"Hello young man and how is my favorite boy today?"
I rolled my eyes at that I'm pretty sure she tells Rye the same thing.
"Cut the crap old lady my wife snitched didn't she?"
"Now is that anyway to speak to your nonna? Shame on you, as I was saying I have some information that might be of great interest to you."
"Yeah what's that?" My ears perked right the fuck up, nonna wouldn't bullshit me and I knew whatever she had to say would have some sort of an impact on the fuckery that was going on in my life right now.
"It seems that our friends the Starks are involved in some less than savory business dealings."
"Oh yeah, like what?" I was feeling better already shit, looks like I'll get to fuck his shit up in more ways than one.
"Well now that information's gonna cost ya."
Shit I knew it. "Alright you old deviant what's it gonna cost me?"
She laughed her ass off on the other line, gotta love nonna, she's as twisted as I am.
"I want you to turn around and go back the way you came."
"Nonna..."
"Now Talon; haven't I taught you anything? A good kick in the ass is very satisfying but it's not long lasting. We need to hit the young lady where it hurts so she'll know and her cohorts will know that no one fucks with an Avery and Skylar is, in every sense of the word, ours."
Damn I could cry I love the way the old tyrant thinks, but still. "But nonna can't I just slap the twit once?"
"Boy heed me, Damien's already looking into that other matter concerning her. I don't know why my family insists on insulting me. All my years of hard work for nothing, you've been looking at this thing all wrong boy. Now this Harden person comes from a family of some standing yes, so what we do is we find their weaknesses. You know like where her brother's company is bleeding money since the demise of their parents, and you squeeze until it becomes a hemorrhage. Do you understand?"
"Damn nonna, I was just hoping to maybe get her a couple months in jail or something."
"Pfft, prison is nothing to a rich bitch compared to the lost of her wealth and standing trust me. You put a wealthy self-centered hoyden in jail and she is released to her wealth still in the bank she's thumbing her nose at you in a week's time. You take away that wealth and leave her a pauper, that's her destruction."
"Nonna, you're scary, but I don’t necessarily want the rest of her family to pay for her misdeeds."
“I thought you’d say that and that is why I had my people do some digging and found out that her inheritance is tied up in investments and stocks which are at this very moment being manipulated to suit our purposes. It’s a nice little nest egg, I’m thinking it would make a nice wedding gift for my new granddaughter.”
“You’ve started the ball rolling already?” Damn she wasn’t leaving much for me to do.
“Yes of course, by week’s end the young woman will find herself penniless; besides Damien assures me that there would be too many loopholes for her to slip through if the case was to ever make it to trial. This way you would’ve gotten your pound of flesh and it would be much longer lasting. Now as to the other thing, I sent Damien off to your bride’s hometown to do some digging.”
“What?”
“Don’t interrupt; now as I was saying. It seems there was some sort of contract between the two men that would be Skylar’s father and this man Stark. But after the fiasco and I’m sure you know what I mean, it became null and void. It will appear that your father in law wasn’t as careless as you presumed.”
Good for him he was still on my shit list until farther notice. “Go on.”
“Well there were certain stipulations involved one of which was that if there was any ill treatment of the intended bride she could bow out of the deal. I will say being caught in bed with her cousin fits that description very well won’t you?”
“Yeah I guess, but nonna, if you’ve taken care of everything what’s there for me to do? I was looking forward to kicking his ass again.”
“Barbaric, you’re too much like your grandfather, all that fire. Oh too be young again.”
“Nonna…gross. So it took you only a couple weeks to figure this all out huh, I repeat nonna you’re scary.
"And don't you forget it boy; I’ve taken the liberty of having papers drawn up to combat anything the Stark camp might have up their sleeves but as it stands there should be no more trouble from that quarter. If they should make waves in the future we have the shady business dealings to hold over their heads. All wrapped up and tied in a bow. Consider it your wedding gift from me. Now go home to your wife and stop stressing the poor girl. I can't wait until you two come home for good she needs lots of training yet."
She hung up the phone on that delightful note. Well shit, what was there for me to do now? With Stark taken care of it was pretty much over. Unless the ass decided he wanted to make another try. I almost wish he would. I had to make one more phone call on my way back.
"Kevin come and get your girl from my place. I'm gonna need some alone time with the wife.”