I can’t believe I’m doing this. I’ve spent the past nine months desperately trying to keep my boyfriend away from this man and here I am, sitting in his driveway, waiting to be welcomed in.
I don’t know what I’m expecting to find when I get inside. Maybe I’m hoping to see a different side of the man that’s been terrorizing my town for far too long. Maybe I’m hoping to see that he’s not as much of a monster that I’ve come to think of him as. Maybe I’m hoping for some answers.
This man, no matter how awful he is, is my father whether I like it or not. His blood runs through my veins and something inside of me is screaming to find some kind of goodness within him. I need it like I need my next breath. I need to know that I’m not doomed to turn into some kind of animal and that my parents’ DNA isn’t going to define me.
Anton had the decency to release Noah only a few short weeks ago, so maybe I’ll be fine. Maybe I can have hope that I’m not going in for a suicide mission. Surely, he will have a little leniency with me. Though that’s assuming he actually knows who I am, and I don’t mean the girlfriend of the guy who used to be his errand boy and whom he nearly shot. I mean his blood, his family, his daughter.
There’s a loud buzz and the gates open wide, making my anxiety sky rocket. What was I thinking? There’s a very real possibility he thinks I’m a joke and wants to keep me locked up in his basement as some kind of sick entertainment. Why should he care about my sister and why the hell haven’t I learned from Noah’s mistake?
Noah was in this very predicament all those years ago. He came desperately seeking the help of a man with connections in order to save his little sister. Yes, at the time, he had received what he thought he had asked for, but in return, Anton made him pay a very steep price; one that I’m not sure I’d be able to stomach.
Shit. If Noah knew what I was doing right now, he’d probably kill me. It’s going to be an interesting talk when I get home and he’s no doubt, waiting on my doorstep, ready to tear me to pieces.
I start creeping my car forward up the longest driveway I’ve ever seen towards the biggest house in Broken Hill. I mean, even for Broken Hill this is ridiculous. Though it has me wondering why he chose to live here. It’s on the outskirts of Broken Hill. There’s no way a man like Anton would be accepted into their world, yet he’s not accepted into ours. Living across the tracks but claiming he’s one of us. It doesn’t make sense to me.
My car comes to a stop at the top of the drive and I don’t miss the way at least four massive dogs circle my car as though I’m some sort of threat.
I swallow back my fear. Do I risk getting out of the car and being torn to shreds or do I back out now? Though something tells me if I start backing out, those big ass metal gates are going to slam closed. No one gets this far without paying a price.
The door of the home is opened before a man in a very expensive suit appears and places something in his mouth. The dogs around me instantly fall back and I realize that I was right; these dogs have been trained very carefully.
The man steps forward and with a strange formalness, he nods his head, indicating that it’s now safe for me to step out of my car. I do so and the way he watches me makes me want to hurry my ass up.
There are about a million steps up to the front door and with my hip desperate to murder me, I do my absolute best and silently thank the man for showing patience as I make my way towards him.
“Follow me,” he says curtly, nothing more, nothing less.
He steps into the massive house and I find myself looking around. Marble. Everything is marble and for this time of night, there are way too many people awake inside this mansion. Clearly, they are all staff but why the hell would one man need so many people working for him in the dead of night?
The need to kick myself a second later flares through me. He’s Anton Mathers, the majority of his work is done at night. He’s most likely nocturnal. Now that’s definitely something I didn’t inherit from the guy. I can stay up as late as I need when I party or when Noah is doing his thing, but any other time I’ll be dead to the world. Sleep is my best friend and there’s no way in hell I would severe that relationship.