The Axelridge Series Book 4 Griff's Red Card

(Chapter song ‘Hurts Like Hell' by Fleurie)

IVY

‘She had so much to live for.’

‘That poor girl. It’s a sin to see her so sad.’

‘Just proves you never know what’s going on inside someone’s head until it’s too late.’

Their voices are far away as I walk through the room filled with people dressed in black.

I barely look at any of them as I slowly make my way to the large, richly decorated, main room. The sea of adult bodies part and my air is gone.

“Ivy. I’m so sorry.”

Tears well as I stare at the ebony black casket at the end of the room, laying on a red fabric covered table. It’s surrounded by large arrangements of red roses. Her favorite. The blown up picture of her bright, smiling face on an easel, makes my heart hurt even more.

I can just make out her soft, light skin and her beautiful black hair. The red roses in her hands match her red lips. She's dressed in a white lace dress and looks like an angel. I still see her dancing with me around this room. Her dress flowed as she twirled me around like a princess. I still hear her laugh. I still hear her tell me she loves me more than the moon itself. She can’t be…

“Go on, dear.”

I feel a hand on my back as they gently push me forward. My feet move, but I don’t want them to. I don’t want this to be real.

I feel all eyes on me as they step out of the way as I walk across the wood floor of the Victorian house belonging to my grandmother.

“Ivy…”

I hear my brothers…just barely…as her face comes more into view. She looks like she’s just sleeping. She doesn’t look like she’s…

I stare at her hands and touch my cheek. I can still feel her. I can still smell her.

I stare at her face and my mind refuses to believe she won’t open her eyes to me.

A tear falls as I reach the casket. My heart breaks when I realize how beautiful she is and that’s she’s gone from me forever.

The woman who gave me life. My mother. Taken from me way to early. My 15 year old mind can’t process this.

My chin quivers and I can’t contain it.

“MAMA, COME BACK!” I sob and jump at her. I grab her shoulders, trying to shake her awake.

I hear some mourners start to cry a little louder, but my tears were crying to heaven to bring my mother back.

“IVY!!”

I feel hands wrap around my waist and I grab the edge of the coffin. It shifts as I hold on tight.

“NO! SHE’S NOT GONE! SHE'S COMING BACK! NO! PLEASE, COME BACK! MOM!!” I wail.

“IVY! IVY, LET GO!!”

“NO, RICH! MAKE HER COME BACK!”

My oldest brother rips my hands off my mother’s casket and smothers me in his large arms as I cry uncontrollably.

“I know…I'm sorry. So sorry.” He cries with me as I lose my breath.

“Richard, end this nonsense!”

“She’s a child! Leave her alone!”

“She’s embarrassing herself and insulting her mother. End it!”

He grabs my head and pushes me back. My breath staggers as I try to get it back. He wipes my cheeks and tries to calm me.

I stare at my brothers blue eyes through my tear filled ones.

“You gotta be strong, Ivy. Mom would want you to be strong, ok? Please. For the sake of the family.” His smile is so much like hers and his voice is caring just like hers. I just can’t get past the pain of it all.

“Why? She can’t leave me! Please. I’ll do anything, Rich. Please, bring her back. I want my mom.” I hitch.

He shakes his head and stabs his short, black hair with his fingers. “Ivy, I can’t. She's gone. I don’t know why, sweetheart. I can’t tell you, but I know she loved you so much and wouldn’t want this to stop you from being the wonderful person you are ok? So I need you to try and keep it together. At least for today.”

Another tear rolls down my flushed cheek as I suck in a shaky breath and nod.

He straightens my glasses and fixes the red ribbon in my jet, black hair. “Ok. I know it’s hard. Just try and think about good times.”

He holds my shoulder as we turn to face the stiff, rigid woman that calls herself my grandmother, though she never feels like one.

“I think we're ok now.” Richard hugs my shoulder and leans down to my eyes.

Men walk to my mother’s casket and try to quickly straighten up the mess I made of it.

