Chapter 63: This Betrayal Cuts Deeper
Zander
I didn’t find anything in the places Ricardo said to look. I planted the listening device on top of
the cupboard and placed it as far back as I could reach. He can’t see it from any angle and he
is shorter than me, so he can’t reach it. I was about to leave his room, when the vent close to
his bed caught my attention. One screw was missing.
I may hate David, but he kept this place in top shape. There is no way he wouldn’t have
replaced that screw. I pull the chair closer and see if I can get the cover open. It’s loose and
came right off with my first attempt. I can see there is something in there, but I can’t reach it. I
ran to get the ladder from the utility closet and took it into the room. I look inside the space,
and to my surprise, there is a stack of cash, a passport and a bunch of letters.
I gently take the passport and open it. It’s definitely Brady, but the name on there is Bradley
Diaz. What the actual f**k! My phone alerts me to a message, so I quickly check it. It was
Chris letting me know that Brady left the bar. He should take 20 minutes if he comes straight
here.
I quickly took a picture of the passport with my phone. Then I take the letters out. They are all
addressed to Brady Williams. That’s the name we know him by. I open them and quickly snap
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pictures. My eyes go to the sender’s name and it’s that mother fucker David.
I don’t have time to read them now, so I took pictures of all the letters and put my phone back in my pocket. I put everything back exactly the way I found it, including the cover. I moved the
chair back and took the ladder and left the room. Before I closed the door, I noticed some dirt
had fallen off the ladder, so I quickly ran back to clean it.
Brady is next level OCD, and he would know someone was in his room if I hadn’t seen that. He
only allows my staff to bring him clean bedding, towels, and to dust. He cleans everything else
himself, down to making his bed. He even washed his windows every second day.
I go find Liz, and she is in the kitchen with two of the staff, Alice and Gina, preparing dinner. I
came up behind her and put my arms around her. “Hey baby, all done.” I whispered in her ear
and she yelps. “You all need to start wearing bells,” she says. “Who else did you think it is?” I
asked, amused. “I don’t know, maybe the other hot billionaire lawyer I am sleeping with.” she
says and chuckles.
$
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” I say, and she turns to look at me. “Recent events and revelations
are making me jumpy,” she whispers, and I nod and kiss her nose and she giggles. I wash my
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hands and help her with dinner, while Alice and Gina disappear to give us some space.
We made Liz’s signature mac and cheese with a side salad and roasted veggies for whoever wanted that. We made extra, because Liz knew Chris was coming by, and he is, obsessed with her mac and cheese. When I took the last dish out of the oven, Brady came into the kitchen.
“Hey Zander, were you in my room?” he asks, and I momentarily freeze, before I put the dish. down. I nearly burned my f*****g hands because he caught me off guard. “Why would you ask that?” I asked. “Your cologne is potent man, did you swim in it?” he asked, chuckling and I laughed too.
f**k I didn’t think of that. “Yeah, Liz asked me to drop off fresh towels. I just left them in the bathroom. Didn’t you get them?” I ask. I know the girls took clean towels in. I saw it in the bathroom. “I didn’t even check, I just got back and went straight to my room,” he says. “Lucky you, I am going crazy here. Don’t get stuck at home dude, they will make you play housekeeper,
“I say and he laughs.
“Hey, you offered, I never forced you. I would’ve done it myself,” Liz says, playing along. “How can I ever say no to you?” I say, walking over to her and stealing a kiss and she giggles. ‘Thank you,’ I mouth and she smiles. “You two really are cute. Even Ricky got him a keeper. I need to settle down, I am not getting any younger,” Brady says as he takes some of the dishes and helps set the table.
“True man, there is nothing better than being in love.” I say. f*****g d**k, how can he seem so
genuine? He still sounds like Brady and acts like Brady. I wonder if he ever felt anything for any of us? I haven’t even had a chance to look at the pictures I took of those letters. I want to
know what he is hiding.
“Zander,” Liz says, snapping me out of my thoughts. “Where is your head at? Brady asked you a question.” “Sorry, I just realized I forgot to call Mr. Dixon,” was the first thing that came into my mind. “It’s okay, you have a lot on your plate. I wanted to check if you are still okay with me
getting off tomorrow. Ricky said I should remind you.” he said and I nodded.
