Page 113 of Family Bonds: Carter & Avery

“I don’t know much about gambling. Who the hell has time?”

“Mike is maxed out of his credit cards. About thirty thousand in debt there. I was able to see that he owes some money to the bank for a personal loan of about twenty thousand.”

“He had to get cash to come here,” she said.

“He probably won it. He’s behind on all his bills. I’m sure he’ll be evicted from his place soon,” Griffin said.

“So this is probably all about money,” she said. “It’s not like he has the means to get an attorney. Not from what you are saying.”

“He’s sure the hell not fit to be in Josie’s life,” Carter said. His voice was firm and harsh. More than she’d heard before.

“Absolutely not,” she said.

“No,” Griffin said. “You won’t know his plan unless you ask. Or you wait. Offense is always the best defense. Control your narrative. But that’s up to you.”

She nodded her head. “I’ll think about it. I can’t jump. That isn’t how I live my life.”

“Understood,” Griffin said. “If I can get your number, I’ll let you know if he leaves the casino. Not sure that means he’ll seek you out, but it could. There are cameras at the docks. I’ll know when he’s gone from the island.”

She gave Griffin her number. “I’ll let you know soon what I’m going to do.”

She and Carter left the casino, but he didn’t pull out of the parking garage. “What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. I have to think about this.”

“Are you going to tell me at least when you figure it out?”

Avery turned to look at him. She’d never seen him look unsure of himself before. “I want to say no. That I’ll handle it on my own, but you pointed out enough times that I’m not alone and shouldn’t do that.”

“I’m going to point it out again too,” he said.

“I’ll let you know when I decide,” she said. She waited for a second and then added, “I can buy him off. I’ve got access to the funds for that. It’s all I can think of. That he wants money. Why not give it to him to make sure he stays gone?”

“Because no one ever stays away, Avery. That isn’t how the world works. Men like him, he’ll come back again for more. He’ll know you’ve got it to give to him and he’ll fight to say he has the right to it all.”

“He doesn’t know what I’ve got though,” she argued.

“An undisclosed lawsuit normally means at least a million or more. You know that. But as you said, there was a life insurance policy and then social security. To a man down on his luck, ten dollars is a lot.”

“I suppose you’re right,” she said.

“I know I am. I’m not going to tell you what to do. Don’t think that. I want you to tell me what you decide.”

“Really?” she asked.

“Yes. It’s not my decision. I get that. But I’m going to support you and be by your side either way.”

“Thank you for that,” she said. “Let’s go get Josie now.”

He looked at his watch. “I’m sure she’s still baking with my mother. My mom was taking her to dinner too. You haven’t eaten. Why don’t we go get something fast first? I’ll stay tonight.”

He didn’t ask if he could. Just said he was going to. She wanted to argue, but the truth was, she did feel safer having Carter in the house.

As hard as it was to let someone else in, she realized the comfort it brought made up for it.

“Why do you think Griffin showed me what he did today? That room. You didn’t know it was there, did you?”

“No,” he said. “I didn’t. But I’m not surprised either. And he showed you because he trusts you.”

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