Page 73 of Worth

Father sighs. “You’re too soft, Mo. You always have been. I thought I could toughen you up, but I supposed I failed on that front. Just like with Blake.”

“What about Blake?” I growl, my hands curling into fists.

“You got so attached to that pretty little cunt that you threw an absolute temper tantrum when I sold her for two million dollars.Two million dollarsthat went into this lab and put you in one of the highest positions.”

“She is mine; fuckingmine. And you took her way!”

He pauses. “Sheisyours?”

Silence descends as we stare each other down. It’s so quiet that when my phone rings, we both jolt. The pounding of my heart echoes in my ears, all but blocking out the tone as the phone rings again.

Father is staring at me when I glance up at him. “Answer the phone, Mordecai,” he murmurs.

“I’ll get it lat—” I say, shrugging like I could not care less despite knowing that there’s information about Blake on the other end of that line.

“Answer the phone, Mordecai,” he repeats, the sharp edge of a threat in his voice. “Answer it now.”

There are many things I learned growing up with Stephen Vetella as a father, but none as important as ensuring that you never disobey him in his presence. That’s a surefire way to end up beaten—or dead.

Reluctantly, I move toward the phone, hoping that it will stop ringing before I can touch the green accept button on the screen. A sigh of relief escapes me as I touch the screen at the same time it stops ringing.

The relief is short-lived when the phone immediately trills again with a call from the same number. It takes everything in me not to scream a curse at the noise. Father doesn’t have to say anything. I can feel the threat lingering over me as I accept the call. At the look I get from him, I tap the speaker button so he can hear.

“Yes?” I ask blandly.

“We’ve got the girl’s location, sir,” the same voice from earlier says, excitement coloring his words. “We tracked down—”

“Very well. I’ll call back in a while to get the information,” I say, forcing myself to sound uninterested.

“But—”

“I said I’ll call back,” I snap, cutting him off before he can reveal too much.

“That won’t be necessary,” Father says smoothly. “This is Stephen Vetella. Please follow out the instructions I sent earlier for when the girl is found.”

My head swivels around so fast I hurt my neck. “What fucking instructions?” I demand, cutting off the squeaky agreeable reply from the phone.

He gives me a patronizing smile. “Did you really think I didn’t know what you were doing? I got the same information you did about the facial recognition.”

I grit my teeth. Someone will die when I find out who fed my father information. “Then I’m going to get her. That was the deal. I get to pick where she goes, right?”

“I’m afraid not, son. Ainsbury wants her back. He’s not done with her yet.”

Confusion hits me. “That wasn’t what we discussed just days ago.”

“He wants her back,” he repeats. Father comes around the counter and puts his hands on my shoulder. “She murdered one ofus, Mo, in cold blood. She has to be disciplined, and Damien has assured me that he’ll hand her over once he delivers his own punishments.”

“The fuck he will.” I grab the phone. “Donotfollow my father’s orders,” I bark into the phone, meeting Father’s glare head one with my own. “I will be there momentarily, and you can brief me then.”

“I—uh, sir?” the voice wheezes nervously.

“What?” I snarl, eyeing Father’s slowly growing grin.

The voice is only a whisper now. “We’ve already initiated Mr. Vetella’s plan. They’re descending at the house she’s in now.”

I feel the blood drain from my face and end the call. I turn and race for the elevator; the doors opening immediately when I push the button.

“It’ll be too late,” Father calls.

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