Page 51 of One Twisted Lie

I should delight at how pathetically eager he sounds, like a little puppy begging for a treat, but it disgusts me. Where did all his pride go? All his grace and poise? Where is the father that taught me that apathy and control were our best weapons?

“Why do we hate the Clarks?”

There’s a brief pause on the other line and I can tell that I took him by surprise.“Wh-what do you mean?”

“How did this start between us and the Clarks?”

“Oh, it’s been so long. I can’t even remember.”

I don’t even buy that bullshit, cheap, obvious lie. I crush the flash drive dangerously in my hand. “You have ten seconds to remember before I destroy this thing.”

“Wait!” he cries. He curses under his breath and then laughs.“You’re going to think it’s silly.”

“Silly?”

“Ozymandias’s father and I were originally going to partner together. I know I’ve never told you that. We went to lunch to finalize the deal and…”

He trails off, and I don’t like it. “And what? Spit it out.”

“And he wouldn’t pick up the check.”

My big brain freezes. What. The. Fuck. It takes a second for me to comprehend what exactly was told to me.

“That…thatis why we hate them?” I whisper, fury lining my jaw, and I have to set down the drive in fear of actually smashing it. “After all this time, it’s because he wouldn’t pick up a fucking check?”

“He’s the one that invited us out!”

“This is ridiculous!” I shout. “So, all the shit that has happened between you two, between Ozymandias and me, it’s all just because of that petty ass reason?”

“It’s not petty!”

It hits me.

Our fathers are no men. They’re boys. Boys playing with their little toy soldiers. Boys making million and billion-dollar decisions like it’s just a game. I can’t even imagine all that could have been done in the world had they not acted like selfish little children.

“Yes, Father! It definitely fucking is! Do you know that he wanted Ozymandias to steal the program I’ve been working on?”

Do this, Carter. Do this, Ozymandias. Hate each other, Carter. Loathe each other, Ozymandias.

All because of one fucking check.

“That little bitch,” my father hisses, and my skin prickles at the mention of my princess being referred to as a bitch. “It doesn’t surprise me. We stole it from them first.”

My mouth runs dry. “We what?”

“The framework was theirs. We just took it and had you expand on it.”

And my face pales. The little amount that I’ve managed to eat today bubbles to the surface. I look down at my hands, look up at my computer, and understand that I’ve been dragged into their game as well. I’ve been a little toy soldier, moved at his whim because why would I question it?

It makes me sick. I insulted Ozymandias for being poisoned by his father when I’ve been just as blinded.

“I’ve been working on stolen material?” I whisper, dazed. “I have killed myself this entire year on something that wasn’t even ours in the first place.”

“It’s ours now. That’s what matters.”

“No,” I say suddenly, glancing back at my desk as I take a deep breath and make a definitive decision. “It’smine.”

“What did you just say to me?”I can feel the chill on the other end of the line. I can hear the harsh coldness in my father’s voice. I can sense the danger zone approaching, but I have all the fucking ammunition.

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