My grandmother stands tall in her black floor length dress. Her salt and pepper hair is pinned back, her softly wrinkled face is filled with stern disappointment and her hard eyes glare at me. “Good. I will have no more disrespectful outbursts in this home. Am I understood?”

“Yes, grandmother.” I choke.

“See that she remains quiet.” My grandmother instructs Richard.

“Sure.” He slightly growls.

She turns and walks away.

Richard leans to me. “Bitter old hag.” He smirks which makes me giggle weakly. He grabs my hand. “There’s food in the kitchen. You hungry?”

I shake my head no. I glance at my mother as people stand beside her, softly mourning and dabbing their eyes with handkerchiefs.

“Yeah, you are. You were seen. That’s good enough, sweetheart. Let's get you out of here.” He insists.

I suck in my top lip and nod. He pulls me through the mourners to find food for my growling stomach.

As I walk through the people, I steal the last glances I’ll ever have of my mother again.

“Stop fidgeting and cross those ankles.” My grandmother sits beside me in the large office at the back of her 30 room house.

The house is dark, decorated in deep, rich reds. It’s scary compared to my old one, but my mother couldn’t handle a whole house herself plus raise eight children. We moved in with my grandmother when I was 8 and I’ve lived here under her hard thumb ever since.

“I’m nervous.” I mumble.

She side eyes me. “A lady doesn’t mumble. You sound ridiculous. Be proper or I’ll have you removed.”

“Yes, grandmother.” I mirror her sharp posture and await the lawyer that’s supposed to meet us for my mother’s will reading.

My grandmother turns to my seven brothers behind me. “Richard, wake him up!”

“He worked late.” Richard responds.

“Wake him up!” My grandmother barks.

Richard hits my third brother Wyatt.

“Wha…What did I miss? Are we rich?” Wyatt snorts awake.

“No, idiot. Stay awake.” Richard clenches.

“You try to stay awake after a 24 hour shift.” Wyatt growls back.

“Enough!” My grandmother snaps.

My hand is grabbed from behind by my brother Brian. He’s the youngest brother and my grandmother makes him nervous. He’s always found comfort holding my hand when she’s angry. I look over my shoulder and we exchange smiles.

“So, like, what are we doing here again?” My brother Randy asks for the fifth time today.

Randy is the black sheep of the family. The rest of my brothers are in medical professions. Randy hasn’t decided what to with his life yet, so he parties a lot.

“Bro, you need to lay off the smoke. It’s rotting your brain.” My brother Lenard snorts. He’s the joker of the family and always finds a way to make me laugh.

Richard sighs. “The will reading. Pay attention.”

“Pay attention to what?”

The room groans.

“Can we hurry this up? I’ve got shit to do.”

“Language!!” My grandmother spins in her chair and glares at my brother Jon. He’s constantly miserable and has no problems voicing it.

“Sorry. I have fucking shit to do.” He smirks and crosses his arms. I glare at him and he winks at me. He loves intentionally making my grandmother angry.

“Jon, knock it off.” Richard warns.

Richard is the top neurosurgeon at Manhattan General. He is the most adult one and has basically been my father since our father left when I was three. He broke his fated mark with my mother and ran off with a younger, rich woman. I haven’t seen him since. My mother loved him like a prince. Some prince, huh?

“Don’t worry, Jon.” My forth oldest brother, Eugene says. “Mom was always so…so…so…” His word are interrupted by four consecutive sneezes. “Organized.” He pants and wipes his nose.

“Eugene, did you take your allergy medication?” Richard asks.

“No. I had to pick up Lenard and forgot.” He sneezes again on Jon’s arm.

“Gross!” Jon growls as he wipes his arm off.

“Sorry.” Eugene chokes.

Richard shakes his head. “My medical bag is in the trunk. Go take some anti-histamines.” He hands Eugene his keys.

“Th…th…th…” He sneezes as he stands. “Thanks.” He sniffs and walks out of the room.

“I swear your mother gave birth to animals.” My grandmother sits back smugly.

