Chapter 20: Puppet

“Olivia and Sarah are under my protection,” I informed him, forcing my body to relax.

“Your grandmother—”

I held my palm up to him. I had no desire to hear what he had to say; besides, the baby’s gender was still unclear.

“Let me explain before you do something we will all regret,” he said, the wily old fox.

I reached down to pull her back up.

She looked baffled as I took her hands in mine and held them steady as they shook.

~Under my protection.~

I hated my own words. I was already regretting this.

~Fuck, Alexander. The things I do for you.~

“You are making a big mistake,” Luther commented lightly, as casually as “eat your vegetables” or “don’t forget to water your plants.”

I almost laughed.

~You sick fuck.~

“Ignore him,” I muttered in Olivia’s ear as I guided her toward the door.

I couldn’t lie. I had a new level of appreciation for Luther. He was my uncle, after all.

He was artful with his words and he’d instructed me well in many areas.

But he always gave me the creeps when he said things like that, like a wicked old man.

Olivia complied and followed me. Not that I thought she would ever trust me.

Maybe she was in shock.

“I have to find Sarah,” she mumbled.

My fingers pressed firmly, pulling on her tiny arm as I dragged her through the hallway as far away from them as I could.

I turned my head for a moment to glance at her.

“I have to find Sarah,” she repeated.

“Yes, you already said that,” I reminded her, annoyed.

What I was really annoyed at was that I was taking responsibility for Alexander. Again.

He’d screwed up, not me.

“Sarah. I need to talk to her,” Olivia continued.

“Why? Do you need to deliver the proposal?” I asked bitterly.

Why was I judging her? Taking the money and leaving sounded like the ultimate golden ticket, and she hadn’t taken it.

Now I had to convince her otherwise.

“What are you talking about?” She tried to jerk her hand away. I didn’t let go.

My fingers were glued to her skin.

“Listen,” I chose my words carefully. “Anything that they offer, I can double it, triple it. Name it. Tell me. What do you want?”

“You dick!” she yelled, and slapped me so hard my left ear started ringing. “All of your family can go to hell!”

I didn’t flinch.

I thought of what my father had wanted to say about my grandmother before I’d cut him off.

I knew what it was, but now wasn’t the time to share that information with her.

“You and your sister are not going anywhere. You can’t do this to my brother,” I snarled, feeling different emotions.

I couldn’t let history repeat itself.

“Are we clear, Olivia? Do you hear me?” I backed her against the wall.

She was afraid of me, that much I could tell. Her chest was rising and falling quickly.

I didn’t mean to be as cold and menacing, but I intended to use any of her weaknesses for submission.

“Let me go,” she hissed.

“No.” I pinned her to the wall. She was so small that one arm was enough to do the job.

“You will do what you are told.”

~Try escaping me.~ I challenged her with my eyes.

“I am not your puppet!” Those eyes were filled with such fire that it made me…hungry.

“You are what I say you are.” I smiled and let my eyes slowly trace her skin over the curves of her breasts that heaved with each breath.

Such a wonderful view. A distraction from the brooch.

~Yes, the brooch.~ My left hand reached her left breast where the jewel hung.

Her heartbeat was uneven, as uneven as mine.

“I said, let me go,” she squealed.

“The lady said to let her go, Darius.” Archibald’s voice echoed through the hallway.

The golden boy to the rescue.

“Shut up, Archibald. Don’t you have better things to do?” I sent him a death glare.

I turned my head to look at her. It was a shame I had to take the jewel so quickly.

I was shamelessly enjoying this. ~Way too much.~

“Don’t be reckless, and don’t go far,” I said, surprisingly soft and protective while taking the jewel.

I watched them go, the peacock in my hand. Its fanned feathers gleamed beautifully with the rare, dark blue pear-shaped diamond.

As rare as her.

Maybe this little one who’d said no to my father was worthy enough to wear the peacock brooch after all.

#

~Ollie~

“I thought you had no intention of being my friend.”

“Maybe it is because you need one more than ever.” He paused and blinked several times before continuing.

“You don’t know him as I do. Whatever he wants from you, he won’t stop until he takes it.”

“I’m a smart woman, Archibald. I am more than capable of taking care of myself,” I insisted.

He raised his eyebrows. I hated being so defensive.

I didn’t have time for this, though. I needed to find Sarah immediately.

We needed to leave this place tonight.

“I am sure you can, but where would my manners be if I didn’t intervene after what I saw?” Archibald Price expressed deep, genuine care in his eyes.

He was bringing his sweet smile back. My lips twitched into a half smile in response.

