“It’s my house.” Addie had been so quiet until then that he’d nearly forgotten she was a part of all this. “The house, the money, all if it…it’s mine, isn’t it, Grandmother?”
“It is. When I heard from Nick here, I had Benson change everything to your name. It was my intention all along to leave it all to you, but I thought I’d have so much more fun if I could actually see your father’s face when he found out.” Evie laughed. “It was worth it. Dalton, I’d like for you to meet the new homeowners. Like I said, I’d not mess with her. She’s a good deal stronger than you’ll ever be. Oh, and so you’re aware, you’ve been booted off the board at West Iron Works as well. They never really cared for you much after my husband left the company anyway.”
Dalton sat down and stared at his daughter. Nick was sure that his mind was going a mile a minute. He’d bet anything that he was trying to figure out how to make this new predicament work in his favor. When Dalton looked at his wife, Nick took Addie’s hand. He was sure it was going to be horrible, whatever spilled from his mouth.
“This is all your fault. I told you from the start that children were never going to give us anything but trouble. But you found yourself pregnant and you just had to keep it. Now look. She’s our landlord.” Addie laughed and he glared at her before continuing with his wife. “You brought her into this world, and now you’re going to deal with her. Get this settled now, Addison. I want things the way they were as soon as possible.”
~~~
When her dad stood up and went to the fireplace, Addie looked at him. He’d not aged a day since she’d left here, and she’d bet it was due more to a surgeon’s knife rather than any clean living or exercise on his part. Her mother too. She still had the same blonde hair she’d had as a teenager, and a figure that looked like she’d starved herself for months instead of being healthy and active. Neither of them had even played a round of golf so far as she knew, even though they were members of the country club that boasted a fine tennis court as well as beautiful golf course. She moved to stand in front of him, but he looked away.
“Look at me, Father.” Addie tried twice to stand in her father’s view, but he refused to see her. “I have never meant anything to either of you, have I?”
“You were a nuisance your entire life. Had it not been for the help here, I might have sent you away. But Mother forbade it.” Addie turned to her mom when she spoke. “Her paying off my debt to…well, her paying things off for me and Dalton saved us a bit of embarrassment, so we had to keep you once she put it in the paper that you were born. After that…well, we sort of forgot about you unless someone reminded us.”
Her mom glared at her grandmother. She wasn’t wanted. Not by the two people in the world that had brought her into it. Sitting down, she stared at her mom, then her father. It was time to fix this. And she was past caring how they felt about it. Turning to Benson, she smiled at him.
“Since they don’t want to deal with me, I’ll have to work through you. I want them gone by the end of the month. Everything that is theirs and not my grandmother’s gift, I want it out of here too.” Benson told her that Evie had purchased it all, because she’d paid the credit off monthly when it was ordered. “Then get rid of it all. I don’t care if you have to put it all out on the lawn and have a tag sale, get rid of it.”
“You will do no such thing.” Her father roared at her, and she stood up. “This is no way to treat me. You’ve no rights to this money. Your mother should get it all. I want nothing to do with you. So far as I’m concerned, you do not exist.”
“Oh, but I do, and you will have to deal with me. And as for you not wanting anything to do with me, that’s perfect because I want nothing to do with you either when this is over.”
He drew back his hand to no doubt hit her, but he never got the chance. Nick had him pinned to the wall even before his arm was cocked all the way back.
“Get out. Right now, get out before I call the police.”
“You will have respect for me, or so help me, I will ruin you.” She laughed at him. “Addison West, you’re to end this right now. I’ll…I’ll even see a way to letting you come to visit us when it’s a good time if you just do as you’re told.”
“I’m done doing what I’m told. As of right now, I have no parents.” She turned to Milly, the household cook and good friend. “Call the police, please? There are intruders in the house.”