Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
KALEB
Icouldn't focus on anything in this meeting.
The numbers blurred on the projection screen as the finance manager droned on about depreciation schedules and capital investments.
It was important information—crucial even for the acquisition I'd been pursuing for months—but my mind kept drifting back to Patrice.
My mother was out on bail.
The knowledge sat like ice in my stomach. Marshall had called this morning with the news, his voice carefully controlled as he delivered the information.
"No idea where she got the money," he'd said. "Her accounts are frozen. Rupert's too."
I'd immediately pictured loan sharks. Or worse, Patrice manipulating one of my sisters into helping her. The thought of Sierra or Monica being dragged into this nightmare made my jaw clench so tight it ached.
"Mr. Wulf? Did you have any questions about the projections?"
I snapped back to attention, finding the entire room staring at me. The finance manager—Peterson—looked nervous, his forehead beaded with sweat. Beside me, Andrei subtly slid his notepad over. He'd been taking detailed notes while I mentally checked out.
"Actually," I said smoothly, scanning Andrei's meticulous handwriting, "I'd like to discuss your assumptions on the third-quarter projections. They seem optimistic given the current maintenance issues."
Peterson launched into a detailed explanation, giving me time to reorient myself. I nodded at Andrei in silent thanks.
Thank god for him. Between Andrei and his assistant, they'd kept this meeting on track while I mentally spiraled. Just one more thing to feel guilty about.
I forced myself to engage for the remainder of the presentation, asking pointed questions about the family-owned manufacturing company's operations.
They desperately needed capital to modernize their equipment, and we could provide it while preserving the legacy the current owner's grandfather had built.
When the meeting finally concluded, I shook hands and smiled appropriately, though the effort felt mechanical.
"We'll be in touch by the end of the week," I assured them, ushering them toward the door.
As soon as it closed behind them, Andrei turned to me. "What's going on? You've been a million miles away since we sat down."
"Patrice made bail," I said flatly. "Marshall called this morning."
Andrei's expression darkened. "How? Her accounts are frozen."
"That's the question, isn't it?" I ran a hand over my face, suddenly exhausted. "If she's taken out another loan with some loan shark, I might have to murder her myself. Or if she's somehow manipulated Sierra or Monica..."
"Mikhail delivered the papers," Andrei reminded me. "He said she shrieked, turned red, and slammed the door in his face. Doesn't sound like someone who's going to play nice."
"I know." I sank into my chair, the weight of everything pressing down on me. "I can't help thinking about what she might do next. She's cornered now, and that makes her dangerous."
Andrei's expression was calculating as he leaned against the conference table. I recognized that look—he was strategizing, considering all angles like the tactician he'd been trained to be.
"We have security in place," he said finally. "At the house, in the parking garage on Lottie's and our floors, at the club. Sergei's people are the best."
"I know. I just..." I trailed off, unsure how to articulate the dread pooling in my gut. This went beyond rational concerns about security. This was primal—the fear of a child who'd grown up with a viper for a mother, always waiting for the next strike.
"You're withdrawing," Andrei said bluntly, his amber eyes sharp as they studied my face. "Like you did after she confronted Lottie."
I wanted to deny it, but he knew me too well. "Maybe."
"It's not going to help." His voice softened slightly, concern bleeding through his usually stoic demeanor. "Lottie needs you present. We all do."
"I'm trying," I insisted, but even to my own ears, it sounded weak.
Andrei pushed off from the table, pulling out his phone. His fingers tapped rapidly against the screen.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"Calling in reinforcements."
Fifteen minutes later, there was a soft knock at the conference room door. Andrei opened it to reveal Lottie, her expression concerned as she stepped inside.
"Is everything okay? Andrei texted that you needed me."
My initial irritation at Andrei's interference melted away at the sight of her. She wore a sapphire blue dress that matched her eyes, her honey-brown hair pulled back in a neat bun that I immediately wanted to unravel with my fingers.
"Kaleb?" she prompted when I didn't respond.
"Marshall called this morning," I finally said. "Patrice made bail."
Understanding dawned in her eyes. Without hesitation, she crossed the room and climbed into my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck.
"I'm right here," she murmured, pressing her forehead to mine. "We're all right here."
Something tight in my chest began to loosen. I pulled her closer, breathing in her familiar scent—vanilla and something uniquely Lottie.
Andrei had been right to call her. For days, I'd been carrying this burden alone, trying to shield her from my fears. But that wasn't how our relationship worked. We faced challenges together—that was the promise we'd made.
"I've been worried she might come after you again," I admitted, the words easier to speak with Lottie's warmth pressed against me. "Or that she might have manipulated one of my sisters into helping her with bail."
"Have you called them?" Lottie asked gently.
I shook my head. "I've been trying to protect them from all this."
"Maybe they need to know what's happening," she suggested. "So they can protect themselves too."
She was right, of course. My instinct to shield everyone from Patrice was the same pattern I'd been trying to break—the idea that I alone had to bear the burden of my mother's toxicity.
"I'll call them tonight," I promised, pressing a kiss to Lottie's temple.
"Invite them over for dinner," Andrei chimed in from his position leaning against the wall beside the door.
She smiled, the expression lighting up her entire face. "Good. Now, since I've been summoned from my important director duties, do I at least get to have lunch with my three handsome men?"
Her deliberate lightness was exactly what I needed. "I think that can be arranged, baby girl."
Andrei approached, his hand settling on Lottie's back. "I've already told Colby to meet us downstairs. Oscar's bringing the car around."
Lottie's eyes danced with mischief. "You were pretty confident I'd agree to lunch."
"When have you ever turned down food, kroshka?" Andrei teased, tugging playfully on a strand of hair that had escaped her bun.
She laughed, the sound washing over me like a balm. "Fair point."
As we left the conference room, Lottie's hand firmly in mine, I felt the fog of anxiety beginning to lift. Patrice was still out there. The threat remained real. But I wasn't facing it alone anymore.
I had my family—the one I'd chosen, the one that chose me back every single day.
And together, we were stronger than any storm Patrice could unleash.