Maverik tilted his head at me. “Or you’re very good at what you do, and you managed to worm your way into the heart of a billion-dollar company. The question is – what do you plan on doing once you get there?”
My jaw dropped. “What? I’m not some kind of spy.”
“Maybe dad just gave up on us,” Kingston said miserably as he tossed back a drink. “But now he has a new kid.”
Maverik stepped up beside him and crossed his arms over his chest with icy eyes. “You should go.”
I glanced back at Kingston to see him avoid my gaze.
“Kingston?” I asked in confusion. “What did-”
“Just go,” Maverik said as he took a step forward.
The coldly critical look in his eyes, and his arrogant stance made me want to lash out at him. I had done absolutely nothing wrong here, and I didn’t like that he was painting me as the enemy.
I stepped closer to him, my voice low with anger. “You need to wake the fuck up. I’m not your enemy - but keep trying, and you’ll eventually make me into one.”
I clenched my fists and was about to say something else I’d probably regret later when Abby intervened.
“We’re going,” Abby huffed as she put an arm around me. “We were getting bored with this anyway.”
Maybe it was because the alcohol had lowered my inhibitions, but my anger faded, and I was almost in tears when we made it back inside to the house.
“What just happened? Kingston was finally being cool with me, and then something changed. I don’t understand.”
Abby shrugged. “Those guys are unpredictable. Who knows what sets them off? Did you see how they almost went after Kaine for absolutely nothing?”
“Yeah, what was up with that?” I asked. “They were acting so weird.”
“That’s part of the new money stuff I was telling you about,” Abby explained as we locked ourselves in my room. “Chloe and Kaine are part of the other group, so I’m not sure why he came here today.”
“Ugh, who cares about stupid money stuff?”
Abby laughed. “Well, Kaine’s dad definitely does. He bought a makeup company in the eighties for more than a billion dollars, but now it’s barely worth three hundred million, and he’s three billion in debt.”
“Are you serious?” I asked in disbelief. “Kaine’s dad owes billions with a B?”
“Uh, yeah,” Abby said in a singsong voice. “You’re in Bedford now.”
“Shouldn’t Kaine be trying to make friends with the Wilders?” I asked. “Awake might be able to help their makeup sales.”
“Um, Richard hates Kaine’s dad. He was one of the assholes who tried to block Awake from succeeding at every turn. He even lobbied Congress to try to break up Awake.”
“Why?” I asked in confusion.
“You have a lot to learn, my dear,” Abby said with a sigh. “When Awake first started cutting into the traditional sales markets, everyone banded together to rally against Richard. Now, the retail dynasties are struggling, and Awake is soaring. The old money dudes take it as a personal attack against them.”
I shook my head at how petty it all seemed.
“If they were willing to work together, they’d all benefit,” I pointed out.
Abby giggled. “They might be polite to each other in public, but they’re all secreting plotting each other’s deaths. That attitude carries over to their offspring – hence the drama.”
“It sounds like cheerleaders fighting over who gets to be on top of the pyramid,” I told her with a smirk.
Sadness flashed in Abby’s eyes. “Maybe. But the ones at the bottom are struggling to bring the top girls down so they can climb up. Then, the ones who fall are trampled under everyone’s feet.”
I raised an eyebrow. “It sounds like you might know from personal experience.”
Abby hesitated. “You’re new here, so sometimes I forget you don’t know everything, but other times I’m glad you don’t.”
“You don’t have to tell me,” I said softly.
Abby let out a deep breath. “I’d rather be the one to tell you.”
I didn’t push her; I just waited for her to gather her thoughts. I knew something was off based on the way that the other teenagers treated Abby, but I hadn’t expected it to be quite so heavy. This was more than kids making fun of each other for what they decided to wear or how they did their hair.
“My dad did some bad stuff,” Abby confessed. “He…made some risky business decisions because he thought it would pay off big, but instead, he lost a lot of money.”
“I’m sorry, Abby,” I said gently.
She shrugged but avoided my eyes. “It wouldn’t be so bad if it were just his money, but his bad decisions cost all of his friends millions of dollars as well. They dropped him immediately, ostracized our family, and led a witch hunt against him. He wasn’t the only one involved, but he was the only one to get blamed.”
I wasn’t sure what to say. I wanted to comfort Abby, but anything I said would just sound empty.
Abby raised her head to look at me. “The courts didn’t touch my academic trust fund, so I still have enough to pay for tuition here at Bedford and then college. My family lost everything else. My father had to sell the houses, our yacht, and all of his other investments. My mother even had to sell her jewelry and artwork.”
“How did she handle all of this?” I asked cautiously.
Abby had never mentioned her mother before – only that she visited her dad once a year for Christmas.
Abby made a face. “She isn’t handling it – at all. She’s desperate to find a way out of this by marrying someone else. Unfortunately for her, no one with
