First Piece of Truth

First Piece of Truth

Kash

THE SECOND ARABELLA leaves the library with Brock's arm around her shoulders, we all decide to leave as well. There's no reason for us to remain here when the entire reason we've been sitting in here has now left. Arabella stood up for herself for the first time and I wanted to go up and tell her how fucking proud of her I am. But, I know she won't appreciate that shit from me. It appears as if she's getting whatever it is she needs from Brock. I know Fallon said they spent all of their time together, but it's completely different to actually see how she interacts with him. None of us know anything about Brock aside from the fact that he's new to High Point and plays football with Braxtyn, Dash, and Fallon. He doesn't go out and party like everyone else and only spends time with Arabella. I've never seen him with a girl of his own. Maybe they really are together. My heart breaks at the thought of her being with someone who isn't one of us.

Together, we walk to our house on campus and ignore everyone who tries to capture our attention. Today is one of the rare times I don't have my face buried in my tablet, depending on the guys to guide me around any obstacles in my way. Dash and Fallon are the main two who lead me on the path we're supposed to be following. Right now, my mind is spinning with the thought of what's really going on with Arabella and Brock. I'll be in front of my computers soon enough and don't need to be on my tablet right this second. It's mainly for when I'm not at home and I don't want to have anyone's attention on me.

The second we enter the door, Dante stops us all in our tracks with a few words.

"We need to find out what the fuck is goin' on with Sunshine. She literally bumped into me at the gate of campus on her way inside a few days ago and yelped in pain. Someone beat the absolute hell out of her. I saw the bruises on her arms and I'm sure that's not the only place she's hurt. In fact I know it's not. With her hair down actin' as a fuckin' shield against the world, I'm positive her face has marks on it as well. But it's her ribs and I imagine most of her body. I tried to get her to tell me what the fuck happened to her, but she refused and walked away from me," he informs us, anger filling his face as he looks at each one of us.

"You're just now fuckin' tellin' us this shit?" Fallon questions him as all of our levels of anger rise and fill the living room of the house we share on campus.

"Yeah. None of us are home at the same time and I don't want to have to repeat myself multiple times with the same fuckin' information," he says, his voice cold and hard as he looks around the room again.

Before I can respond, my phone starts vibrating in my pocket. I pull it out and groan in response when I see my father's name on the screen. He's the last person I want to talk to right now. I'm not in the mood to ever talk to him, but today is really not a good day when my entire world is shifting and I don't know what the fuck I can do to stop it from happening.

Taking a deep breath, I hit the answer button and put the phone to my ear. "Hello, Father."

Everyone in the room around me goes silent because we all know when one of our fathers call us, it's never going to be a good thing. They're simply going to issue some order or demand and try to force us to bend to their will. I'm so fucking over this shit. I'm not a minor any longer and yet my father still feels as if he can control me with a few well-placed words and threats. He can cut me off from his money, but he can't take away the money from my mom or my grandparents despite his effort to get his hands on the money that's in my name.

"Kash, what the fuck are you doing?" he barks into the phone and his voice lets me know he's been drinking and he's pissed as fuck.

"I just got home from classes and am gettin' ready to study," I answer him, my voice bland and void of any emotion at all.

"It's about fuckin' time you do somethin' you're supposed to do," he shouts as everyone whips their head toward me since they can hear him without me putting the phone on speaker. "I'm calling to let you know that a contract has been signed for your marriage. You will be marrying Collette and taking over The Faction when I deem you worthy of the position. In your place, I will rule The Faction until you're completely ready."

"No. I'm not gonna marry Collette or anyone else you try to force on me. Collette is a vile bitch and I won't tie myself to her despite what you say and order," I say, knowing the next time I see my father he'll punish me for going against him.

"You'll do what I say, Kash. You're too late to try and stop anything from happening. The contract has been signed by myself and her father. You have until the end of the year to get your head wrapped around this information. Don't fuck this shit up, Kash, or you'll suffer even more," he growls out before hanging up the phone on me.

"Fuck!" I groan out, my voice low and defeated at the thought of being with a skank like Collette.

"Don't worry, Kash. We'll make sure this doesn't happen. One way or another, we'll all get out of the contracts that have been signed regardin' our marriages," Fallon says, determination filling his voice as I shake my head and leave the living room.

Making my way to my room, I close the guys out and make sure the door is locked. They don't bother me while I'm in here working, but I know today at least one of them will come in to check on me after that phone call from my father. They know I hate dealing with him and the pain that I've suffered at his hands. Not just physically but mentally and emotionally as well. He's forcing me into a life I don't want with Collette because he's a greedy, power hungry fucker. I will never give into his demands when it comes to this marriage.

