Chapter Fifteen
“Twelve million dollars.”
“How long are you going to keep repeating that for?”
“As long as it takes for it to sink in.”
“You had to know there was money in ranching. I mean, that’s nothing really. If I’d really wanted to make a killing, I’d have easily gotten another fifty to a hundred grand, but I just want this part over so I can start with the next phase.”
He looks over at me, his expression lost and bewildered, before he turns back to the road.
“You kept the land, the house, the equipment, and half the cattle and still made a fortune. Why couldn’t you tap into that when you needed it? In my experience, rich people rarely land in jail.”
“My father was supposedly dead, and even if he wasn’t, that man would never waste a penny on me. Not when he felt robbed.”
He frowns.
“The house, the land, it’s all part of my inheritance. It’s always passed to the females in my line; the husbands have no claim to it. The only time they have any measure of control is while they wait for the next heir to become of age.”
“So he had control of all this technically until you turned—
He hisses as if just realizing how dirty my dad is.
“He tried to screw you out of your inheritance. That was his plan all along, wasn’t it?
I couldn’t work out why a man who had this kind of wealth would not only fake his death but let his daughter take the fall, but it was for this place he thought of as his. It was all for money.”
“In essence, yes.” It took me a long while to realize that, especially after the whole wanting to marry me off thing. I guess my coming into my own early made him panic.
“There’s a little more to it.” I rub my thumb absently over my birthmark and find his eyes dropping to watch me. I quickly pull my sleeve down and fold my arms.
“But yes, with me gone, he had full control of this place, or the man he appointed did,” I say with air quotes. “They didn’t count on me escaping a murder one rap.”
His eyes close as his nostrils flare, anger riding him hard.
“He banked on you getting life.”
“I’m sure he’d have preferred the death penalty, but that would have come with its own issues.
When I turned eighteen, all the control of this place and the money it generated would have come directly to me.
He couldn’t have that. I overheard him talking to the old sheriff about marrying me off to a man he could control, who in turn would control me, and up until that point, I knew nothing about this place being mine. ”
“So it could have worked?” He asks, sounding horrified.
“I was sixteen, so who knows, but he made a mistake not just by talking about his plans where I could overhear him, but by telling me who he planned on selling me off to. If he thought I’d have lain down and agreed to wed my childhood tormentor, he had another thing coming.”
Of course, then my powers came in and fucked up his plans altogether, but I leave that part out.
“What I didn’t know until recently is that I had a second inheritance left for me.
I don’t know why. It’s not tied to this place, so even if my father had somehow wrestled this place from me, I still would have been a very wealthy woman.
Part of me wonders if he even knew about it at all.
I assume he would have fought for it if he did, out of spite as much as greed, but I can’t see how he would get his hands on it after effectively dying. ” I add in finger quotes.
Part of me wonders if the money was a secret for a reason.
Something left by Dorothy’s daughter, for example— the only one of the Hart women to break free from this place.
She alone would have known that sometimes freedom comes at a cost. She would have wanted her daughter protected, knowing what she might face.
The fact that she came back and found herself in a similar situation to the one her mother fled makes everything that much more heartbreaking.
He leans back, his posture relaxed, yet a wariness lingers in his expression.
“When he hears what you’d done? How will he react?”
“Oh, he’ll go postal, but here’s the kicker.
The whole world thinks my father is dead.
So he has to color within the lines he drew, or he’ll give himself away, and won’t that be an interesting deck of cards to play from?
The beaten child, framed for murder by the very man supposed to protect her?
The media would chew him up and spit him out.
Nobody would want to do business with him again.
He would be the architect of his own downfall.
” I grin, getting a kick out of the fact that he did this to himself.
“So why kill him? Why risk losing everything you’re trying to build here?”
“I like you, Riggs. I can see that, despite everything, you’re a good guy, but you’d be a fool to mistake me for one. I told you I won’t hunt him down, and I meant it, but when he comes for me, and he will, it will be the last thing he ever does.”
He pulls into the parking lot behind the town hall and parks. Turning off the engine, he leans toward me.
“A good man wouldn’t have the thoughts I do. I might not let my demons out to play too often, but it’s not because I don’t have any. It’s because when they’re unleashed, I have no control over them.” He kisses my forehead, his lips lingering for a minute before he gets out and slams the door.
