Accidental Knight: A Marriage Mistake Romance(102)

“Not this now, son,” Avery says, an ice cold contrast to his hell-spawn. “Tie her ankles. Leave her.”

“What’s going on?” I yell. “What are you doing?”

Avery chuckles, a low, chaotic murmur rippling through the vast spaces.

“Today’s the day you folks messed up. I’d say your parents shit the bed, treating me like a fool, but...I know he put you up to this, missy. I know old Jonah made you smart enough to think you could pull one over.” He shakes his head. “It’s rather sad. A black day for Dallas. The entire Reed family, while waiting to show me the facilities they’re so willing to sell me for a song, die in a tragic accident before I even get here.”

Dies? I try not to hyperventilate. I just look at him in disgust, my stomach turning over.

Avery pulls a lighter out of his pocket and flicks it, holding the flame to my face. “A terrible fire. The kids might even tell scary stories about this one someday, about how this whole place turned into a crater, leaving you and your dear sweet folks to haunt the place. How does Bella Reed, the lady of North Earhart sound? I used to read a lot of ghost stories once upon a time. My, you might even take on a little of Amelia’s legendary shine. Jonah would appreciate that.”

The smell of gas and crude oil hits me like freezing rain.

Fear like I’ve never known, like lead filling me up from my toes to my ears.

Suddenly, my wish that Drake saw the BMW and followed it ends.

I don’t want him anywhere near this place.

I don’t want anyone to die.

“Excuse me. Mr. Asshole, did you hear me?” Mom again, her voice turning hoarse, but she carries on like it’s nothing. “I said, get that fucking lighter out of her face and let her go, you maniac!”

Avery actually rocks back, wincing, holding a hand to his throbbing eardrum. Small satisfaction.

Dad tries to shout too. Something in his mumbled gibberish gets through. Something that sounds like will.

“Briar, if you kill us, you won’t be able to buy North Earhart,” I say, trying to steel my voice.

He shakes his head sharply. “You’re wrong. I know what Jonah’s plan was. Do you really think he was the only man in this industry who ever spied on his competitors?

I don’t like the sneer on Avery’s face.

“My father was a Lafayette Oil VP. Big company, way back when. He’d talk up Jonah at every conference, where all the bigwigs met to scheme and drink – or find better places to stab each other in the back. But it wasn’t like that with Jonah. Lafayette wasn’t on his turf, so him and my old man were friends. He was the man who got your father’s foot into Jupiter, knowing a guy who knew a guy...”

He smiles again. This time, it’s a little more distant, almost sad.

I don’t know why, but that makes my heartbeat quicken even more.

“My old man thought he was doing Jonah a personal favor, and he was happy to do it.” An ugly scowl covers his face as he points his glare at Dad. “Oh, Dad was so proud of the fact that Gary was a college graduate, too, something rare in those days in this field. I was in junior high then. He shoved it down my throat that I needed to be just like Gary Reed if I wanted to climb to the top. Go to college. Learn more from guys in suits instead of the boys who got their hands dirty. Learn to help the industry.” Rage flashes in his eyes. “God, I hated your self-righteous bullshit before I ever met you.”

“Gary didn’t do anything to you!” Mom snarls. “Neither did Annabelle or me.”

“Shut your yap, you stinking mummy, or I’ll have Adam find out what parts of you are still real,” Avery explodes, and I finally see what the Briars have in common. Terror and bullying.

“Anyway, that’s not the point,” Avery snaps, still eyeing Mom coldly.

Afraid of what he might do to her, I search for a way to buy time, to defuse him. “Then what is?” I ask as calmly as possible.

He turns his glare on me, that vicious smirk returning. “Lafayette left a lot of friends in high places I could bribe. People Jonah was real comfortable around. Sometimes when he got drunk, he had a big mouth.”

I chew my tongue. I’d never seen Gramps plastered, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t have his fun, especially with friends.

“A few years back, him and his 'helper' took a trip to Montana. They talked up a storm one night in a bar there where I had ears. Heard all about his will. His scheme to give Earhart to the town of Dallas. That was before you came along, Annabelle, but I’ve discovered that with the three of you gone, that’s still where it goes.”

I shake my head.

He grins and nods. “I’m right, I know I am. And I know I could convince enough people in this town that money, not oil jobs, are what they want. That is, if I wanted to...” He flicks the lighter, then blows out the flame. “But I don’t. Frankly, I barely give a shit about North Earhart and its old drill sites. They’re half depleted. Secondary to everything else.”

My insides quiver at how evil he looks as his smile grows. I’m not going to like this.

“I don’t understand. What is it you want?” I ask, forcing myself to stay calm. To think strategically.

“Why, your adorable Reed Ranch.” His lips curl in a nasty crescent, even wider when he hears me gasp. “Which the town will gladly sell. They won’t need that dump, it’s just another liability in a place that can’t afford them. The cost of the taxes and upkeep alone make it a detriment to anybody who isn’t already loaded.”