Page 96 of Reign of the Queen
“I know, but I’m not worried. He needs his heir alive to inherit the Saint-Lambert estate and holdings. As much as he would love to put an end to me, he can’t. He doesn’t have anyone else to pass his demented legacy onto unless he knocks up some unfortunate random at this point. It doesn’t mean he needs me all in one piece, though. I’m more worried about what he’s going to make me do to someone else rather than what he’s gonna do to me.”
We sit there in quiet contemplation, each lost in our thoughts. After a bit, I look up at Carter and realize he’s passed right out in a sitting position. I stand up and ease his body down onto the bed. He looks so young and vulnerable when he’s sleeping. I worry that what I’m asking of him might be too much for him to handle.
I need Carter strong, though. I know Finn will do whatever is necessary to protect himself and Mia. Mateo will do his best but with all his issues; it won’t be enough if he gets stuck in his own head. Carter, however, is a fighter like me. He will come out vicious and swinging with everything he’s got to protect all of them if he can just stay focused and sober.Am I asking too much of him?Only time will tell.
I stand up and leave the room, nurse Mary making an immediate reappearance. I nod to her and walk into the hallway to a waiting Clark and Tom.
“Boy, have you ever shot a gun?” Tom asks in greeting. His dark serious eyes bore holes in my skull.
I stare back at both of them, trying to get a handle on what’s happening here, but their faces are blank of emotion, unease skates across my body.
“Not well,” I answer, shifting closer to the pair who are still in tactical gear.
“Let’s go. You are going to spend some time with us practicing, and tomorrow when you head home, you’re taking this gun with you.” Clark shows me a gun in his grip. “If your dad is the piece of shit, I think he is, you’re going to need it.” Clark turns on his heel and walks quickly in the direction of the back patio area. Tom motions for me to follow. I do, with him bringing up the rear, completely confused, and if I’m honest, a little frightened.
As we step outside onto the patio area, Clark keeps going farther down into the property toward the ocean. He stops when we’ve gone about a hundred feet from the back patio and pool area. I get a good look around his large body and see they have set up some targets.
Clark hands me the gun, handle first, and with the magazine removed. “Safety is on. The magazine is removed. That there is a Glock19, it will fire nineteen bullets, that’s nineteen holes you can put in your father when he comes for you.” He hands me a magazine of bullets, showing me how to put it in and how to cock the slide and take the safety off. The gun has some slight weight to it in my hand, but it feels comfortable in my grip. For a moment, all the anxiety leaves me. The thoughts of all the crap my father will do to me when I get back, even the fear for Mia’s safety, it all disappears, and it’s just me and the weight of the gun.
“One more thing, Theo, this gun is clean. No serial number, no registration. You make sure if something happens, it disappears right along with you.” Tom grins at me.
“Why help me? Why offer me a gun?” I look at both of them.
“You’re dealing with a predator Theo. We saw it the minute he entered the property. I watched how he fixated on Mia and the anger he couldn’t even disguise when looking at you. You will need to protect yourself but also her. He’s going to come for her,” Tom states.
“Stella?” I inquire.
“She agrees you need to be able to protect yourself in whatever way possible,” Clark replies.
I nod, realizing that everyone has the same priorities and fears. They all noticed how my father watched Mia. I look over the gun with a new appreciation and finally some damn hope.
The three of us spend the afternoon with them instructing me on hand placement, how to steady my aim and target practice. They both correct me when I’m off on my aim or stance. By the end of the afternoon, I’m still not hitting the target square in the middle, but I’m getting closer. Like Tom says, with nineteen bullets, as long as I keep firing and I hit a large area like his chest, he’s going down regardless. The thought of killing my father shouldn’t bring me relief, but it does. Finally…there’s some hope in my miserable world.
I walk back into the office; my grandmother is still sitting across the desk waiting for me. She watches me approach, a look of contemplation across her face. Taking a seat in the chair across from her, I wait for her to speak. I’m sensing something else is going on here. I had a feeling when Vincent and Mack were here. She allowed them in for a reason. What that could be, I’m not sure.
“Mia, I need you to be completely honest with me, child. It is imperative to what I’m going to discuss with you and what happened here this afternoon.” Stella leans back in her chair, looking tired. I don’t think I have ever seen my grandmother this weary since my stepfather died. It weighs on me that I am the cause with my demands to protect the guys.
“Ok.” I nod my head in agreement—a sense of dread making its way up my spine.
“Are you involved with one or all of those boys, Mia?” Stella grimaces as she asks. I have to give her credit; that would be an uncomfortable question for anyone to ask, never mind asking one’s almost nineteen-year-old granddaughter.
Heat rises up my neck and face, I’m not embarrassed of the guys or even being with them. But it’s embarrassing when one’s grandma is basically asking if you’re sleeping around with multiple guys simultaneously. I don’t want my grandmother to think I’m a whore. “I haven’t slept with all of them, if that’s what you’re asking, but I have had intimate interactions with all of them.”
Stella stares back at me in her two-thousand-dollar Tom Ford dark blue pantsuit. Her dark brown and gray peppered hair is perfectly styled without a single hair out of place. I notice some lines around her tired eyes and framing her mouth I hadn’t seen before. My grandmother is getting older and being far away from her, I take for granted that she’s always this strong, indestructible force to be reckoned with, but she’s also just a woman—one who loves her family fiercely.
“I see. You have, however, been intimate with Theodore, correct?”
“Yes.” I don’t flinch at the question. I’m pretty sure she’s had me followed this whole time. I’m betting someone saw me entering the Saint-Lambert mansion and probably the day in the car. Heat rises to my face at the thought of Tom or one of the security guys watching me fuck Theo in the front seat of my vehicle.
“Mia, I am worried about your attachment to these boys, especially Theodore.” She puts up her hand to stop me from responding. “The more time you seem to spend with them, the less your self-preservation seems to be evident. Where is your common sense, granddaughter? You traded me your future freedom to protect them, Mia. Would they do the same? In the past, they tortured and humiliated you. You came here with an intent to ruin them, not save them, isn’t that correct?”
“Yes,” I respond breathlessly. My heart is beating rapidly inside my chest.
“Are you using sex as a weapon against them?” A mask falls over her face, so I can’t determine her thoughts on the matter if I am.
“Not intentionally,” I clench my hands in my lap with sudden aggravation.
She nods at my response, a look of uncertainty crossing her face briefly before it’s gone again. “They still don’t know who you are, do they?”
