Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Ryder
This brunch? It’s not just uncomfortable, it’s a damn circus. And I’m the unwilling ringmaster.
This was supposed to be just me and Claire, but because nothing in my life can ever be simple, Elaine managed to invite herself.
Now I’m stuck at a table, the worst seat in the house, trying to pretend this whole mess doesn’t exist while the two of them throw passive-aggressive barbs at each other as if it’s some game.
I take a sip of my coffee. It’s burnt. No surprise there. This whole situation’s just… wrong.
I glance at Claire first. She’s picking aggressively at a chia parfait. Her eyes are burning holes in the walls as she does everything she can to not meet Mom’s gaze.
She’s sharp, always calculating, and never says anything unless it serves her in some way. And right now, she’s watching Mom, trying to figure out the best way to gut her without anyone noticing.
Then there’s Elaine. If there’s a master at manipulation, it’s her.
She’s doing the whole “charm and smile” thing, but it’s all a facade. She is not here for small talk. She’s here to remind Claire how much better she thinks she is at running things, at handling people, at living life.
She’s the queen of backhanded compliments.
“So, Claire,” Elaine says, dripping with sweetness, “your little wellness business is still running strong? I hear it’s very… enlightening for the right clientele.”
Claire doesn’t blink. “Wellness, yes. Enlightening? That’s subjective. But I’m sure you know all about enlightenment. You’ve been going to yoga retreats since the nineties. That’s what you told the reporter that time… right?”
I can practically feel the chill between them. Claire’s not holding back, and neither is Elaine.
This is what they do. Trade barbs, but with that lovely, polished veneer of civility that makes everything sound complimentary until it isn’t.
Elaine smiles, but it’s all teeth.
“You’re so funny, Claire. I always admire people who can make a business out of… anything these days.” She takes a slow bite of her parfait, as if letting the words sink in before adding, “What’s the market like? Still selling a dream to the desperate?”
Claire’s eyes narrow. She’s good at hiding it, but I see the flicker of anger. “I’d say the only people desperate for anything are the ones trying to keep up with the Joneses who’ve spent their whole lives pretending everything’s perfect.”
Elaine laughs, but it’s cold. “That’s one way to look at it. Of course, your clientele doesn’t always look so… polished. Do you really think they buy into the whole mindfulness thing, or are they just there for the Instagram photos?”
I’m on the verge of losing it. My mother’s performing, Claire’s playing the perfect counterpoint, and I’m stuck here. An unwilling spectator in a drama I never asked to be part of.
This isn’t a catch-up… it’s a damn battlefield.
I take another sip of my coffee, ignoring the bitter taste that sits on my tongue. I need to get this under control, fast.
My patience is already wearing thin, but I refuse to let this escalate any further. Not today. Not here.
I glance at Claire, who’s sitting back now, her posture almost too perfect. She’s calmly waiting for her next move. She’s biting her tongue, just barely.
I can see it in her eyes, that slight edge of tension beneath the calm. She’s ready to snap at any second. And I don’t blame her.
This isn’t a fair fight. It’s one of those situations where she’s already outnumbered, and Elaine knows it.
I want to say something, anything, to cut through the tension. To make this nonsense stop. But the second I do, the whole room will freeze.
Elaine thrives on conflict. She doesn’t need me to speak up; she wants me to sit here and watch the mess unfold.
“Mom, let’s…” I start, trying to bring some sense of calm to this storm, but she cuts me off, still smiling that sickly sweet smile.
“Oh, don’t mind me,” she says, as if she’s done nothing wrong. “I’m just trying to understand this whole wellness thing. I mean, you’ve made quite the name for yourself, Claire. Who wouldn’t want to be enlightened by someone who’s… well, so modest about it?”
Claire doesn’t even flinch. Her lips twitch, a ghost of a smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. I can feel the tension building, and I’m about two seconds from snapping.
But before I can respond, my phone buzzes in my pocket, and the vibration cuts through the thick silence like a bullet.
I glance down. It’s a text message.
Nolan: Ryder, heads up. Sunny seems to be freaking out. She’s been asking Dex about Vincent Lang. Lang Capital Holdings. I don’t know if this is something you need to know.
