Page 63

Rhue

The first thing I do after leaving the apartment in a frenzy is to drive back to Rochester. I head home, knowing that my father will have answers. This is clearly his doing. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind whatsoever.

I’m gripping the wheel so hard that my knuckles turn white.

After a quick call to Rita, who, according to Madison’s account from last night, was the only one who might’ve caught a better glimpse of Creepy Jake, I only get some faint descriptive terms—dark blond hair, maybe blue or green eyes, good looking.

Not enough. Definitely not enough. I haven’t told anyone about Madison disappearing, either.

If I can resolve this before it gets out of hand, it’ll be fine.

I can’t cause panic. I can’t let Mr. Willis know that I literally lost his daughter.

Fury burns through me like an open fire, frustration the crackling kindling at the bottom.

The mansion rises ahead, standing out from the other villas and McMansions in this residential area.

I don’t even remember driving past the “Welcome to Rochester” sign.

I’m not sure how long the drive was, given that I’ve been flooring it since I left Ithaca.

What I do know, however, is that the closer I get, the angrier I become.

Facing my father in a blind fury won’t help, though.

He will take advantage of it. He is proficient at exploiting people’s weaknesses; and anger, as much as I hate to admit it, is a weakness.

I swerve up the narrow alley leading up to the mansion and pull over with a loud screech.

I get out of the SUV and take a deep breath.

It’s raining cats and dogs out here, and I don’t have a jacket after leaving in such a hurry.

I welcome the chill, though. It helps calm me down.

I’m calm enough to think—and I set my phone to record. Whatever he says now, it’s mine.

Moments later, I burst through the double doors.

“Where the fuck are you?” I shout, knowing he’ll hear me. His car is parked out front. He’s home. I take a second to briefly glance around.

Laura is in the living room with Steve the Manny. They were playing some kind of board game until I came in. Now, they’re both staring at me, jaws dropping to the floor. I can’t blame them. I’m on a roll, and I can’t stop. Not when I’m about to face the monster in our family.

“Rhue,” Laura says, elbow on the armrest of her electric wheelchair.

“Where is he?” I ask, lowering my voice.

“In his study, but—”

She doesn’t get to finish what she wanted to say because I’m already bolting across the foyer and into the hallway. I walk into the study without knocking, only to find my father on the phone, behind his ebony desk, laughing lightly. Of course, his humor fades when he sees me.

“Martha, I’m gonna have to call you back,” he mutters. “Yes, send me those poll numbers, and we’ll see what more we can do tomorrow.”

He hangs up and gives me a long look.

“Where is she?”

“What are you talking about?” My father will not make this easy.

“Madison. Where. Is. Madison?”

My father shrugs. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“You see, I know that’s a fucking lie because you sent one of your thugs after her last night,” I say, pointing a stiff finger at him. “You had him accost and threaten her outside a restaurant, and by morning she was gone.”

“I thought you were looking after her,” he replies, not trying that hard to conceal his amusement as he leans back into his swivel chair. “What, did the girl just vanish from under your nose? How do you know it was me?”

“Because you’re the only one with such nerve. At least be a man and admit it.”

He gets up, his shoulders broad and loaded with tension.

I’m hitting a spot on that big ass ego of his.

“Rhue Echeveria, next week I may be elected on the Rochester city council. It’s a prestigious and honorable position that will allow me to bring about meaningful change to this place.

With it, I’m only a few steps from Congress. This is our future.”

“Where is Madison?” I ask again, gritting my teeth.

It takes everything I’ve got not to launch myself at him, but judging by the look on his face, I worry he’ll continue to test my limits.

“Somewhere safe,” he says. Glancing over my shoulder for a second, I see Laura coming over, accompanied by Steve. My father won’t say it again in the presence of other people. This was solely for my ears. “I’ve got too much riding on this. I can’t have anyone’s petulance get in my way.”

“Petulance? You’re the one who’s relentlessly coming after her!” I snap. “What the fuck is wrong with you? What happened to you? Were you always such a colossal piece of shit?”

It’s his turn to get mad. “Don’t you fucking talk to me in that tone, boy!

You have no idea what I have sacrificed for this family’s wellbeing!

You have no understanding of everything that it took to get us here, to provide you and your sister with such comforts!

You’ve never had to work or drop out of school to put food on your table, you ungrateful little shit!

