Page 149 of Down Knot Out
My hands curl into fists at my sides. “I’ll kill him.”
Dominic sets the notebook on the table. “We can verify this. Corporate registrations, payment trails.” He grabs a pen and jots down bullet points on a fresh page. “If your father is funneling money through Redwater, there’s a record.”
I drag in a sour breath. “It makes sense. Dad’s always wanted to control the narrative. Sabotaging the resort, keeping us under his thumb. It’s all about leverage.”
Sadie gives a bitter snort. “He never wanted you to succeed here. He’s furious that you started your own pack. He’s told anyone who’ll listen howyou’re breaking tradition, and now he has a way to ruin it all and save face.”
Chloe comes over to me, her hand at my elbow letting me know she’s there if I need her. “Why now?” she asks Sadie. “If he’s had the company forever, why try to ruin everything now?”
Sadie lifts one bony shoulder. “Because Misty Pines didn’t fail.” She gestures to the Homestead. “You guys are making it, just like you said you would, and he hates it.”
My hands tremble, and I can’t tell if I want to punch something or run until I drop. Instead, I look over at Nathaniel.
He stands rigid, his face pale, staring at a spot on the floor. “It wasn’t my father. All this time, I thought?—”
Chloe finishes for him. “You thought you’d been the cause.”
Nathaniel’s throat bobs as he swallows. “I accused him of so many things. We haven’t spoken since the incident with the timber. I told him if he ever tried to sabotage us again, he was dead to me.”
Dominic rubs the back of his neck. “He’ll be relieved to hear that you know he’s innocent, right?”
“He’ll be upset I doubted him. But how could Inot with that stupid clause in our loan?” His shoulders sink as the tension leaks away, leaving a different kind of weariness in its place.
“I believe our dad had a hand in the clause, too,” Sadie whispers. “I remember Dad having Mr. Burton over for drinks when you guys first decided to take on this project. They were talking about the contract and guarantees.”
My stomach drops. How could I have been so blind to all of our father’s manipulations over the years? He was always tough and set in his ways, but I never thought him capable of this level of deceit.
Quinn’s head lifts, her small face scrunched up. “Is Grandpa bad now?”
Silence falls over the dining room, as if no one wants to be the one to explain the concept of evil to a six-year-old.
Chloe sighs and kneels in front of her. “Sometimes people do bad things, princess. It doesn’t always mean they’re bad people. Sometimes they just lose sight of what’s important.”
Quinn’s focus shifts to her mom. “Okay, I understand.”
Sadie’s face crumples, but she holds it together, and my heart breaks. I know Chloe wasn’tspeaking about her, but it hurts that what our Omega says applies to my sister, too.
Chloe sits beside Quinn, pulling her into a side hug. “We’re all here for you, princess. Always.”
“I should have seen this coming.” I stare at Dom’s notebook without seeing it. “He always said the only family worth anything is the one you keep in line.”
Sadie clasps her hands in front of her. “You wanted to believe he’d let you be happy.”
“I did.” I unclench my jaw, tasting blood where I’ve bitten my cheek.
Nathaniel grips my shoulder. “What do we do now?”
I run a hand through my hair, sending the bun askew. “We prove it. If Redwater Holdings is tied to him, we get every payment, every communication, every link in the chain. We collect evidence and go to the authorities. Or the press, if the courts won’t touch him.”
Dominic adds, “We could do both. Use the media to put pressure on the investigation.”
I snort, the sound harsh in the quiet room. “He’s got friends in every regulatory office from here to Vancouver. It’ll take more than pressure.”
“We have to try,” Chloe says, fierce now. “We don’t let him win.”
Sadie twists her braid, tugging on the brittle strands. “I can give you everything. Every contact, every burner phone, every receipt I ever saw. I was too scared to use it, but if you need a witness?—”
I pull her into a hug before she can finish. “I’m sorry I left you with him for so long.”
