Chapter Fourteen
The floodlights around the snow tubing hill cast everything in strange blue-white light, making the packed snow glow like something from another planet.
Tyler walked ahead of Trevor, his boots crunching on the snow, and his snow pants swishing with each step.
They were on their way to the lodge to meet their mom and dad for snow tubing, and for once, they were early. But that was only because he and his brother wanted a funnel cake.
Funnel cakes may be popular in the United States, but in other countries, they are nonexistent. However, just for the holidays, Zermatt was hosting a few funnel cake booths.
Tyler and Trevor had been determined to find it ever since they had heard about it. Tyler could practically taste the warm, doughy snack buried beneath a mountain of powdered sugar.
The only problem was convincing his brother to leave the petting zoo. Trevor had somehow become emotionally attached to a goat named Bruno. He was currently acting as if they were preparing for a permanent separation, instead of walking twenty yards to buy a snack.
“Come on,” Tyler called out. “ I want a funnel cake before mom and dad get here.”
“I’m coming,” Trevor said as he gave the black goat a pat on the head.
The lodge was just ahead, warm yellow light spilling from its windows, the smell of hot chocolate and wood smoke drifting on the cold air.
Then Trevor grabbed his sleeve. “Ty. Isn’t that Marty”
Tyler followed his brother’s gaze. A man stood just outside the lodge entrance, half in shadow, with a phone pressed to his ear.
Even from a distance, Tyler recognized him.
“What is he still doing here? I thought he left.” Trevor whispered.
Tyler shrugged, but something felt wrong. His mom had been very clear earlier. And the fact that he was apparently still hanging around the hotel immediately struck Tyler as suspicious.
Tyler went to move closer, but Trevor stopped him.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“Getting closer so I can hear what he is saying.”
They moved closer, keeping to the shadows so they wouldn’t be discovered.
Tyler could hear Marty’s voice now. He sounded angry and annoyed.
“She’s not budging,” Marty was saying. “I tried everything. The emotional appeal, the financial security angle, the—”
Whoever was on the other end interrupted him. Marty pulled the phone from his ear, hit a button, and suddenly a second voice filled the cold air.
“Then make her budge,” the voice said. “I just need Amelie to sign that contract.”
Tyler felt Trevor go rigid beside him as soon as their mom’s name was mentioned.
Trevor pulled out his phone and started videoing Marty. “To show mom,” he whispered.
Tyler nodded and then pulled out his phone. He opened the family group text and quickly typed a message to their mom and dad.
Tyler: Mom, Dad, come to the lodge ASAP.
A reply from their dad appeared almost instantly.
Grant: What’s wrong?
Tyler: Can’t really talk. But it’s Marty.
Grant: Hang tight. We’re on our way.
Tyler slipped the phone back into his jacket pocket. Then he continued to listen to the shady conversation.
Marty’s voice rose again. “Don’t worry about it. One way or another, I’ll make sure Amelie signs the proposal.”
The other man laughed, the sound sharp and unpleasant.
“You better,” he said. “Because that massive payout you’ve been counting on disappears if she doesn’t sign.”
Tyler listened as Marty assured the investor that Amelie would eventually sign the contract. According to Marty, she was simply distracted at the moment. Once she returned to Norway and got away from what he called “all this chaos,” she would come around.
The arrogance in his voice immediately irritated Tyler.
His mother wasn’t confused or distracted.
The conversation only became worse from there.
Apparently, the investor wasn’t the only person who stood to profit from the deal. Marty had his own arrangement in place. If the contract were signed, he would receive a percentage of the monthly royalties.
Tyler felt his stomach twist as the implications settled in. The guy wasn’t trying to help his mom build something bigger or protect the company she had spent years creating. Marty was only looking out for his own.
Then came the part that made both boys exchange stunned looks.
The investor casually mentioned the buyout clause. According to the agreement, after three years, their mom would be required to sell the remaining shares. Not some, but all of them. The entire company would eventually pass out of her hands.
