Brand Me (Imagine Ink Book 2) (13 page)

“Shut your fucking mouth right now, Richard, and walk away.” This was the wrong way to handle his brother when he was in this state, but Michael couldn’t help himself. As long as Tori stayed quiet, Richard would focus on Michael and she’d be safe.

“Walk away? Walk away? I don’t think so, little
brother
, you see, she fucking ran her mouth and needs to be taught a lesson, and well, if she’s fucking spreading her legs for you, then she’s useless anyway.”

“I said, Shut. The. Fuck. Up. And. Walk. Away. Now. And never, I mean never, put your hands on her again. Better yet, don’t even think about her. And if you ever insult her within earshot of me, I will rip your fucking throat out with my bare hands, are we clear?”

“Sure,
baby brother,
I was actually done with her anyway, but let me ask you something? How does it feel when you’re riding her deep, I mean when you’re really buried inside her, knowing that I was there first? But then again, you’re probably used to it, you’ve always been second to…”

The crunch of bone interrupted his words. It wasn’t a conscious decision on Michael’s part to let his fists fly again, it was a reaction he had no control over. Richard had gone too fucking far, and Michael didn’t know if he could pull back this time. Almost instantly, they were rolling around on the floor trading punches and barbs. This time, Michael feared it wouldn’t end until one of them was unconscious or dead.

“You fucking asshole, Tori’s not like that. How dare you insinuate she is!”

Punch, punch, roll.

“Me, you’re the one mooning over a used-up, old whore.”

That was the exact wrong thing to say. Michael wasn’t in control of his body as he delivered blow after blow to his brother. He was the only family he had left in this world, but he couldn’t help it. Tori felt more important to him than this asshole ever did. For brothers, they had never bonded, as they should’ve. That had always bothered him right up until the moment he saw Richard’s hands wrapped around Tori’s throat.

“God, what fucking misdeed did I commit that was so bad that I got stuck with a brother like you. Jeez, Richard, do you even have a soul? A heart? Have you ever loved anyone besides yourself?” Michael asked between blows. Exhaustion was setting in and his punches had lost their, well, punch. It had almost devolved to a slap fight, as it was clear Richard was wearing down, too. “Me? Did you ever love me as a brother?” Michael breathed out the almost-silent question on an exhale, as his fists all but stopped.

Richard, not one to miss the chance to exploit another’s weakness, quickly shifted their roles. Michael found himself on his back with his brother’s livid face looming just inches from his own.

“Love you? You? I loathe you. I always have, even before I knew that you weren’t even my brother.”

“Half-brother is still a brother Richard, but you never missed a chance to make me feel like a half to you.” Michael attempted a comeback, but all he managed were a few half-hearted punches. Richard landed one hell of a blow, then grabbed Michael by his collar and brought their faces nose to nose and spat out words that would change Michael’s life.

“Half, Michael? You flatter yourself. You’re not even half of anything, least of all, my brother. I’ll tell you a little secret…” Richard’s face took on a cruel twist like he was enjoying this beyond measure. “You’re not even a Brande. Not half, not a quarter, not one eighth, nothing. Neither of
my
parents contributed a drop to your tainted DNA.”

I
t felt
like she’d gargled with razor blades and Drāno. Tori sat up rubbing her throat as she took in the heavyweight fight going on around her. Michael and Richard were pummeling each other, and Richard, per his MO, was throwing out hurtful insults to her, to Michael, to anyone he thought could wound his opponent. That’s what he did, but her concern for Michael was growing. He was getting tired, it was clear he wouldn’t last much longer at this rate.

He’d come here for her. After what she’d said, he’d come for her, to Richard’s cabin, no less. She may not have known Michael long, but she knew that seeing Richard was right up there on his list between getting a root canal without anesthesia and having his genitals slathered in honey and sitting atop a fire ant bed. But he’d done it, for her.

Thank God he did, or she would be dead. It was in Richard’s eyes before she lost consciousness. He would’ve killed her, there was no doubt about it. Michael saved her life.

Maybe there was a chance for them to have a relationship, at least, see where one could lead. Tori got a feeling that if it didn’t lead to kids and a change in her surname, she would be devastated, but she was willing to risk it to be with a man like him. He was good, and caring, the kind of man she deserved.

Tori believed the connection she felt to Michael was genuine, and even though they had both set out to cause the other pain, they could be good together. She knew it sounded ridiculous to be sitting here amidst a fight between her just-minutes-old ex and a man she only spent hours with, mentally mapping out her future, possibly their future.

The growing goose egg on the back of her head may account for her less-than-adult thoughts. She giggled to herself at the picture they conjured. She was acting so out of character, not like
Responsible Tori
at all. She wondered if she would end up sitting crossed-legged on her bed writing their names over and over in strawberry scented ink, and doodling little hearts all over the page. It’s sort of what it felt like right now—that first crush kind of high. The one where a million birds take flight in your stomach if he dares to talk to you in the hallway? The kind that feels amazing and fresh and all-encompassing.

God, she needed to get a grip and break up this fight before it went too far. Richard appeared to be getting a second wind and Michael seemed spent. The words Richard was grating out in Michael’s face started to soak into her giddy, teenage fantasy world. Oh, no. Michael would be destroyed, but some things Richard had alluded to were starting to click. This must be the secret that he was legally obligated to keep or forfeit the cabins.

Without the benefit of details, and a non-fuzzy mind, she wasn’t sure she could paint a complete picture, but she was starting to see enough. He even declared how he couldn’t wait until the time was up so he could see the look on his brother’s face when he “found out.” Richard had mentioned just having to get through the months ahead without spilling the beans and then he would have the cabins.

