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Chapter 5 "Family" interventions

Bri

When I hit the call pad at the gate, my mother’s voice came across instead of the butler's. “Brianna come to the dining hall, we have to have a discussion.” Goddess! Couldn’t I at least eat a damn sandwich before having a conversation with her. No doubt it was about what Andrew did which he made sure Draven saw. “Fine Lorraine,” I said, I hadn’t called her mother in years. She tisked as usual, but pressed the button to allow me in. I walked up the long drive enjoying the plush gardens, taking the long way around the back through the kitchen, and grabbing an apple and slice of bread. I moved my way through the house to the dining hall and paused, all 4 of them were there, plus Trent. What in the actual fuck was this about. Boy was I glad I was high right now, I may get through the night without murdering someone. I’d have to remember to thank Mags later.

I studied the seating choices. My mother, wearing a precocious red suit jacket with lips to match watched me like the Snake she was, held the head of the table with Draven the creeper ‘Fat Cat,’ at her right, and Silas ‘Big Cat,’ to her left. He was a silver fox of a man probably in his 70s, damn good-looking for his age and in a casual tailored suit but yuck. On Silas’ left, a seat between them was Beckum. ‘The Dog,’ was the quiet one. He seemed to just follow the others like a puppy waiting for his inevitable reward. He was middle-aged, late 30s, with shoulder-length jet-black hair, a leather jacket stretched over broad shoulders, and biker boots to match. Tattoos covered his forearms under his jacket, as delicious as the bad boy persona was, there was an unsettling strangeness about him. Where Draven was the creeper, I was sure Beckum was the sort who enjoyed a terrifyingly dark appetite when it came to women. They always say to be wary of the quiet ones.

Trent and Andrew sat two seats from Beckhem with Trent near the end of the table. Seems everyone but my ‘mother’ had issues with Draven. I could sit on the opposite end to stare her down, ready for a fight. The far corner called me, in an attempt to isolate myself and ignore them. Fat chance of that ever happening. I could shock them all and sit between The Dog and Big Cat. Or I could take a seat next to Andrew which could put a target on his back. In the end, I chose confusion. I plopped down right next to Trent.

His curly blonde mop of hair turned in my direction. I glanced at his confused face briefly. I whisper-yelled, “I don’t know why you are here but welcome to the Le’ Blanc manor.” I mocked at being cordial before I whispered just so he and Andrew could hear. “Sorry this is like playing chess, this spot is my safest option.” He stared at me bewildered before looking over at Andrew who was biting back a smirk.

My Mother cleared her throat before speaking, “Brianna, you know, if you ever came home in time for dinner, you could eat a proper meal,” she scoffed. “I had work,” I said simply. “You work seven days a week unless there is a Sabbath.” She challenged me. “Yep,” I said, popping the P while tearing off another piece of bread, and popping it in my mouth. “There's no point in working Brianna, you have everything you need here,” she shot back. I shrugged, “I like working,” I said simply.

“Brianna come here,” I cringed at Silas’s deep, authoritative voice. ‘Fuck.’ Trent noticed my flinch, I handed him my apple, “Here hold this,” I said before shoving the remaining bread in my mouth and standing. I took my time as I chewed and counted backward, locking my gift into the most secure part of me, my heart. They could never break what was already broken. It was steeled to everything they threw at me, the darkness that resided there covering the most coveted parts of me, swallowing them up. I forced myself not to give Beckum a wide berth, stopping beside The Big Cat, hands clasped before me. “Look at me!” he ordered sternly. ‘Shit,’ I breathed out, removing a tendril from the box. What looked like nerves was me picking and siphoning a small part of my magic for him to observe. Ensuring it would be big enough for his appraisal but not so big I’d have to amp it too far up the next time. “Brianna!” my mother scolded me from next to Silas. I exhaled and shifted my downcast eyes up, steadying myself before meeting Silas’s gaze. “Your high Brianna,” she accused, appraising me over his broad shoulder. I exhaled and shrugged. “A girl’s gotta live somehow,” I drawled. “Let me see,” he coaxed, ignoring her. His tone softened, his attempt to placate or reassure me, and almost made me wonder about his true intentions. Almost. So instead I sighed like a bored teenager and looked at him straight in the eyes with defiance.

I felt him enter my mind space prodding for my chi, my lifeforce, the magic given to me by the goddess herself. I had to control my thoughts and steer away from the treasurer held in my heart. Thoughts drifted to father’s study, the scent of old paper and worn leather, his deep chuckle reverberating from his chest as he grinned with a mouth of pearly teeth in contrast to his dark mixed ethnic skin. The memory was torn away as I felt him burrowing deeper. I forced my breathing and heart rate to steady but I couldn’t control the hitch in my throat when he got too close for comfort. He poked and prodded, a slimy phantom nudging within my consciousness until he found the morsel I had sacrificed for his scrutiny and he sunk his claws into it greedily. I let out a strangled garbled sound. The darkness tightened around my heart where it protected the rest of me, the whole of me. What felt like hours of torture were mere moments and Silas’s big rough hands, caught me as I slumped forward. How were the hands of a businessman so calloused? I cringed but he didn’t seem to notice as he pulled me into his lap and I wanted to cry, to scream and lash out at the invasion. ‘Keep it together, don’t Bri, don’t let them see,‘ I wanted to kill him and I could. I let myself fall lax in his arms. There were other eyes here tonight to witness this shaming, fresh ones. He rested my head on the table by gripping the nape of my neck. “Sweet Brianna,” he cooed darkly, petting my hair. “You are so special, little one” he confirmed to the others.

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