“No problem, man. We are staying in as usual,” I said. “Thanks man, I really appreciate it. I am
going to see my foster dad. He isn’t doing too well,” he says, and normally, I would believe that,
but not anymore. “Let me know if he needs anything and send my regards. I hope he feels
better soon,” I say and he nods. “Thanks Zan,” he says, calling me by the nickname he gave
- me. Asshole. I really thought he was my friend.
We start eating, and the conversation flows like it normally does. While we were clearing up, Ricardo, Robyn and Chris came into the dining room. Ricardo picked up Robyn from work, and
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took her home to get some more of her things. “I smell mac and cheese,” Chris says, and we all chuckle. “Sorry dude, I had the last piece,” Brady says, taunting Chris.
Chris looks at Liz and pouts and she chuckles. “I saved you some, it’s in the kitchen,” Liz says. “For your sake, I hope there is enough for me too. How can you replace me with him?” Robyn asks Liz, showing to Chris, who sticks out his tongue at her. He makes a run for the kitchen, and she chases after him. “How old are they?” I ask, and we all chuckle.
This is so normal, but now we know that one person in our circle is a f*****g traitor. Ricardo looks at me and gives me a sad smile. “Give me a few minutes to drop Robyn’s extra bags in my room. You and I need to go over a few things we just discovered.” Ricardo tells Brady, who is still gathering the dishes.
“Do you need help, bro?” he asks. “Nah, it’s cool. Surprisingly, she didn’t bring her whole wardrobe,” Ricardo says, and Brady and I chuckle, while Liz gives him a look with one eyebrow raised. “You better hope she didn’t hear that,” Liz says, walking out of the room, and we all
chuckle.
How could he hurt such good people? We all get along so well, and we treat him like family. Clara’s betrayal hurts, but Brady’s cuts so much deeper. And having to act like everything’s okay, is killing me. All I want to do is beat his face to a pulp and I know Ricardo feels worse.
When Ricardo comes back, he and Brady disappear and I can breathe again. Ricardo will give him the false information, while Chris fills Liz and me in on their plan. I just hope Ricardo can keep his cool. We went to my office and Chris brought the whole f*****g dish of mac and
cheese with him. “Really man?” I asked.
“I don’t trust Robyn, she will eat my share,” he says, and I just shake my head, while Liz
chuckles. I locked the office door, and we all sat down. I sync my phone to my laptop and turn it around to show them the pictures I took, before I speak. “Before you tell me your plan, look at this.” Chris and Liz both look at the picture of the passport, and they have the same
expression I am sure I had.
“So he is also related to Martha?” Liz asks in shock. “There is more.” I say, showing them the
next picture. “I haven’t read it yet, but they are all old and signed by David,” I say. ‘Your loving
father, David Chris reads and frowns. “That f*****g son of a b***h. Ricardo is going to kill him,
Chris says and I nod.
”
We read the letters, and they were all sent by David to Brady or Bradley, when he was still
younger. I am shocked and a little impressed that they have been planning this for so long. Brady was planted here, just like David and Martha were. My family has been their target all
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along, from day one. I don’t understand why they kept me alive so long.
What was their end game with me? I have to know, it’s going to drive me nuts. Brady’s supposed foster dad is also part of the cartel. He passed the letters on, and they were all to assure him that David loved him and that they could be together when the mission was complete. There is no mention of a mother. This whole thing is completely mental.
“So Brady or Bradley, whatever his name is, is Keira’s cousin? He really doesn’t seem as messed up as they are,” Liz says. She is always looking for the good in people, but sometimes there isn’t any. “Or he is just better at hiding it,” I say, and Chris nods.
“Send these to Perez, he will know what to do. It’s best that David doesn’t know that we know who Brady really is. He may find a way of getting that information to him. We need Brady to fall into the trap we set,” Chris says, and I nod my agreement and email the pictures to Perez.
“Ricardo is letting him know that the FBI decided to drop the surveillance on Keira. They are convinced she knows nothing, so their focus has shifted to David and Horis. They moved them to a secret facility off–grid so that they could torture them, to get to the truth.
Now that I know David is his father, it’s even better. The idea is to get Martha to go save her brothers. But we all know Brady will warn her that it’s a trap. So we want to bait her into coming after Liz instead. We will create the perfect opportunity for her to do just that.
A moment, where Brady thinks Liz will be vulnerable and easy to grab,” Chris says, and I nod for him to continue. This sounds dangerous for Liz, but I will hear him out.
