Page 147 of Call Back

Colt didn’t look so convinced, but I didn’t give him time to answer. I was bound and determined to talk to my brother.

Roy looked up at me, his mouth parting when he realized it was me.

“Roy, we need to talk.”

“I’m listening.”

“Privately.”

He glanced around the table at his supposed friends, then back at me with a sardonic smile. “I’m not going anywhere.” Belinda had gotten up from the table sometime between when I saw her and started my march.

The people at his table squirmed and glanced down at their plates or around the room, anywhere but at the two of us.

“Fine,” I said. “If that’s what you prefer . . . Momma has changed her mind and is now on IV antibiotics, so you can call off the lawyers who are trying to overrule her wishes.”

His eyes widened in surprise. “What . . . why did she change her mind?”

“She admitted that our father preferred me over you, and that she in turn doted on you, making you spoiled and cruel. She decided she wanted more time to make up for it.”

The look on his face proved I’d caught him off guard. I felt the zing of victory, and I wasn’t even halfway through.

“Of course, Momma probably resented me a little, since apparently I was the reason our father stayed in their marriage after having an affair—and not with Shannon Morrissey, someone else entirely.”

Colt’s hand rested on my shoulder in warning.

“This was all new information for me,” I said. “So I thought you might want to know too.”

“This is not the time or place, Magnolia,” my brother spat through clenched teeth.

“Just remember that I preferred to have this conversation in private, but you insisted.”

I spun around, only to find myself looking directly into Colt’s stunned face. Grabbing his hand, I headed for the back of the room.

“Jesus,” Colt said. “You’re burning bridges right and left tonight.”

“I’m tired of being a pawn. Aren’t you?”

“Yes.” Anger hardened his eyes, and for a moment I thought he was pissed at my question. Then I realized his reaction was directed at someone else.

“I don’t need Ava,” I said. “I can find another place to live. And I sure as hell don’t need Roy. I’m tired of kissing people’s asses. I’m done. And you should be too.”

He grabbed my elbow and escorted me out of the room and into a hallway. “It’s not that easy, Maggie. Not for me, and definitely not for you. You can’t afford to set Roy off, especially not tonight, and Ava has her hands in everything in this town.”

“Why can’t I set Roy off especially tonight?”

Frustration and a hint of worry flashed on his face. “Because we have bigger things to worry about. We don’t need the distraction.”

“No. You know something. You said Roy would sacrifice me tonight and that I should stick to Belinda. What do you know?”

He swallowed but didn’t respond.

He knew more than he was telling me.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. “Shit.”

“What?”

He took my phone out and handed it to me. “Go back inside the room and wait for me there. You can hide in plain sight.”

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