Page 48 of Steel & Jenna
“Same,” she vowed.
Unfortunately,their first battle came sooner than either of them expected. Jenna stayed as long as she could at the hospital with him, but eventually visiting hours ended and she had to leave. Mrs. Zarin drove her home. Mr. Zarin was remaining in the hospital overnight with Jack so Mrs. Zarin and Lilly could go home to sleep.
Jenna walked through the front door with the intent to head up to her room without speaking to either of her parents. But her father’s deep baritone summoned her to his office down the hall.
There, he informed her that she was leaving Port Townsend. She was being sent to the top ranked boarding school in the United States in Groton, Massachusetts.
She was leaving in three days.
CHAPTER 11
2 YEARS, 6 MONTHS, 8 DAYS
“Iwon’t go!” Jenna shouted until her voice was hoarse.
“You’re going, young lady, and that’s final!” her father shouted back at her.
It wasn’t final, because they’d been at this for hours. It was past midnight and they were still at odds. Her father was telling her over and over how he was her father and she couldn’t say ‘no’. Jenna continued to tell her father that she was refusing to go. They would glare at the other for several minutes and then the cycle continued.
Jenna had threatened everything from running away to getting legally emancipated but her father wasn’t budging. The icing on the cake had been when her mom had come into the room with that smug look on her face. Her eyes had screamedcheckmate. Jenna refused to acknowledge her mom though. No matter where she stood or what she said, Jenna ignored her as if she wasn’t in the room. Eventually her mom claimed she was going to bed after such a stress-filled day, but Jenna knew she was just saving face. If there was one thing her mother hated above all else, it was not being the center of attention.
Jenna was exhausted. So much had happened that day and she was physically and emotionally drained. All she’d had to eat was one of the burgers Mr. Zarin had brought back to the hospital room that afternoon for everyone but Jack to eat. He was on pureed food until his teeth healed and then soft foods until his eye was better.
But she was refusing to give in. She would not give her father the satisfaction of seeing her cry, or storming from the room like a child having a tantrum.
“The only way you are getting me on that plane is by force,” Jenna snapped at him. “I will not go!”
Her father threw his arms up in the air. He was several brandies in, which Jenna was hoping would help her case. She’d even refilled it for him once. “What the hell did I do to deserve two rebellious daughters? One was bad enough. Money, money, money… That’s all Carolyn wants from me. But you, Jenna? You? You were my shining star! I felt terrible about taking you out of your old academy but I thought giving you a sense of the real world would give you perspective above your peers. I brought you here because I would have missed you too much to leave you in Seattle on your own!”
“Yet you’ll ship me across the country?” Jenna argued back. “You are aware that Massachusetts isn’t in the same time zone, right?”
Her father’s eyes narrowed. “Jenna, I am doing this for your own good. That boy is using you?—”
“That ‘boy’,” Jenna mocked, “lovesme. His name is Jack Duncan, Father. You better get used to it too, because you’ll be hearing it for the rest of your life. Jack. Duncan. And whether I am in Massachusetts or Timbuktu, he will still love me and I will still love him.Nothingwill change that.”
“You are made for better things, Jenna! He will only hold you back!”
“Made for what things, Father? To be some rich housewife? To have a man in my life who thinks of me only as decoration, a trophy? Something pretty he can take out and show off to his friends?” Jenna shook her head. “That is not me, Father. I will not be saddled in a loveless life to appease your skewed view of who is ‘right’ for me.”
“Jenna, you are too smart?—”
“You’re right,” she snapped, interrupting him. “Iamsmart. Don’t you think I know my mind and heart well enough to know what is best for me? I’m fifteen, Dad! Give me some benefit of the doubt that you raised me to know myself.”
“You will not sway me on this, Jen. Youwillget on that plane Tuesday morning. Groton is expecting you in class Wednesday morning and youwillbe there.”
Jenna leaned forward. Her father’s large mahogany desk was heavy and cost more than the average household made in a year. She placed both hands on the wood and said in a clipped but clear voice, “I. Will. Not. Go.”
Her father slammed his glass so hard onto the desk that it shattered. Glass shards went everywhere but all the liquid had already been consumed. Jenna flinched at the sound but did not look away from her father.
“Jenna, I have had enough of this! You are going and that’s final!”
“And what will you do, Dad? Tie me up and throw me into the cargo hold? Even if you got me there, what’s to keep me from coming back? Again and again. I will always come back. I willneverstop coming back.”
Her father stood up. He was an imposing man, but not overly tall or muscular. His power was metaphysical. Aware of the glass, he leaned forward without touching the desk. “And I will send you back. Again and again. Until you get it through your thick skull that he is not right for you.” Then he sat up straighter. “Or better yet, maybe I’ll prove it to you.”
Jenna stood up too. She crossed her arms over her chest. “What does that mean?”
“Everyone has their price,” her father responded. “Let’s find out what Mr. Duncan’s is in the morning, shall we?”