Sitting down at my desk, I pull out the bottle of Jack I have hidden in there and unscrew the cap. There's no reason to bother with a glass since I'm the only one who drinks this. I don't drink often, and I won't get sloppy drunk tonight, but I need something to dull the pain and anger coursing through my veins. It feels as if a volcano is simmering beneath my skin and just waiting for the right time to explode into a raging inferno. I know if that happens, I'll lose complete control of myself and that's something I try not to ever let happen. I refuse to be anything like my father and he's always been the one to lash out.

***

I can't tell you how long I've been locked in my room in front of my computer screens. After a few large gulps of the alcohol to numb myself, I put the cap back on and hid it back in my drawer. Though, I'm not really hiding it from anyone because the guys all know where I keep my bottles of alcohol. I might not drink around people I don't know or around large groups, but I do drink every now and then. Typically because of my father and his fucked-up views of the world and The Faction. He's so fucking delusional that I'll never follow or give into what he wants. Not if I can control it and determine what I truly want in my life. I already know what that is. Arabella, my sweet Song Bird, is the only woman I'll ever fucking marry and have in my life. No one else will ever compare to her and I refuse to settle for anyone beneath her.

Just as I go to get off the computer for the night after not finding anything once again, I strike fucking gold. Buried deep on the computer of Arabella's grandparents, I find a copy of their will. Pulling it up, I see that we've all been duped by our fathers. They put a fake will in place and fooled all of us because of their selfishness and greed. Before I continue reading the will, I pull up a different screen and hack into the server of the lawyer's office where the will was drawn up. Looking up the file the lawyer has on Arabella's grandparents, I find the same will in his file that I've just found. Pressing a few buttons, I print off the papers so I can read them over and not be stuck sitting in front of my computers the rest of the night or tomorrow to go through all the details.

After reading through the will several times to make sure I'm fully understanding everything that's been written, I grab all the papers and head out to find the guys. They're all sitting in the living room. Dash and Braxtyn are playing a video game while Dante and Fallon are studying as they sit in the recliners. Fallon looks up when I enter the room and stumble a little bit after sitting in the chair for so long and with the alcohol still flowing through my body.

"What's goin' on, Kash?" Fallon questions, bringing the rest of the guys' attention to me as I plop into a recliner and don't move for a second.

"I finally found somethin'," I answer, excitement filling me. "We can fuckin' get rid of Collette once and for all."

"How the fuck do you figure?" Dante questions, slamming his textbook closed as he gives me his full attention with confusion filling his face.

"Because the will that was presented to The Faction and everyone else is fuckin' fake. I have the real will for her grandparents in my hands. I've hacked into the lawyer's office to ensure they match. This was buried deep on her grandpa's computer. They're an exact match. Collette and her family get absolutely nothin'. Arabella is to inherit everythin'. Includin' the seat of The Faction. Collette will be nothin' more than a fuckin' skank like she is now. Arabella gets the mansion, all the money includin' what's already been spent if that's happened, and everythin' else they left behind," I inform the guys as they sit up straighter in their seats and abandon everything that I'm saying instead of what they've been doing.

"Are you fuckin' for real right now?" Braxtyn questions, a smile lighting up his face as Fallon steps up and takes the papers to look over for himself.

The papers I printed out make their rounds between all the guys before I'm handed them once again. None of us say a word in response to what we've just discovered. Arabella doesn't have to live in the poor section of High Point any longer. Once she knows about the will and contacts the lawyer to get everything switched over to her name, Collette will be kicked out of the house and will no longer hold any claim over the assets that rightfully belong to Arabella to use as she sees fit. I know she's not going to go through the money or anything like what Collette would do. She is very frugal from what I remember and know she'll do everything in her power to ensure The Faction gets better moving forward. If she accepts her seat at the table and marries one of us.

Personally, I know if I'm the lucky fucker who gets her hand in marriage then I'll treat her like the fucking queen she is and make sure she sits at the table with me at her side. I won't ever take that position from her simply because no one has done it in the past. Arabella deserves to have her place in life elevated no matter the cost or what anyone else thinks about the situation. I'll gut my father in order to make sure he doesn't hurt her in any way. For the first time in a very long time, I'm ready to fucking step up and claim Arabella as mine. I didn't do right by her when we were younger and I'll spend the rest of my days ensuring she doesn't suffer for a second longer.