“Shit.” I jump up from my seat. “I have to go.”
Mom narrows her eyes at me. “What are you talking about? We aren’t finished yet.”
I don’t have time for this. Not when something is going on at the hotel.
“Finance emergency,” I say, clipped, not even bothering to offer any more explanation.
I can feel their stares as I grab my coat off the back of the chair. Elaine’s smirk falters for a second, but she quickly recovers, not missing a beat.
“Oh, of course,” she says, that syrupy sweetness lacing her tone once again. “Business always comes first. Just like your father, always working.”
I don’t even look at her. I can’t. Not now.
I give Claire a fleeting glance as I pull open the café door, hoping for a moment of understanding. She’s watching me, her eyes narrowing slightly, but she doesn’t say anything.
The door swings shut behind me, and I’m out of there before I can hear Elaine’s next jibe. I don’t want to listen to it. I don’t need to.
I pull out my phone again as I make my way through the hotel’s quiet hallways, trying to keep my pulse steady.
Ryder: Nolan, I’ll be there in five. Tell Sunny to meet me in my office.
I walk into my office, and there she is. Sunny.
Pacing.
Her movements are frantic as she glances at the clock every few seconds, as if the minutes are slipping away faster than she can keep up with.
She stops when she sees me, a breath of relief escaping her lips. And then she shifts, almost as if she wants to move again but is waiting for me to say something.
“Sorry, I kept you waiting,” I say.
There’s an energy about her. She’s been coiling tighter with each passing moment.
She doesn’t answer, gives me a quick nod before turning back toward the pile of papers on the desk.
“You’ve been busy,” I note, my gaze flicking to the disarray of financial reports and spreadsheets scattered on the desk. “Are you alright?”
There’s a method to the madness. Sunny’s got it all laid out in some order that only she would understand.
I can see she’s been digging deep, her hands almost compulsively flipping through the pages, searching for something, anything that could make sense of the mess we’ve found ourselves in.
“No, I’m not okay,” she says, shaking her head quickly. “I… I don’t know, Ryder. I think I’ve found something, and it isn’t good. Really bad.”
I don’t even need to ask. I can hear it in her voice. Fear and frustration make my stomach tighten.
She gestures toward the cluttered desk where reports are strewn haphazardly. “I’ve been going through everything. Every damn file. It doesn’t add up. The numbers are all wrong, Ryder. And I think I know why.”
I step fully into the room, shutting the door behind me, and walk toward her. Her frantic energy is contagious, and I try to slow my pulse.
I can already see it: the documents, the spreadsheets, and the financial statements, all neatly laid out.
The problem is, they don’t tell the same story. There are holes, things hidden in plain sight, patterns that just shouldn’t be there.
“What did you find?” I ask, leaning over the desk to get a closer look.
She exhales sharply and looks up at me, her eyes wide. “I started with some of the vendors, just looking for small discrepancies. At first, I thought I was overthinking it, but then I found a connection. One payment, and then another. And they were all linked back to Lang Capital Holdings.”
I feel my pulse quicken. “Lang?”
She nods, her gaze sharp. “At first, I thought it was a coincidence, but the more I dug, the more things started to line up. Payments from the hotel going to Lang’s accounts.
And not just small amounts. Big ones. Enough to make me think…
maybe my aunt got herself caught in something she couldn’t get out of. ”
I sit down, the revelation pressing on me. “You think she was mixed up in this?”
Sunny rubs her temples. “I don’t know. But she was trying to cover something. The way these payments were structured, it’s like she was hiding more, maybe even from me. It doesn’t feel right, Ryder.”
I swallow hard, my mind running through the same troubling thoughts. If my gut is correct, this isn’t just a string of financial oversights. This is deliberate.
Someone’s been playing a much bigger game, and we’ve just started uncovering it.
“Do you really think your aunt would do that?”
I knew Evie. She wasn’t the type. But you can’t always really know people…
Sunny offers me a one-shouldered shrug. “Either that, or she was tricked. Could that be possible? This is all so confusing. I don’t even know if it means anything.”
I rest a hand on her shoulder. “We’ll figure it out. I’ll help you.”