I couldn’t possibly share anything that happened in that studio with anyone, so I decided to remain silent.

“I am okay,” I faked calmness.

“I barely know you, but I can already tell how bad of a liar you are.” He ran his fingers through his golden locks, pulling them down behind his ear.

I wondered if it was something he did unconsciously.

“Exactly. You barely know me.” I watched how his concerned expression changed into an incredulous one.

“Are you with him?”

“No! Nothing is going on between Darius and me,” I answered too quickly, too emotionally for my taste.

“If you say so,” he said slowly with a skeptical grin.

Why was he looking at me like that? It didn’t help at all.

“I’m all right. Nothing happened.” I sighed nervously, rearranging my dress.

~Nothing happened.~

Was I ashamed? I could only close my eyes.

“That didn’t look like nothing, Ollie.” Archer grabbed me by the arm. His voice was reassuring and soft.

“Whatever is going on, you can tell me.”

“I just need to find my sister,” I insisted.

“Well, then we have a mission. Let’s go.” He smiled in compliance.

My hand shook as I held his arm.

He placed his palm on top of mine reassuringly and we returned to the party.

I scanned the crowd, looking for Sarah’s cherry blonde hair, but nothing. No luck.

She was nowhere to be found, and my nerves were beginning to buzz with all the anxiety I’d been containing.

~Where are you, Sarah?~

“When was the last time you saw her?” Archibald asked.

“Before the party started.”

“Do you know what she is wearing?”

A high-pitched, elegant voice interrupted before I could answer. A very familiar voice.

“Oh, Archer, sweetheart. I’ve been looking all night for you.” The woman’s high-pitched tone made me cringe.

“Annie bear!” Archibald exclaimed, grabbing Anna Rothschild into a big hug and swinging her through the air.

~Annie bear?~

“Archer! Not here! Put me down!” Anna tried to regain her controlled demeanor before giving up and relaxing into his hug.

“Tell your mother to arrive early this year,” she told him. “Christmas is an important family holiday.”

She brushed the shoulders of his jacket, dusting away nonexistent lint.

“And who do we have here? Archer, is this the lady you’ve been dancing with? Such a beautiful—” She turned to face me, and her voice cut off as soon as she recognized my face.

“Olivia. What a surprise.” She inspected me, giving me her usual up-and-down look.

Her eyes scanned my sandals, dress, hair, and finally, my face.

“Archer. You’ve met our newest guest?”

“Yes, isn’t Olivia beautiful?” He placed a hand on my waist.

This was moving too fast.

Anna laughed. “Well, I have to admit, you cleaned up pretty nicely.” She’d managed to hide an insult inside a compliment, having mastered the art of being a polite bitch.

“I barely recognized you with all that heavy makeup.” She turned her attention back to Archibald.

“You know she is the sister of… one of Alexander’s many friends,” she continued.

“You mean his girlfriend,” I clarified.

She inhaled sharply, raising her chin while Archibald stood quietly.

“You know how he is.” She spoke only to Archer, as if I were invisible. “Just tell my sister to confirm that she’ll be here for Christmas. We are family, and we must remain together.”

“I’ll make sure to deliver the message,” Archibald replied sweetly.

“Oh, Archer.” She placed her hand on his cheek, an inch from his dazzling smile. “My handsome boy.”

Oh, fucking kill me.

Hearing Anna call Archibald a boy when he was a full-grown man made me want to puke.

I turned my attention away, letting them talk, and finally I glimpsed cherry blonde hair in the side garden.

~Sarah.~

“I’ll be right back.” I lied to Archibald and left him and Anna behind.

I hurried out of the tent. Staff was waiting with an array of coats to choose from, and I picked a soft white furry coat before walking onto a big carpet spread over the snow.

Fire pits surrounded a couple of lounge areas.

Sarah stood by one, alone. She pressed her hands against her body, fighting the weather while looking at her feet.

“I was looking for you,” I called, making her turn her head as I approached.

“I saw you dancing with Archer. It looked like you were having fun.” Her hot breath came out as a cloud of white smoke from her mouth.

“I was.”

“And now?” She met my eyes. She looked miserable.

“Not so much,” I replied honestly. “You shouldn’t be outside in your condition.”

She blinked, not knowing what to answer.

“How far along?” I pushed.

She hid her hands inside her coat pockets and stood closer to me.

“Are we going to play this game?” I signaled her flat belly with my eyes. “Can we cut the bullshit? I know.”

Three seconds of silence.

“Two months,” she whispered.

For the love of God, it was true.