Henley

“Seriously… what are you two doing?”

I let go of Henry’s shirt, letting it cover his midriff again. Henry quickly batted my hands away, his face burning crimson. “We thought you were Mrs. Calloway or someone else.”

Lee folded his arms across his chest. “And your plan was…? Hiding in the closet?”

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “A surreptitious hookup?”

Lee laughed. “Henry? Hooking up with someone? I’d love to see the day.”

“Somehow I can’t imagine Henry doing that either.”

Henry cleared his throat. “Shouldn’t we leave?”

“Yeah, we should get out of here,” I agreed, doing one last sweep of the room. Nothing was displaced. Mrs. Calloway would never even realize we were in here. And hopefully she wouldn’t find any of the cameras we placed.

A cold feeling swept through me at the thought of her finding one of them. What would even happen? Would she just crush it into smithereens in her fist and then do the same to Henry and me? The idea had been a good one at the time, but now that we’d done it… I wasn’t so sure. I felt on edge. Like something bad would happen.

“Oh, hang on.” Henry peeked into the closet and adjusted a few coats. “Who knows what random thing she could notice?”

“She’s very perceptive,” Lee said.

My insides rolled. Ugh. This would be so nerve-wracking. We headed to the door and just as I reached out to take the handle, the door swung inward, nearly smacking me in the face. I stumbled back into Lee in my attempt to avoid the door. Lee stayed immobile, his body tense.

Mrs. Calloway didn’t even have to say anything. I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience. As if my mind couldn’t handle being caught red-handed by her and shot out to space to cower in fear. My limbs felt like lead. I couldn’t get my lips to work. But what would I even say?

“Lee, how are you feeling?” she asked calmly, stepping around the three of us.

Henry and I didn’t move. I heard Lee audibly swallow before he turned. “I’m fine. How was your trip?”

“A waste of time,” she answered. “Have you put any thought into what I asked you the other day?”

“I already gave you my answer.”

“You won’t change your mind, then?”

“No,” Lee answered firmly.

“Very well. Mr. Arceo, I’m glad you’re here.”

Her words caused me to jolt back into motion. Arceo? Was someone else here? I turned toward the door, but no one was there. Henry glanced at me before turning to face Mrs. Calloway. “Yes?”

“Your work has been adequate at best. Please collect your belongings and leave quietly. Since you’ve been here for such a long time, I’ll allow you a severance package.”

I didn’t understand her meaning at first. Neither did Henry. It dawned on us at the same moment. My mouth fell open.

“S-sorry?” Henry choked out.

Mrs. Calloway raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you listening? You’ve always had a problem with that, haven’t you? I can make it comprehensible for you. You’re fired.”

“Mother—”

“Honestly, Lee, I don’t see why you choose to surround yourself with such second-rate individuals.”

Lee made an attempt to step toward his mother, but Henry gripped his arm tightly. Lee ripped it off, pushing Henry back. “Henry, don’t gather your things. You’re not fired. That’s an order from your boss.”

“You’re not his boss, Lee. If anything, Bennett would be, however, I’m also Bennett’s boss,” Mrs. Calloway stated. “I make the decision, ultimately.”

Lee’s hands curled into fists. “You can’t do this!”

“I already did. Will I have to resort to calling security to escort Mr. Arceo out? I’m sure they’d love something to do,” she responded, picking up a triangle shaped statue from her desk and examining it.

Lee’s shoulders shook. “No! Henry doesn’t have anything to do with this! Why can’t you be a good person for once in your life?”

Mrs. Calloway fixed him with a deadly look. “You dare say that to your mother?”

“Should I treat you like a mother if you aren’t capable of treating me like your son?”

Something whizzed by me, causing my hair to shift. A sharp crash exploded from behind me and I jumped, hearing glass shatter. I realized after a moment it was the triangle object she’d had in her hands moments earlier.

“Sorry, my hand slipped,” Mrs. Calloway apologized.

