Page 81 of Reign of the Queen
Mateo gets up from the counter and starts pacing back and forth. "I can't stay here. I'm gonna need to go home and deal with that and try to keep them away from here."
"Mat, if they have eyes on the house and you try to leave now they're gonna know we are all in here. Right now, we all have to stay put." Theo grabs Mateo by the shoulders and tries to calm him down.
I noticed that Mateo's parents didn't seem to be surprised or even concerned at his comments about being high and drunk or being with some random girl he picked up, the neglectful fuckers. They only seem to be worried about their own hides. Wonder what they are hiding? I'll for sure need to do some more research on the Cabanos.
"Why don't we all calm down. Tom's got Carter right now, so we know he's in good hands. The guys outside have orders to shoot anyone that steps onto the property that wasn't invited here, so trust me, no one is getting in here easily. Until my grandmother gets here, none of you are leaving." I try to calm all of them with a soothing placating tone.
"Mia's right. We can't leave right now. We need to make sure Carter's going to be okay, and we have just painted a huge bullseye on Mia. We can't go anywhere," Finn states, grabbing Mateo by the shoulder and pulling him back to sit at the counter again.
I hear voices in the entryway, and I walk toward them as Tom comes out of Carter's room. "What's going on?" I ask Tom and one of his men.
"Miss Stratford, a vehicle was seen parked across the road, watching the property gate. They didn't try to approach but were situated in a way that they could see who was coming and going from the house. One of our men approached the vehicle, and it took off," the young man in the tactical gear replies.
"Thanks, Ben. Let's keep our eyes on any vehicles that stop, even for a short period. Clark is sending another group shortly to reinforce us; I know there's quite a bit of property to watch here." Tom nods. "Miss Stratford, I need you to arm the gate and fence now if you haven't already."
"Already done, Tom." I nod at both Tom and Ben and move back to the the kitchen.
"They have someone already watching the house? I'm betting that's my dad’s doing." Theo snarls.
"You have an armed fence?" Mateo asks, looking paler than a few minutes ago.
"Yes, it's electric, armed with high voltage in case anyone tries to climb it." I shrug and grab some grapes from the counter.
"Who the fuck are you people?" he questions with a mixture of awe and fear.
"Listen, Mateo, my grandmother doesn't take any chances with her heirs or herself, and she tends to make a lot of enemies, so..." I don't bother to finish the statement.
"Quick question, how close were we to possibly getting shot or worse from your buddy down the hall?" Finn asks with a straight face.
"Oh, you mean with all the shit you've pulled recently on me?" I come toward him and lean across the counter, my sleep shorts riding up until they disappear underneath the hoodie I threw over my tank, the one that just happens to be Theo's.
"Yes."
"You'd have to ask Tom; I think he was probably showing great restraint in not knocking the shit out of you when you decided to draw a graphic, naked woman with her pussy vulgarly on display on my locker door." I grin. I don't know if that's true or not, as it's the first time I've seen Tom since I came down to Casbury, but I now know he was sent to watch my back. I have no intentions of telling the guys that though. The more threatened they feel by me, the better.
"Mia, could you maybe go throw something other than Theo's hoodie on before your grandma gets here and sees me with a hard-on?" Mateo lets fly, his gaze firmly on my ass.
The other two zero in on my ass and bare legs, like they're only now noticing the state I'm dressed in. I don't know whether to be insulted or flattered. I see instant heat in Theo's eyes now that he realizes I'm wearing his hoodie from a couple of days ago.
"That's not a bad idea, Mateo. Why don't you two go rest in the living room until I get back? Theo, you need some clean clothes; you're definitely not sitting on my couches with puke on you." I motion for him to follow me.
I climb the stairs quickly to my wing of the house with Theo trailing behind me. Once I get to my bedroom, I race into the walk-in closet and grab the sweatpants Theo dressed me in at his house. I strip off the hoodie, leaving me in just my sleep shorts and tank top, when he walks through the door of my room.
His eyes meet his hairline when he gets a good look at my personal space. "This is your room?" He moves around the area, taking it all in.
"Yup, here. You can take a shower in my bathroom if you want, or down the hall, there's an empty guestroom." I hand him his clothes. He uses them to pull me into his body, wrapping his arms around me.
He bends down and rests his chin on the top of my head, his arms tightening around me in a bear hug. I feel him inhaling and exhaling through my hair like he's drawing comfort from me.
"Mia, I don't even know what to say other than thank you for protecting him. I'm sorry we’re bringing trouble to you after everything we've done to you since you got here." He kisses the top of my head, sighs, leans down, and kisses my cheek tenderly.
It's so out of character for him, the tenderness he's showing me, his gratitude, and his fear. I debate pulling away from him, my body telling me to stay, but my mind demanding that I run.What is happening to me?Just yesterday, I was fucking with him, trying to push him over the edge with Jessie at the racetrack, and today here he is with his arms desperately wrapped around me, looking for my strength and compassion.
It's breaking down my resolve to nail their asses to the wall and take down their kingdom. For so many years, it's all I could think about, getting even—getting revenge on those that harmed me before I left Casbury. It was partly the driving force behind my becoming who and what I am now. That anger in my heart, the darkness, and the desire to destroy them like they tried so hard to do to me. I can't let it all disappear just because he's showing me a different side of himself. His vulnerability and tenderness should not be trying to override what I know that he is, a menace.
I didn't come here to become his girlfriend—any of their girlfriends. I certainly didn't come here with the intent of finding them human, with emotions, desires, and faults. I came here to demolish the demon spawn that made me live through hell for no other reason than I was different, I was poor, insignificant, and I was overweight. They don't deserve all this mercy I'm showing them. They never offered any to me or anyone else.
Stay strong, Mia. Remember everything you went through here in Casbury at their hands. All the sacrifice and pain later in Manhattan to mold you into who you are today, a savage, unrelenting queen. The new queen of Casbury. A Stratford princess with strength forged in the fires of despair and hell.
