by J. Rosemary Moss
Genre: Slash Fan-Fiction (Bonanza)
Rating: PG-13
LINK TO PART ONE
~
Ed Niles strode into the cellar of his building. He had given two of his men orders to fetch his employee, Gregory Miller, and teach the man a lesson. Neither of the mercenaries knew or cared what lesson they were teaching—but they clearly enjoyed handing it out regardless.
Miller, Niles reflected, was not looking his best. The man’s face was bloodied and bruised, masking his attractiveness. That aquiline nose of his was broken and, by the look of it, unlikely to heal properly. His hands were tied behind his back and he was cringing in pain. No doubt he had a broken rib or two to match his broken nose.
Niles stared at him for a long moment. Some of his fury at the man died away. David Griffin deserved the blame for Stephen’s death—he was the one who had seduced him into a revolting relationship. Miller had merely seized an opportunity to take advantage of the seduction.
Besides, it was a clever plan: marry Marty and then make sure that Stephen became estranged from his father. If it had worked, Miller would have been a very wealthy man.
Would he have murdered Niles to hasten the inheritance? Would he have harmed Marty afterwards, attempting to make himself a wealthy widower? That was hard to judge.
Niles nodded at the two mercenaries and they hauled Gregory to his feet. One more nod and both mercenaries left them in privacy. But Miller knew that they would not go far—one shout from him and they would both come running.
“You’re going to divorce my daughter,” Niles said calmly. “Marty will not inherit a cent from me until you do, so don’t look to make your fortune by murdering me.”
He paused and stared at Miller intently. “By all rights I should kill you,” he commented. “But I still have some use for you—and there’s a tidy purse in it for you if you serve me well. You may even work your way back into my good graces.”
Niles watched with satisfaction as the man’s eyes lit up. He must not have believed that he stood any chance of leaving the cellar alive.
“David Griffin is quite attached to a woman named Avigail,” Niles explained. “He means to marry her—though God only knows if he knows what to do with a woman. At any event, this Avigail ran away from a sadistic husband. He’s in San Francisco, looking for her. You will contact him and tell him just where he can find Avigail—and you’ll let him know that a man named David Griffin intends to protect her and marry her.”
He paused again and looked Miller straight in the eye. “I want you to shadow her husband and make sure he takes suitable action against Griffin. I’m hoping he’ll put a bullet through Griffin—after letting Griffin know that he’s reclaiming his wife. That would satisfy me: Griffin lying dead knowing that Avigail was back in the hands of a monster.”
Miller swallowed. “And if the husband doesn’t take suitable action?”
Niles sighed. “I want Griffin to suffer the way I’ve suffered. I want him to lose something precious to him.”
“So you don’t want me merely to kill him?” Miller asked.
Niles shook his head. “Not before killing Avigail in front of him.”
LINK TO PART SEVENTY-TWO
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