Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 132834 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132834 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
I didn’t think my father or Ford still had the power to hurt me, but that word. Opportunity. The hurt stabbed deep, and I hated them all over again.
Savannah’s arm squeezed tight, and she leaned up, her lips at my ear. “Your father was a fucking asshole,” she whispered. “On your worst day, you’re worth a hundred of him. Easy. At your best, you’re in a different universe. Fuck him.”
Savannah’s words didn’t erase the hurt, but they did ease the pain to a familiar dull ache. She was right. My dad was a fucking asshole. And so was Ford. I was worth a hundred of them, easy.
Savannah’s arm around me loosened, and I knew she was going to step back. The last thing she wanted was for anyone to think we could tolerate each other. Before she could slide away, I whispered, “Thanks.”
“Anytime.” Her smile was a flash of sunshine in the tense room.
Griffen opened the other two file folders. “So they used Finn’s kidnapping as the opportunity they needed.” He raised his eyes to Cole. “For what?”
“To show them they wouldn’t be intimidated, even at the risk of losing his son. He said—” Cole’s eyes flashed to me in apology. “He said that if he paid for Finn to come home, all his children would be targets, and he’d look weak. He wanted to make a statement.”
That tracked. That sounded exactly like my dad’s kind of logic.
“Sacrificing your son on the altar of business is a hell of a statement,” I said.
Griffen’s lips pressed together in a grim line before he pushed ahead. “So they used Finn to show how cutthroat they were, then went back after the kidnapping and made the deal. And two more after that.”
Cole nodded. “I didn’t know about the other two. Just the first.”
“Why did they call you in?” I asked. “The police were never involved. No one ever got prosecuted. Why would they need a defense attorney?”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
FINN
Cole cleared his throat, stepped back, and turned a little so he could face me and not Griffen. “Your father was concerned about exposure.”
Griffen’s light-green eyes flashed fire. “You mean he was worried someone would find out he gave his son up to violent criminals to be killed, and he wanted to know if he could be prosecuted if it ever came out,” he clarified, his eyebrow raised, sarcasm dripping from his words.
Cole nodded again. “Basically. He didn’t call me in until after they refused to pay the ransom. After Finn escaped. Once Prentice and Ford knew Finn had gotten away, they were concerned the whole thing would come out, and they’d be facing charges.”
“And what about Finn?” Hope demanded, leaning forward, clutching Griffen’s arm. Her knuckles were bone-white. “Did any of you go looking for Finn? Did you even know he was alive? Did my uncle know about this?”
Cole shook his head vehemently. “No one knew. I only knew after the fact, after Finn got away. I guess it’s possible Edgar knew, but I don’t see it. Your uncle has his moments, but he never would have condoned something like this. You know how he feels about family.”
Hope ducked her head, clearly mulling that over. I knew her Uncle Edgar had taken her in when she was a young child and raised her himself. He wasn’t overly affectionate, but he came to the house often for Sunday dinner, and I’d seen the way he looked at Hope. Pride and love and affection. He wasn’t cuddly, but he wasn’t a man who’d sacrifice a child. Unlike my father.
Cole looked at me. “Your father and Ford were my clients, but I wasn’t comfortable with the situation.” He shook his head. “That’s putting it mildly. What they did to you was beyond the pale. It was a miracle you got away.” He cleared his throat. “I went behind their back and got in touch with some contacts in Mexico who did some digging. I verified that you’d been seen back at the hotel alive and that you’d flown to New York and on to Paris. Another contact hunted you down in Paris and learned you’d been in touch with Chef Guérard.”
He swung his gaze back to Griffen. “I checked in a month later, and Finn was sharing an apartment in the fifth arrondissement with some students, bussing tables at a restaurant connected with Chef Guérard, so I knew someone was looking out for him.”
Cole turned back to me, shoving his hands back in his pockets. “I figured you were better off where you were. The reports I got said you looked happy. Tired but happy. You had friends and a safe place to live. You had a job and an adult looking out for you to some degree, which was more than your father was prepared to do. That far removed from Prentice’s sphere and away from anyone involved in his business life, you were as safe as you could be.”