TWO
Triss
IT WAS ALWAYS HARD TO leave my mother, but that morning, as I had kissed her cheek, it was a million times worse. I wouldn’t get to see her at all the next day since I was taking the girls with me down to New York City to attend the reading of the will.
I didn’t expect to be gone longer than that day, so I told my boss I would be at work the day after when I asked for the day off. As always, George was accommodating, and even sympathetic when I told him my father had died.
That evening, I set out the girls’ best clothes. Daisy’s clothes looked a little better than poor Lily’s since she was in nice hand-me-downs from when Lily was her age. But the older girl had gotten her current wardrobe from Goodwill and yard sales. Still, I had taken care of their clothes better than my own, so they had a few things I could choose from to dress them with the next morning.
For myself, I picked out a pair of black dress pants that weren’t as shabby or dingy looking. I paired it with a simple, black button-up that had been missing at least three buttons when I had first gotten it at the Goodwill. My shoes were six-year-old Mary Janes. One had a hole in the side, but as long as I kept my feet together when I was sitting, no one was likely to notice.
All three of our coats were going to stand out when we walked into the prestigious law firm of Goldwin, Allister & Marsh, but I wasn’t going to waste money on coats when the ones we had did the job they were meant to do.
It was over a six-hour drive down to New York City from Buffalo, so I had to get the girls up early. I bundled them up in the back seat of my old car and tucked blankets around them. Before I had even pulled out of the parking lot, they were sound asleep once again.
As I waited at a traffic light, I looked back at them, my heart contracting with love. Lily looked just like our mother and me, but Daisy took after her father with her nearly black hair, those big brown eyes, and her olive complexion. The girls were holding hands while Lily cuddled her favorite stuffed animal with her other arm. Daisy was sucking on her thumb.
Reaching into the back seat, I tugged her hand down, but no sooner had I dropped my hand was that damn thumb back in her mouth.
Sighing, because I had other things to worry about besides my baby sister sucking her thumb, I drove through the now green light and headed for the interstate. Traffic slowed us down, and then the girls had to pee three separate times, so by the time I pulled into the undergrown garage at Goldwin, Allister & Marsh, it was already ten thirty-eight.
Hustling the girls into the elevator, it took us to the lobby and opened in front of a reception desk. The neatly dressed woman behind the desk looked up, her eyes widening in surprise when she saw the three of us.
Slightly breathless, I took hold of Daisy’s hand, knowing she would get into everything around her if I didn’t rein her in. Lily stuck close to my side, holding one of the belt loops of my dress pants as we crossed to the desk.
“May I help you?” the woman asked with a tight smile that told me she hoped I was in the wrong place.
“Triss Prescott for Amber Allister,” I informed her, watching the woman’s eyes grow wider, giving her an almost comical bug-eyed kind of appearance.
“One moment please,” she murmured, picking up a phone.
“Look, Triss,” Lily said with a dazed tone. “They have a water fountain.”
I followed her gaze. It was a beautiful fountain, with stones and exotic flowers surrounding it. “Pretty,” I told her, unconsciously stroking her long, blonde hair, hoping to soothe myself with the comfort of what was familiar. Lily’s silky hair under my fingertips grounded me, made me remember the reason I was there.
The receptionist cleared her throat. “Mrs. Allister will be right down, Miss Prescott. If you would like to have a seat?”
I nodded and took the girls over to the leather ottomans near the fountain. I didn’t sit, but crouched down in front of the girls once they were seated. I kept ahold of Daisy’s hand and took Lily’s, as well. “Remember what we talked about. This is really important, okay? I need you to stay quiet little church mice while I handle some business.”
Lily nodded. “I promise, Triss.”
“Are you sad, Triss?” Daisy stroked a chubby, little finger down my cheek with her free hand. “You look sad. Do you miss your daddy?”
At her innocent, little question, tears filled my eyes, though I didn’t let them fall. I couldn’t afford to let the three vultures who would be in the same room with us see my weakness, especially Nancy.
“Yes,” I whispered. “I miss him very much.”
Daisy leaned forward, rubbing her little button nose against my own. “I miss my daddy, too. Maybe they are playing together in Heaven. My daddy liked to play.”
My chin started to tremble, but I clenched my jaw. “Yes, Daisy, he did like to play. And I hope that Derrick is up in Heaven playing with my daddy right now.”
“Daddy liked to play tag,” Lily murmured, her eyes darkening with sadness. “He would chase us around and around the yard at our old house. But we were faster. Daddy could never catch us.”
“I remember,” I said with a smile as I cupped her cheek. “You two had the best daddy ever.”
“I miss him,” Lily whispered, her chin trembling. “I wish he was here.”
Me, too.
