Page 92 of Provoke You

“You’re wasting your time,” I whispered. “She already won. We found evidence you drugged her. Ela wins. She gets everything she deserves today.”

He fisted his hands and said through gritted teeth, “She doesn’t deserve shit.”

“The judge feels different.”

Andy stared at the judge. What had his dad done to him that he had such a one-track mind when it came to Ela?

“She’s a fucking junkie,” he said loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Excuse me?” The judge’s mouth turned into a hard line. Bad language in the court was a personal insult to him. “Get him out,” he said to the security guard standing next to him.

Ela turned in her seat and did a double take, her face pale, eyes filled with tears. “That’s the guy who drugged me.” She pointed a finger at Andy.

I had to fight the urge to shoot this asshole in the leg. Maybe that was why they didn’t allow guns in this place. So easy to lose a cool head with all this legal bullshit.

“Ben, tell them they need to arrest him. He tried to kill me.” Ela’s voice quavered.

My plan had been to get Andy to lose it and leave so Kitt could grab him outside. Ben could take all the time he needed to work the legal system, but I needed assurance this asshole wouldn’t skip town. He’d slipped through my fingers once; I wasn’t about to let that happen again. Andy was in worse shape than I thought.

Instead of leaving, he made a grab for Ela and jabbed a wine-corking key to her jugular. The pressure didn’t break skin, but it was clear what he intended to do. The guard rushed to the judge and called for backup.

“Dad, this spoiled brat can’t win. You said she wouldn’t.”

“Andy. Stop. This isn’t the way.” Andre put up his hands and stalked over to his son.

I inched closer, but Andre was the only one who had a shot at talking Andy off the ledge. Andy’s gaze darted from the exit where Kitt stood to the door that led to the judge’s chambers, then back to his dad. He had to know this was a lose-lose situation for him. My only wish was that he’d realize it before he hurt Ela. She glanced over at me, one hand wedged between Andy’s arm and her throat and the other in a fist. I shook my head at her. Even if she got a good punch in, he’d still have plenty of time to cut her.

I closed in behind them, but before I could do anything, the police barged in and surrounded Andy, guns pointing at his chest. They crowded him and forced him down on his stomach.

“He tried to kill me when I went to see Ben in New York.” Ela marched up to her dad. “You knew who had attacked me, and you did nothing. How could you do this to me? We were a family once.”

“He’s my son.”

“You did a great job, Dad. You raised a sociopath. You’re not worth it. Pack your things. I don’t ever want to see you again. Not in the office, my hotel, or my home.”

Andre’s face flushed bright red. He opened his mouth, but his lawyer wedged himself between him and Ela. His best option was to keep quiet to minimize the damage Andy had already done.

He was more than that. I’d seen how desperate he’d been at the lake to get rid of Ela. Andre stood his ground, face void of emotion, as the police took Andy away. Other than acknowledging Andy was his son, he didn’t incriminate himself further. Was he going to let Andy take the fall for everything he did to Ela over the last few weeks, the last several years?

“Mr. Benoit,” the judge said after the cops cleared the room. “I’m denying your request to be the executor of Ela LeBlanc’s fortune. Don’t leave town. I suspect we’ll be seeing you back here soon.” He rose, pinching the bridge of his nose. “And, Mr. Wilson, next time you have a crime suspect, alert the proper authorities.” The judge met my gaze before he disappeared through the small door behind his bench.

“I think he’s onto us,” Kitt whispered in my ear.

“You may be right.” I rubbed the side of my face. Who cared about the LeBlanc fortune? What mattered was that Andy was now in custody and Ela’s dad had no reason to come after her. He’d lost everything—his family, home, and all the power the LeBlanc name afforded him—simply because he wanted all the control. He couldn’t stand to live under the shadow, the menace that one day Ela would come to claim what was hers.

Ela hugged Ben, then practically ran into my arms. “So I’m like superrich now. What are you going to do about that?” She beamed at me, grabbing fistfuls of my shirt.

“I have a few ideas.”

“Take me home. Now.”

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