Page 73 of Until You (Forgive Me)

Christian sat back sharply. How was this the first time he was hearing this? The Dupree Group was growing. It had been looking to expand overseas. Their business was sound. Their beverage company alone was a market leader.

Christian spent the rest of the day sobering up his father until he could finally get the truth out of him. The businessmen his father had joined forces with were threatening him. They had got close enough to Scarlett that one of them had asked her on a date to show how vulnerable she was. They wanted their money back, and they weren’t joking. The problem was - that money was gone... invested in a multitude of poor business deals. Christian had left his father and headed to the office. The more he looked into the company finances, the more he uncovered. It became clear his father had taken his eye off the ball and made some very poor business decisions over the past couple of years. Those decisions were coming home to roost. The problem was bankruptcy was not an option. These businessmen wanted their money and would get it any way they could.

A week later, his father called him to his office. The man he saw was a complete contrast to the one he’d walked in on the previous week.

“I’ve sorted it,” his father said, beaming.

Christian’s heart rate picked up. He wasn’t sure his father was in the right state of mind to act rationally.

“Douglas Preston is going to bail us out.”

Douglas Preston was new-money. He’d been skimming the outskirts of society for years, trying to get a foot in the door. Why would he be interested in coming to his father’s rescue?

“How much of the company does he want?” Christian asked.

“That’s the beauty of this deal,” his father said, the gleam in his eye, setting Christian’s nerves on edge.

“If not Dupree... what does he want?” Christian asked, his heart rate picking up. His father was looking too smug.

“He wants a merger. Our family with his,” his father said.

“Scarlett’s too young to get married,” Christian said, instantly coming to his sister’s defence. She was barely twenty. There was no way he would let his father sell off his little sister for his mistakes.

His father let out a dry laugh. “No, not Scarlett. You, dear boy. He wants you to marry his eldest daughter, Lindsey. It will guarantee his entry into places that have so far been beyond his reach.”

Christian’s heart pounded in his chest. “Impossible. I’m about to propose to my girlfriend,” Christian said, watching his father’s face harden at his words.

“What? That two-bit actress whore you’ve been hanging around with? That will never happen.”

Christian turned away from his father, drawing in a deep breath.

“How dare you! Lily is no whore. She’s the woman I love. I am going to marry her, with or without your permission,” Christian said firmly.

His father could have many things, but his freedom would not be one of them.

“Well then, your sister or your mother’s death will be on your hands.”

It was then Christian realised his mother was sitting silently sobbing on the sofa behind him. Her arm was in a sling, her face bruised.

“What the...” Christian said, moving to his mother’s side.

“That was a warning,” his father said, his voice at sub-zero temperatures. “If I do not deliver their money by the end of the week, they will go after Scarlett, and it won’t be pretty.”

“Have you contacted the police?” Christian asked, running his hand gently over his mother’s bruised face, wiping away her tears. “They will do something.”

Christian spun round to his father, his mother catching his hand, her eyes pleading with him.

“It’s too late for that. They’re above the law. Plus, if I do that, The Dupree Group goes under. The workforce will lose their jobs. The company that has been in our family will be torn apart.”

“Please, Christian. You know I would never ask.” It was his mother who spoke up. “Don’t let anything happen to Scarlett. Protect her.”

Christian’s head was spinning. His little sister at the hands of these monsters. Who had his father partnered with? Whoever they were, they were not to be messed with.

As for Douglas Preston, Christian knew the old boys’ network was tough on new-money. They did not open their doors to anyone, but to give up his freedom... The financial state of The Dupree Group was critical. If the company went under, it would have a far-reaching effect. They employed thousands of workers, not to mention the companies that supplied them. Without a word, Christian turned and left. He needed to think.

He ignored his father and mother’s attempts to contact him. Instead, he’d gone to Sebastian, his long-term friend and confidant. Together they’d downed most of a bottle of whiskey. He knew what he had to do... everything for the family. Lily had been blowing up his phone over the past week. He’d cancelled their trip to Rome, sighting business reasons. He had nothing left to offer her. His life was in a tailspin. Lily told him she needed to see him, but he’d blown her off yet again. What was he going to say?

The following day, he returned to his family’s home. His father had been a little more contrite, having the wind knocked out of his sails the day before.

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