The Blackmail Marriage

chapter 1

'What do you mean you sank his yacht!?'

Marguerite stared at her younger brother in abject horror.

'He deserved it' A petulant scowl took up residence on Cyril Durrant's twenty-one-year-old face.

'Oh, my God.' Cyril, do you have any idea of what you've done?' She lifted her tortured gaze to his.

'I thought you'd be happy and pleased that I made a stand at long last. After all, he's the one who ruined Dad.' Cyril said with a hint of pique.

Marguerite shut her eyes. 'I can't believe I'm hearing this.' 'It's all right,' he reassured her. 'He has no idea who did it.'

She opened her eyes to face him. 'How can you possibly know that for sure? People like Ashton Matheus Karlsson always know who their enemies are.' You do realise what this means, don't you!?' She returned to face him once more, her expression pale with sorry.

Her brother gave a dismissive shrug. What are you so worried about? He's never going to know it was me'.

'Ofcourse he'll know it was you! You've already got a police record! It's not going to take him long to put two and two together and come up with your name, and once he does you can be certain of one thing-he'll make sure you end up in prison.'

'I'm not going to prison,' he said emphatically.

'No you're not. Atleast not if I can help it.' She gnawed her bottom lip as she haunted her brain for as solution.

'I'm glad I did it, no matter what you think.' Proud defiance had entered at Cyril's voice. 'Anyway, it's not as if he can't afford another yacht; he's positively loaded.'

'That's the whole trouble, dont you see?' Desperation was creeping into her tone but there was nothing she could do to stop it. 'Unlike us, he can afford the very best legal advice. You won't have a leg to stand on, especially after that last car you stole.'

'I didn't steal it, he protested. I borrowed it.'

'Don't split hairs, Cyril. You know you stole it and you were incredibly lucky to get out on bail, which I might remind you at this point I have yet to pay back to the bank.

'I'll pay you back when I get a job,' he promised. Marguerite sighed with frustration. 'And when is that going to be? You've already had three jobs, none of them lasting for a week. I can't keep covering up for you and at the same point you're going to have to take responsibility on your own. You're not a child or teen anymore. You need to grow up and be matured enough to face all the hardship of life. Stop blaming eveyone's else for what's gone wrong to your life.

'Ashton Matheus Karlsson wrecked our lives,' Cyril saidf bitterly. 'How can you sit back at simply let him get away with it?'

'There are better ways than sinking million dollar boats,' she pointed out wryly. We could have gone to him and stated our case, perhaps fought for conpensation.'

'Oh yeah, right.' His voice was scathing. 'He'd laugh in our face, he couldn't give a fig for what happened to Dad when he lost his job. And besides, look at the way he treats the latest women in his life; that man doesn't have a heart.

Marguerite couldn't agree more, but didn't want to encourage her brother's fiery temper. Hardly a day went past without one of the Milan papers revealing how a six-foot-three Italian billionaire playboy have a lot of much money and not enough scruples.