He smacked his hand on the table, annoyed I didn’t understand his coded language. He never had me filled in and I flew blind most days. “Everything, you insolent brat! You are not simply a student that attends the prestigious Willow Bay University. You carry my name. With that name comes weight. You need to buckle up and prepare for what’s coming. I want to see no more of these outbursts or this philandering behavior you are so privy to. Keep your fucking eyes open. You have far more to lose than most of those other kids.”

My thoughts snapped to Fallon. She was the Montgomery girl I was supposed to stay away from. But, considering how intertwined her company was with ours, I wondered if the circumstances regarding her would change. She was out in the open with red dots covering her body with who knows how many people would love to take her out just to have a piece of the pie. She was tight-lipped about her life, never letting on more than she wanted people to know. Did she even know what her life would become the moment she stepped up to the plate?

“Understood. I would like to step up and take on more responsibility to be of service to the company, sir.”

“We could—” lawyer man was cut off from the Dictator throwing his whiskey glass at him.

“Shut up!” His voice was sharp. “Until you can prove to me that you are even fucking worth your first name in pennies, don’t you dare go getting these fanciful ideas in your head.”

He made a quick hand motion to one of the other men not covered in liquor, beckoning him to come to the table.

The man opened a briefcase with documents. Files. More files for me to take with me shamefully to the basement as the lowest tier of employee. The name sounded familiar, but I was not here to ask any questions about the who or what of my assignments.

“Take this to your men and find out what you can on this woman. Give me something useful, don’t fool around looking for a wet hole, and keep your fucking hands to yourself and maybe, just maybe, I’ll give you the time of day to ask me a fucking question.”

I wondered if he hated me for his daughter taking her own life. When she came back, she was still a teenager, and I was freshly born. He still took me in and raised me. Fed me. Clothed me. But when it came to love, he fell short.

To him I was a waste of space. An irritating thorn in his side.

To me, I was the sole heir of his kingdom. And I would show him that I’m even stronger than he could be.

​Let The Games Begin

Six of your daddies are going to jail. Let the games begin.