Chapter 4 Onyx
There’s not a lot to be said for college board meetings.
I didn’t really care about the staff or faculty.
I had no love for the dean, and I had a low tolerance level for the vice dean.
I was interested in the stadium and the coaching staff, and would be until my brothers and cousin were finished here.
My family ran this college from the day they laid the first brick. A Santo was always on the college board, and at the moment, there were three of us — my dad, my uncle, and I.
My dad and my uncle were genuinely interested in the running of the college, and they were actively involved in the awarding of the scholarships. I had no interest in that either.
Very little held my interest, which is why I was reading the news on my phone as Dean Porter droned on about Cardinal Saints College being the center of academic excellence. My uncle kicked my ankle beside me, and slowly I turned to look at him and was met with an amused look of innocence.
“Am I interrupting you, Mr. Santo?” Dean Porter snapped.
Three identical stares met his, and I couldn’t help but smirk when the prick paled.
“Which Santo are you referring to?” my uncle Kage asked. There was a history between the dean, my dad, and uncle. I had never gotten to the bottom of it, but I believed it had something to do with the Devils and the mayhem we caused.
Every Santo that ever walked the halls of this college was a Devil.
When my great-great-whatever-grandfather started his venture into higher education, he had caused an uproar at the time by letting people of color into the same college as the shiny white people, which was unheard of in the Deep South.
The local people called them devils for their sacrilegious thinking that no matter the color of your skin, everyone should be treated equally, and everyone deserved an education, should they want it.
Thereafter, the legacy of the Devils was born. Some Devils played pranks, some doled out justice. I was more of the latter. My time in these walls had been what my dad termed as “wilder” than my ancestors, and that was just about the stuff he knew about.
Half-heartedly listening to Porter mumble his way through his protests, I checked my phone as I received a text.
Neil: Clark Fitzpatrick is in the holding cells, Angel’s on her way to the local PD
Fuck me. She needed to drop this guy and fast. Shoving my seat back, I stood as the conversation once more ground to a halt.
“I vote for candidate thirty-three for the English Lit scholarship, candidate seventeen for the Santo scholarship, and candidate twenty-one for the remaining. Coach wants new logos on the uniforms for the Saints, I vote against. The money is better spent on the upgrading of the turf in the stadium.” I produced a report and handed it to my dad.
“I researched it — costly but more maintainable in the long run. We need a new team doctor, as I believe Izzy is handing in her resignation,” I told them as I produced another report.
“These are my recommendations. Dad,” I handed him a handful of reports to pass around, “I need to go to work. My dad has my proxy vote.”
Porter stared at me wordlessly as my dad handed out the reports. My uncle watched me with glee, and bending down to speak to him, I lowered my voice. “Tell the boys I’ll catch them later. They’re expecting dinner. Be a good uncle.”
“I was already planning on seeing my son and nephews,” he told me dryly.
“Such a good dad.” I grinned at him as I clasped my own dad’s shoulder and left the board meeting.
Once outside, I called Neil. “Tell me.”
“She left about twenty minutes ago, said he’s been picked up for drunk and disorderly.”
“She needs to dump his ass,” I growled as I headed to my car. “The press know yet?”
“Don’t think so. She has some kind of understanding with the local cop,” Neil said, as if that were a good thing.
“And Sasha?”
“I don’t know if Angel’s been in contact with her yet.”
“Having a relationship with the cops is nothing if Sasha is already on the phone to the gossip rags,” I snarled as I opened my car door.
“Your plan?” Neil asked me.
“I need Sasha’s number, and I’ll take it from there.”
Firing off a quick text to my younger brother Gray to tell him I was missing family dinner, I headed back to Nashville. The drive took around an hour, and I was in a hurry and intended to make it in less. I also needed damage control, and with that in mind, I called one of the guys.
“It’s me. Need you at the Fitzpatrick house; Sasha called the cops.”
“Fuck, again?” Charlie growled down the phone. “Why the fuck you still his agent?”
“I’m not,” I told him tersely.
Charlie chuckled as I heard him moving about. “Ah, Angel,” he said with delight. “How is your little Dracula?”
“Annoying,” I snapped back. “Text me when you get there. Make sure the attention-seeking bitch has made no calls.”
“Thought we tapped her phones?” Charlie said with his normal drawl.
“We did, which is why I said check.” I hung up.