Behind us, I heard an elevator ding as it arrived and stood, hoping Amber would be on it. As I turned, I saw the lovely blonde walking toward us in heels that probably cost me six months’ rent. Her smile was warm as she held out her hand to me.
“Triss, it’s so good to see you again.” I shook her hand, and her smile dimmed. “I’m just sorry it is under such circumstances.”
“Yeah, I would have preferred that myself.”
I held out my hand, and Daisy instantly took it. Lily tucked herself against my leg, drawing Amber’s eyes to them both. Her eyes went almost as wide as the receptionist’s had.
“Who do we have here?” she murmured, crouching so she was on their eye level.
“This is Lily,” I introduced. “And this is Daisy. My sisters.”
Amber offered them each her hand one at a time. Daisy shook it without so much as a blink of her eyes, but Lily hesitated, looking up at me and waiting for my nod before shaking hands with this stranger.
“Wow, girls, you’re so polite.” Amber smiled sweetly at them. “I have a son who just turned six. His name is Jamie.”
“I’m six,” Lily told her, growing a little more comfortable with this new person. “Six and a half. My birthday is March tenth.”
“How exciting!”
“My birthday is before that,” Daisy told her, not wanting to be outdone by her sister. “Mine is January third. When’s yours?”
Amusement was flashing through Amber’s eyes. “Not until June, I’m afraid.” She straightened, her smile fading. “We should go on up. Mrs. Prescott has been waiting.”
I refrained from rolling my eyes. “Oh, how terrible for her. Let’s go up then, shall we? We don’t want to keep her waiting more than necessary, do we?”
Amber led us over to the elevators, dark amusement twinkling in her eyes. “No, let’s not do that.”
I pressed my lips together, wishing that I didn’t have to do this now—or ever, really. However, it couldn’t be avoided. Therefore, I stepped onto the elevator with the girls once it opened and held on to them tightly as we rode up to the sixth floor.
“We’re in the conference room,” Amber said once the elevator let us off. She guided us down a long corridor and paused outside of a closed heavy door, her eyes falling to my sisters once again. “Would you rather leave the little ones with my secretary? Or Leo, my husband? Kids tend to like his company. Jamie adores him.”
Hell, I would have loved to have left the girls with one of those people, to have spared them having to see that there were bad people out there that looked like nice, respectable human beings. But Daisy started shaking her head, and Lily clung to my leg.
“No, Triss, don’t leave us,” the older girl whispered. “It’s scary here.”
I tried to give her a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, babies. I’m not going to let you out of my sight.”
“Okay,” Amber said with a resigned nod. “Let’s get this over with, then.”
As soon as the door opened, I heard Nancy’s voice and froze where I stood. “… girl never could tell time. Always inconveniencing people. She has only ever thought of herself.”
“Mother,” Kim’s voice reached my ears. “She probably just hit traffic. She was driving down from Buffalo.”
“Such a god-awful place,” Nancy grumbled, her tone full of all the contempt she had for me.
All I heard were the two other women, which made me wonder if a third was in there or not. Had Dom not shown up? Would I get at least one reprieve and not have to face him that day?
Amber stepped into the room, clearing her throat. “Sorry to keep you waiting, Mrs. Prescott.” She turned back toward me and narrowed her eyes when she saw I hadn’t moved. “Ladies?”
“Triss?” Lily breathed my name.
“Are you okay, sissy?” Daisy whispered, looking worriedly up at me.
I swallowed, hoping to calm the jumble of emotions swirling around in my head and my stomach. It had been over six years since I had seen Nancy; seven since I had last seen Dom. I couldn’t latch on to just one of the thousands of emotions trying to fight for supremacy in my heart right then. Anger. Fear. Rage. Hurt …
The hurt was the worst. The hurt I couldn’t hide behind. It was like a living entity that wanted to consume me every second of every day, and right then, it was winning the fight I had always struggled against.
“Well?” Nancy snapped in her harsh, authoritative tone. “Where is the little bitch? We’re wasting time here.”
My spine stiffened at what she had just called me. I stepped into the conference room with the girls at my side, my gaze blocking out everything and everyone until it landed on the woman sitting at the head of the table.
Dressed in a black designer dress, with her hair perfectly styled, and her neck and ears dripping in expensive jewelry, her finery couldn’t hide the lack of a soul that left her dark gray eyes dull. Her face didn’t show a single sign of having aged a day since the last time I had seen her. She must have been keeping her plastic surgeon in business on a monthly basis with how firm her face looked.
“Hello, Nancy.” My voice was cold, which had the girls tightening their hold on me. “Long time, no see.”
Nancy’s perfectly emotionless face twisted in outrage. I hoped she was remembering that last meeting as clearly as I was.
“So, you have finally graced us with your presence. Come on, then; let’s get this over with. I have an appointment at noon.”
“Oh, trust me, this couldn’t possibly be over faster than I want it to be,” I assured her with a sneer.
