Page 100 of The B!tch List

“I know that, but I know what my daddy is like. How persuasive he can be.”

“Why the hell would any father want this for his daughter?” I asked, moving away to pace my office. “It’s prehistoric, inhumane. It’s practically slavery.”

Evie took in a shuddering breath. “He wants me to do it as his only daughter because he doesn’t get to eat at the big table if I don’t. Literally.”

I swung around to face her and laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”

She shook her head. “It’s that simple, Tate. He wants to become one of the elders who eats at the big table during celebrations. Plus, they get a new car and a kitchen re-fit.”

I looked around for the cameras sure that I was being punked or something. Was this some elaborate joke by my soon-to-be stepbrother, Hunter?

“You are joking?”

“I’m not Tate. The only way I’d be exempt was if dad had another daughter who would be willing to take my place.”

“This is not the fuckingHunger Games, Evie. No one needs to volunteer as tribute.”

“You don’t understand, Tate. No one does. My mama and daddy were born into the life. My grandma was one of the previous leader’s wives, my aunt is one of Pastor Michael’s wives. It’s all they know.”

Shit, I thought my dad was sick getting an underage girl pregnant. At least he provided for her even if he wasn’t in her life, which was a bonus in my book. My four-year-old half-sister, Daisy, lived in Portland with her mom, and new stepdad, who seemed like a good guy. Lily and I had met her a couple of times, but it seemed like it confused her, so we’d agreed with Daisy’s mom that we’d send cards for her birthday and meet again when Daisy was old enough to understand who we were. I think to be honest it was more her mom who found it difficult. We were older than her and the kids of the man who’d she thought would love her forever—she really didn’t know my dad at all.

“You don’t think if you run, they’ll find you again?” I asked. “Because they will. How are you ever going to settle down to a good life?”

She shrugged. “I probably won’t. I don’t stay anywhere long enough to find someone to have that life with.”

“Someone to protect you, you mean.”

She sniffed and wiped her nose with the tissue I’d given to her when she’d come into my office to say she was leaving.

“Yes, but someone to marry me and have a family with. There was this one guy in the last town that I lived in. I thought he might be the one. We were real serious and he asked me to move in with him, but then I heard from Jerome that they’d discovered I’d changed my name and knew where I was. There’s only one way to stop them, so I asked Robert if we could get married, but he was horrified at the idea. He kind of backed off a little after that, so I left town and came here.”

“Wait, you changed your name?” Evie nodded. “So, what is your real name if it’s not Evie Walker?”

“Yvette Nicholls. I’ve also been Vetty Larouso. I figured with my coloring I could pull off being of Italian or Spanish descent, but I couldn’t keep up with the accent.”

I burst out laughing, realizing this shy, young woman who apparently had more balls than most men I knew, was also a little ditzy and cute.

“I’m sorry but you don’t have to have the accent Evie to be of foreign descent.”

Her eyes flashed wide, and her mouth gaped open. “Really? So I could be Vetty Larouso again in my next place?”

“No.” I shook my head and moved back to stand in front of her. “You’re not going anywhere. If they come, they come, but you’re not leaving with them.”

She let out a whimper. “But Tate you have no idea, you really don’t. If they can’t persuade me then they’ll kidnap me or something. I have to leave. I just have to.”

This was the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. It was like something from a shitty 80’s made for TV movie. There was no way she was leaving town. The poor girl deserved a break and besides which she was the best receptionist/assistant that I’d ever had. She worked damn hard. She was smart and efficient, and she was getting a pay raise.

“You said that there was one way to stop them.”

She nodded as she played with the tissue in her hand. “If I was married then they can’t make me be his wife.” She paused and looked at me with a tentative gaze. “I’d be tainted. That’s why a few of the girls from the group have ended up marrying local boys who were wholly unsuitable.”

“Other girls have run away?” I asked, still unable to get my head around things.

“Julie Osmon got all the way to Vegas and was just about to marry a drag queen from Ohio when they found her. I just thought it best to run. I didn’t have a boyfriend and I’m a little shy so would feel bad asking someone I didn’t know to marry me.”

Yep, this was definitely a prank put on by Hunter and Lily. It was a trick for my birthday seeing as they got me a shit present. They both thought it was funny to get me tickets to see Undefendable a tribute band of my dad’s band, Defender. This was just something else that the pair of shits had cooked up between them.

“Evie, you’re not lying to me, are you? This isn’t a joke, right?”

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