Page 27 of Downfall

And then there was Darius. The great Governor.

Of course he had a hand in this. Though he played impartiality to the public, the fact is, he was the one pushing his nephew’s marriage as much as Ignatio Capulet was because apparently he saw some alliance, some gain to be had by allying himself with them.

A part of me wonders if on reflection Rose is just cannon fodder. A pretty jewel that got caught up in the greater ambitions of the treacherous men surrounding her. But she didn’t exactly fight it. She didn’t do anything. She willingly walked down that aisle and said ‘I do’.

When I left I gave her the means to follow. I made sure of it. I stood waiting for her for weeks and when the realisation hit me, when it sunk in that she wasn’t coming, all my love, all my desire turned into a bitter twisted thing. My soul turned to darkness. My heart did too.

No, she may be cannon fodder, she may be in over her head, but that doesn’t mean she’s not complicit. That doesn’t make her an innocent.

“Look at this.” Ben says quietly. Downstairs are more ‘well-wishers’. People intent on shoving their noses into our business, pretending they cared about my father now that he’s dead and my poor sister is stuck, having to endure it like a saint.

I glance over at the paperwork.

“What is it?” I ask.

“Deeds.”

“What?” I frown.

“Deeds. That name, I’ve been seeing it over and over.” Ben states.

“So what?”

“So…” He says sliding over the extensive plan we made of Darius’s extended family. He’s got so many it’s hard to keep track, though most of them don’t bear the great Blumenfeld name, which if anything makes it more confusing. “Christos Argent died when he was six so how is he buying prime real estate in Verona Bay twenty years later?”

I frown following the line back to Darius through an illegitimate daughter no one seems to aware of. “It’s interesting but I don’t see how it helps.”

“These deeds aren’t for housing. They’re for commercial buildings. All the businesses are still operating as if nothing’s happened.”

“And?”

“What if Darius is doing more than just playing the Governor? What if he’s secretly buying up half of Verona, controlling all the major players and ensuring he has their loyalty?”

Would he do that? I wouldn’t put it past him but what would be his end game? Why would he bother? He’s Governor already. He holds enough property in his own name, he has enough wealth. Why would he need to take such action?

“Okay. Let’s look into it.” I mutter. I doubt this will be the smoking gun we’re looking for but knowledge is power isn’t it? Maybe there’s something in there we can use.

The door creaks open and we both look up.

“Thank fuck he’s gone.” Sofia says.

“Who was it?” Ben asks.

“Otto fucking Blumenfeld.”

“What?” I narrow my eyes. A Blumenfeld has had the audacity to come here? To our house?

“Don’t know why you look so offended.” Sofia says. “I was the one who’s had to endure the last hour of him holding my hand and making not so subtle hints about how he could take care of me, help me handle my grief.”

Ben reacts to that, his face turns deadly and just for a moment I wonder if he might do it, might finally admit to all of us how he actually feels about my sister. Only he doesn’t. Coward that he is he just gets up and walks to the window, staring down, no doubt watching Otto’s fucking car travelling down the drive far below.

I stare at his back and wonder how he manages to do it, to contain such emotion. But then I am too aren’t I? Because even now, I still feel it. I still feel that deep longing for the deceitful creature that is Rose Capulet.Fuck I’m a fool.

“He wants to help you grieve?” I say.

“No. He wants to marry me.” Sofia replies. “He wants the Montague fortune.”

“That is not happening.” Ben growls and I finally feel a bit of respect for him in how he’s handling this situation. About fucking time.

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