Reginald Sebastian “Seb” Unglesby III, CEO of Unglesby Energy and one of the most influential men in Dallas, shook his head as he stared at his son. “I don’t understand how you could be so stupid.”

  Reginald the Fourth—“Ruddy” to his few friends—shrank back in his chair. His father was a frightening man even when he was in a good mood, and when he was in a rage he was downright terrifying.

  Seb leaned on his desk. “All you had to do was go to Houston and make a good impression. Go meet with the Harringtons and convince them a merger is a good idea. That’s what I told you to do. And then I get a call from Walt Harrington saying you showed up two hours late, your shirt untucked, stains on your pants, smelling like booze and half-drunk …”

  “I wasn’t drunk!”

  “Shut up! If you weren’t drunk that’s even worse. If I thought you spent the night at a bar, I might stop worrying about you. But Travis says you never left your room. What the hell were you doing?”

  “I … I couldn’t sleep.”

  “You. Couldn’t. Sleep.” Seb blew his breath out. “I never would have sent you if I’d known you were still so fragile. I thought you were past this. You’re my son, and I thought that would make an impression on them—no matter what you look like.”

  “Oh, it’s about that again?” Ruddy said. “Can’t send Frankenstein out on anything important.”

  “I did send you out on something important,” Seb yelled. “That’s my point, you moron. This has nothing to do with your face. You don’t know how to act. You never have. It’s my fault. I let your mother spoil you. I should have made you get out there and work for everything like I did. But instead you got private tutors, maids, TVs, games. Anything to protect you from the real world.”

  “Don’t blame Mom for this,” Ruddy said.

  “Fine, I’ll blame you. For turning out weak.”

  “So you keep saying,” Ruddy muttered.

  “Don’t talk back to me, boy.”

  “Sorry … sir … I didn’t mean it like that.”

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  “See?” Seb shook his head. “Weak.”

  Ruddy’s face turned crimson. “I tried, Dad. I really did.”

  “That’s you trying? I’d hate to see you not giving a shit. Jesus, son. Do you know how much this merger means to us? To our family? To the city? We can’t miss opportunities like this. Look around you. Do you think anyone else has this?”

  Ruddy took in the huge office with wood paneling, oak desk, and paintings on the walls. “I guess not.”

  “We have this because when the world went to hell, I held on to what was ours. You don’t have what it takes, son. If I leave this company to you, it’ll be gone in a year.”

  “I never said I wanted it.”

  “But you sure enjoy spending the money, don’t you?” Seb sat down at his desk and leaned forward. “This isn’t how I wanted to do this. I was hoping you would make a good impression so there would be another option. But I’m making your cousin, Victoria, my vice president.”

  “Great!” Ruddy said. “She’s perfect for it. She’s smart and beautiful. You should have sent her to deal with those Harrington people. She would have had them wrapped around her finger.”

  “Where do you think she is now? Out there trying to repair the damage you did. Look. Son. You’ll always be part of this family. But I can’t have you involved in the business anymore.”

  “Dad, I … you don’t understand what it’s like to have everyone look at you like you’re some kind of monster.” Ruddy touched his face. “My whole life, everyone thought I was a freak. And since the Event, now they think I’m ... afflicted.”

  “Don’t even joke about that. You know better.”

  “But you know that’s what people are thinking! Little kids are afraid of me. How many times has someone called me in to DSSA?”

  “Shut up, you idiot! Are you trying to ruin this family? You are not one of those people.”

  “Well ... what if I was?”

  Seb banged his fist on the desk. “You were like this before the Event. Your glandular disorder is on record. If you’d just stop hiding from the world, everyone would be used to it by now.”

  Ruddy sneered. “Used to it. Yeah, right.”

  “Andre the Giant had the same damn problem and everyone loved him.”

  Ruddy’s face turned red. He glared at his father. “Not Andre the fucking Giant again.” His voice took on a mocking tone. “Andre the Giant was a huge success. Andre the Giant was better than you. Andre the Giant was the greatest freak that ever lived.”

  He had never dared speak to his father like this. It was liberating.

  “Tell me, Dad, could Andre the Giant do this?” Ruddy’s fist took on a silvery metallic sheen and he pounded the heavy oak desk with a clang. The desktop cracked.

  Seb pushed his chair back into the wall and stared up at his gigantic son. It was the first time Ruddy had ever seen real fear in his eyes.

  Oh, shit, Ruddy thought.

  Seb stood, but kept his back to the wall. “What the hell was that? What … are you?”

  Ruddy’s voice went up an octave. “It … it was just a joke, dad. A trick. I was trying to lighten things up. It’s all makeup and lights.”

  “You son of a bitch. Get out of my sight. Go straight home. Now. And don’t go anywhere until I’ve dealt with you.”

  “But dad, it was a joke!”

  “I hope so, for your mother’s sake.”