Total pages in book: 196
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
I wasn’t too worried about him since he’s always busy with some scheme or another, but I like having my fingers on the pulse of things, and the last few weeks, I’ve done anything but. At least Rachel had come by to reassure me that Elena was still none the wiser to what we’d done, and though her visit was a bit unwarranted and out of the ordinary, it was good that at least something was going the way I wanted it to.
My girls absolutely hate Elena and keeping her in her place is my job otherwise Noel especially would go off the rails again. No one knows about her little spells thank heaven and she’s been having a rough time here lately since her long-term lover flew the coop.
It’s no one else’s fault but her own that that happened. She was supposed to be careful at all times, but one little slip up and he’d seen behind the mask and fled. That was something else I had to take care of as well, but he was small potatoes compared to everything else that was going on right now.
If Elena and Ryder were to find each other in the middle of all this poor Noel might not be able to handle it. She’d lost her mind when she found out that I wanted to give him to her sister and the only thing that had calmed her down was that foursome I’d arranged. How long ago was that now?
No point in dredging up the past, I had more than enough on my plate as it is. So, even though I didn’t need or want Rachel around, her showing up to keep me informed could be seen as a step in the right direction. At least it means that someone still understood and feared the power I wield in this town.
Ryder had obviously forgotten everything since there’d been no word from the Saunders camp, and I’m sure if he’d said anything, Heather Saunders at least would’ve aired it all. That woman seems to think she corners the market on ethics or some shit.
She wouldn’t be too bothered that Ryder had been married off so young since her own son had tied the knot straight out of high school, if I remember correctly. But she’d kick up a fuss if she knew for one that I’d slept with him when he was still a bit young, not to mention the other things we’d done to him.
I mention Heather because although everyone in this town fears her husband, I know for a fact that she’s the cause of many women like myself not being invited into certain circles. A group of women I would’ve once given my eyeteeth to be a part of, but now hate for being so standoffish and holier than thou. She seems to have taken a serious dislike to my girls and me, finding us beneath her and holding us in contempt for whatever reason.
One of my only goals for the past twenty years has been to topple her from her perch, that pedestal her husband and everyone else with blinders on has placed her on. Of course, no one knows my true feelings. As with everything and everyone else in this town, my true thoughts are always hidden behind a smile, so I doubt she remembers that I even exist.
She’s one of the reasons I can’t celebrate Ryder’s newfound fame, the fear that he would one day slip up and say something because I just know she’s just waiting to come after my girls and me since we’ve become more popular than she is.
Why am I thinking about this nonsense right now? My mind has been wandering like this for days now; ever since that phone call, I’ve been obsessed with my life being paraded on social media for my enemies to pick apart. The thought of people I hate gossiping about me is one of my worst nightmares, and that’s the only reason I’d given any thought to even considering giving anyone that kind of money.
But it’s not only the fear of being laughed to scorn that had jump-started me into action; no, it’s the fear of what this unknown person may know that could land me behind bars. How can I take the chance that they’re bluffing? And yet, how can I give away so much of my net worth?
Not only mine but my daughters. Thankfully there’s the church that I can take from. No one will look there, no one has in forever, not since the girls and I grew our image from the dust into the conglomeration my family has become.
But now, it all stands to fall apart in the blink of an eye. “I won’t do it. I won’t give anyone that kind of money.” I know what to do; I’ll just run; there are about a hundred countries I can disappear into until things blow over. Maybe they don’t know the worst of what I’ve done. I picked up the phone and called my mom, who was the only person I could talk to about this. As old as she is, she barely remembers what was said in our conversations anyway, but as a sounding board, she’s perfect.