'Excuse me?'
'Marcus. Joe Banderville's brother,’ he says slowly and loudly. ‘He's willing to marry you in his brother's place.'
'What the fuck?' Shade rises fast and the chair falls out behind him with a clatter. 'What the fuck is this, Andy? You can't just give her to them. She’s a person, not a business deal.'
'Yes, I can, and I will. The contract still stands. To back out now… Well, I know you don't understand how business really works, little brother, but if an agreement has been made by two families like ours, it can’t just disappear. Marguerite, you will be marrying Marcus as soon as it can be arranged. Martha Banderville is ecstatic. You'll be a Banderville as my father and Joseph agreed.'
My mouth feels dry, my stomach uncomfortably full.
I don't say another word. I just stagger out of the room and make my way to the front of the house. I yank open the front door, angry that Lurch isn’t here to open it because Stevens would have been. I make my way down the steps toShade's car and find it unlocked, so I pull myself into the seat and sit in silence until Shade comes.
He gets in without a word, and turns on the ignition. The tires screech loudly as he throws the car into drive and slams his foot down on the accelerator.
'Fuck,' he says. ‘How can he do this?'
‘Easily,’ I mutter. ‘He’s John’s son, after all, and the law is on his side.’
‘I’m sorry.’
‘It’s not your fault,’ I say quietly. 'But I think we need to go and see those lawyers in New York. Mav said that Blake told him there was nothing on their servers and we need information.'
‘I agree. In person, we might get some answers.’
We make our way to Sauvage's hotel and park in the underground lot beneath the building. I go straight up to the penthouse, where I find the other two guys. I’m still angry with Blake, so I don’t speak to him directly when we fill them in on what Andy has said.
'What the fuck is going on with your family?' Blake snarls, and I'm taken aback by his vehemence.
I wonder if he really cares, or if he’s just going through the motions, saying what he thinks he’s supposed to.
Shade is grim and silent.
'It's not just about the contract,’ Mav says. ‘It could be broken if he wanted it to be. Why are the Novelles and the Bandervilles so obsessed with this alliance?'
‘Money,’ Shade mutters. ‘It’s always about money with them. We need to go see those lawyers, Fussell & Meyer.'
'But they wouldn't speak to you,’ Blake grinds out, throwing himself down on the couch hard.
Shade gets up, pacing around as usual while he thinks. 'Maybe they'll speak to Daisy.'
'But she's under guardianship,’ he argues.
'It’s the only plan we’ve got,’ I say in a clipped tone, annoyed by his naysaying. ‘They might give us something. If I can prove who I am and their letters to John have been about me, they surely have to tell me.'
'That's even assuming itisabout you. This could be some business deal, some merger. It may have nothing to do with you at all.'
I look away from him, suddenly angry at his attitude, and his lies the other day all over again.
'But at least we'll find out,' I counter. 'It’s okay for you. You aren’t being told you need to marry anyone. Your entire life isn’t stolen every time someone feels like showing you who’s in charge. What am I going to do? Kill Marcus too? That detective is still nosing around and another dead Banderville will lead them right to our door.' I glance at him. ‘Maybe instead of making more problems, you can break into that flash drive I gave you, or did you forget about it again?’
The guys are silent. Maybe I’m being an asshole, but right now I’m too frustrated and upset to care.
I go into the bedroom, needing some alone time, mostly away from Blake. I go to the bathroom and take a long shower to divest myself of the Novelle house. At least that's over with, and hopefully I won't have to go back ever again.
When I get out of the shower, I see that I have a message from Sauvage. I get dressed in some jeans and a sweater, feeling more comfortable in regular clothes, and I go down to see him in his office. The guys are all still in the living room. Blake opens his mouth when he sees me, but I put my hand up and shake my head at him. I don’t want to speak to him right now. I enter the elevator, and luckily none of the guys question where I’m goingbecause I think I might explode into a ball of fury if they did.
When I’m let in Sauvage’s office, I expect him to be behind his desk, but for once, he's sitting in the window in one of the large high-back chairs, reading a book. When he sees me, he stands respectfully as per usual.
'I have news, Chéri,' he says.
