Dirty Wicked Prince (Court Legacy Book 1)

Dorian

A text pulled me out of my sleep at Sloane’s. Her long leg curled around me, I had to reach over her just to get my phone off her end table. I’d pulled it out of my jeans before I’d fallen asleep.

Wolf: We have an opportunity with Mayberry.

I sat up, Sloane’s arm falling from my chest.

What the hell?

Wolf had sent this text around midnight. My phone must have buzzed because I missed it.

I chanced that he was up and would see my returned text.

Me: How? When?

Not to mention we still hadn’t secured a van. Wells hadn’t told us anything different about his status with his dad’s vehicles. Since he hadn’t, I assumed the situation was the same. We were up shit creek without any transportation.

Wolf texted back quickly.

Wolf: This morning. Where are you?

I gazed down at Sloane, still sleeping delightfully naked against me.

I touched her cheek like a dumbass, just wanting to touch her.

Why are you so enamored with this girl?

She’d gotten me out of my head last night completely. Leaning against her headboard, I brought her under my arm. I texted Wolf.

Me: I think you know where.

He’d sent her to me apparently, peculiar for Wolf. He didn’t like this girl. Even if he did pick up on the tension between Sloane and me.

Wolf: Okay. Well, yeah, this morning. Thatcher’s hacked into her digital planner. She had a random doctor’s appointment appear last night. It’s scheduled for this AM. We could swipe her before school.

My heart raced.

Me: What about transportation?

Wolf: Wells worked it out. We’re all set.

I could hear the blood pumping in my ears. Opportunity had come and gone for us in the past. It was like the world had been against us. Against me.

Me: Where are you?

Wolf: Arranging everything. This will require us skipping morning classes.

Like I gave a fucking shit. I started to get up, but Wolf texted me back.

Wolf: We’re going to meet at seven.

Me: Where?

Wolf: The location.

I checked the time. Just passed four.

Me: I’m going to head over to you now.

Wolf: You don’t have to. We’re taking care of everything. Just be there at seven.

Me: No, I’m coming.

Wolf: Just stay put. Stay with Sloane. All you have to do is show up. We got you.

They got me.

And stay with Sloane? He didn’t like her.

I started to text back, but he got back to me again.

Wolf: We’ll see you at the location.

The location was an abandoned factory my dad used to run some of his business operations out of. My father had many businesses, many of them spilled over from the days of my grandfather and his father before that. Once Dad took over, he shut down the less efficient ones.

AKA the corrupt ones.

I read all about my father’s legacy growing up. I did because one day it’d be mine. He ran any business the family name was on with pride, no greed, and everyone, man or woman, who worked for him was seen. He treated people as people. He did things the complete opposite of my grandfather.

I’d read about him too.

I’d done a fair amount of research and even more in recent days. I needed to know what I was getting into, who he was and his potential. Going in, I’d been well aware of who my grandfather was when I’d decided to solicit him for his aid.

I just didn’t know it’d pan out the way it had in the end.

Negative thoughts about him actually ended up keeping me in Sloane’s bed for longer than I should have. A greedy motherfucker, I just held on to her, studying her face and wishing things were simpler. That I could be anything else or be anywhere else than the road I was clearly continuing on.

But then I thought about Charlie.

Charlie got me out of that bed. Charlie kept me out of my head. I had to leave Sloane, and I didn’t know when I’d see her again.

Who knew what the hell would happen after today?

I wasn’t thinking, and my buddies weren’t either. We were goal-oriented, and I’d be naive to think they weren’t laboring partially for me. Revenge for Charlie was my cross to bear.

They were simply along for the fucked-up ride.

I expected to help with something surrounding this thing with Mayberry, but when I showed up at the abandoned factory surrounded by cornfields, my buddies were already here.

The van was already here.

I rushed toward the doors, both Wells and Thatcher already there. They had skull masks on, dressed in all black down to their sneakers.

“Wolf’s inside,” Thatcher stated, looking around. His voice was deeper and jumbled up, some kind of scrambler on it. He tipped his chin toward the inside. “He’s waiting for you.”

From behind him, Wells pulled another mask, handing it out to me. Apparently, these two were just the lookout.

I ignored the mask. I hadn’t even changed my clothes. I was still in jeans and a T-shirt from when I’d showered at Windsor House. They had spare rooms there. In my case and some of the others, we had our own and even kept spare clothes on the property. The Court often held events there, retreats and stuff, so it was nice to be able to quickly change or even sleep if necessary.

Wells lowered the mask as I passed, both Thatcher and him exchanging glances. I nodded at them, then went deeper inside the warehouse.

There wasn’t much to it, dark and dank. In fact, the only light came from floor lights the guys and I had set up for today. It was still pretty early, so there wasn’t much light outside.

Here we go.

This shit was actually happening, and though I knew what I’d find when I came across Wolf, I expelled a breath.

He sat in front of Mayberry, two chairs in the room. Our principal occupied the other, a face covering across her eyes. She panted in a hoodie and sweats and had streaks of dried tears below the mask. The plan was just to take her, do no harm.

Even if she deserved it.