When she questioned him, he clammed up, but did confirm it was a secret that he wasn’t supposed to tell at all, but if he did so before the three months were up, the cabins and all properties would revert to his half-brother after their mandatory stay. At the time, she didn’t really notice how he sneered the word half-brother, but considering what he’d just said to Michael, it all made sense.

Michael’s hollow voice broke her heart. “What do you mean not even a Brande?” Richard threw himself backward and crab walked away from Michael as if he’d just realized the error he made.

“Nothing, it means nothing. I was just trying to hurt you. That’s all.” Both men unsteadily gained their feet before their heated discussion continued. Tori rose much more slowly—the dizziness upon rising plastered her against the wall for support.

Approaching Richard, Michael spoke in that lost little boy voice again. “Bullshit, Richard. You say shit for effect all the time, but you’re not that creative. Now, drop the act and tell me how I’m not a Brande.”

“God, you always were a persistent shithead. Fine, but remember you asked. Let me speak slowly so you can comprehend. You. Are. Not. A. Brande. Did you get that? In order to be a Brande, you would need to be born one, and the fact is, you weren’t. Officially, I found out back when mom died, but unofficially, I’ve always fucking known.”

Richard started pointing at, and advancing on Michael, but he wasn’t backing down. He was standing tall, even in the face of this. Tori wished she’d gained enough self-control to stand by his side, but as it was, everything was still blurry. So, she watched from the sidelines as Richard tried to destroy the man she kind of fell in love with.

“Oh, I fucking knew. I hated you from the day
my
mother brought you home. You looked like a fucking red-skinned little shit. Mother said it was dad’s native heritage shining through the generations, that you ‘were blessed’ to have been born with it so predominate.”

Richard was in his face now. “But I say it was a curse, a constant reminder that my mother wasn’t woman enough to keep my dad from wandering. But, the years went on and my prayers that you meet with an untimely accident went unanswered. I watched my mother and father fawn over you like you hung the fucking moon.” Now, he started pacing and talking, but at this point, it didn’t seem like it was directed at Michael so much as himself.

“God, do you have any idea how sickening that was? Watching them love you and cheer for you and be proud of every fucking thing you did while it was always,
‘Watch your temper Richard. You can hurt people like that, dear. Why can’t you be more like your brother?’
” Turning back to Michael, Richard’s temper flared anew.

“Do you know how much I fucking hated to hear that? I swear, by the time mom died, if she had said that shit one more time, I might have killed the woman myself.”

“God, Richard, do you hear yourself?”

“Yes, you little shit, I do. You know, she wanted to tell you, toward the end. She wanted to tell you the whole story, but dad begged her not to. Said he wanted a few more years with the son of his heart before you hated him for the deception. That’s what he called you when you weren’t around, the son of his heart, like I was nothing, just the result of a busted condom or something.”

Tori was blown away by the depths of this ugliness that Richard was displaying. Sure, she knew he could be cruel, but this was beyond anything she’d ever imagined. Michael was upset, it was clearly on his face, but he was in control now, and that was good since he seemed to be the only clear-headed person for miles.

“I was sworn to secrecy when they realized I was in the room. How fucked up is that? They didn’t even notice their own son, their
real
son, right in front of them.”

“You’re delusional, Richard, if that’s how you saw the way they treated you. It couldn’t be further from the truth. Our parents were the most loving people I’ve ever known. Things were good, we were a happy family until you started getting into trouble all the time. They were smoothing things over for you repeatedly. Mom justified every little thing you ever did, until you raised a hand to her. That was when things changed, Richard.”

Michael advanced on him, but not in anger so much as disbelief, like he couldn’t comprehend how Richard didn’t understand him or something.

“Shit, Richard, you were the golden child and you relished your place in the sun, until mom and dad stopped making excuses for you and made you answer for your own actions. You just couldn’t handle a little discipline because you’ve never understood restraint. Mom wanted you to learn to control yourself, but when you couldn’t, they had to step in. Don’t you see? It wasn’t me that was favored. It was you. So much so that mom cried herself to sleep at night and couldn’t bear the heartbreak. That’s when she backed off, not because she loved me more, but because of you and it was killing her to do it.”

“Stop calling them
our
parents, they were mine. MINE! Not yours. You’re just the poor little orphan they brought home when you had no place to go.”

“Are you saying our parents kidnapped me?”

“
My
parents, and no. They have adoption papers and everything. Your mother died shortly after you were born.”

“What? Why would they claim me if…where is my birth father?” Michael’s composure was slipping, but Tori suspected it was because his sanity was taking some brutal hits. To have one’s entire history dismantled in such a manner would cause anyone to falter, but Tori was impressed at how well he was doing, considering. Her bearings were returning, so she made her way toward Michael.

“The same reason they did everything, for you. You’re not even their blood and they destroyed their reputation to protect you. When they agreed to take on this other woman’s bastard, they gave no thought to how it would affect their
real
son.
Your
mother was my mother’s childhood friend or something. She found herself knocked up by a man killed in prison for murder. Apparently, she begged mom and dad to take you because she couldn’t care for you knowing who your father was. They agreed to bring you both home and help her get on her feet but she died in the hospital, so my parents decided to raise you as a Brande instead of the bastard you are. Initially, it was to protect you from the stigma of your father’s crimes, but I think it was so they could replace me.”

Tori made it to Michael’s side and reached for his arm, he seemed shocked that she was there at first, but he interlaced their fingers and gave her hand a squeeze.