Chapter 5 - The Claws Come Out
Warren suddenly snapped. The terrified, cornered expression vanished, replaced by an ugly, venomous sneer.
"So what if I did?" he screamed, lunging forward off the brick wall. "I kept this family afloat for five years while you played architect for pennies, Grant! Dad left me the burden of maintaining this stupid mansion and Mom’s ridiculous lifestyle! Do you know how much it costs to keep her in designer gowns and country club memberships? Two hundred grand a year! She doesn't have that kind of money anymore! Dad died broke, you idiot!"
Darlene stumbled back, hitting the side of the patio table and rattling the crystal glasses. "Warren... hush! That's not true!"
"It IS true!" Warren yelled at the top of his lungs, glaring at his mother with absolute contempt. "Dad bled the estate dry before his heart attack! I’ve been juggling lines of credit, shell companies, and high-risk trades trying to keep us from losing this house! And then this... this dirt-road waitress comes into our family!" He pointed a shaking finger at me. "Her brother sells a scrap of worthless dirt and suddenly walks away with thirty grand clean? Cash in hand? While I was facing a margin call at five o’clock that would have wiped out our remaining bank accounts?"
"So you dragged me across the concrete?" I shouted back, stepping forward from behind Reid, my anger finally overpowering my fear. "You let your mother assault me in front of dozens of people? You accused me of being a thief to rob my brother?"
"You're an outsider!" Warren spat, saliva flying from his lips. "You don't belong here! Reid owes this family for the privilege of his sister marrying into the Vance name!"
*Smack.*
The sound was sharp, echoing through the wide courtyard like a rifle shot.
Warren’s head whipped to the side. He stumbled into a potted ficus tree, clutching his left cheek in shock.
Grant stood over him, his hand still stinging from the open-palmed blow. Grant had never raised a hand against anyone in his life. He was the calm one, the peacekeeper, the son who swallowed every insult to keep the peace.
"Don't you ever speak about my wife that way again," Grant said, his voice terrifyingly quiet. "And don't you ever mention my father’s name with those lying lips."
Darlene let out a strangled wail. "Grant! You hit your brother! In front of the Montgomerys! In front of the Hendersons!"
May you like
Grant turned his head slowly toward his mother. The look in his eyes made Darlene take two rapid steps back.
"The Montgomerys and the Hendersons are already leaving, Mother," Grant said coldly. "And after today, they won't be returning. But that’s the least of your problems."