“Mrs. Prescott, Triss …” Amber motioned at the table with her hands. “Can we please sit down as adults? I promise you I will get you both out of here as quickly as possible, if you would only cooperate with me a little.”
Feeling like a child getting scolded, I reluctantly focused on the table she had indicated. I didn’t look at Nancy again. Instead, I focused on the woman sitting beside her.
Kim looked much better than the last time I had seen her. She had gained a little weight, which she had desperately needed, considering how underweight she had become after her first year of college. Her rich, mahogany hair was long and flowed over one shoulder, her makeup was expertly applied, and her dress was just as expensive as her mother’s. My stepsister wasn’t decked out in jewelry, though.
Kim met my gaze for only a fleeting moment, gave me a tight smile, and then quickly looked away. But not before I saw the shame in her eyes. Not before I had seen the regret.
I didn’t call her out on it, didn’t demand she tell the room and the world why she had those feelings to begin with where I was concerned. No, I just let my sneer say everything I couldn’t put into words while two innocent little girls were at my side.
Then, as if my eyes couldn’t help themselves, they finally found the only other person in the room. I held myself as tightly as I could to keep from letting my body flinch in reaction to seeing Dominic Balor sitting so quietly at the table on his mother’s other side. His face was blank, as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
As if he wasn’t as destroyed at seeing me as much as I was at seeing him.
Seven years. That was how long it had been since I had last seen this man. Seven years since he had blown my world into a pile of ash that I was helpless to put back together.
He scanned me over then smirked in that way that had always made me want to smack his handsome face. That smile was the same he had given me the first time we had met, when he was trying to be a jerk but I had knocked his socks off with my sass, and then we had quickly become best friends. It told me things that words couldn’t express.
He wasn’t as unaffected as he wanted me to think. Dom hid behind that smile when he wanted to keep what he was feeling from the world. He knew I would see it for what it was.
Lily shifted uneasily beside me, and I realized I had tightened my hold on both girls to the point of discomfort. I hastily released them and crossed to the large table, taking a seat at the end opposite the other three, putting as much distance between them as I possibly could.
Lily took the chair to my left, and I pulled Daisy onto my lap, knowing she wouldn’t sit in her own chair without finding some kind of trouble to get into.
As Amber finally took her seat in the middle of the table, she laid out five thick documents. One for each of us?
Lily sat forward, putting her hands on the table and looking longingly at the stack of blank copy paper and several pens only a small distance away. “Can I please draw, Triss?” she murmured so softly I knew the others couldn’t have heard her.
“Amber?”
The other blonde lifted her head.
“May the girls use that to keep distracted?”
She beamed at me. “Of course. Have at it, little ones.”
Lily brightened. “Thank you,” she murmured and stood long enough to gather the paper and pens so she could share with Daisy.
While the girls got comfortable, I could feel eyes drilling into me. Turning my head, I found Dom’s eyes right on me, but it wasn’t his I worried about. Nancy was glaring daggers at me. I couldn’t help noticing how her gaze went from me to the girls. I locked an arm around Daisy, trying to protect her, but deep down, I knew it wasn’t my baby sister who my evil stepmother was so interested in.
Lily, unaware of the attention she was getting, was now off in her own little wonderland. She had already drawn a rough sketch of trees and a small pond. Her hands moved effortlessly as if her fingers weren’t even her own. I knew that, when she drew, she didn’t use her head, but her heart, which was why she was so talented, even at such a young age.
“Okay.” Amber tapped her knuckles on the table beside her, drawing all eyes but the little girls’ to her. “Sadly, we are here to go over the will of Mr. Robert Daniel Prescott. You four are mentioned within it, and so, as I have been directed by the late Mr. Prescott, you must all be present for this initial reading.”
“Robert told me he changed his will to cut his daughter out,” Nancy interrupted, shooting me a disgusted look.
Amber pressed her lips together in irritation. “Actually, Mrs. Prescott, your late husband has changed his will several times throughout the years. We recently finalized his latest version.”
If the girls hadn’t been with me, I might have laughed at how pale my stepmother turned right then and there before she closed her mouth and turned her gaze away, looking at anything but the people in the room. I didn’t have a clue what could make her look like she had seen a ghost.
“Before I start on the will”—Amber shifted something out from under the document she had in front of her—“Mr. Prescott asked me to read this letter to everyone. I have no idea what is in this letter, as it was sealed when he gave it to me.” Her eyes drifted over to the girls. “I’ll ask you all to remain calm and respectful of young ears if whatever is in here upsets you.”
When no one spoke, she opened the envelope and pulled out a piece of stationary. Even from where I was sitting, I could see the masculine writing that belonged to my father. My heart lifted into my throat as I prepared myself to hear what was quite possibly the last words my father had to say to me.