56. The Offensive Counterintelligence
The Offensive Counterintelligence
Luke
Eli comes with me to my house because my dad likes him. Eli’s father didn’t leave the same way the others did. He just got busy with his own business and then cut ties. But he still has my father as a client. They just aren’t in business together.
Without entering through the garage, I can’t tell if my father is home or out of town. I’m sure the only reason he was in town was to torment Penny and me. With us gone, there’s no reason for him to stay. Hopefully.
“I’ve got your back,” Eli says as we stare at the house from his car.
“I know.”
Ride or die. No matter what. They’ll be there for me, and I’ll be there for them. That we have Harper to bind us is the icing on the cake.
I touch the thumb drive in my pocket. It’s our insurance in case I run into my father. I haven’t been home for days, but he hasn’t tried to contact me in that time. Not a single text. It has me on edge.
He rarely goes no contact when he wants something. And I haven’t given him anything that he’s demanded.
We leave the car and I unlock the door to the house. The quiet falls over us like a veil as we enter. I’m not about to sneak around this house that was never really a home. Fuck that. So I take the straight path to my room, which leads right past my father’s office.
Maybe part of me wants a confrontation with my father. To finally have it out. For better or worse.
As we draw close to his office, the door is closed, but voices come through it. I hold up my hand and Eli stops beside me as we flatten against the wall to listen.
“Do we know why they were here?” My father sounds pissed.
“Meeting with someone who knows shit. Someone who wants to talk.” The male voice is unfamiliar. “The girl? Fuck, it could be closer to home than that.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” The angry edge to my father’s voice makes me want to curl in on myself and lash out at the same time. But I focus. Who’s been here and who is the girl? Penny? Harper?
“Where’s your son, William? Why isn’t he home? Why isn’t he bringing you what you told him to?” This man knows too much. Who the fuck is he?
“My son wouldn’t betray me.” Dad’s tone is filled with certainty. It makes me want to laugh. He doesn’t know me at all.
“Even for the girl?”
My insides freeze. Fuck. There’s only one girl that has that type of hold over me. He has to mean Harper. My dad doesn’t realize he’d never had a solid hold on me.
“Especially for the girl. I’ve made sure he doesn’t care about anything. If I thought he genuinely cared for the girl, I’d remove her from the equation.”
Remove her. My fists clench. I’d take him out before that could ever happen. I’ve hated my father for what he’s done to me, but nothing feels like the rage boiling inside at the thought of him laying a finger on Harper.
The guy gives a sharp laugh. “Not unless you want whoever contacted you to blow you up. It may not be enough to put you in prison, but it’d be enough to open an investigation that we wouldn’t be able to suppress. Not and continue with our current plans.”
“My son isn’t stupid enough to go to the Feds. The girl might be a bleeding heart, but she doesn’t know anything. Their visit might not be related to us at all. If she’s a problem, she’ll be handled.”
Handled... I see red. He can’t touch Harper. When I lurch toward the door, Eli catches my arm and shakes his head. He gestures toward the other stairway. Part of me wants to burst into that office and show my father what I’m capable of.
I’m not a defenseless child anymore.
Eli squeezes my arm and tucks his chin to look into my eyes. It’s not the right time. Fuck, I know that. We’ll take care of my father in good time, but today isn’t the day.
There’s anger in Eli’s eyes, but it’s banked. I’m not the only one who will stand in his way. She’s protected.
Drawing in a breath, I nod and follow him silently back to the stairs. We get to my room and everything is as I left it. Eli does a quick sweep for recording devices as I head to my closet and find the suit and shoes I need for tonight. I grab a few other things and put them in the garment bag.
Eli shakes his head to indicate nothing is recording in here currently. But we don’t risk it. I glance around the room that was a place to sleep, and that’s all. Except now, I see bursts of color and emotion splashed in my room.
Harper is everywhere. Where I fucked her against the door. The way she gave in to me. Wanted me. In the bathroom. On the counter. In my bed.
Watching her sleep on the screen gave me peace I didn’t know I needed.
Her sleeping in my arms is as close to home as I’ve ever felt.
When she was in this dark house, she was the only spot of warmth.
I don’t know if even her warmth could have survived in this place long, or if the cold would have frozen her too.
She gave me her warmth, her heart, her love. Every piece healed my broken soul. I have a long way to go before I’m fully healed, but she’s my home. My center.
This room means nothing to me. I blow out a breath and close the door on this part of my life. I may need to still interact with my dad, but my future is Harper.
He’ll never take her away from me.
We take the main stairs down. There’s no reason to avoid my father. I’m curious if the other man is still here. Would I recognize him if I saw him? My father won’t hurt me with Eli here. He despises witnesses.
That he thinks he controls me is ridiculous, but I’ll play into it if it keeps Harper safe. I’ve had time to cool down and review the words in my head. He won’t do anything to Harper. Not with our friend in her corner. Not with all of us protecting her.
He may be able to get through me, but he can’t take on all of us.
