DEMI
I wait with bated breath as the line trills. Anna finally picks up.
"Demi?" Her voice is hoarse. She has definitely been crying.
"Hey." I take a deep breath to steady myself. "Erm, everything is going to be fine, okay? Asher is…."
"Where are you?" The question catches me off guard.
"What?"
"Your in-laws put out a statement that you and Asher are currently on your honeymoon vacation outside of Danvarr and so he isn't the one in the video. There are pictures of you two together on a beachfront. Ashal did a video apologizing to the public for our kiss, claiming it was poor judgment on his part. You know Danvarr loves him as the least scandalous quad so he's been getting a lot of love. The hate comments for the Rollins family have morphed into hearts and fire emojis. I'm the only one left to hang dry now, Demi." She chokes back some tears. "You said this wouldn't happen, that I won't be out of a job. I need to support my family, Demi."
I can't believe how quickly the quads dispelled the rumors. My head is thrumming. "It's okay, Anna. Asher promised to handle it. He is…"
"Asher?" Anna questions with a sudden stern voice. "Asher is going to help me? Demi, Asher was the one who threatened Donna to fire me or she'll lose her business. Donna wasn't happy to let me go but she couldn't risk losing the Blue Cove." Anna's sobs wracked through my system, breaking my heart in splinters.
"No, that can't be right. He promised…" The moment the words leave my mouth, I realize how silly I have been. How could I trust Asher to have compassion on Anna? He played me. They all played me to get me out of the house. Now, Anna is getting the short end of the stick.
I sense his presence the minute Ashely walks in and hang up while Anna continues to sob and blame me.
"Did you know that Asher never planned to help Anna?"
Ashely huffs. "Of course, I told him not to."
I whirl to him, shocked by his response. His eyes are narrowed to slits. In his billowing shirt and flower-patterned shorts, he looks just as natural and smug as he does in a custom-made suit.
"Why? Why would you stop him?"
Asher strolls past me, shoves the wide balcony doors open and leans on the rails overlooking a jewel-toned beach. "Because we are not Jesus, Demi. We don't forgive our enemies."
"Anna is not your enemy!"
"SHE IS." He yells at me. "She is an enemy of my family! She leaked that video knowing exactly what it would do to our family and business reputation! She's heartless" His eyes look pained and frustrated. Though he is talking about Anna, it almost feels like he means to call me out.
"She knew! Just because it didn't go the way she hoped doesn't mean she's remorseful!" He smoothed his hair as it flapped in the wind. "If she wanted money, she could have just asked us. She callously attempted to sully our reputation and now she has to pay."
"Ashely, please…"
"I won't hear it." He warns with a finger in my face. I've never seen him this angry. Breath explodes out of my lungs and shudder back in as I sink to the floor. What have I done? Why didn't I think this through? I recall my safety net, surge to my feet and try dialing a number. This was the plan all along.
"Don't bother calling mom. She won't help you either."
My fingers tremble now. I can't believe I shot myself in the foot. How did this happen? Ashely watches me out of the corner of his eyes. His fingers tighten around the rails as he grits his teeth. I fear to think he knows the truth. Do they all know the truth? Is that why he's been giving me the cold shoulder ever since we got to Brellis?
He tries to walk past me.
"Ash"
Grabbing his hand, I rise from the floor with a dejected look on my face. If I believed any of the quads had a heart, it had to be Ashley. I dry my eyes, ready to appeal to the kindness I know he already possesses. He stands rigid with his back to me.
"Anna didn't send the video."
He doesn't turn. I flex my fingers and press my eyes shut as the tears threaten to well up again.
"I did." His rigid shoulders sag as he spins to face me. His eyes right now are not just angry but murderous. He grabs my shoulders and shakes me violently.
"HOW COULD YOU? HOW COULD YOU BE SO INHUMANE, DEMI? WE TRUSTED YOU!" I fall with a thud as he shoves me, grazing my elbows on the floor. "You were supposed to be good! I defended you every time my brothers grew suspicious. How could you?"
"ASHTON TRIED TO RAPE ME!" I scream above the pulse of his voice with my hands over my face. That pauses his angry accusations. Ashely's eyes boggle at me. His hands go limp before they slide down my shoulder. I hug my knees as the painful memory refreshes.
"What did you say?"
I manage to glance at him with my blurry eyes. "Ashton tried to rape me…yesterday, at home." My skin tingles unpleasantly and I look away from his face, because the man that tried to assault me unfortunately looks just like Ashely too. "I-I was in my r-room. I had just f-finished talking to Anna on the phone. When I turned, you were standing there by my door. I didn't hear you come in."
I glance at his pale face as tears streams from mine. "At first, I thought it was you. I mean, no one else would barge in like that. He was dressed exactly like you, smelled like you but his words and his eyes were different."
Bile tickles my throat as I recall the incident. I hate to do this but he needs to know that he can't always trust his brothers. They clearly didn't tell him about their little switcheroo that almost cost me my virginity. Ashley surprisingly remains speechless as I rattle on.
"He accused me of having ulterior motives and when I wouldn't listen to his accusations, he shoved me on the bed…"
"STOP." Ashely staggers away.
"I was so scared, Ash." And I was. "I called for you, for mother…" My voice breaks as the sobs take over. I should have told him sooner. I shouldn't have tried to fix things myself. "He threatened to ruin me and silence me. He said your family would never take my side even if I was innocent, that you wouldn't rat on him no matter what, that the marriage contract was meaningless…"
"You can't be sure it was him." Ashley tore his moist eyes away from my face.