So don’t you come in here and talk down to me like I owe you anything!

You shut your mouth, you go to school and get your fucking degrees.

God knows, you’re not good at handling anything else. ”

“Where is Madison?” I ask again, unimpressed by his cheap bravado. It’s meant to intimidate me, but he forgets I’m no longer fourteen.

“Not my problem!” He points at Laura the moment she comes in. “Get the fuck out.”

“Dad! What the hell is going on?” she replies.

“No, Laura needs to stay,” I cut in, narrowing my eyes. Keep talking, old man. Show the world what I see. “She needs to see you for who you truly are.”

“And who’s that? Your father? The man putting a roof over your head?” he shoots back.

“You forget that I no longer rely on you,” I tell him. “I’ve got a trust fund with zero contributions from you. This roof? Not mine, nor am I living here anymore. So, you hold absolutely no leverage over me. Where is Madison?”

“Laura, go to your room,” my father says, trying to brush her off.

“I’m not going anywhere until someone tells me what the hell is going on here!” my sister snaps, and I love her even more for this. She might not be ready to confront him herself, but she’s not going to back down when the game is on.

“He took Madison,” I tell her. My father scoffs, rolling his eyes as if I just said the dumbest thing in the world. “He sees her as a threat because he raped her last year, so he decided to kidnap her before election day.”

“That’s bullshit!” he interjects.

“Dad?” Laura is playing her role well. The innocent daughter, confounded by her manipulative father.

“He’s got her. He won’t tell me where she is. And I know she is anything but safe in his clutches. He’s not just a rapist. He’s a kidnapper, too, and who knows what else?”

“It’s not my fault you couldn’t keep the girl safe,” my father says, crossing his arms. “Don’t blame me for your inadequacies, Rhue. You’re the one who wanted to play the grownup game.”

Something snaps inside me. I don’t know if it’s the outrage that really breaks my resolve into thousands of sharp splinters, but it’s too much to handle.

Before he can react, I fly across the room and jump across his desk like a fucking panther pouncing on his prey.

I take him down and punch whatever I can get to.

My knuckles crackle against his cheekbone. I throw out a left hook that gets him in the ribs. He kicks and grunts and tries to push me away, but I’ve got too much unrestrained anger inside me to let this shit slide. Not anymore.

I’m about to punch his lights out, blood spraying from his busted lip, but I’m pulled back by someone stronger than me.

Steve. He’s got his arms hooked under my armpits and locked behind my back, forcing me into an uncomfortable position.

He gets me away from my father. The bastard rolls on his side, taking a moment before he stands up again.

Yeah, I rang his bell a couple of times. It felt amazing. I should experience a semblance of guilt, at least, but there’s nothing. My knuckles hurt. The skin around them burns, bruised and broken. I’ll need ice at some point. But I need Madison even more.

“Goddammit, Rhue!” my sister cries out. She shoots a wild glance at my phone, lying on the floor, still recording. She moves her chair forward a few feet to hide it, and I struggle with Steve to grab it. It might be my imagination, but I feel he let me win that minor victory.

“You need to get out,” Steve tells me.

“He’s got Madison,” I say. “He’s got her, and he’s going to hurt her.”

“Where’s your proof?!” Laura shouts, tears glittering in her eyes.

I can’t help but wonder if I’ve been expecting too much from my own sister this whole time.

It doesn’t make sense, because the grief in her eyes is aimed at me.

Whenever she looks at our father, it fades away.

Is she acting? Am I missing something here?

There is so much happening already, and with Madison in danger, I’m afraid my mind isn’t quick enough to process everything.

“Let go of me,” I tell Steve.

“You need to calm down, first,” he replies.

We’re back by the door. My father gets up, using one hand to lean into his desk. He fishes a handkerchief out of his pocket to cover the split lip. “Get the fuck out of my house,” he says.

“Not until you tell me where Madison is.”

It’s not my decision, though, as Steve so eloquently puts it as he drags me out of the mansion.

I try to get away, but his grip is expertly locked.

I have no chance of ridding myself of him.

He caught me unexpectedly, and now I’m in his hold.

Fucking helpless. Looking like an imbecile as he hauls me down the front steps and deposits me in front of my SUV in the pouring rain.

“You need to stay out of this, Manny,” I warn him, but Steve is unfazed.