I secretly scowl at her. She’s always hated us. I believe she hated my mother the most though. It was almost as if she was jealous of her own daughter. My mother was so full of life. She could light any room where my grandmother would only darken it. My mother always taught me to respect her though. She was there for us when my father left.

I try so hard, but some days I feel like running away and not coming back.

The door opens and all our eyes turn to it.

“Good morning. Sorry to keep you all waiting.”

A big, heavy set, man with short brown hair in a brown suit, walks into the room with a couple of other men in suits. He’s carrying a file in the crook of his arm and makes his way to the desk in front of us all.

“Perfectly fine, Mr. Clauson. We know you’re a busy man.” My grandmother says. “My daughters estate is taken care of, that’s all that matters.”

“Yes, well, I’m sure you’re all curious so, I’ll get to it.” He sits, opens the file and pulls out a piece of paper.

“I read today, the last will and testament of one Emilia Ivy White. The deceased. Notarized and submitted.

To my 7 son’s, I leave the house in Lancaster. Full control is to be split between the sons and they all must fully agree on sale of the property before any action is taken.”

“Alright! Party house!” Lenard sits up, excited.

“No! We won’t be partying.” Richard crosses his arms and glares at him.

“God. Loosen up! You’re such a killjoy.” Lenard scoffs.

“That home was a gift to mom. You will treat it with respect.” Richard points at him.

“Can we get on with this!” Jon growls.

“For once, we agree.” My grandmother turns. “Shut up. Both of you.” She turns forward and motions to the lawyer.

“Yes.” He clears his throat. “To my beloved, Ivy.”

My throat pains. I don’t care what I get. Just to hear the words she wrote about me was enough to feel her love.

“Ivy, to you, I leave my entire estate.”

My jaw goes slack.

“Excuse me?” My grandmother grits.

“That’s what it says, Ms. White. The entire White empire including the house in Chadsville, NY, all stocks and bonds and 100% ownership of Clima-Tech.” He reads.

“No.” My grandmother growls with shock. “There must be a mistake! I helped build that company. She can’t give it to a child!” She sits up. “I own 30 percent of those shares! The board will not allow it.”

I have no idea what this means. I flip my head between the two.

“Hey, kid! Look at you. Youngest CEO on Wall Street.” Richard grins as I turn to him.

“What’s a CEO do?” I ask.

“The question asked by every cubicle worker on the planet.” Lenard laughs as he smacks Richard’s chest.

They both chuckle.

“We'll explain it later. Right now, Congratulations. Mom left you a really good legacy.” Richard smiles.

My grandmother narrows her eyes at him. He gives her the same back.

“Oh.” I sit back in my seat, not understanding what this all means.

I know my mother’s company, but to run it, I’m not sure if I can. I don’t know the first thing about being a CEO.

Mr. Clauson looks over the paper. “There is a condition.”

My grandmother perks up. “A condition?”

“Yes.” He fiddles with the paper. “Should Ivy be a minor at the time of my death, then the estate will be held in trust by my mother, Regina White. If she is passed, then the trust will be put in the control of my eldest son, Richard White, until Ivy reaches the age of 21. In that time, all education and funds Ivy needs will be provided to prepare her for the take over.”

“Shit.” Richard grumbles.

A sly, evil smirk crosses my grandmother’s thin lips. “All of it?”

“Yes, all of it.” The lawyer confirms.

“Well.” She sits and fixes her dress and adjusts herself with pompous attitude. “I’m sure my daughter knew what she was doing.”

“And I’m sure you’ll handle Ivy’s money responsibly.” Richard eyes her.

“Of course.” She side eyes him.

“Yeah right. Why do I see a yacht in the next week?” Lenard scoffs.

She snarls her lip at him and he sneers back.

“Grandmother wouldn’t do anything to soil mothers memory, would you?” I look up at her.

“Never, child. I’m your guardian. I know what’s best. Now, hush.” She raises her chin and looks to the lawyer.

