Page 14 of Shattered Queens: Veronica
How do I tell her that I don’t want her help, or the family’s? I need to do this without anyone’s help. “Thanks for offering, Mom, but I really want to figure this out on my own. If anything, I want to go through the process and not just use my name to get things handed to me. Plus, isn’t the property for residential use?”
“Vee, I admire that. I really do. Just remember, this is bigger than you and your pride. You are helping others, and they don’t have the luxury to wait. But you’re right, it may not be what you need.” I can see the wheels turning. My mother has always been a force. Her biggest accomplishment is being a mother; her second is being a businesswoman. She and my father built the Kayde empire. So I trust her advice. “You know who may be able to assist?”
“Who?”
Without a second thought, she says, “Cam Villanueva.”
“Mom, I’d rather touch the inside of the hot oven.”
“Vero—”
“What’s this?” I turn to see my brother Gabe walk into the open kitchen. He crosses to me and gives me a kiss and a hug, then he walks to my mother and does the same. He may still be upset with me, but he won’t show it here, not in front of Mom. Unlike Ian, who would have a pissed-off face, and no one would even bother to ask why. He has a resting bitch face. Seriously, how did he land Serena?
“Gabriel, your sister was just telling me she will be volunteering at Serena’s nonprofit.” She places the cookie dough on the baking sheet; my brother tries to take over, but she pushes him away. He grabs cookie dough and just eats it. Just like when we were children, my mother smacks his hand.
He laughs and looks at me. “Congratulations, Vee. Let me know if you need help.”
I smile back at my brother; he knows I need this for myself. “Thanks.”
Mom moves to put the cookies in the oven. “I was just telling Veronica that Cam Villanueva may be able to assist.”
My brother turns to me. “Cam? Really?”
“What?” My mother looks at Gabe. “He helped her get her apartment,” she says as a matter-of-fact.
My brother runs his hand down his face. “Mom, I know, but they can’t stand each other.” How does he know that? It’s true, but I haven’t told him. Unless Cam said something.
“How do you know? Has he told you?”
He takes a moment. “Yes. He mentioned something about it. We didn’t go into details. To
be honest, I don’t want to know.”
I raise my brows. “That’s surprising since everyone is always butting into my life.” He narrows his eyes but doesn’t say anything back. I look at Mom, who’s checking on her cookies. I lock eyes with my brother. It’s an unspoken agreement that we just want to keep her good day going.
Mom brings Dad out of the office to join us for a dessert break. We spend the rest of the day talking about anything and everything. Gabe updates us on his interim position at Kayde Investments and his need to win everyone over. He wants to be the favorite Kayde brother. I can’t remember the last time we did this. There’s a knot in my throat. I’ve missed so much being away.
Miles
Chapter 8
I review the file.Eric likes to get really rough with his partners; the proof is in the pictures on my screen, attached with dozens of police reports. The injuries he inflicted range from a broken nose to cigarette burns. He has been arrested on suspicion of trafficking, but nothing has ever stuck. He also has a couple of aliases, which is why I didn’t find anything at first, but I should have been more diligent. Fuck, to know that he was so close to Veronica, that he could have hurt her. She’s my responsibility. I’m entrusted with her safety.
Eric was recommended by another associate who has a long-standing relationship with the Korolovs. He was vouched for. Either he knew about Eric, or Eric made a fool out of him too. That’s another problem for the brothers to deal with.
The files have been sent, and now I wait for further instructions. I pull up the footage of Cam outside Princesa’s front door from a couple ofdays ago. She looks so irritated to be talking to him. It’s nice to know that I'm not the only one she can’t stand. I see her face flushed with rosy cheeks, her lips swollen; she’s trying to control her breathing. I’ve watched her long enough to know what she looks like after fucking. Her skin is damp, and the robe is sticking to her like a second skin. I’m irritated at the indifference she has in Cam seeing her like this, and I’m pissed that I missed her bringing someone home. I rewind the footage to check the last twenty-four hours, but I don’t see anyone enter her apartment.
I’ve never watched her fuck someone; it’s a boundary I don’t intend to cross. The thing about this woman is that she never hides the fact that she loves to fuck and is very open about who makes the list. If she didn't bring anyone home, that means she was…I hear my phone ring, just as I expected…Caleb.
I pick up the phone and don’t bother with the greetings; it’s straight to business. “What’s the next step?” I know the Kayde and Korolov men, so I’m already planning the cleanup.
Caleb speaks. “It seems like Eric intended to bring his business into Veridian Bay. Over my dead body. We are going to have a couple of meetings, starting with the person who brought him here, Sean Becker. My father will be joining us, he’s curious to know what Sean has to do with all this. Keep Ian out of this one for now, and I’ll loop in Gabe. We need to tread lightly with Eric; he’s up to something. We don’t want him to know we’re onto him.”
“Consider it done.”
“Miles, I need eyes on him at all times. Eric is an egomaniac. He’s going to keep eyes on us as well. You know what that means.”
“I have eyes on the family. Caleb, what about Veronica? Eric may blame her for this. She needs to know.”
