Page 41 of His to Possess

“What’s wrong, Father?”

He didn’t answer me right away and when he did, he’d turned around wearing his usual half smirk. “Nothing at all. Just contractual differences. Nothing for you to worry about today.”

‘Today’ seemed to be weighted. “You seem pretty angry.”

He eased his glass down, taking several deep breaths. “Is there something you need from me, Kathleen, or have you come to goad me on something as you usually do?”

His agitation was even more aggressive than normal. We’d pushed each other’s buttons for years and this afternoon, I wasn’t in the mood for the round of bullshit. “I came to ask you a direct question, Father, and hopefully you’ll give me a straight answer. Do you think you can do that?”

While his face reddened initially from anger, he quickly relaxed, even shaking his head as he chuckled. “You are so intelligent, Kathleen, and the most tenacious woman I have ever met. No wonder you are thought of so highly at the police department.”

“Hmmm… That means you were talking with Captain Walters. Weren’t you?”

He frowned before walking around his desk. “He and I are old friends. You already knew that.”

“Maybe,” I said, darting another glance at the glamorous set of buildings. “However, the timing seems odd since I was pulled off as the lead on a fairly gruesome case, one that certainly has political implications if it’s not handled well. Tell me, Father, are you running for office and asked that I be removed from that case?”

He seemed genuinely surprised. “How dare you, Kathleen.”

“How dare I? You’ve been trying to get me to work for you for years. Did you finally decide to derail my career so you could have your way? I would think your new lackey would be exactly what you need.”

“If you mean Tyler, he was an important find for the firm and I would never derail your career, although you should learn to make better decisions for yourself. You’ll wind up dead if you’re not careful.”

While a certain portion of my accusation might be overblown, I could tell that I was right about the topic of conversation they’d had. When he remained silent for longer than thirty seconds, I closed the distance until we were only inches apart. “How dareyou, Father. I’ve worked very hard to get where I am. This case is one of the most disturbing I’ve ever worked on and for some reason, there are people who want to sweep it under the rug. I can only imagine why. Is this about Captain Drake Walters running for office? Given your deep pockets, I would think that fits right into various strategies you have for your company.”

I’d never said anything like this to my father in all my years, but this was the last straw.

I expected him to lash out, but he slumped against the desk, once again rubbing his eyes. “It’s not like that, Kathleen. I would never do anything to hurt your career. As far as Tyler, he’s exactly what I’ve needed to keep the expenses in line, but he doesn’t have your skills.”

“My skills. Interesting word since I think you’ve already asked him to try and entice me into coming to work for you.”

He shook his head vehemently. “He is his own man. Not like that at all.”

“Then what is it?” I’d never seen him this uncomfortable. “Tell me, Father. I really do want to know.”

“Kathleen, you’re very important to me and I need you working with me. In fact, I was hoping to talk with you today about taking over as VP.”

“Vice president?” He’d upped the ante, which shocked the hell out of me. “I’m not qualified for that job.”

“You’re more than qualified and I need you by my side. I can offer you two hundred thousand starting salary with full benefits of course. I need you, Kathleen. Together, we’ll make Kelly Industries an even bigger player.”

I was absolutely floored, uncertain of how to react. “You know I can’t do that. I love my work.”

“I thought you might say that.”

“So you did everything you could to wreck my job.” When he didn’t deny it again, I knew the truth. “I don’t know what to say to you any longer. I love you, Father, very much, but I can’t stand the sight of you right now.” I backed away, tears forming in my eyes. Whatever he’d said had actually influenced my own captain.

While something didn’t make much sense, I could tell by his reaction a heck of a lot more had been said. I shuddered and almost tripped in my effort to get to the door.

“What about the party?” he asked.

A nasty retort almost left my mouth, but I pulled back, taking a deep breath. “I’m not hungry. I’m certain Celia will understand.” I closed the door with a hard thud behind me, furiously wiping tears that had slipped past my lashes.

As I walked toward the front door, another intuition snapped into my mind.

There was something that several people were hiding, lies that had cost lives. What I realized at that moment was that I had no way of knowing who I could trust.

Except for Max.

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