“As I’m sure everyone knows, my sister, Maria, is back in New York. We don’t yet knowwhyshe is back, but my sources assure me that it has something to do with thefamily businesses. Antonio, I’m told she came to visit you at work today?”
Everyone looked at Antonio, who put his hands on the table in front of him before speaking. It was strange to be talking about his aunt again when she’d been gone for so long, and her name still didn’t sit well in his mouth.
“Yes, she did.” He nodded. “She phoned me and asked for an appointment, which I was able to give her. When she arrived, she wanted to talk about me about your businesses. Something about being entitled to half of them? I have the recordings on my phone and various bugs that Douglas placed around the office.”
David sighed and sat back in his chair, his already wrinkled face somehow gathering more wrinkles. His brows drew together, and he rubbed his hands as if trying to warm them. The atmosphere grew even more tense, as if a black cloud had descended over the house, and everyone looked at their hands, not really knowing what to say.
“It’s worse than we feared, then,” David said eventually. “I thought she was only here for her own assets, but if she’s asking about the businesses ? ”
“I didn’t agree to anything, Dad,” Antonio interrupted, trying to reassure his father. “Even if I were head of the family, I would need to follow procedure andconvene a meeting to determineifshe had a claim to half of your assets, and why. Besides, we can’t doanyof that without firm proof of Uncle Tony’s death.”
“Exactly,” David agreed. “It’s madness to try and claim half of someone’s assets unless you’re married to them or have some other familial link, and I don’t have any sort of link to her beyond being her brother-in-law.”
“Maybe she thinks she can get round you if Antonio’s on board,” Matthew added, frowning slightly. “Or maybe she’s found some cock-and-bull story to believe, and thinks Antonio’s stupid enough to agree with her.”
“The man might be a cheating idiot, but even he’s not that dumb,” Damon snorted, also frowning. “I mean, Tony wasn’t the type to just up and move without telling anyone, much less to Nebraska. I still think something’s off about it. None of our people have been able to find any proof of death – no death certificate, no records with any funeral homes, not even a John Doe that matches his description.”
“Well, it’s all speculation until we find out the truth one way or another,” David said wearily, rubbing his face. “Maria has yet to produce a death certificate, and without a body, we can’t really say one way or another.”
They were interrupted by the shouting of their security guards, and everyone drew their weapons. The shouting grew louder and louder until the doors were slammed open with a resounding thud, causing everyone to rise from their seats, guns pointed at the door.
Maria stood in the doorway, her already unruly hair now tumbling wildly around her face. Her makeup was smudged, as if she’d been crying, and there was a wildness in her eyes that Antonio had never seen before. If he hadn’t known better, he’d have thought that she was Bellatrix Lestrange come to life, that was how wild she appeared.
Even her hands were shaking, although whether that was adrenaline or rage, he couldn’t quite tell. Behind her stood every member of their security staff, weapons drawn. David raised a hand and gestured for everyone to put their weapons down, although everybody kept their hand close to their waistband, ready to draw again if the need arose.
She advanced on the group, her eyes darting from one person to the other, only to be halted by David’s imperious glare. He stared at her coldly, his entire aura growing colder and scarier than before. Maria, on the other hand, appeared totally fearless, her wild eyes still clinging to a semblance of sanity as she took a seat at the table,throwing her purse casually onto the table and pouring herself a glass of water.
David raised a hand, and the security guards holstered their weapons, but remained in the room. Out of the corner of his eye, Antonio noticed Alyssia leaving, and almost wished he could leave the room with her. Whatever was about to ensue was going to be painful for everyone in there, and he’d had enough pain to last him a lifetime.
“Maria,ciao.Make yourself at home,” David said coldly, gesturing for everyone to resume their seats. “To what do we owe this … pleasure?”
“Just thought I’d pop by and say hello to my favourite brother-in-law.” She smirked, curling her lip as she looked around the table. “I didn’t realise we were having a family meeting.”
“You weren’t invited,” Damon burst out, earning himself a slap to the back of the head from his father. Maria laughed throatily, causing herself a coughing fit, and wiped her lips with a black handkerchief. Her lipstick smudged even more across her face, making her look like a female John Wayne Gacy, except nobody dared to even smile, much less laugh.
“I see the Richardsons still have their firebrand,” she laughed. “Some things never change, eh? I thoughtyou’d have married him off by now – or is it true that no woman will have him?”
“Why, you?” Damon started from his seat, his face suffused with rage, only to be forcibly dragged back into his seat by his father.
“Mrs Blackwood, always a pleasure to see you again,” Michael said pleasantly, the anger in his voice barely contained. “Not that it’s any of your concern, but we are exploring suitable candidates for him. Damon is still young, and there is more than enough time for him to find a wife.”
“We are?” Damon said, sounding surprised. “That’s news to me.”
“What do you want, Maria?” David said wearily, doing his best to ignore Damon’s stare. Maria smirked again, but let the comments go. A tense silence fell once more, as everyone waited expectantly for her to speak. She took another sip of water, enjoying the tension, and then delicately placed the glass on the table. It made a dull thud as she set it down, some water spilling onto the blood-red tablecloth.
“You know what I want, David,” her voice sounded even raspier than before as she snapped her fingers, and one of her entourage jumped forwards, handing her thesame manila file that she’d produced in Antonio’s office. Everyone’s eyes fell on it, as if it were a live grenade.
“I assure you, Maria, I don’t,” was David’s non-committal reply, as he gestured for her to hand him the folder. Maria handed it back to her underling, who walked down the table and set it down in front of David. He looked at it, shrugging as he did so.
“OK, you have all my financial information. So what?” he said, pulling an uninterested face. “All that tells you is that I’m a very wealthy man who’s invested incredibly wisely over the years.”
“I want what’s rightfully mine.” she hissed, her eyes glowing with rage. “You promised to take care of me when we were sixteen if I kept my silence, and I have. Now it’s time to make good on your promise, and return what you’ve stolen from me!”
“And what do you think that I’ve stolen, Maria?” David said coolly.
Maria straightened up and glared at him, her eyes filled with rage. “Give me my son.”
Everyone sat, stunned, wondering if they’d heard her correctly, and then David burst out laughing. The sound echoed in the room like a solitary bell, until he finallywiped his eyes and stopped. Everyone looked at each other uneasily, unsure what was going on, but nobody spoke.
