Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
Holly
The carnage is absolutely heartbreaking.
Not only did the vandals hurt the birds, they also destroyed the property, both inside and out.
The landscaping has been demolished, like they took a backhoe to the beautifully tended open areas near the parking lot and where a lot of birds roam freely.
The pretty flowerpots and plants that line the entryway were smashed, along with the glass in the door and some windows.
And the devastation to the birds is almost more than I can stand.
I forced them to let me see Elvis and I cried like I’d lost a family member. My sweet, beautiful Elvis. And now Priscilla has lost her mate.
Tillie hasn’t left my shoulder since I arrived, and I can tell she’s been traumatized. She’s the happiest, friendliest bird and she actually hissed at one of the vet techs who tried to check her out. I don’t think that’s ever happened and I’ve known Tillie for more than twenty years.
I haven’t eaten or had any water or sat down since I arrived four hours ago. The police were here for a while but they’re gone now, and our vet and staff and a handful of volunteers are all still here. Trying to make some semblance of order in the chaos.
I see a car I don’t recognize pull into the parking lot and then a familiar figure emerges.
Kelly.
What the hell is she doing here?
Viktor sent her.
To check on me. To make sure I wasn’t lying about the sanctuary.
I want to feel hurt but I’m too emotionally battered to give it much attention.
“Holly.” Kelly’s expression reflects some of the devastation I’ve been feeling. Even if you’ve never been here and don’t know what type of place it is, there is no mistaking that a crime was committed.
“Hi, Kelly.” I turn to her wearily.
“Oh my God.” She looks around. “What…happened?”
“It’s a lot. You can tell Viktor I’m fine, that I’ll call him when I can.”
“I didn’t…I mean…” She looks completely flabbergasted. She lifts her hands in a helpless gesture. “Can I help?”
“I don’t mean to be rude, Kelly. But I don’t have time to babysit anyone.”
“I don’t need babysitting. Hand me a broom or a garbage bag or… whatever else you need.”
Tillie lets out a loud squawk that makes her jump.
“Easy, baby.” I reach up to stroke her soft head. “Kelly’s a friend. You want to say hi?” She steps onto my hand and I hold her out to Kelly, who looks fascinated.
“May I touch her?”
“Move slowly and hold out your hand but don’t try to touch her unless she makes the first move.”
Kelly does as directed, and Tillie cocks her head. Then she steps onto her arm and fluffs up a little, like she’s comfortable. Granted, Tillie is our friendliest bird but she hasn’t been that way today.
“Hello, beautiful,” Kelly talks in a warm, soothing voice. “You’re very pretty. Did you have a rough day?”
It’s like Tillie understands her and bobs her head up and down.
Tears inexplicably fill my eyes and I pull in a shaky breath.
“She’s beautiful,” Kelly whispers, obviously a bit emotional as well.
“She is.”
“Seriously, Holly. What can I do to help? Can I go get dinner for everyone?”
I pause.
Dinner would be great.
I look around for my purse. “Let me get you my credit card. If you could go get burgers and fries for everyone, that would be amazing. I don’t think any of us have eaten today. There’s eleven of us right now.”
She shakes her head. “I don’t need money. Please—this is, well, this is awful. Let me do this for you and your team.”
I incline my head. “Thank you. And right now, we’ll eat almost anything. Just tell them to put all the extras on the side since everyone has different taste.”
“Should I get bottled water?”
“That would be perfect.”
I take Tillie and Kelly turns to go back to her car while I head back inside.
We’ve mostly been working on the birds today, not as concerned with cleaning up the mess as we are making sure the birds who weren’t hurt are safe and taken care of.
We lost six birds, including Elvis. It looks like Priscilla is going to be okay but she’s going to be heartbroken without her mate. We also lost two of our golden conures, which are extremely rare, a pair of lovebirds, and the shoebill stork who was Jay’s pride and joy.
Elvis will be impossible to replace, and even if we managed to find another albino peacock, his personality was one-of-a-kind.
Not to mention, the cost to get the place up and running again could wipe me out.
I have insurance but I have no idea how much they’ll give me or how long it will take them.