He flips the paper. “I guess that’s it.” He drops the paper and folds his hands on the desk.

“Good. I need a drink.” Jon stands and starts to side step past the boys.

“Wait. That can’t be it.” My grandmother sits on the edge of her seat and holds a hand out to the lawyer. “What about me?”

He looks at the paper and shakes his head. “I’m sorry, Ms. White, but there’s no mention of you aside from the act in trust.”

“There has to be something. Bank accounts, assets…” She gives him a confused look.

“Right. It all belongs to Ivy.” He mentions to me.

She turns her eyes to me and I shrink.

“Fine.” She clenches.

She stands and fixes her clothes, proudly then storms out of the room.

I turn to my brothers. “Is she mad at me?”

“No. She’s mad at the fact that her daughter didn’t love her. Don’t worry, kid. We'll stick up for you.” Jon lays a hand on my shoulder.

“Thank you.” I float my head around my brothers as they all agree with Jon.

The door opens. “Hey, I couldn’t find the…the…the…” Eugene sneezes. “The pills.” He groans.

“Ok. I’m coming.” Richard stands and heads for the door.

“Come on, Ivy. I’ll explain what mom did.” Brian smiles and walks me out.

I stare at myself in the mirror of my shower. My wet hair hangs around my head as my fingers float around the small circular scar on my chest.

I reflect on the memories that changed my life forever.

The coming years, after the death of my mother, turned to out to be hell.

My brothers helped as much as they could, but they couldn’t be with me all the time. They moved into the summer home, but there was only just enough room for them all. I was left with my witch of a grandmother and she made me pay day in and day out with her verbal abuse.

She hid my money well and Richard couldn’t do anything about it. The law was the law and since she refused to, he bought all the business courses I needed. He got me into environmental science, just like my mother.

Mom was big on the planet and everything in it. She built Clima-Tech to help create a better world for her kids and everyone. Some of the designs she made were amazing. Unfortunately, the board often blocked a lot from becoming real due to lack of interest.

My mother’s reputation didn’t help either. She was a big time activist and often caused a lot of problems with people who threatened the environment. She created a lot of enemies both civilly and politically. Which is one of many reasons, I never believed my mother threw herself out of her office window. She was so passionate about her work and her children, it made no sense.

For years, I kept it to myself until the attempt on my life was made.

I had only been CEO for a year when a masked man broke into my room in the dead of night and shot me in the chest. The bullet burned its way to my heart and threatened to kill me as I fought him off. He pulled a hunting knife and tried to drive it into my chest.

I pulled his hood off and revealed a man with dark eyes and medium length, silver hair. He growled as his strength tried to overtake me. I kicked him in between the legs, turned his knife on him and stab him in the lung. I struggled out from under him and ran.

Holding my bleeding chest, I rushed out of the room and down the stairs. I called for help, but my grandmother was at a function. I was alone. I heard him coming and ran to the office.

Throwing open the closet, I tried to remember the combination to the gun safe.

As I frantically pushed buttons on the keypad, I heard a body slam on the door.

I whipped my head to it and saw him leaning on the frame, huffing breathes and holding his chest.

My lips shrunk as I heard the lock beep. I opened the safe, grabbed the gun and aimed it. I pulled the trigger without hesitation and the bullet fired across the room and landed between his eyes. His eyes filled with shock before he fell flat on his face.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I dropped my arm and dropped the gun. My hand was covered in blood as I slowly bled to death.

I stumbled over the body and out of the office, crying from the pain against my heart. I felt myself weaken as I tried to pull myself up the stairs. I crawled across the hallway floor in my blood covered nightgown. When I got to my room, the pain was unbearable. I had just enough strength to grab my phone off the nightstand, open it and hit Richard’s number.

I fell to my back and my head fell to face the phone in my hand.

“Ivy…Ivy?...Ivy, answer me…” I heard Richard’s voice.

“Rich…” I panted as my eyes started to close.

“Help…”

My words echoed in my mind and I drifted into the darkness.

And it only got worse from there.