Page 115 of Vow to Hate You

“What do you want?” I hissed, refusing to express my fear to them.

Percy ran a hand over his slicked back hair. “Your husband has something we want. You’re going to make sure he gives it to us.”

My eyes cut to Jack. “You already have more than enough. You could have taken what you stole and left.”

“I am owed much more than what I fucking took,” Jack snarled, his eyes darkening with fury. “I worked at Valentin Enterprises for years. Did the dirty work for your father-in-law so he could keep his hands clean. After all of that, what is he doing? Choosing his son to take over. When it should be me.”

“If it’s money you want, I have it,” I blurted out, managing to keep my voice steady. “It will take me a couple days, but?—”

“Don’t insult me,” he cut me off. “I know your finances. You haven’t gotten your trust fund yet. You have nothing.”

“I have over a million dollars,” I informed him stiffly. “It’s in an overseas account.”

Jack scoffed, clearly not believing me as he turned his attention to his phone. Percy continued to stare at me as I scooted over until I was leaning against the door.

“Where are you taking me?” I gritted out.

“None of your concern,” Jack answered without looking at me. “You behave and listen, then there won’t be any trouble.”

His veiled threat had dread sliding through me. Jack was the one who was in charge here. I still had no idea what he was doing with Percy, but either way, I needed to get the hell away from both of them. When the limo stopped at a light, I wrenched on the door handle, shaking it when it didn’t budge. Neither Percy nor Jack uttered a word at my failed attempt to escape. I peered through the tinted windows as the minutes ticked by.

We didn’t leave the city, and I watched the other cars surrounding us as we drove through the Upper East Side. Soon, the limo turned into a parking garage. I craned my neck, looking at the building. I sucked in a breath, my head whipping toward Jack.

“My father owns this. It’s Charleston Tower.”

“I’m aware. The last place he’ll look is at one of his own properties.”

My dad was renovating this building into upscale apartments, and it was what he wanted Georgia to invest in. I wasn’t sure if he’d gotten another investor, and hadn’t cared enough to ask, but it was his newest project he’d been talking about nonstop at every family dinner.

“Maybe we should take her money and leave,” Percy piped up, nerves in his voice. “What if Damian and Jude?—”

“Damian is infatuated with her,” Jack snapped. “He won’t hesitate to do what we tell him. Her father would never allow his daughter to become a news story. They’ll both do what we want.”

Percy hesitated when a small click alerted me the doors were unlocked. He looked at me, indecision in his eyes. “Let’s go.”

I didn’t move a muscle. It was already a mistake letting them take me to a second location. They weren’t hiding anything. What if they got what they wanted and got rid of me?

Percy leaned over, and I screamed in protest when he snatched my wrist, pulling me toward him roughly.

“Don’t,” I shrieked, fear paralyzing me as he dragged me out of the limo. I landed shakily on my heels as I tugged my dress down with my free hand. His fingers stayed painfully tight around my arm, not letting me go as Jack appeared, closing the door behind him. The limo pulled away as I was tugged toward the elevators.

“Please,” I choked out, nearly tripping as he yanked me forward. “I have money. It’s all yours if you let me go.”

“Shut up,” Jack growled, stepping beside me.

One of the elevators had yellow caution tape crossed over the closed doors, and Jack pushed the button on the working one. My heartbeat echoed in my ears, panic swallowing me as the floor numbers on the screen above the elevator ticked down until the door slid open. Percy turned toward me, opening his mouth to say something, and I lashed my arm out, smashing my palm against his nose.

He let out a pained yell as I pried his fingers off my wrist. Before I could move, Jack grabbed my shoulders, shoving me into the elevator. He flung me into the wall, and I sucked in shallow breaths as my ribs flared with anguish.

“I’m bleeding,” Percy wailed, holding his face. “What if she broke my nose?—”

“It’s not broken.” Jack hit the button for the thirteenth floor. “You’re fine. Just clean it up.”

Percy glared at me as he swiped his sleeve over his nose, which only smeared the blood all over his cheek. Jack grabbed me above the elbow, spinning me around.

“No more of that,” he ordered, his voice laced with warning. “Or you’ll make this much harder than it needs to be.”

My body was trembling, but I tilted my chin up to glare at him. “You forget who I am. A Rutherford. Who is married to a Valentin. Even with you trying to ruin my family, theconnections and power we have are something you can’t touch. You’ll regret this.”

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