Page 6 of Ruthless Legacy

Chapter Three

I Spend the next couple of hours unpacking my belongings. I place the family photos up above the fire on the fireplace and place the small brown teddy my parents bought me when I was born on my pillows. Edith calls us down for tea and we drool over her homemade chicken and mushroom pie. Kit devours it and asks for seconds. He eats like it’s an Olympic sport, not that you can tell. There’s not a slither of fat on him. He’s at the age where he’s shooting up in height. It’s late by the time we finish eating, so we head off to bed as we both have a big day tomorrow, starting our new school.

I’m not ready to sleep yet. Feeling bored, I walk over to the drawn, floor length curtains in my room and pull them open. To my surprise, there is a small balcony, with floor to ceiling double glass doors. The doors are unlocked, and I open them and step out into the cool evening air. It’s dark now, being just before ten at night. I look up at the stars and soak in the quiet. The sound of someone whistling pulls my attention towards the rear right side of the property. As I listen more carefully, I can hear music. Restless and not ready for bed, I put my boots back on and decide to go for a little exploration of my new home. I sit my bum on the metal banister and reach out and grasp the downpipe with my hands. Shimmying my way down until I am near enough to the ground to be able to drop down on to my feet. I pull the hood of my black jumper over my head and with a quick glance behind me, I run across the lawn towards the music. I push through the trees and over uneven earth until I come out on the grounds of what I presume is the neighbouring mansion.

“You never learn, do you Robinson?” a deep voice says, and I duck back, remaining hidden behind the trees. I follow the sound of the voice and see a group of big hulking boys surrounding another boy.

“Look, guys, it wasn’t me. I swear,” the boy names Robinson protests. He’s on his knees in front of them, his palms pressed together as he begs them to believe him. He doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy that would hang around with these meat heads.

One of the guys surrounding him laughs. “Don’t try to deny it. Just be the sly little shit you are and take your punishment.”

Another guy pulls his phone out and holds it out in front of him. “Let’s make sure the entire school gets to see what happens when you don’t follow the Ace’s orders, shall we?”

One member of the group steps forward. The moonlight allows me to see his face. His hair looks to be a dirty blond colour, and he has a five o’clock shadow over his jawline. His eyes are pale, but I can’t tell in this light if they’re green or blue. Another one comes up behind Robinson and tips his head back, prising his mouth open with his fingers.

The guy in front of him picks up dirt from the ground and shoves it into Robinson’s mouth. He splutters and tries to spit it out, but the guy behind him grips his jaw tightly. “Be a good boy and open wide.”

The guy in front shoves more dirt into his mouth and Robinson chokes on it as more and more is forced inside.

My phone pings in my pocket and I stop dead still! Fuck!

“What was that?” the one holding Robinson’s jaw in his grip asks, his eyes skirting into the darkness right where I am hiding. “Someone’s there.”

I take a slow step back and inwardly curse when my foot snaps a twig. Two seconds later, two hands reach out and grab me, dragging me forward.

“Get your fucking hands off me!” I hiss as my feet leave the ground and I’m dumped into the centre of their circle next to poor Robinson, who is still trying to spit all the dirt out of his mouth.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” One of the guy’s steps forward and walks around me. His blond hair flops into his face. “What are you doing spying in the dark, huh?” He pulls my hood from my head and my long, wavy, scarlet coloured hair falls out and down my back.

“It’s a girl,” Blondie states as he continues to circle me.

“No shit, Sherlock,” another guy states dryly as he steps forward to get a closer look at me. But it’s the guy who’s front and centre that has my attention. His dark eyes study me, like a lion watching its prey. I lift my chin in the air and meet his eyes, glaring back at him. He aims the torchlight from his phone at my face, making me squint. There’s no denying it, he is beautiful. Like a sculpted god, with a chiselled jaw. His dark hair flops over his forehead and he fills out those jeans perfectly. There’s an aura of menace and danger surrounding him.

“Do you mind?” I hiss, giving him evils; covering my eyes from the glare of the light.

“What are you doing out here in the dark, spying on matters that don’t concern you, little girl?” He steps forward and as he reaches out, I flinch. He takes a piece of my hair and winds it around his finger. “I’m waiting for an answer.”

I smirk at him. He thinks he’s intimidating me. He’s wrong. “Who I am is none of your fucking business. Is this what you do for fun around here, bully those weaker than you?”

He smirks back, his eyes never leaving mine. “What we’re doing is not your concern. This is Ace’s business.”

I laugh. “What is that, the name of your little gentleman’s club? Let me guess, do you have a secret clubhouse and get people to do hazing shit to join? God, you rich people are so cliché.”

He steps closer to me, forcing me to raise my chin to look up at him, which just serves to piss me off even more. “Ah, I see. You’re from the fair. A little gypsy girl. Were you hoping to crash the party and steal some cash, sweetheart? If you want to earn some pennies, you can always get on your knees and use that pretty mouth God gave you.”

The other guys all laugh at his words. Someone kicks the back of my knees, forcing me into a kneeling position in the dirt. The ringleader steps closer and gripping my hair at the back of the neck, he tilts my head up. “Ah look, how pretty do you look on your knees? You want to suck my cock and earn yourself a fiver, Scarlet?”

I snigger and glare up at him. “I wouldn’t suck your rich dick for a grand.”

He grips my hair tighter and stares me dead in the eyes. “Ah, Scarlet, you’d have to pay me to let you suck my cock. Now, what do we do with you?” He tilts his head and continues to watch me. “Let her watch and see what happens when folk around here don’t do as they’re told.” He forces me to my feet and spins me, so that my back is snug against his chest. His arm holds me around the middle whilst his other hand continues to fist my hair.

“Watch and learn, Scarlet. Rafe, carry on,” he orders. His rich scent, surround me and despite the cold, I can feel the heat from his chest burning into my back.

The dark-haired guy’s face breaks into an excited grin and he steps up, picking up a handful of dirt off the floor. “One handful for every one of your crimes.”

Robinson’s mouth is held open again, as he shoves more dirt down his throat. Another guy steps up and forces more down, then another guy. Robinson is coughing on the dirt and heaving, but they don’t stop.

“Are you watching, Scarlet?” my captor asks me, his breath tickling my ear. “Now you’ll run home tonight and tell that gypsy family of yours that if they send anyone up here again looking to steal from us, they’ll end up in a far worse state than little Robinson here.”

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