Total pages in book: 159
Estimated words: 145942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 730(@200wpm)___ 584(@250wpm)___ 486(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 145942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 730(@200wpm)___ 584(@250wpm)___ 486(@300wpm)
I glance around at the boys. “Do you think he could be right?”
Grayson rubs his hand over his face, deep in thought. “I don’t fucking know. This is the first I’ve heard of all these properties, but it’s also the only fucking lead we’ve got.”
Matthew nods and points back down at the contract in my hands. “That right there is the contract that I’ve been trying to find for weeks,” he says. “That’s the closest property the Trust owns and it’s right here in Ravenwood Heights, just to the north of the city center. I was going to gather all the information I could find and bring it to you this morning.”
My heart starts to race as I look a little closer at the contract. It’s a penthouse property at the top of a high-rise building, one of the biggest in the city and just that in itself means that raiding it is going to be a little difficult.
I don’t doubt that the boys are thinking of a game plan as well, but as I glance up at Matthew, another thought crosses my mind. “I’ve been here for months, desperate for information on my family. Why didn’t you come to us with this sooner?”
Guilt flashes through his eyes and he swallows hard. “Look, I’m going to be honest with you,” he starts. “At first, I didn’t like you. You came in here with an attitude. You were reckless and had a million threats working against you. The odds weren’t in your favor and I’m a winning kind of guy. I don’t give my loyalty easily, and from where I stood, you weren’t going to be around for long. It’s always been a cutthroat world out here and you keep the information you have close to your chest until you find some way of advancing your game. Then one by one, you defied all the odds and eventually you were coming out on top, winning everyone’s hearts and votes, and by the time I realized that, you were already the heir that everybody needed you to be. I didn’t tell you because I knew that even without this information, you were still going to come out on top, but I also run the risk that the information I give you is no good. I’m working on a hunch here and I don’t want to be the reason anyone gets hurt.”
Carver steps in behind me, glancing at the contract over my shoulder. “How positive are you on this hunch?”
“I’d weigh my life on it,” Montgomery tells us. “I know it’s been difficult to hear, but when I told you that you had my loyalty, I meant that. I was only a kid when your father was in power, and to be completely honest, I didn’t like him. He wasn’t my cup of tea, but you’ve proven yourself over and over again and I know that you’re going to be the one who can turn this sinking ship around. I know you’re just a kid yourself and it’s a lot of weight to put on your shoulders, but I trust you, which is why I need you to take out this threat once and for all so we, as an organization, can work on bettering our future for not only ourselves but our future generations.”
“I couldn’t agree more. Now, give me everything you’ve got,” I tell him, slamming the contract down on top of the pile of papers. “Assuming you’re right, this bitch is going down today.”
CHAPTER 34
The door is practically kicked in, our arms loaded with files as we barge into my home, more than ready to figure this shit out. If Paris is staying in my parents’ city apartment, I want to know about it.
My blood boils as my heart races. Could we really be onto something here? Is this finally the end? But more so, has the fucking bitch been that close to us this whole damn time? It infuriates me. She’s been right under our damn noses and it makes me feel like a fucking fool. I bet she’s up in that apartment, living off my parents’ fortune—my fortune—her feet up, enjoying every last second of it, laughing at us as we scramble for answers and never get anywhere.
Not anymore. The fucking game is over and I won’t stop until her head is hanging from my hands.
Fuck, that was morbid. Maybe it’s about time that I at least attempt to find a tiny shred of control. Every second we waste gathering files, searching through documents, and painstakingly going over our plan is just more time that she has to get away, and damn it, every second that we waste only pisses me off more.
How could Montgomery just sit on this information for so long? Those children were kidnapped because he wasn't open about his hunch. We could have looked into it and gotten answers so much sooner. We could have saved those children from a lifetime of nightmares. The boys could have avoided blowing up the cabin and betraying my trust, and I could have felt true freedom for the first time in eighteen years.