Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 67355 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 269(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67355 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 269(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
“This isn’t a social visit, Mother. I wanted you to know this is the last time I will ever step foot in this house with you in it.” I take a glance around and notice there are some changes.
Some of the more expensive decorations are gone. Likely they’ve been sold off.
“I see you’ve gotten above yourself, Jackson. I’m sure you’ve had a lot of explaining to do to your shareholders.”
I shrug. “Oh, that? I was able to sooth that over and don’t even think about going to the papers about Melody Berkstram because I found the fisherman you paid off to keep silent. If you bring this up, I’ll be sure to expose your cover up.”
She narrows her gaze and purses her lips. “Jackson people will speculate and cast aspersions on your name no matter what the truth is. People talk.”
“You are so shameless. For the longest time, I couldn’t figure out why you had to have complete control over me. I mean at one point, your face could still move so I’m sure you could have snagged another rich old man and moved on with your life. But I’ve done some digging and you’ve been hiding a big secret haven’t you. One that when exposed, will cause you to lose everything.”
She rolls her eyes and waves her hand dismissively as if I’d said something nonsensical. “I don’t have any secrets. Unlike you. You were holed up on the other side of town with that black girl. I mean if you prefer darkies, the very least you could have done was not choose a fat one.”
I have never hit a woman, but I swear in this moment it took the will of a thousand saints in the middle of a brothel to hold back from punching my own mother in the face. I remember a few of the techniques I’ve learned in therapy calm me down before reacting.
I close my eyes and take several calming breaths and mentally count to ten.
“You know I’m right, Jackson,” she taunts when I don’t answer right away.
Once I reach ten, I start again.
When I finally open my eyes, her arms are crossed over her chest and her lips are slightly tilted into a menacing grin.
“That just cost you the year I was going to give you. You now have 90 days.”
Her eyes narrow. “What are you talking about?”
“Like I was saying, I always wondered why you never remarried and why having me under your thumb was so important. Champion is an okay town and you like being the queen bee here but someone like you is always looking to move upward. After Dad died, you were upset about something but you never told me what. But after that you became even more controlling. I couldn’t breathe a certain way without your permission. And looking back you weren’t upset about Dad’s death because that would actually require that you have a heart.”
She rolls her eyes. “I’m sure you have a point, Jackson. I’m getting bored with all this posturing.”
“You were upset about the will weren’t you? I never looked into the will because I was just a kid. And by the time I graduated high school I wanted as little to do with you as possible so I let things be. Until recently when you fucked with me for the last time. You were fucking Dad’s partner weren’t you? You had him cover up what was in the will otherwise he was obligated to tell me when I turned 18.”
For the first time since my arrival her self-assurance seemed to crumble. Her eyes widen and her mouth gaps open.
I know then I’ve got this bitch exactly where I want her.
“Well, I…I never…what kind of woman do you think I am?”
“I think you’re a desperate unscrupulous succubus but that’s beside the point. You made me think the trust was the only thing Dad left to me and I bet if you could have found your way around it, you would have kept it from me. He left the house to me and everything in it along with a yearly stipend for its upkeep which you’ve been siphoning off. That money was in a trust for me which you should have had no access to.”
“Dad left you a trust that you would only have access to as long as you remained unmarried. Once you marry again, whatever is left would go to me. The trust is set up to disperse a stipend to you annually. Most people can live a comfortable life with what you’ve been given. But it won’t continue to sustain the lavish lifestyle you were accustomed to while Dad was alive. So you’ve been supplementing it with the household funds. That’s why there’s no servants and the Ming vase you used to showcase in the hallway is no longer there.”