Page 98 of Cabin Fever

"Not at first. I think he had an idea I, uh . . . had money. But he's—"

My father pulled back and stood to his full height. "Olivia, I had warned you that people will use you for your wealth. That's why I spent so much making sure you had the best trainers to ward off lowlifes who would take advantage of you and your siblings."

The more he spoke, the angrier I became. "The funny thing is, Dad, I used that training on the rich guys. They were the ones who took advantage of me . . . They thought they deserved everything because that's how they were raised. Carter is nothing like that. He told me to leave because he didn't think he deserved me. And he was wise enough to understand that the creeps you had me trained for would be the very same people attending this party. He wanted nothing to do with them. And I was too stupid to see what was obvious to me, that power and money corrupt. He may be a poor farmer, but he's far from corrupt. He was the first man that ever wanted me. Just me. Not what my family could do for him or the money attached to my name. Just simple old me."

I made a mistake leaving. Now that my dad was back to his old self—still a bit pale but otherwise fine—I wanted to race back to Carter. Until my parents learned, it wasn't about a name or wealth that made a person, I didn't want to be around them.

I turned, ready to leave this party, this town, and head back to my wild beast up a mountain, when a hand stopped me.

"Olivia, I'm the one who should apologize. I never meant for this to happen. For this world I raised you in to hurt you."

I turned back to him expecting to find his usual act to put on for potential investors but discovered just sadness. He seemed older. Perhaps the heart attack put more gray hairs on his head or wrinkles on his face. But the man who stood before me was no longer big, powerful, and intimidating. He was fragile, beaten down, and unhappy.

"You have to understand. Everything I did for you, for the family, was to protect you." He glanced over at the guests mingling in our living room and sighed. "Something happened when you were little. A decision I made, that at the time, I thought was a wise investment, but over time, proved to be a horrible mistake. I risked the company but more importantly, I put the family at risk by—"

"President Higgins is here!" My mother rushed over to my father and grabbed his arm.

"Shit," my father ground out under his breath before collecting himself and straightening. "Excuse me, Olivia. I have to go say hi to the former commander-in-chief."

"Oh, look who's arrived, former President Higgins." My father pointed as he pushed me aside to greet the former leader.

I nodded and watched my mother drag my father off toward the front of the house.

President Higgins had shown up to several events my mother was in charge of, but he didn't do much in DC anymore. He had a pharmaceutical company he created after he left office, which wasn't a big surprise to the country as his family has been in the medical and pharmaceutical field for half a century.

"How's Dad feeling?" I heard a voice come from behind.

I turned from my position by the fireplace. It was warm and in the sleeveless dress my mother insisted I wear; I was freezing.

"Hi, Whitney. Glad you're here. Dad's a bit pale but otherwise his usual."

"He never stops. It's not healthy after a heart attack." She frowned but tried her best to hide it raising a glass of champagne to her lips.

The red waves of her hair seemed to sparkle in the warm lighting of the living room. She was so much like her mother with her timeless beauty and kind heart.

"Why do you care, Whitney? Based on how Dad has treated you and your mom in the past why do you still care?"

I had never discussed this with her before. I wanted to but never had the nerve. But after what Derrick did to me and what I experienced at the farm, I was tired of never asking questions. It was time for me to be bold and not shy away from difficult feelings.

She shrugged. "Because he's my dad. When he's with me, he's different. It's as if his work brings out the worst in him. When I was little, he would take me to the zoo and playground and made sure he made it to all of my school performances. He was like any other dad, except he wasn't married to my mom."

That hurt to hear because he wasn't like that for me or Bea or Allistor. He rarely attended any school functions for us and when he did, he'd have to leave early for a meeting or phone call. I couldn't remember a time when he took us to play at a park—our nanny always did that. Did something happen that caused my father to change or was it us?

"That does sound nice. Funny how he wasn't like that for us," I said but turned toward the fireplace not really meaning for her to hear the pain in my voice.

"That's weird. He used to bring you, Bea, and Allistor around all the time. I remember one time when he took all of us to the Natural History Museum, and you were so scared of the early man exhibit. You thought they were monsters that were coming after you. Dad had to hold you in his arms until we left that part of the museum."

I turned back to face her. "I don't remember that at all. Are you sure?"

"Oh yeah. You and your sister were only three, and Allistor was four. I'm not surprised you don't remember since you were so young. I was seven and thought I was so big and brave because they didn't scare me." She giggled at the memory.

I glanced over at the couch where my father was now sitting with the former president and wondered what had happened that caused him to withdraw from his own children.

Bea strolled over with a champagne glass in her hand wearing the same dress as me but in red instead of blue.

"Hey, Bea, I was talking to Whitney, and she said Dad took us out with her and Allistor a lot as kids. That we went all sort of places. Do you remember Dad taking us to the Natural History Museum?"

Bea's brow rose and for a moment, I thought she was going to turn and walk back the way she came. But she stayed and took a little too long to answer the question. "Yes, I remember a few times."

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