"So, there's really only one thing we need to figure out movin' forward," Fallon states, a smirk on his face that I haven't seen in a very long time. "Which one of us is gonna marry Arabella? None of us will ever deserve her and I know it's not gonna be easy to get her to go along with us on this, but we'll make it happen one way or another as long as she doesn't get hurt."

"It's safe to say that we'd all marry her right this fuckin' second," Dante speaks up, his mind already moving a million miles an hour with what this new future with Arabella will look like for each of us.

"I can say I fell in love with my sweet Song Bird years ago. I'm sure it's the same for all of you. However, my father is the one pushin' the hardest right now. I will marry Arabella and go along with whatever she wants to do. I won't force her to give up the seat at the table to rule in her place. What I know is the one who doesn't marry her will have to work with everythin' in them to get back in her good graces," I state, knowing the rest of the guys will put in the hard work to ensure they get back in good with Arabella.

"So, Kash is gonna be the one to marry her?" Dash asks, regret filling his face as he looks around the room at each of us.

His shoulders are slumped in defeat with the knowledge that he won't be the one to marry Arabella. He doesn't believe she'll ever forgive him for walking away from her or accept that he's truly sorry for everything that's happened to her over the years. When we didn't speak up to defend her, Arabella was essentially thrown to the wolves by all of us. She's not going to let any of us back in her life the way we once were for a very long time if ever.

"I think at this point Kash might be the best option. While the rest of us laugh and don't fuckin' speak up to protect her, Kash is usually buried in his tablet and not payin' attention to anythin' around him. It's not an excuse, but she once had a soft spot for each of us. We'll have to work back into her heart and life. Kash is softer spoken than the rest of us and he doesn't fuck as much as we do," Braxtyn speaks up, his voice washing over me because none of them know the truth about me at all.

While I spend time with girls every now and then, I'm a virgin. I've never had sex with anyone because I knew in my heart and deep down in my soul I'd wait the rest of my life to be with Arabella and she's the only one I'd want to give that part of myself to. I've kissed and had a blowjob here and there, but sex has always been off the table. Even when I'm wasted, I haven't let that happen.

"Well, um, I haven't ever been with any girl," I whisper as the room goes completely silent and still.

"Are you serious?" Dante questions, his voice full of wonder as I look up and face him.

"I'm serious. I've made out with girls at parties and gotten a blowjob or two in the past, but that's it. There's never been anyone I want to give myself to like that. I'm not like the rest of you," I say, my voice coming out louder and stronger as I try to defend myself.

"Have you done anythin' to a girl? Or would you be goin' into this completely blind?" Fallon asks, sitting back in his chair and steepling his fingers under his chin as he tries to figure out what kind of experience I have with girls.

"Um, I've gone down on a few girls, but that's it. I mean, I know how everythin' works and what's supposed to happen if that's what you're askin'," I finally answer him as my voice trembles with the fear that they're judging me.

"There's no judgment here from us," Dash says, turning his full attention on me. "I never would've thought you were a fuckin' virgin, Kash. You have your reasons and that doesn't matter to me or any of the guys in this room. We all know you're not comfortable around girls, but I never would've thought you were a virgin. Kash, you were savin' yourself for your Song Bird, weren't you?"

"Yes."

"Good. Kash will marry Arabella once we can get her to talk to us. And we need to make sure Brock understands he's not to fuckin' interfere in this shit. He doesn't know anythin' about The Faction and what has to happen. Kash, we'll talk and figure out the best way to ensure we get a few minutes with Bella," Fallon says, a crease forming in his forehead as he starts trying to figure out the best way to handle this situation with Arabella.

"I'm goin' back in to see what else I can figure out and find. If I found this after all this time, who knows what else I'll find on the computers I can hack into," I state, getting out of my chair and heading toward my bedroom with the papers in hand.

I pull out a folder and slide the papers in them before writing on the tab so I know exactly what is inside. For now, I'll lock them in my safe so no one can get to them and try to destroy them. I also save a copy of them to a flash drive that I hide in my room. The guys all know where my hiding spots are and the combination to my safe. No one else does though. Plus, we've all been fingerprinted to ensure no one can simply put in a combination and get to the documents I'm hiding. You have to enter the correct combination and then touch a scanner with your thumb in order to get the safe to unlock.

Getting back to work, I make sure to go through everything extremely carefully. Especially when it comes to our fathers' computers. They all had me put security measures in place to make sure no one could hack their shit without them being alerted. The dumbasses didn't realize it would give me the opening I need to hack them and get in each computer undetected. We all knew this was the perfect opening into what we'd need to do to secure our futures and make sure that no one got their hands on Arabella for any reason moving forward.