I watch as he walks around the truck before coming to my door and helping me out. He reaches into the back seat for his hat and places it on his head before offering me the crook of his arm.
He leads me inside the bustling room. It’s so busy that we decide to stand at the back, listening to someone arguing about their neighbor’s dog, before I notice people turning in my direction.
I bite my lip and pretend not to notice until someone stands up and points at me.
“Murderer.”
Voices start to get louder as people begin cursing my name.
“You killed your daddy and Dale. How can you live with yourself?”
I look up at Riggs, whose body has gone rock solid.
“And I’m done already. Let’s go home and watch a movie or something.”
I ignore all the yelling and focus on the man who looks like he’s about to commit homicide himself.
He nods stiffly before leading me back out to the truck. We climb in and drive home in silence, Riggs fury palpable.
It isn’t until we’re back at the ranch that he finally finds his voice.
“They asked you to come.”
“Target practice,” I tell him with a soft smile.
“Fucking assholes,” he snarls, jumping out before coming around to lift me out, too.
“Funny you should say that, because it did indeed feel like I walked you in front of a firing squad.”
“I’m used to it, Riggs. Please don’t stress about it.”
The door to the ranch opens as Riggs turns to look at me.
“Don’t worry about it? I wanted to rip out their spines and snap them like glow sticks.”
“Aw, that’s sweet.”
His lips twitch at that, his shoulders relaxing a little.
“I’m gonna find a way to burn off some of this anger. I’ll catch you in a little while.”
He strokes my cheek with his thumb before he stalks into the house and strides down the hall to the back door.
“Why does he have to be so damn sexy when he’s mad?” I mutter to myself.
The house makes a humming sound in my head. “I know you’re judging me right now,” I tell it. Amusement touches me before I’m alone in my head once more. I fight the urge to go out to the barn and do some more potting, knowing I have nothing left to do out there, really.
Instead, I head to the kitchen, pull out my laptop, and start ordering things I’ll need. I don’t think about the amount of money I’m spending; I put it out of my mind, knowing it’s necessary.
By the time I’m done, it’s dark out, making me realize just how far down the rabbit hole I’ve fallen. I return Jen’s call because if I don’t, she’ll drive down and strangle me for worrying her.
“Hey, Jen,” I say when she picks up.
“New number. Who dis?”
I snort. “You are far too old to say shit like that.”
She gasps like she’s in some Spanish telenovela.
“Calliope Marie Hart!”
“My middle name is Elodie.” I drawl.
“That is not the point, and you know it.”
I grin, heading into the kitchen and pouring myself a glass of iced water. “I’m just teasing. You know I adore you.”
“Hmmm, you’d better. I found another gray hair this morning, thanks to you.”
I roll my eyes, but don’t say anything else.
“So what have you been up to? I’m assuming you were busy, as it took you ten hours to return my call. A call, might I add, that was answered by a sexy sounding man that I know for damn sure I didn’t order for you.”
“That was Riggs, and how do you know he’s sexy?”
“God wouldn’t put that voice in a weak-ass man. That voice says I’m going to spank you for being a bad girl.”
“Jen!” I laugh, choking on my drink.
“You didn’t deny it.”
“I’m not having this conversation with you.”
“Spoilsport. Anyway, I have things squared away with this David kid. Seems sweet, try not to break him.”
“I’m not you, Jen.” I remind her with a sigh, wondering if I should have opened a bottle of wine instead. I’ve not had the chance to really try much in the way of alcohol before, but Jen has this ability to make me want to pop the cork and chug it like a frat boy at a kegger.
“I’m just kidding. He’s smart. I like smart people, which brings me around to my next subject, Sheriff Shepard. I’ve spoken to him. He has suspended two of his officers pending an investigation. I’ll be keeping an eye on it.”
“I know. Well, about the investigation and stuff. He came by to tell me.”
She’s quiet for a moment, and when she does speak, I swear I can hear a grin in her voice. “Oh, really?”
“Yes, really. It was a professional courtesy.”
“One that could easily have been shared over the phone.”
“Either way, he came and said his peace, and now it’s done.”
“I’m sure it is.”
I don’t touch that comment; instead, I move on to the next.
“So, will you be around in the next few days? If not, I can come to you.”