Harrison looked at his brother. “Watch your mouth,” he warned him firmly.
But Felix kept talking. “Because guess what, Father? I ran a background on this Tar Baby Harrison has brought in our fold.”
This interested HB. “A background?”
“Oh yes sir. That’s what an heir does. He looks out for his father. He doesn’t bring the riffraff in. He does everything in his power to keep the riffraff out.”
“What did you find?” Kitty asked Felix.
“Shut up,” Felix said to his wife. “I’m not talking to you.”
Jayda expected Harrison to at least defend his sister-in-law even if he wasn’t defending her except for that weakwatch your mouthline, but nobody defended Kitty either. It was as if the Bainbridge family lived by theeach man for himselfcreed. Jayda started to say something, but she remembered what Harrison said:He loves pushing buttons. He loves getting you to lower yourself to his level.
“What did you uncover?” HB asked his youngest son.
“She’s originally from Kentucky. And if there was ever anything as a black redneck, her family’s it. Every single member from her mother on down have been to prison.”
There were audible gasps in the room.
“And I’m not talking petty shit either. I’m talking robberies. Assaults with deadly weapons. They fight every single weekend and some of them always end up in jail. They not only do drugs, but some have been convicted of selling drugs as well. One of her brothers even went to prison for murder.”
More audible gasps.
“And that’s the bloodline Harrison wants to introduce intoourfamily.”
HB looked at his son and fiancée with shock on his face. “Is this true, Harrison?”
Harrison looked at Jayda. “Is any of that true, Jayda?”
HB frowned. “Why are you asking her? Did you not do a background on the woman you asked to marry?”
“Did you do a background on any of the women you married?”
HB didn’t expect that comeback. “Why no.”
“Then why would I background the woman I’m going to marry? I’m not marrying her family. I’m marrying her.”
HB stared at his son. Then he looked at Jayda. “But is it true?” he asked her. “Is any of what my son just said about your family is true?”
“Most of it is true, yes sir,” Jayda said without hesitation. “They’re alcoholics who work hard and party hard. And some do drugs and rob and do whatever is necessary to satisfy their bad habits. That’s true. But that murder charge is not true. My brother was imprisoned for a murder, but DNA exonerated him. He didn’t do it. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that everything else Felix said is true.”
HB didn’t expect her to be so honest and direct with him. “And you were raised in such an environment as that?”
“Yes, sir, I was.” Only until she was ten, but she wasn’t going to try to elevate herself at the expense of her own family. Not in front of a racist asshole like Felix.
“See Father,” Felix said with satisfaction that she confessed. “Can you imagine turning over Bainbridge Oil to a man like Harrison? A man with that level of poor judgement. And not to mention what he did to your wife.”
Harrison’s jaw tightened, but he remained silent. He was determined to not go down to Felix’s level.
“And you,” Felix said to Jayda. “Didn’t you use to be a model? No, not a model. What am I thinking? You would never make it as a model. You were a dancer, right? A stripper?”
More audible gasps as Jayda looked at Felix. “I have never stripped in my life, and you know it. But that’s what you do, don’t you? You put mostly true out there so that they will believe the lies when you start dropping those too.”
HB knew that was Felix’s way too. He was impressed that Jayda caught on to it that quickly.
“Had I been a stripper,” Jayda continued, “I would own it.”
“No you wouldn’t,” Felix shot back. “You’re a liar.”
