Page 73 of Heir of Fire
“What is this?” Finn asked.
“This is everything we had to do when we took over the accounts, the properties, everything.”
He placed his hand on top of it, hesitating to open it. There was something Finn was missing; something Valerio wasn’t telling him.
“What are you leaving out?”
Valerio huffed, leaning back in his chair. “When we took over the accounts, there was close to nothing in them. Your father had been reckless and drained everything. Multiple accounts were closed, several properties were being foreclosed on, and I had to pour money into it to save them.”
Finn felt his heart drop. “What?”
“Looking back at it, that’s probably why he wanted to sell Luna off to the highest bidder, and honestly, it doesn’t look like you would have been safe from it either. He was running out of money, becoming careless.”
He shook his head, running a hand through his hair. There was no way. Their entire lives they had lived in a curtain of wealth with parties and galas and the nicest houses. Reece Kingsley had thrown money around like he had it to spare. He hadn’t allowed Finn to see or touch any of it as if he had something to protect.
Maybe this was his dark secret. The fact that he had run a multi-generational crime family into the fucking ground. Luna, Finn, their mother—they all had poured their trust into him, and he would have left them to starve, to die.
“The money I got when he died, where did that come from?” Finn asked.
“There was still some left over, so that was what you received. But there’s more to the story.”
“What? What could it possibly be?”
The look on Valerio’s face sent a chill down his spine. It was a look of pity, one that Finn didn’t want from anyone.
“Read the will,” was all Valerio said.
Finn threw open the folder, immediately finding the will sitting on top. His eyes traced every word, every line and he had to force himself to slow down so he could actually comprehend what he was reading.
All estates, accounts, money, investments, and life insurance will be left to the heir of the Kingsley family name. In the case of Reece Kingsley, this will be the husband of his daughter, Luna Kingsley, or whoever Reece Kingsley appoints otherwise, who will act in his stead after his death.
Finn let out a strangled gasp, nearly throwing the entire folder on the floor. He looked up at Valerio, feeling the boiling of his blood consuming every inch of his body.
“You? He left everything to you?” Finn screamed.
Valerio shook his head, refusing to get up. “No, he didn’t want me to marry her, remember. He’s probably in Hell right now cursing me for it. But either way, if I didn’t marry her, it wouldn’t have been yours. It would have belonged to whichever fucking freak your father had appointed or was going to get her to marry. Luckily he didn’t have anyone appointed either, a mistake on his part it seems because everything was given to me.”
Finn shook his head, a blinding madness settling into him. For years he had stood by his father with loyalty and love. He took the beatings, he took the screams, he took everything for the sake of becoming heir. He killed for Reece Kingsley. He lost himself for Reece Kingsley. He destroyed his fucking life and grieved everything for Reece Kingsley.
Heir was supposed to be his, not given to whatever asshole his father selected.
Finn had been born for it. He was destined for it. He shaped his entire fucking life for it.
For nothing!
The irony was so strong that even from the grave his father was still finding ways to attack him. He had to admit that this betrayal hurt worse than any beating ever had. Hell, he would take a broken rib, a broken femur, even a fucking broken spine over this.
Finn couldn’t control the rage that shook his body. He got up without another word, grabbing the folder with him and walking out of the office. He didn’t know where he was going, all he knew was that he was expelling himself of the Kingsley name.
The one that he no longer deserved.
THIRTY-THREE
GIANNA
A good morningtext from Finn first thing in the morning was the perfect way for Gianna to wake up. Actually, she might have preferred for him to have been in bed with her, but the text had been a close second.
He was at the office being some kind of businessman, and honestly, she was digging his new drive to change. Still, she didn’t want him to change drastically. She was falling for the Finn that he was already, not any other version she was sure others wanted to see.