In anticipation of a confrontation, I give Eli my things to carry so my hands are free. I stretch my fingers. The rage has cooled considerably and I’m curious what the Feds wanted. FBI? Are they actually here for my father? His businesses? Or is it just a coincidence and he’s paranoid?
His office door is open. I won’t sneak through this house. My head is high, back straight. I’m ready.
When we walk past, it doesn’t surprise me when he clears his throat. “The prodigal son returns.”
I stop in his doorway and lean against the doorjamb like I don’t have a care in the world. He didn’t ask me anything, so I don’t respond. Just meet his cold, dead eyes.
Eli rests against the wall across from the door. He’s here if I need him.
My father taps his pen against the desk. Probably waiting for me to explain myself, but this is a game we’ve played before. I won’t cave first. If I do, he’ll perceive it as weakness. This has always been a game of chess.
Part of the game is knowing your opponent, and I know mine too well. He thinks he knows me. He thinks he molded me to be his perfect little soldier. But he didn’t take into account the boys I grew up with or the girl I fell in love with. They’ve made me so much stronger than him.
“Your sister is well?” He raises an eyebrow and leans back in his chair. He wants to control this conversation, and I’ll let him.
“Penny is fine.” I’m not about to tell him where we’ve been staying. He’d have issues with us both being at Caden’s. Maybe he already knows or maybe he assumes Penny ran back to her mother or to her friends.
My dad chuckles, but not with humor. It falls wrong from him. “That girl was always a mistake. Her mother...” He shakes his head, and the smile on his face isn’t kind. “She was persistent, but not the quality of woman I would look for normally. Especially to procreate with. Subpar.”
“Not like my mother.” The words come out unemotional even though they burn in my mouth. He doesn’t know that I know about her. The story he told me was she died giving birth to me. He didn’t tell me he was the reason.
His smile falls. “No. No one is like your mother. She was perfect. Intelligent. Rich. Cunning. It’s not surprising that your sister is... less than.”
His eyes get that hazy look to them like he’s seeing into the past. He doesn’t show any outward emotion though. Does he have any emotion when it comes to my mother? He could be talking about anyone or anything. He never shows what matters most to him.
Maybe there isn’t anything besides money and power.
I want to ask him if he’s the reason my mother is dead, but I don’t need the answer. I know it. In my heart. It’s why I need to get away. He kills everything he touches. Which is why he’ll never touch Harper.
“I’ve been able to spend more time with Harper.” I reach into my pocket and pull out the thumb drive. Tossing the plastic up, I catch it. “Being available more has made it possible for me to find some files.”
Interest shines in my father’s eyes. “Good.”
He doesn’t reach out for it, but I can see him eyeing the small object with desire.
I close my fist around it. “It would be easier if I knew what I was looking for. You said files, paper, digital, but what kind of files? Everything digital I find seems to be encrypted. Probably useless.”
My father’s eyes narrow on me. “Whatever files you find, you can bring to me. I have someone to go through them.”
I’m sure he does. Shrugging, I step forward to place the drive on the edge of his desk. When I step back, his gaze lifts from it. He wants it so fucking bad.
He’s hoping it’s what he’s been looking for, but we know it isn’t. It’ll take him a few days to discover that.
“You still have access to the girl?” He leans back and folds his hands on the desk.
My jaw clenches at him talking about Harper at all.
“Of course. But you knew that already, right? It’s not like you aren’t watching us and don’t know everything.” I give him a smirk that shows him I don’t give a shit. He knows we’re all with Harper.
If he’s surprised, he doesn’t show it. “Once you get what we need, I expect you to end it with her.” His gaze flicks to Eli. “It’s not like she doesn’t have other options.”
I rub my jaw like I’m thinking it over. “I’ll consider it, but I don’t want your sloppy seconds.”
His raised eyebrow is the only hint of his emotions. I expect him to come back with something vulgar about Harper, but maybe he doesn’t want to say anything in front of Eli.
I have a point to make.
“If you want Sidney Brown as part of the family, you can have her. I’m good finding a life partner who doesn’t think sleeping with my father is a good way to get back at me.
” I give him a smile to show him I really don’t care.
“Besides, she’s not really the kind of partner I need for the future.
I’ll have better luck finding someone at Harvard like you did. ”
The last bit is to appease him but also shift his focus from Harper. My dad doesn’t look happy with my declaration. He drums his fingers on the surface of his desk. It’s the only sign of his irritation with me.
“I’m sure she’s nothing compared to my mother.” I lean against the doorjamb and put my hands in my pockets. “I’m certain I’ll find someone who will truly be an equal.”
He knows I’ve got him there. Sidney may be on top here, but in the rest of the world, she’ll sink if she continues to behave the way she does. No one really likes her. She turned on her only friends. Everyone is either someone she’s using or someone who’s using her.
My father nods, eyeing me like he’s trying to figure out what’s going on in my mind. “Fine.”
He reaches over and finally takes possession of the drive, tucking it in a drawer before lifting his gaze to mine. “Enjoy the girl while it lasts, but I need what Sean Davidson took from me, or nothing will be safe.”