It was said that the friendships you made in college were friendships for life.
I wasn’t one for friendships, but the four guys who were Devils with me in college were still in my life now.
Owen was a sports reporter. Charlie looked as if he had more muscle than brains, and if you thought that, then you were mistaken.
Jer played pro football, and I was his agent, obviously, and Cooper, well, Coop had his own special skill set.
Making another call as I drove back to Nashville, I waited impatiently for Bill to answer.
Bill was an unrelated uncle, but he and my real uncle were in business together.
Bill built a security company that did everything from home security systems to personal safes, and my uncle financed it.
A fact that my younger brothers had taken advantage of during their days of playing detective.
Bill was good people, and I am sure he suspected that I abused his security systems on a regular basis, but he hadn’t caught me yet.
“Onyx, to what do I owe the pleasure?” he greeted me with his usual cheerfulness.
“Hey, Bill, how’s things?”
“Ahh, asking how I am,” he teased. “You must need something.”
That made me grin. “Need you to check the system at the Fitzpatricks’.”
“No can do, they terminated the contract.”
Crazy fucking bitch. “Don’t tell me, Sasha blamed me.”
“She did mention that she felt she was being watched,” he said, and I could hear how uncomfortable he was.
“She wishes she was being watched,” I answered. “Thought this may be the case. Thanks, Bill.”
“Sure, glad to see the back of them, to be honest.”
Yeah, I would be too. I just needed to hammer the point home to Clark’s agent.
Once I arrived in Belle Meade, I got to Fitzpatrick’s home in good time. His house was palatial and had far too much glass for a wife who complained about her privacy being violated.
Charlie was already there, I saw as I passed his car and headed inside. I walked into the house, ignoring the housekeeper as I passed her. I knew where Sasha would be, and I didn’t need directions, having been here more than I would like.
As I approached their den, I heard Charlie’s voice and recognized his tone. She was already giving him shit.
“I don’t give a fuck, Sash, you know this shit doesn’t fly.”
“He’s a cheating bastard!”
“I fucked you on Sunday night,” Charlie reminded her, and I heard her quick shushing of him.
“How are we doing?” I asked as I entered the room to find Charlie resting against the wall as Sasha Fitzpatrick paced.
She was a good-looking woman, there was no doubt, but she paid a lot to look like she did.
Long blonde hair extensions. A perfectly smooth forehead from regular Botox injections.
Cheek implants that must have hurt like a bitch, her lips pumped full of collagen, and her tits pointing north no matter her age.
Looking her over and taking in the skimpy top, the short shorts, and the five-inch heels, I had a fair idea why Charlie would stick his dick in her regularly.
“Ugh, who let you in?” she snarled at me.
“Seems your new security provider is lacking.”
“Well, I’d rather it was lacking than having you jerking off to me naked.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. “You think I’m sitting at home watching you?” Looking over at Charlie, I saw him grinning back. “Sweetheart, if I wanted to see you naked, I’d just go watch the sex tape of you sucking off the pool boy as you got fucked in the ass by the gardener.”
I ducked as she threw the glass vase at me, and it smashed into the wall behind me.
Clark Fitzpatrick cheated on his wife, and everyone knew that.
What everyone forgot was that his wife was a vapid little slut who spread her legs for anyone.
He cheated because she fucked anyone who looked her way.
Which is why Angel needed to drop this client, and as Sasha screamed obscenities at me, Charlie told me she hadn’t made any calls to the tabloids, yet.
Blocking out Sasha, I called Neil.
“Get legal, start the termination of contract today, invoke clause forty-one, subsection C.”
“Angel?”
“Has no choice but to accept it. It’s my company, and my say is final.”
I heard him sigh. “Are you at least going to tell her first?”
“I’m sure she’ll already be aware.” I was sure she wouldn’t, but it wouldn’t come as too much of a surprise.
My whole agency knew Clark was a problem we didn’t want.
Yes, it was good business to show that, as agents, we could handle our clients’ problems, but when the client was the problem, that was no longer as good for business.
“I’ll draft the email,” he told me. “Do not copy her in. Tell her.”
“You do that.” I hung up.
Charlie was waiting patiently as he watched Sasha throw her fit of temper, no longer caring that she had no audience.
“You done?” he asked me.
“Yeah, should take about an hour to get it drafted up.” Glancing at my watch, I looked over at Sasha. “Distract her?”