Pit: The A**hole Club Series by Saffire Blue (summer books txt) 📕

knew you could do it, so I took my punishment so you and the twins could have a future,” she says, raising her voice.

I tighten my hold on Skittles. I have so many emotions running through me—hurt, anger, betrayal. I want to throw something across the room.

The only thing keeping me from flipping shit over is having Skittles in my lap. I would have rather had been with my uncle Blake than to believe I wasn’t loved.

As if reading my mind my mother speaks. “You believe I don’t love you and I picked Thaddeus over you. That’s not true. I made sacrifice after sacrifice to make sure the three of you had the best. I took the beatings and berating in silence.”

“Wait, what the fuck did you just say?” I push Skittles to stand so I can get up. “He was putting his hands on you?”

She turns away from me.

“Aw, fuck no. You know what… Leo was lying, wasn’t he? The busted lip and black eye all came from Thaddeus.

“That bullshit story about having a fight at school and then arguing about it with Thaddeus was a load of shit. I knew it then and I know it now. You two were covering for him so I wouldn’t beat his ass.”

“William, please calm down.”

“No, Mom, I’m going to bust his shit wide open,” I reply and go to kiss her cheek. “We’ll come see you soon. I love you.”

“I love you too. Please don’t do anything rash.”

I scoff. “Yeah, all right.”

I toss Skittles my keys because I can’t see straight enough to drive.

***

“You know, she was stunning. If my father was going to force me to marry, she was a looker,” Thaddeus says with his back to me.

From this angle I can see him drain his tumbler. Old drunk bastard. He’s standing before the fireplace in his living room. His, this house was never ours.

After the indictment he lost everything except for this house because it was free and clear and willed to him from his father. My uncle and I made sure he lost everything else.

“How does it feel to know Nicky Blake’s son is the one who took everything from you?”

He turns to me with fire in his eyes. “I’d say we’re about even. I wanted him to know my pain, I had a wife who pined after a married man.

“He was barking up the wrong tree with one of his cases. Politicians and businessmen who were set to ensure I remained the DA. When they wanted to send him a message, I was more than happy to have his wife murdered. It was a favor to her.”

I didn’t think my rage could get any deeper. This man has ruined so many lives. Fucking coward.

“You’re a piece of shit.”

“So I’ve been told. My father hated me. Did you know that? I lost my ability to have an heir trying to impress him. Gymnastics.

“The balance beam, instead of focusing on my routine I looked for him in the crowd and lost my footing. Smashed my fucking nuts. I never doubled up the leotard and shorts. It chafed, I’ve regretted that for the rest of my life. He looked at me like a broken piece of garbage after that.”

“You are.” I shrug.

He snarls at me. “I should have backed over that son of a bitch after I hit him for fucking my wife and building her a house to take her away from me. It was bad enough I had to look at you. I mean, of all the men in Vander she had to fall into the arms of a fucking Blake.

“Not just any Blake. The one that threatened my job, my future. The goody-two-shoes. The entire family was more corrupt than me. The shit they’ve done in this city.

“The mayor, the councilwoman, they’ve all received favors from the Blakes and now I’m looked upon like shit?” he roars, spit falling from his mouth.

“You sound like a whiny bitch.”

“We’ll see who sounds like a whiny bitch when I embarrass you all the way you all embarrassed me. Your little girlfriend, her father, the Blakes, the Castros, anyone you care about and all you sons of bitches that tried to ruin me and leave me for dead, I’m going to destroy you all.

“I was so glad to find out you were on the race team. You’d both go to jail for trafficking. See her father get you two out of that,” he laughs and looks at his empty glass with a frown.

I saunter over to him slowly. It’s all I can do to keep my temper in check. When I get to him, I grab him by the back of his hair, spin him, and slam his face into the fireplace mantel.

The tumbler he was holding falls to the ground. I grab the arm the glass was in and hold it into the fire. He bellows and tries to fight against my hold, but he’s no match for me.

“This is for every time you’ve put a hand on someone dear to me. When you’re in hell, I want you to remember me as you burn.”

“You bastard. Let go of me. Oh God, let go.”

“Tell me who helped you,” I snarl.

He screams. I shove his arm in further. “Who helped you?” I demand.

“I don’t know.”

“How don’t you know?

“Let me go and I’ll tell you,” he cries out.

I grab his collar and tug him back. His face is covered in sweat. It’s so satisfying to see him cradle his blistered arm the same way Skittles had her swollen one last night. I want him to feel all of their pain. Everyone in my life I care about that he’s hurt.

“I received a package four years ago. It had a detailed plan on how to nail all of you. Files on each of you, pictures of you and all of your friends, information on Marquis and his races.

“Access codes to the accounts I would need to place the plan in