there to bring me back down, I probably would have done something really stupid. As it was, although I am still traumatised by what I’d witnessed, I’m not as lost.

“Feeling better?”

I nod, still feeling shaky as Lucas guides me over to the couch.

“I’ll get you a brandy.” Lucas walks over to the fully stocked drinks cabinet we had in our room and pours me a generous dose of alcohol. He presses it into my hands, keeping hold of me, guiding it up to my mouth so I can take a large sip. “Now, tell me what happened.”

“As soon as I came home, I went to see him,” I say. “I made a stupid comment about him selling his plane and he called Dave in. Apparently, it was a story he’d made up to find out who he can trust, and because Dave told Archer about it, my father shot him right in front of me.”

“Wow. That’s rough. But Dave brought it on himself.”

“Are you kidding?” I jerk away from Lucas. “He talked to someone he knew really well, someone who worked for my father for a while, and he deserved to be shot?”

“Solomon told me he was worried that someone was leaking his secrets, so he was going to set them up. This was going to happen sooner or later.” Lucas shrugs. “With Dave out of the picture, your father has sent a very powerful message to the rest of his team. No one’s going to be talking to anyone outside of the household now. I wonder what he would have done if you’d say anything.”

“Me? My father was testing me?”

“Solomon was testing everyone,” Lucas confides. “You, Isabella… me. I don’t know what the tests were for us, but I knew we were being tested. Your father’s paranoid and with good reason. You’ve got to understand what it’s like for him, Ivy. He’s under incredible pressure. He’s had to cope with a number of assassination attempts over the years and he’s trying to build a legacy which will last forever. Ivy, your father is going to eliminate all the other Houses and when he’s achieved that, you and I will be the most powerful couple in the world. There’s going to be a few bumps along the road, but we’re all headed along a path to glory.”

“You’re crazy.” I stand up and back away from him. “You’re all crazy. Who cares if my father sells his plane or not? It’s not important. A man lost his life. He has a wife, children. They’re going to miss him for the rest of their lives. His daughters are only four and two, for Christ’s sake. And you’re defending my father?”

“Wake up, Ivy.” Lucas stands up, raising his voice. “We aren’t like normal people. We’ve got to think about the House. That’s a massive responsibility and one you clearly aren’t ready for. If you were, maybe we wouldn’t be married. If you would face up to your legacy, your father wouldn’t have had to get me involved to keep you on the straight and narrow. What happened to Dave is a tragedy, but if he’d kept his mouth shut, he’d still be with us. But now everyone else knows what will happen if they betray your father. Dave might have lost his life, but he’s potentially saved many more. Try stepping back and seeing the big picture instead of thinking about yourself all the time. You’re so selfish, Ivy.”

“Selfish?” I’ve had enough. “You really are delusional. I’m outta here.”

“Ivy…” Lucas reaches out to grab me, but I shake him off. I can’t bear to be in the same room as him.

“Let me go, Lucas, or I swear I will not be responsible for what I do.”

Lucas has enough sense to let me leave, and I practically run out to the garage and get on my bike. One of the advantages of being married is that I’m not kept locked in my room all the time, and I am glad for that freedom. If I have to be in that house a moment longer, I don’t know what I’d do, but it wouldn’t be pretty.

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