Lee strode forward and once again Henry held him back. “Lee!” he barked out. “It’s fine! Let’s go!”

“It’s not okay—”

The door bust open moments later and two broad men dressed in dark suits entered the room. Scary was the only word I could think to describe them. One immediately wrestled Henry away from Lee and roughly pushed him to the door, pinning his arm behind his back and making him grimace.

“Hey, you’re hurting him!” I said, attempting to get to Henry but a different man stepped between us. I held up my hands, yielding immediately.

“Escort them out. They’re making a mess of this place.”

“I’m not done talking to you,” Lee seethed.

“Well, I am.” She turned her gaze back to Henry. “Mr. Arceo. Such a shame to lose you. You’ve always known your place.”

Henry stayed silent. My heart beat wildly in my chest. This felt like a scene straight out of some horrible drama. The security men began to guide Lee and Henry out of the room and as I made to follow, Mrs. Calloway’s voice stopped me.

“Henley, you stay a moment.”

My heart dropped into my gut.

“If she stays, I’m staying too,” Lee demanded, attempting to get the man holding him to let go.

Mrs. Calloway gestured out with her hand. “Goodbye.”

The doors shut behind them, Lee’s protesting getting cut off. I stood by the shattered remains of the statue, afraid to turn my back on Mrs. Calloway, but considering bolting for the door.

“Come here.”

My legs obeyed her command. Never before had she scared me this much. I was trying to not let it show, but I couldn’t stop shaking. What Henry had said about her… I didn’t doubt it now. This woman was capable of anything.

I stopped in front of her desk and she let out a long sigh, sitting down. “I suppose I wasn’t clear enough.”

“With what?” I asked, glad my voice came out steady.

“Just because I told you to stay away from Bennett, doesn’t mean you can cling to Lee.”

“I’m not clinging to anyone.”

“You’ve disrupted both my son’s lives. How do you feel knowing you’re causing such a fracture in a family’s relationship?”

“I feel nothing because none of this is my fault.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Is that what you think?”

“No. I know that. And your tricks aren’t going to work on me. You can’t threaten me with anything.”

“I’m sure I can think of a few things. Ariana is your friend’s name, is it not?”

Anger finally flared. “It is. And in case you’ve forgotten, Brandon is my brother’s name. You remember him, right? The one you framed that night at McKellan’s? The night of Lee’s accident?”

The provocation slipped from my lips before I could change my mind. Her scare tactics wouldn’t work on me. But perhaps I could use her own methods against her. It was too late to go back, anyway.

And there were cameras in case anything went wrong.

It was only a fraction of a second, but the break in her features was evident. It was enough. The slight tremble in her lip, the twitch of her fingers. It was a tell.

“I knew it,” I whispered. “You really did it. How could you?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said evenly.

“You put an innocent man in jail! Don’t you feel anything?”

“As I said, I have no idea what you’re talking about. If you’re just going to talk about this nonsense I don’t need to speak with you.”

I placed my hands on her desk, leaning toward her. This was getting to her. I needed to take it one step further. “Oh really? Maybe you can answer this question for me— did you purposely hit Lee with your car? What were you thinking as you hit the gas? That you would rather silence him and blame him than come to terms with the fact that you are so unhinged your own sons don’t want to live with you in their lives—”

Her nails burned as they ripped into my skin. I didn’t even flinch, but drew back, clenching my jaw to keep from showing any pain.

“Get out,” she snarled.

“Fine. I’ve gotten my answer, anyway. But know this. I have evidence. Evidence you can’t even dream about finding or intimidating out of me. Maybe for once you can experience the anxiety you cause in everyone else. Think about it. Worry about when I’ll show up with the police.”

She curled her lip at me. “Who would believe someone like you?”

“Funny how evidence is the indicator on whether or not something is true.”

“You can leave now.”

“Oh? I thought you wanted to try to dictate my life some more? Oh, but if you do, I might go tattle to my big bro.”

“I said leave.”