"But I am. That wasn't the first time he's been in my room. He came in once to wake me for breakfast after the incident with you and Nicola. He calls me Branson, Ashely. That's how I knew it was him. He called me Branson last night before leaving."
Ashely shakes his head and tries to leave but I quickly grab his arm. I need a brother on my side if I must help Anna. I hate that I have to relive that scary incident but everything about it is true. Hence, I fend off the guilt surging in my belly.
"I was barely recovered from that shock when I was sent the video of Anna and Asher. I was angry and confused. At the time, I feared it was Ashton toying with my mind. I thought he meant to use Anna to blackmail me to keep quiet about the incident. I should have told you everything." I plop on the nearest couch and bury my face in my hands while Ashely watches me in pain.
"I thought sending the video to Billion-Err would compel you all to distinguish yourselves but I meant no harm. I just want to be able to recognize you Ashley so I can better protect myself from Ashton or any of your brothers who impersonates you like that. Please don't hate Anna. It's all my fault. I didn't think about her when I leaked the video. I was too preoccupied with thoughts of saving myself from Ashton's wicked schemes."
The tears flow freely from my eyes until I feel Ashely's arms around me.
"I'm sorry." He croaks. Tears shimmer in his eyes. "I'm so sorry about everything. You didn't deserve that." He pulls me into his chest and wraps his arms around me. We hold on to each other, sniffling and hurting.
Ashely continues to apologize for the rape scare but he fails to blame Ashton or promise to confront him over the issue. Blinking, I gently pull away from his embrace and stare into his misty eyes.
"Did you know?" My heart is beating rapidly now. "Did you know that that was going to happen to me, Ashely?" His prolonged silence is all the answer I need. Gasping, I crawl away from him.
"Demi, please…"
"Stay away from me." My chest hurts with the sting of betrayal. I know I have no right to expect anything from him but given the little I now know of his personality, it's a rude shock to realize Ashely can stomach the idea that Ashton was going to treat me that way. Even worse was the way he pretended afterwards like he had no idea why I was jumpy around him.
"You lot are evil."
I manage on all fours to put a good distance between us only for him to circle me and stand in front of me again.
"Demi" he says, crouching on his knees with his hands open in a gesture of truce. He looks as desperate as I just did while begging for Anna. "It was Asher, not Ashton. Asher said he wanted to ask you some questions. He had concrete doubts about what transpired in Blue Cove. I had no idea of the rape thing. You have to believe me. I would never have agreed if I knew he meant to scare you like that." Crying, I fall into his arms because I need to believe he has my back.
It's one thing to punish a person because they have done something to deserve it but to put someone through hell without having sufficient cause is plain wickedness. Ashley holds me while I wail. I feel a tear on my forehead as he rocks me.
"I'm so sorry. I'll do everything I can to help Anna."
"Your family, they'll never forgive me. They won't let you help Anna."
He cups my chin and blots out my tears with his other palm. "I can't get Donna to give her a second shot but I can take care of her money troubles while she looks for a new job. Isn't that what you hoped mom would do?" I nod, a small smile working its way to my lips.
"Thank you, Ashley. Thank you." He holds me a little longer before releasing me to make some calls. I whip out my phone to call Anna and tell her the good news. She takes a while to accept my call and when she does, her spirit is lifted with the news of financial aid coming her way.
"How did you manage to convince him, Demi? How did you pull it off"
I pinch the bridge of my nose, sampling the right way to answer the question. "Lots of tears." Real ones, I note mentally. I hadn't planned it. It was too real and too painful to be rehearsed.
Ashely returns later at night and looks baffled as I throw my things from the hangers into my suitcase."
"You're back." Smiling, I drop the clothes in a heap on the bed. "How'd it go?"
"Erm, I wired some money to her preferred account. I also spoke with a few friends about a possible job opportunity." He scratches his head and points at the mess on the bed. "What's going on?"
"Oh, I am packing for home. The rumors have been dispelled. Whatever your brothers did worked." I shrug my shoulders. "We don't need to hide away here. Let's leave tomorrow. I'll stay indoors with mom if it makes you all feel better but I don't want to be away from Danvarr any longer. I want to see Anna. Aunt and Kira have been blowing up my phone too. I'm sure you also want to be with your family as well."
"Erm, maybe we can stay for a few days? Explore the stunning blue lagoons and coconut groves. C'mon, we just got here." Somehow, his voice lacks the thrill of excitement his suggestion is meant to convey. My phone rings just as I am about to politely turn down his offer. I don't have the time to spend running barefoot on the powder-soft white sand beaches or napping in hammocks.
"Hold that thought." I utter before picking my phone. It's a call from Mr. S. I flash my pearly whites at Ashely before turning to pick the call. Mr. S goes on a rant about me frolicking on the beach while things are turning to shit back home. I have no clue what he means.
"Your fucking ex-boyfriend is over here granting interviews and spitting lies about your relationship. He's raising questions you're not ready to answer. It's almost like he has been planning this for a while or was meticulously prepped for this."
"What?" My phone almost slips from my hands in shock. "Iman? What is he saying?"
"It's not so much what he is saying as it is the questions he's raising in people's minds with what he isn't saying. The jerk is over here steering people to believe that you're not the angel they paint you to be and that you hold a grudge against the family you married into. He's got the receipts to prove it, something about your magazine collection where you defaced the pictures of the Rollins' family. It's really looking bad. You need to return asap and clear your name before you're ruined."
When I turn to face Ashely, he is gone.