The tears were obviously from the fear of it all, but at least they’d gotten her quiet. At my presence, Wolf shifted, and Mayberry did too, gasping.

“What’s going on?” She jerked around in her chair. “Let me go. Please, I have nothing!”

I snarled at her, but Wolf said nothing to her when he got up. Meeting me at the door, he folded a hand on my shoulder and guided me out of the room.

“Where’s your mask?” he asked outside the door, and I shook my head. I was going to talk to her face to face. I wanted her to see my face. I almost dared the bitch to say something to someone.

I could bury her.

My family ran this town, and though it was a risk, I wouldn’t hide behind a mask.

Though Wolf appeared surprised, he said nothing when I alluded to not wearing one. I started to go back into the room, but he raised a hand.

“So you were with Sloane?” he asked, mentioning her now for some reason. He wet his lips. “I’m really sorry. I…”

I didn’t cut him off. He just stopped speaking, flustered when Wolf didn’t get fucking flustered. I assumed this must have had something to do with our current situation and this woman.

I placed a hand on him. “Thank you for taking care of all this today,” I said, assuming that was what his nerves were. “I appreciate it.”

He’d done it so I wouldn’t have to, and maybe so quickly in part because of our fight. He was trying to make things right.

He was being my friend.

None of these guys had to stand by me now, and I racked up another tally. Another debt. Another sin.

It was time to finish this.

Wolf let me go, and I shut everything out. I closed the door, only Mayberry and me in here. In the case there actually were repercussions from today, only I would receive them. She wouldn’t know anything about my friends.

If she was going to hurt someone after today, it’d only be me.

I was well aware of that when I tugged the blindfold off her and her shock was evident. She blanched, completely wide-eyed, and I’d never seen her in such a way. Her hair was all over the place, disheveled. I assumed that had to do with the kidnapping. Despite being a coke whore, she hid that shit well.

“Mr. Prinze.” She eyed around, gasping but the door was closed. It was just her and me. “What’s going on?”

I took out my cell phone, scrolling to screenshots. I showed her conversations, showed her every message snapped of her talking with Charlie that last day on social media.

Her face paled. “Why are you showing me this? What is this?”

I didn’t put hands on a woman, but in that moment, I questioned the strength I had to hold back.

Really, what was I becoming?

I fought the twist in my gut, this kidnapping today not worse than some of my other sins.

Not anymore.

I’d died earlier this week. I’d dove directly into the dark and came out someone who could do this shit today. This was child’s play here, nothing but a conversation between two people with ugly inside them.

“You know what this is,” I growled. “And I know everything. I know about you and Charlie,” I said, her eyes widening. “I know about the affair. I saw you…”

“I don’t know what you’re—”

“I saw you,” I spat, merely inches from her face. “At a party my sophomore year. Pembroke University.” I frowned. “Sound fucking familiar? It should. You were all over my uncle’s jock then.”

She’d been a needy bitch, like stated, taking advantage of him.

Her tears spilled down then, and she didn’t hold them back. I honestly thought it would be harder to break her.

She sniffed, but still shook her head. “Dorian, I don’t know what you believe, but…”

She cut herself off, my chair squeaking forward.

I held up the messages again. “This is what I think. You’re a pathetic drug whore. A lying drug whore.” I showed her shots we’d snapped of her doing drugs. They hadn’t been easy to get. She kept her office pretty locked down.

Her mouth parted during the scroll. 

“You’re going to tell the truth about what actually happened to Charlie that night with your husband,” I finalized, getting back to the big picture. “That night he killed him. You’re going to tell this camera and me what really happened.”

She blinked down tears again. “I told the authorities what happened.”

“I know.” I nodded. “But now, you’re actually going to tell the fucking truth. You’re going to tell the world the truth, and you’re going to do it right here in front of me.” My eyebrows narrowed. “You got one chance, Mayberry. One chance to speak the truth and tell everyone what happened in your home that night surrounding my uncle…” My throat jumped. “My brother.”

She studied me, her own swallow hard. “And if I don’t?”

There it was, right there.

This lying bitch…

I leaned in, getting real close.

“I’ve done worse things than what I planned to do to you today,” I said, growling, and she twitched. I sneered. “But I’ll do more if I have to.”

I would. I’d go to the ends of the earth.

It was freeing when your soul died.

This was no game. I wasn’t playing around, and now, this woman knew it.

Mayberry cringed as she sat in front of me, her face all twisted up. She appeared at a loss for what to say.

I’d make it easy for her.

I cracked my knuckles. “Well? What’s it going to be?”

She watched my hands, as if I’d strangle her at any minute.

I just might.

Her mouth quivered. “Dorian, you don’t understand.” She looked away, something resembling shame on her face. “My husband was a bad man, and Charlie…” More tears blinked down, the desperate emotion of a broken woman. “You may not believe it, but I loved him. I loved him with all my heart.”

She probably thought she had and maybe she had, but that couldn’t have been love.

If it was, she would have told the truth.

“Tell the truth, Mayberry,” I said, picking up my phone and starting the recording. “Tell the world his truth.”