Part of me wanted to tempt fate and keep provoking her, but I figured what I learned was enough for the day. Now we could be one hundred percent sure of what happened that night.

I wrapped my hand around the door handle, pausing to throw one last sentence over my shoulder. “You’re a horrible woman and even worse mother.”

I stayed calm until I closed the door behind me. Then I ran like a bat out of hell, nearly collapsing as my legs felt like they would give out. My cheek throbbed fiercely. I had no idea where Lee and Henry went, but I needed to get out of the building first. I couldn’t shake the idea of Mrs. Calloway dragging me back into her room and silencing me herself. She belonged in jail.

People stared at me as I bolted out of the hotel lobby. Lee’s Maserati was still in the parking lot so I headed over to it, relaxing when I realized both Lee and Henry were sitting in it. I tried opening the back door, startling both men in the front see. In my agitated state I didn’t even realize the door was locked and kept rattling it in an attempt to get it open.

Eventually I heard the locks click and I swung open the door and nearly threw myself in. “Drive,” I gasped.

“What’s wrong— what happened to your face?”

“Life, just drive!”

“Are you okay?” Henry asked, his eyes wide. “You’re bleeding!”

I blinked. “I am?” I touched my cheek and drew back my hand to see my fingertips painted red. “Ow.”

“What did she do?” Lee asked, backing out of the parking lot.

“She hit me, but I kind of incited it.”

“What did you say?” Henry asked.

“I called her out about framing Brandon.”

Lee slammed on the brakes and I slipped from my seat and smacked my head into Henry’s headrest before falling between both seats.

“Sorry!” Lee exclaimed.

“I didn’t have my seatbelt on,” I mumbled, pushing myself up. My heartbeat was still erratic. Like I’d run five miles— or to be more honest, ran for more than a minute.

“Still, you did what?”

“Listen, I just wanted to see her reaction. Now there’s no doubt about it. She did it. I know we knew that but this confirms it. And something else.”

“What else?”

I shook my head. “Nothing.”

Henry’s gaze locked onto mine and I recognized the look. I nodded subtly and his jaw tightened.

“We need something to defend ourselves with. She tries to hold everything over our head— we needed some leverage. As long as she believes I have evidence, we can protect ourselves.”

Lee frowned. “You’re right, but I hope it wasn’t too premature.”

“It won’t be. We’ll be ending this soon.”

“What if we can’t actually find evidence?”

“We have to trust Sebastian and Bennett,” I said. “Or the cameras. Can’t we get her in trouble for firing Henry, at least? For now?”

Lee bit his lip. “Unfortunately, no. We have at-will employment. She doesn’t necessarily need a reason for firing Henry.”

“Oh, no…”

“It’s fine,” Henry assured us. “I can find a new job.”

“I’ll rehire you after all this.”

“I’m… I’m not sure if I want to go back.”

Silence fell over Lee for the next few moments. I was beginning to think he wouldn’t say anything at all when he spoke. “I understand.”

“Can you drop me off at my place?”

“What? Henry, come back over to my place,” I said, leaning between the seats again.

Henry shook his head, turning to look out the window. “I’m tired. I want to go home.”

“Are you okay?” Lee asked.

“I’m fine. Can you just bring me home?” he asked with an edge to his tone.

Lee didn’t ask any more questions and drove straight to Henry’s place. It was my first time seeing it. At the first sight it was clear why Lee couldn’t have stayed with Henry, Mrs. Calloway’s omniscient eyes aside. I thought my old apartment was small, but Henry’s was smaller.

I scrambled out of the car as Henry climbed out. “Are you sure you’re good?”

Henry closed his eyes and nodded. “I… I just feel sick.”

“You’re not feeling well?”

“I feel sick that Mrs. Calloway used me as leverage against Lee. I can’t stand the thought. Just like Bennett… what did she hold over Lee’s head with my job security as the threat? I…” He snapped his mouth shut, groaning.

