Page 41 of Untamed Billionaire
Charles glowered at the card. “Don’t be ridiculous! Neither Chloe nor Emma can afford your rates!”
Angela laughed, a beautiful sound that filled the room, causing several men to turn and stare…and several women to glare at the stunning beauty with wild curls in the boldly outrageous outfit.
“You have no idea who your daughter is, do you?” Angela asked, then shook her head in a mocking gesture. “Actually, I’m doing this as a favor because Chloe married one of my best friends. I don’t charge friends for my expertise. I help my friends no matter what, no questions asked.” She shifted on her grey, spiked heels. The shoes added several inches to Angela’s tiny frame, but her personality made her appear even larger.
She narrowed her dark eyes at Charles, those impossibly long lashes adding to the look’s impact. “You, however, cannot afford much of anything, can you?”
“I beg your pardon!” Charles snapped.
Angela shook her head, those dark curls dancing around her shoulders as if they were some sort of black fire. “That’s what you’re going to have to do. Beg. If you even drive into the parking lot of the residence where Emma currently lives, I will have you arrested. And then I will help my clients sue you for emotional distress for an amount so high, you won’t be able to beg your way into a bottle of bourbon!” She snorted slightly, then looked Charles up and down. “But that’s not going to be hard, considering that you’re already broke!”
“Who the hell is this woman?” Steven demanded, stepping up to the small group with his own glass of bourbon.
Angela then turned her fiery gaze onto the man, who looked to be drunk already. “And you!” she hissed, pointing her finger towards Chloe’s brother. “I don’t know what you did to hurt Emma, but I will find out. And believe me, I will ensure that you are arrested! And then I will publicize your arrest on every news outlet on the east coast.” She sneered at him, then at Charles and Jocelyn, all of whom were staring at Angela with their mouths hanging open in stunned shock. “You call yourselves pillars of society. You’re just broke, drunk fools who abuse people who are weaker.” She shook her head. “I’m not weak. But I would love it if you challenged me!”
Four male voices laughed at that ending. “Don’t do it!” Kasim warned. “She’s vicious and she loves a battle more than anyone else I’ve ever met!”
Callum nodded. “She’s won battles that would crush most people.”
Charles cleared his throat, then took a long swallow of his bourbon. “We’re here to celebrate my daughter’s wedding. Let’s leave all of this nastiness for tonight.”
“Actually, Marco and I were married earlier this week. This is just a performance,” Chloe told her mother and father, her eyes flashing with fire. She then turned to the crowd and smiled, lifting her arms in the air. “But let’s eat!” It was a completely inappropriate gesture, but Chloe didn’t care any longer. She was free!
The crowd cheered, everyone lifting their glasses in the air in salute. Jocelyn and Charles were stunned for a moment, but they quickly played along. Steven, the sod, turned and walked out of the ballroom, stumbling slightly when he turned the corner.
Callum, Dash, Kasim, and Angela all clapped along with the crowd, but they were cheering Chloe’s revelation. A moment later, they all took their seats at the head table. There were supposed to be four bridesmaids in lovely, sage green dresses sitting in between each of the men and Angela. But the bridesmaids were nowhere to be found at the moment. The guests were becoming anxious now, all of them waiting and watching whatever was going on behind the head table. Everyone was leaning their heads together, the speculation rampant as everyone tried to guess what drama was making Jocelyn and Charles Forsythe look as if they’d both just been slapped. Steven, of course, was already sidling up to the bar, which was where he found the other bridesmaids.
The hotel waitstaff started serving the meal efficiently, but in that time, Rick came back. “We found prints on the champagne flutes,” he whispered to Chloe and Marco. “They are your…” He stopped when a knife flew through the air, landing in the wall behind him.
Chloe, Marco, and Rick all stared at the knife as it vibrated, then slowly stilled. It took perhaps three seconds before Marco reacted. Then he was down on the ground, his body covering Chloe as he looked up at Rick. “Who threw that knife!” he snarled.
Rick already had his weapon out and was speaking into a hand-held radio, issuing orders to close the ballroom doors. “Don’t let anyone out!”
“Why won’t you just die!” a woman screamed, her voice nearly hysterical. “You wouldn’t go away!” she continued, screaming as her arms lifted into the air. “And now I can’t get you to die like a good boy!” The woman’s lipstick was smeared, her hair looking a bit crazy, but she smoothed a shaking hand down over her cocktail dress. The dress was similar to what many of the other women in the ballroom were wearing. Unfortunately, the lady hadn’t managed to match her shoes to her dress…or even with each other. One shoe was blue, the other silver.
Marco and Chloe looked at each other, confusion on their features as they peered over the top of the head table at the crazy woman who was currently running a hand through her hair, mussing it even more. She was muttering to herself and looking through her purse. For another knife?
In unison, Marco and Chloe both looked up at Rick who was looking just as confused as he peered over the table out at the guests, most of whom were now whispering as they cowered behind the tables. A few women could be heard sobbing and one or two men were shoving tables out of the way in their haste to exit the ballroom.
“Take her down!” Rick ordered into the radio. There was a small tussle, but the woman didn’t put up much of a fight. She was more startled when two FBI agents tumbled her to the ground and slapped handcuffs on her wrists.
Rick stood up, breathing a sigh of relief. “Everything is under control, ladies and gentlemen,” he said to the crowd. Marco stood up and reached down to lift Chloe up. She’d struggled to find her footing due to the billowing fabric of her wedding dress, so the lift was appreciated.
“It was Martha Jennings?” Marco asked, still confused as they watched the FBI agents guide the still-hysterical woman out of the ballroom.
Rick pressed his lips together. “I think we should take this into another room,” he said, glancing at the rest of the wedding party. “Would everyone follow me?”
Chloe reached behind her to lift the train of her dress, wishing that she’d just worn the dress that Marco had picked out for her at their real wedding. This one was…obnoxious! And cumbersome! The skirt was wide with several layers of petticoat underneath, making the dress flow properly. But also making it hard to walk in.
Thankfully, she was able to walk out of the ballroom with a bit of dignity, grateful for Marco’s arm around her waist. She was still in shock that someone had thrown a knife at Marco. Or her? She wasn’t sure about anything anymore.
Dash was right behind them, but he veered away to do…something. Chloe watched with worried eyes as the handsome man moved with easy confidence towards a different destination.
“He’ll be back,” Marco promised.
She looked around at the others. Thankfully, Kasim, Callum, and Angela were right behind her parents. She sighed with relief that her new friends were all safe. No bullets or knife wounds to be seen.
Rick led everyone into a smaller room, this one without any tables and only a few chairs but they were all stacked up against one wall, obviously not used recently.
