Legacy of Lies (Empire of Lies 3)

When I step onto the concrete floor, I’m met with a colorful array of luxury cars and the sound of my father shouting, “Shit! Shit! Shit!”

“Is the ‘push to start’ button not working?” I call out from the center of the garage. I pull a set of keys from my pocket as my father slowly steps out of the car. “I hate when that happens, and you have to rely on the keys.”

“Okay, Meredith.” He slams the driver’s side door shut and glares at me. “What are you thinking about doing?” He shrugs. “You’ve shown your little video and attempted to shame me already. Are you going to murder me in cold blood now, in front of the goddamn garage cameras? With an invisible gun or something?”

“The cameras aren’t on right now,” I say, pulling an unloaded beretta from my waist. “And this gun isn’t invisible.”

His eyes widen, and he suddenly looks more vulnerable than I’ve ever seen him before.

“Wait, please,” he says, his voice soft and unconvincing. “I know you’re not going to believe me, but…I’ve been really messed up about what I did…On a personal level, I did cry, and I even called to see if they’d been gentle with you. On a business level, you have to understand what was at stake, but I’m more than willing to give you your inheritance now. No strings attached. I’ll cut the check for eighteen million right now if you just—” He tries to step closer, but I cock the gun—silencing his bullshit.

“I’m going to give you two options,” I say, steadying my finger. “Option one, you go to prison for murder for hire, and you lose everything. Your money, your properties, all of your friends who will be ashamed to have ever known you. Option two, you still lose everything, but you’re taken someplace where no one gives a damn about what money you have—because you won’t have any left, and you’ll be miserable as hell and never seen or heard from again. You know, just a taste of what you gave to me.”

He’s silent.

“You should know that Page Six and The New York Times—along with every publication in this city, is currently receiving that video. They’ll also receive some dirty laundry about how you started your business, as well several emails that I’m sure you never intended anyone to see. You know, the ones about you not losing any sleep about me being gone, to Aunt Catherine.”

“Meredith…” He shakes his head, looking far more upset about the tarnishing of his reputation than anything else I’ve said. “You didn’t…”

“Yes, I fucking did,” I say. “And actually, this is a two for one deal, so you may want to choose your option carefully.” I step back, and Michael appears—walking behind me.

He opens the back of a white sprinter van, revealing a gagged and bound Aunt Catherine. Dried and cracked mascara stain her cheeks, and her pupils are bloodshot red from hours of crying.

She suddenly looks up, taking in the sights of both me and Michael, and she still looks stunned as fuck.

“She’ll be joining you wherever you go,” I say.

My dad swallows hard as sweat forms on his brow. There’s a pained look in his eyes, but there isn’t any remorse. He knows he’s lost this game. That there’s no chance for a comeback.

Michael takes the gun from me, sliding it into his waistband. “You may want to make that decision within the next ten seconds, Thatchwood,” he says, pulling out his phone. “The police are about to be on their way.”

“Option two,” he says, looking at me. “Option two…”

“Interesting choice.” Michael taps his phone screen a few times, and a yellow cab pulls out from one of the far parking spaces.

Trevor, dressed in a hoodie that covers his face, steps out of the driver’s seat and pops the trunk open. He doesn’t wait for my dad to catch his drift. He pulls out his own gun and forces him to get inside.

He and Michael gently carry my aunt to the backseat—wrapping her in a rug before shutting the door.

The moment Trevor returns to the car and pulls away, the elevator doors on the far end of the hall open. A group of policemen runs into the garage, searching for the man who will now be “gone-gone” from my life forever.

I don’t shed a single tear.

Michael

Now

Thatchwood Victory Party Rocked by ‘Murder for Hire’ Scandal

Leonardo Thatchwood Flees the Country after Bombshell Video Surfaces; Interpol Issues Arrest Warrant

The ‘Thatchwood Story’ Optioned for DocuSeries with Netflix: “Craziest [Shit] We’ve Ever Purchased!”

Meredith Thatchwood Requests Privacy; Asks That the Press Print Her Name as “Meredith Anderson”

Meredith Anderson Takes Control of Thatchwood’s $4B Trust and Claims $18M Inheritance

Today is the first time in forever that the mainstream media’s headlines haven’t made me want to question the so-called journalists who write them. Then again, these are only the first five alerts that popped up on my phone today, and I know that there will be thousands more by this afternoon.