Tyler just watched and listened, hardly believing what he was hearing. His mother would never knowingly agree to something like that.
She had built the company from the ground up, pouring years of work into it, and there was no chance she would willingly sign away control.
Which meant one of two things. Either Marty believed she hadn’t noticed the clause buried in the contract, or he was counting on her trusting him enough not to look closely. Neither possibility sat well with him.
The more Tyler listened, the angrier he became. He thought about all the years he had watched his mom work. All the late nights, all the business trips, and all the sacrifices she had made so he and Trevor could have opportunities she never had growing up.
Everything she had built belonged to her. And now these two jerks were trying to steal it.
“She won’t back out,” Marty said, his voice dropping to a dangerous tone. “She trusts me. She never reads the fine print. That is what she pays me for.”
“You’re still in Zermatt?” the voice asked.
“Yes,” Marty said. “I’m not leaving until I have her signature. However long that takes.”
“Good. Time’s ticking, Marty. Don’t make me regret this.”
“You won’t.” Marty straightened his coat, checking his reflection in the lodge window. “I’ll get it done.”
The call ended, and Marty pocketed his phone. He took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled one from the box, and lit it.
Tyler and Trevor stood frozen in the shadows.
“We have to do something,” Trevor whispered, his voice shaking.
“Obviously.” Tyler’s mind was racing. “Dad said they were on their way.”
“We can’t let him get away. He is trying to steal Mom’s company.”
“That won’t happen,” Tyler said firmly. He may only be twelve years old, but nobody was going to mess with his mom.
As Marty continued to smoke, completely unaware that he was being watched, Tyler scanned the area around the lodge, looking for something that would help them keep the attorney occupied until their parents arrived.
He spotted several boxes sitting beside one of the side doors to the lodge. They were filled with extra Christmas decorations waiting to be hung later, including strands of lights and several rolls of thick garland.
Tyler’s attention immediately shifted from Marty to the decorations. And an idea began forming in his head.
It wasn’t exactly mature. And it was definitely something his mother would disapprove of. But considering Marty was actively trying to trick her into signing away her company, Tyler was willing to accept whatever consequences might come later.
Beside him, Trevor noticed the look on his face and groaned.
“Oh no,” Trevor sighed. “I know that look. What are you planning?”
Tyler glanced at him and then back toward the boxes of Christmas lights. A slow smile spread across his face.
“I’m thinking that Christmas decorations are about to become very useful.”
“Huh?”
“Hear me out. Operation Christmas Tree.”
“Operation what?” Trevor asked, looking very unsure of whatever Tyler had planned.
Tyler glanced toward the tree line that was about twenty yards from the lodge. It was far enough away that people wouldn’t see too much.
“You are going to lure Marty away from the lodge toward those trees. You tell him we heard everything and that we’re going straight to Mom. Get him to chase you to the trees.”
“And then what?” Trevor asked, suspicious.
Tyler pointed at the nearest tree, at the heavy strands of lights and garland, at the way the decorations draped and tangled in thick, rope-like clusters.
“We take him hostage.”
Trevor stared at him. “You want to tie him to a tree?”
“I want to immobilize him using festive materials while we wait for mom and dad to get here.”
Tyler grinned. “Think about it. He’s not expecting kids to be a threat. We get him away from the lodge, we distract him, and as I heard Dad mention the other day, we improvise.”
“Mom is going to kill us.”
“Mom is going to thank us when we save her entire company.”
“Okay.”
“Good,” Tyler said, suddenly aware of how fast his heart was beating. “Get the video ready so he can see you aren't bluffing. Give me a couple of minutes to get out to the trees and get everything ready.”
They looked at each other, two twelve-year-old boys in snow gear, about to confront a corrupt attorney using nothing but their wits and holiday decorations.
“On three,” Tyler said. “One. Two. Operation Christmas Tree is a go.”
They moved toward the lodge, stepping into the light, becoming soldiers on a mission, brothers in arms, ready to save their family with whatever chaos was required.