Page 107 of Brutal Kingdom

“Nope. Just heavily encrypted. Unlocking it sent her on another path for her article.”

Which led to the SEC investigation and the fallout from that.

“If that’s all that it was, why wouldn’t you tell me. Why didn’t either of you tell me you knew each other? If it’s so innocent, why are you sneaking around now?”

“Because I’m the one who helped her last semester.”

“Helped her? You mean helped her stab me in the back, manipulating things to ruin my life?”

“Logan, I’m trying to help you, too.”

“Really? Because it sounds like you’re saying you’re trying to ruin my life, and that you’re the reason I’m dealing with this shit with Bella, now.”

Without a hint of remorse, he says, “That’s right. I helped Jordanna with her computer issues. I encrypted her hard drives, gave her software to spy on you and your buddies, and taught her to scan for bugs. But I’m also the reason the dirt she has on you is missing. She doesn’t know that part and when she finds out, she’ll be justified in feeling like I betrayed her, because that wasn’t part of the plan. But I couldn’t let her keep the information she had. It was gonna hurt you.”

“I’m supposed to believe you did that for me? Your fucking guilt was eating at you because you betrayed me. That’s why you wiped her drive.”

“Betrayed you? Exactly how did I do that, huh? Get out of your fucking feelings for a second, Logan. You were so wrapped up in your little games with Bella that you couldn’t seeshewas the one manipulating you all along. Doesn’t the timing of all this strike you as strange?”

“You suddenly hooking up with my girl, right after she finds out about me and Bella. No, that doesn’t sound strange. That sounds pretty damn convenient.”

“For fuck's sake I’m not messing with Jordanna, so stop saying that shit. I’m talking about the frigid bitch suddenly wanting to marry you, now that there’s a fight for an inheritance going on. There are dozens of other guys she could have made an alliance with, so why are the McKays suddenly end game?”

“This was dad’s idea.”

“And who put it in his head? Trust me, the wilda-bitch always had you in her sights because you’re the only person she sees as a threat and an equal. Not Frankie, Hal, or even Sterling and Noel.You.She needs to keep you under her thumb after graduation and this is the only way to do that.”

“I know what Bella is capable of, and I know she’s always playing games. I was handling it.”

“You weren’t handling shit. Bella’s already the queen of Ridgeland Crest, and now she’s trying to sink her hooks into Kingsley Hollow. As soon as I found out about the will, I knew there was no way in hell I was letting that happen.”

“So this was about Bella.”

“It was about everything we’ve ever talked about, man. We’ve been saying for years, the games, the power moves, it was getting old. We said we want things to be different, so when I saw an opportunity to make that happen, I took it.”

I scrub my hand through my hair. “And Jordy was the tool you used to get it done.”

“Tell me you don’t feel 100 times better knowing that for once, you and the woman in your life were on the same team, and that she had pure motives for what she was doing.”

How are we seeing this so differently? Who the hell is fucking with his head up in MIT? “Pure? Simon, she lied to me, repeatedly, and was working with you to destroy what I built at school, this whole time.”

He shakes his head, pouring a drink and shoving it at me. “Not the whole time.”

Swatting it away, I say, “I don’t want a fucking drink. I want answers.”

“And you’ll get them.” He shoves the glass at me again. “But you’re gonna need this while I explain the rest.”

“You can skip the theatrical back story. I know if you’re involved, Jordy coming to VDU wasn’t an accident, so just tell me when the two of you cooked up this plan for the inheritance. Is it even real, or did you forge that shit too?”

“It’s real. You’re right, Jordanna coming here wasn’t an accident, but she didn’t know it. Not at first.” He sips his drink. “I’ve never made it a secret about how much I hate Bella for that shit she pulled back in the day with that chick from Ridgeland Park.”

“No, you haven’t.”

“I’ve been searching for years for a way to get back at her, so I did what I do best. I created an algorithm to track her movements, her spending. Anything I could use against her.”

“How did-. Lemme guess, you accessed her phone through her Prospectus account.”

“Sure did, and before you lecture me, think about how you were using your admin credentials to stalk Jordanna last year.”

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