I pulled him into a hug. “It’s okay, Henry. It’s not your fault. And it won’t happen again now.”

“I know,” he breathed.

“You’ll be okay alone?”

“Yes. I need to relax. Not that you or Lee stress me out, but I just need some time alone to organize my thoughts.”

I nodded, letting him go. “Okay. I need to tell you about what I said to Mrs. Calloway to get her to smack me.”

“I think I have a good guess” he whispered. “I don’t want to believe it.”

“Me either.”

“Still, keep that from Lee. Just for now.”

“I think we should tell him.”

“We will. Just not now. Promise me, Henley. We need to tell Bennett first.”

“I won’t. Maybe it would be better to tell Bennett first. It’s a family issue.”

“Exactly. Make sure you clean your wound. Every inch of Mrs. Calloway’s skin is dirty.”

I shivered at the thought. “I will.”

Henry went inside his apartment and I got into the passenger’s seat of Lee’s car. Lee watched Henry until he disappeared into his apartment. “He’s upset with me, isn’t he?”

“Not with you. With the situation.”

“I figured. Maybe I should go talk to him—”

“Just let him be for now.”

Lee pouted. “Fine.”

“Let’s go back to my place. I’m tired.”

My body felt like lead. Now that the exhilaration had worn off, I could barely keep my eyes open. I wanted to take a nap as soon as we got back, but Lee made me join him in the bathroom so he could clean the scratches on my face.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, running a Neosporin covered Q-tip over each scratch. Four in total. I was glad her thumb hadn’t got to me.

“Don’t be. It really was my fault.”

“I don’t know why she was back early… I should have stopped you guys.”

“The cameras could come in handy. This was worth it, Lee. Trust me. You and Bennett can’t keep living like this. It’s not right and it’s not fair.”

Lee took my hand into his. “I’m so happy you came into Bennett’s life. And mine.”

I smiled. “I’m glad, too. Now stop. You’re going to make me blush. And that would be counterproductive to cleaning my wounds.”

“I’m not sure that’s how it works, Henley.”

“Really?”

Lee finally laughed and lightly tapped my unharmed cheek. “You’re all set. Do you have any bandages?”

“No. This is fine, the scratches aren’t that deep,” I told him. “Although if needed I can have Brandon pick some up whenever he comes home.”

“Big brothers are the best, aren’t they?”

“Debatable.”

“I used to think Bennett would be better off without one, but now I realize it’s not that. I tried so hard to protect all of us. Why couldn’t I see how abusive our mother was?”

“Because you love her,” I said. “She’s your mother. I can’t imagine her being anything other than nasty, but you can, right? You remember the good moments. You excuse the bad. It’s not your fault you couldn’t see it.”

Lee leaned against the bathroom counter, staring hard at the bathroom tile. “Maybe it wouldn’t have gotten this bad if I had—”

“Blaming yourself will never change anything. Come on, you know that. You know no one blames you either. You and Bennett can set things right.”

“By putting our own mother in jail. If it even gets that far. I am sure she will weasel her way out of it.”

“She deserves it,” I said. “I won’t excuse what she’s done to you guys or my brother. That’s not your fault either. Maybe if she goes to jail it’ll snap her out of whatever mindset she has, who knows? We can deal with everything as it comes our way. Even though I say this knowing it’s way harder for you and Bennett than me.”

Lee hummed. “It’s easier with all the support around us. Thank you, Henley. Are you hungry? I’ll order us some food.”

“Sure! I’m going to take a shower really quick. I sweat a lot while talking to Mrs. Calloway. I think I stink.”

Lee chuckled. “Everyone does.”

After he left the bathroom I grabbed a towel and turned on the shower. What I’d said to Mrs. Calloway kept racing through my head and now I was beginning to have second thoughts. Could I handle threatening her? Would there be an outburst from her? Would something happen to Bennett? No, she had been shaken. We definitely had the upper hand for once. The question was for how long?

I could only hope Bennett and Sebastian had found something good.