Page 44 of Abducted By the Mafia Don
“It’s alright,” Dom murmurs, his arm over my shoulder.
I trust him. I do. Dom told me the plan, yet I’m still nervous. What this man’s sons nearly did is fresh in my mind.
“Agatha.” Thaxted’s smile makes my skin crawl. “Welcome.” He’s a tall, skinny, blond man like his sons, with blue eyes and an oval face. He’s wearing a pink shirt with a pale blue sweater, tan trousers, and brown deck shoes, as though he’s going boating, not torturing my grandmother.
I don’t reply.
Dom’s grip on my shoulder tightens. “Let Mrs Hayes go.”
Thaxted barks a mean laugh. “Give me the girl first.”
“Don’t do this, either of you,” Granny says, gaze darting between Dom and me.
“I’m not leaving you.” My voice is steady, which I’m proud of.
“Taggie has my name, you know. We’re married,” Dom says to Thaxted. “And the Thaxted name will fade into obscurity.”
Thaxted’s face goes ugly with fury. “I won’t have my family polluted?—”
Dom grins. “Too late. The curse is happening, isn’t it?”
“Your stupid bitch of a mother got what she deserved,” Thaxted spits, and glances at the younger man, also blond and blue-eyed, beside him. The cuckoo, I realise. Harrison.
“Taggie,” Granny says clearly. “I want you and your man to leave. Now. He killed your mother too.”
What? She knows what happened to my mother?
A cunning look crosses Thaxted’s face. “Richmond has been stalking you, Agatha. Aren’t you curious to know why?”
That’s not a denial, and though I never knew my mother, a burn of anger streaks through me.
“End this,” Granny insists. “Leave. Please.” Her eyes implore me.
I crowd closer to Dom. “And I don’t care.”
That stops Thaxted, but only for a second. “Aw,” he makes a fake sound of sympathy. “You haven’t told her why youactuallywant her, huh, Richmond?”
I feel Dom go stiff beneath my fingers.
“Harrison here will tell you that I usually wait until my children are twenty-one before I inform them about theirsuperior heritage.” Thaxted gives Harrison a proud glance. “I made an exception for you and sent three of my sons to fetch you early, since you’re the last of my children.”
For a second I can’t process what he means.
“I’m your father, Agatha,” Thaxted says, low but confident.
The statement reverberates through me like an earthquake. I stagger, and Dom goes to grasp my waist. I spin on my heel, and step away from him. For my whole life, I’ve wanted to know who my father was.
Now I do. And he’s the enemy of my fake-husband-fiancé. It’s shattering. My mind explodes.
“Whatever he’s done to you, we’ll avenge,” Thaxted says. “With me, you’ll be the princess you were born to be.”
“The only reason you got my daughter pregnant is because you came so early, you pathetic excuse for a deadbeat.” Granny is really angry.
“Shut up!” he snarls and raises his hand.
“You think you can scare an old lady?” She shakes her head. “My daughter was better off without you.”
“Richmond came after you to get to me,” Thaxted says, sounding reasonable, moving away from Granny and towards me. “Because you’re my daughter.”