And finding rare birds isn’t something I can shop for—we’re a sanctuary because they come to us when no one else wants them or can care for them.
There’s no way to anticipate when that will happen.
I sit on the front step and rest my elbows on my knees.
I’m exhausted, sad, and furious.
I haven’t had time to think about what I’m going to do but I know with every fiber of my being that my father was involved. It’s just going to be a matter of proving it, and that will probably be difficult.
He’s many things but stupid isn’t one of them.
If he orchestrated this—and he definitely did—he used people who are good at what they do and who won’t leave evidence behind.
The police dusted for prints and did all the things they do after this type of vandalism but they didn’t find anything except a couple of shoe prints.
Without any other clues, it will be almost impossible to find out whom they belong to.
I drove over to my grandmother’s house earlier and it hasn’t been disturbed but I’m worried they’ll go after it next. Because my father is that petty. And for whatever reason, he wants to force me to sell my land.
But I refuse.
Especially now.
Which probably means I’m going to have to take the job in New York because I’ll need money to buy a security system, cameras, whatever is necessary to keep the sanctuary safe.
I won’t let something like this happen again.
My head is pounding and I’m so hungry I’m a bit nauseated.
I’ve just gotten to my feet when I see a black SUV pull into the parking lot and I’m immediately on high alert.
I know that SUV.
It’s my father.
Fuck.
I’m furious with him, and I’m not sure I can hold back when I see him, so I wait, letting him come to me. He’s with his driver, who doubles as a security guard, and they come down the walkway slowly, looking around.
“What happened?” My father asks as he approaches.
“Like you don’t know?” I counter, scowling, hands on my hips.
“One of my staff saw a report on the news and recognized your name,” he replies, coming closer. “Are you okay?”
“Well, I mean, Grandma’s favorite peacock, whom I’ve loved most of my life, was fucking murdered, so, you know, not really.” I glare at him.
“I’m sorry,” he says in a tight voice. “I didn’t realize…”
“You didn’t realize what? That your thugs were going to actually kill the birds? Did you tell them to just break a few things, to scare me?”
“You think I had something to do with this?” His brows knit together. “Why would I do that?”
“You’ve been trying to strong arm me into selling the property for years. Why wouldn’t you?”
We stare at each other, but he shakes his head. “Holly, I give you my word as your father—I had nothing to do with this.”
He looks pretty damn sincere but he’s a politician. He makes his living by pretending to be sincere.
“Well, unless you plan to roll up your sleeves and start helping clean up, I have to go.”
He looks frustrated. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I have to get going.”
“Of course you do.” I shake my head. “I know you were behind this, Dad. I also think it’s shitty that you invited my ex-fiancé to dinner the first time you met my new husband’s family.”
“He was over at the house—it seemed rude to tell him to leave.”
“Ruder than inviting my ex to have dinner with my husband?” I stare at him. “I think we have very different opinions about the definition of the word rude.”
“Must everything be a fight with you, Holly?” he asks quietly. “I truly came to make sure you were okay.”
“I was supposed to be in Anchorage watching my husband win a championship,” I snap. “Instead, I’m here dealing with a disaster.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
“I think you’ve done enough.”
His face tightens but then he shrugs. “Well, have it your way. You should call your mother. She misses you.”
“The phone works both ways,” I mutter under my breath.
I’m too mad to watch him leave so I head inside, ready to jump back into the work. I know I should at least text Viktor, let him know what’s going on, but I’m not ready to rehash the whole thing yet again. Seeing it in person is hard enough—I really don’t want to tell another person the story.
But I do owe him a response.
With a sigh, I pull out my phone and send a quick text.
HOLLY: I’m sorry I haven’t reached out—it’s been a very, very hard day. I’m sure Kelly will fill you in.
VIKTOR: I’m sorry. Can I do anything? What do you need?
HOLLY: I don’t know. I’m so exhausted I can’t even think straight right now.
VIKTOR: I’m here for you, whatever you need. Okay?
Tears fill my eyes, but I don’t have time to get emotional or to deal with the way Viktor goes hot and cold. Everything is too raw at the moment.
And sadly, my husband just isn’t my priority.